123 - I Got Engaged to a Blind Duke
My heart was pounding so hard it ached.
Marin squeezed her eyes shut, her face flushed.
Don't look. Don't think.
"Asleep?"
"Yes."
"To talk in your sleep, my fiancée is quite talented."
His voice, whispering in her ear, was terribly seductive.
What's with this Duke, really? Did he eat something wrong?
Marin firmly closed her eyes and decided not to respond.
Gerald gazed at Marin's small face, her eyes tightly shut, right beside him.
He regretted not being able to see Marin's lovely eyes because they were closed, but he was pleased to be able to stare at her so openly from this close.
"Marin."
Her full, long eyelashes twitched and trembled, but did not open.
"……."
Her lips were pressed together so tightly that they protruded like a duck's beak.
What would it feel like to touch those lips? Would they be as soft as when I held her?
His dark eyes stared intently at her pink lips.
He couldn't tear his gaze away.
He felt like he could give anything he had, if only he could touch them once.
"……Marin, you have something on your lips."
His voice was terribly low and husky, even to his own ears.
Marin's shoulders twitched, and she stubbornly shook her head with her eyes still closed.
"Don't lie."
"It's true."
"How do you know when you can't see?"
"I always know everything, don't I?"
Believing his words, she fumbled in her bag as if to take out a handkerchief while still keeping her eyes closed.
"Let me do it for you."
"It's alri……."
Gerald gently pressed his thumb against her lower lip.
"……!"
He could see her body stiffen in surprise, but he couldn't stop.
"I'm your personal handkerchief, aren't I? Right?"
"A-Are we almost there yet?"
Marin's voice trembled.
"……Yes. It's not coming off easily."
His voice was deeply submerged.
Her pink lips were softer and moister than he had imagined. So much so that he couldn't take his hand away. No, so much so that he didn't want to.
He slowly traced her lower lip until her teeth lightly touched his finger.
"Ah."
Her voice, swallowing a moan as if surprised, made his Adam's apple bob.
He could see her white skin gradually turning red.
The sight was terribly stimulating.
Ha, I'm going crazy.
Her scent, which had been persistently tormenting him since they got into the Diamond Carriage together, was driving him. This was dangerous.
"There."
Gerald moved away from her as much as possible and knocked on the carriage door.
As soon as the Diamond Carriage stopped, he jumped out.
He was afraid of what he might do if he stayed in the same space with her any longer.
Gerald clenched the hand that had touched her lips tightly.
Wishing that the soft sensation of her that remained on his hand would last forever.
\ \ \
In the dining room of the luxurious inn that had been rented in its entirety, only the Duke, Dia, and Marin were present.
Marin sat at the farthest seat on the long table and glanced at the Duke as