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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: A Peculiar Taste
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Enoch Philippe de Hihart.
The man staring at me with an overly pitiful gaze was the only character in [Why Did That Duke's Daughter Roll in the Rose Garden] who didn't roll in the garden.
Instead, he went around causing a ruckus everywhere.
Fired for touching his body. Banished for being within his arm’s reach.
And a scene-breaker.
The highlight of a 19+ novel. He was the character who would invariably appear whenever *that* scene was heating up and ruin the mood, earning him a slew of nicknames, from “Enoch the Madman” to “Eunuch.”
*Ah. Wait a minute. Didn't I just touch him, too?*
Does that mean I’m about to be exiled somewhere?
I was seriously wondering if this was why the character Riana had appeared only in the beginning before vanishing without a trace.
“So. How was it?”
Enoch spoke to me.
“Pardon? W-what was?”
“...At this rate, you should really seek treatment. How much does one have to drink to lose their memory entirely?”
Enoch clicked his tongue in disapproval, the muscles in his brow twitching as he rested his temple against his large palm.
“You said it was your wish to pounce on me, did you not? You groped me to your heart's content, so I'm asking how it felt.”
*What? No.*
*I have no such bizarre and absurd wish.*
As I screamed silently, Enoch’s eyes curved into alluring crescents.
“Well. It seems you don’t remember this either, so why don’t you touch me again?”
“Yes! …I mean, no?”
Just as you’d expect from a character in a 19+ novel.
Mesmerized by the bewitching curve of his eyes, I slapped away my own hand as it moved forward of its own accord and leaned back as far as I could.
“You hate being touched by people.”
“I did. But I didn’t mind it from you.”
“Pardon?”
“I believe I said that earlier.”
As I fluttered my eyelashes, unable to keep up with the conversation, Enoch began to unbutton the shirt that was fastened up to his collarbone.
“When your hand touched me, it felt good.”
Pop. Pop.
As the front of his shirt fell open, my eyes began to tremble as if an earthquake had struck.
And at the same time.
I recalled the comments left for Enoch, the only character who never had a proper romantic scene in the entire 19+ novel.
Eunuch. Gay. And…
[You all know nothing. Enoch just has a peculiar taste. It's so extreme that the author is keeping it hidden.]
The comment struck me like a lightning bolt, and now even my hands started to tremble.
Just then, Enoch threw open one side of his shirt, baring his chest.
“Here. Touch me again. I want to experience what I felt before.”
An unusual line. Red-rimmed eyes. A proudly bared chest.
And the image of him wearing only gloves on his naked upper body.
A lightbulb went off above my head as I pieced together the various bits of information I’d gathered in such a short time.
*So his 'peculiar taste'... was* this *sort of thing?*
Fortunately, I didn't voice my thoughts this time. I cautiously began to gather myself.
“Ha. Haha. I see, so you enjoyed it. But, Your Majesty, I’m not feeling well today… Could I perhaps touch you later?”
“Hmm.”
At least he seemed to be a character you could reason with.
Enoch studied me for a moment, then nodded.
“Your hand tremors seem worse than before. And now the muscles in your face are twitching. It does seem serious.”
He began to button his shirt back up as he spoke.
“Riana. There is a renowned physician in the imperial palace who specializes in treating alcoholism. Shall I summon him?”
“Ah… no. I’ll handle it myself. Haha.”
It felt like I’d been treated like a patient this whole time, but…
For now, I decided I had to escape before this tyrant changed his mind and went on a rampage. I subtly rose to my feet.
“May I be excused, then…?”
“Yes. We can do what we were about to do later. You may go.”
*No? Whatever it is, I have no intention of ever seeing you again.*
I was already contemplating finding a smuggling ship the moment I left this place.
Enoch looked up at me with his arms crossed.
“Can you get back on your own?”
“Of course. I’m not a child. I’ll be on my way, then.”
I forced the corners of my trembling lips into a reassuring smile and hurriedly turned to leave the room, but I froze with my hand on the doorknob.
“What is it?”
“Um…”
*Oh, no. Where does she live…?*
After debating whether to just leave and ask the first person I saw, I slowly turned my head back to look at Enoch.
“?”
“Excuse me… do you know where my house is?”
“…”
Enoch fell silent at my question, then turned his head away with a mournful expression.
“Oh, dear… This is serious.”
***
“Ugh. Water, please.”
Floundering in my hangover, I reached out a hand, and a cold glass was placed in it.
I naturally assumed it was cool water.
“Pfft! What is this?!”
“It’s what you usually drink.”
“Who drinks alcohol first thing in the morning?”
I scowled at the scent of alcohol that invaded my senses before my sleep-addled cells had even woken up. I spotted a person with exotic features standing before me and ruffled my hair.
*Ah. Right. This isn’t my house.*
Looking at the maid who was staring at me with a puzzled expression, I vaguely recalled the events of last night.
“Well, he did a good job of getting me home, I guess.”
Even though he was the weirder one.
I crossed my arms in displeasure, recalling Enoch’s gray eyes as he had looked at me with pity and offered me his carriage.
Well, thanks to his kindness, I did make it home safely, so I was grateful.
But grateful or not, it was best to avoid a pervert.
“Ugh. I can’t get involved with him again.”
I shuddered, recalling the image of the wild-horse-like Enoch from the novel and the Enoch from last night who had boldly stripped and demanded to be touched. As I rubbed the goosebumps on my arms, I blinked.
“But… I think he said something as we parted.”
It seemed the alcohol had started to kick in again from the moment I got into the carriage, because my memory was hazy. I pressed my temples, and then a knock echoed through the room.
Both I and the maid, who was now handing me a normal glass of water instead of alcohol, widened our eyes at the unexpected morning visitor.
“What? Who is it?”
“I don’t know. There was no mention of a guest. I’ll go see.”
The maid placed the water glass in my hand and tilted her head, reaching for the doorknob. At that moment.
A seductively whispering voice echoed in my hungover, muddled mind.
[I shall visit you tomorrow. When we meet again, you must touch me.]
…Oh, my god.
With that one memory, the hazy recollections grew clearer.
I remembered everything, right down to Enoch's face as he had stood there, not lifting a finger himself, his gaze fixed temptingly on my fingertips as the carriage departed. I scrambled to block the door.
“N-no, don’t open it!”
“What’s wrong?”
I flapped my arms in front of the maid, who was staring at me with wide, confused eyes.
From beyond the door, a voice, far too pleasant for this time of morning, drifted in softly.
“Riana. I’m here.”
“…”
I clapped a hand over my mouth in shock. After a brief pause, as if waiting for my reply, Enoch spoke again.
“You promised you would touch me today. I even wore clothes that are easy to take off.”
*Excuse me? Sir? Why are you saying things that are so easily misunderstood in such a nonchalant tone?*
My jaw dropped as the lewd words assaulted my newly awakened ears.
To make matters worse, the maid in front of me was now giving me a disapproving look.
The kind of look one might give a shameless degenerate.
“So you finally went and did it…”
“N-no! It’s not me! It’s him, he’s the weird one!”
I blurted out in protest, then quickly covered my mouth, but Enoch hadn't missed the small sound.
“You’re inside. I’m coming in, then.”
Click.
The doorknob began to turn slowly, much like Enoch’s languid gaze whenever he spoke.
If the door opened, I’d have no choice but to comply with the demands of that tyrant with peculiar tastes. I tore at my hair in desperation.
Then, my wildly darting eyes landed on the wide-open window.
“Lady Riana! It’s dangerous, come down!”
No matter what.
I hadn’t even had my first kiss yet. I couldn’t become a sacrifice to a perverted tyrant in some unheard-of novel.
With a determined expression, I immediately climbed onto the windowsill, and the maid rushed over in terror.
Fortunately, the room wasn’t on a high floor, so the distance from the window to the ground wasn’t too far.
“You see that guy? The person outside the door is the emperor, okay?”
“What? His Majesty?”
“If he comes in and asks for me, tell him I’m not here. No, tell him I got drunk, fell over, and died yesterday!”
“What? What on earth are you talking about?”
While I was arguing with the maid, the doorknob finally finished its turn.
As a familiar silhouette appeared in the opening gap of the door, I leaped to the ground without a second thought.
The moment my feet touched the soft earth, I heard Enoch’s distinct, languid baritone from above.
“Where is the Little Marquess?”
“Well, that is…”
Even though I was causing trouble first thing in the morning, she was still my maid.
As I listened to the girl’s flustered but diligent excuses, I tiptoed away.
Just then, I heard what sounded like Enoch walking toward the window.
“Riana? Are you there?”
***
“Whew… That was close.”
Just as Enoch’s face appeared in the window, I ducked into a bush by a hair's breadth and clutched my chest.
*If I hide here for a bit, he’ll probably leave on his own,* I thought, shifting my position. Just then, the nearby bushes rustled.
At first, I thought he had already found me and shrank back, but then I caught glimpses of a child’s figure with each rustle. I whispered,
“Hey, little one. Go play somewhere else.”
*If you’re here, Enoch will spot you.*
However, despite my desperate wish, the child seemed to think my whispering was an invitation to play and began to clap and laugh.
“Shh! Hush, little one!”
Fearing I would really be discovered, I grew frantic. I decided I either had to send the child away or move myself. Parting the bushes to emerge, I saw the child’s face and blinked.
“Huh? Hey, kid, who are you? Why…”
*Why do you look exactly like me—no, like Riana…?*
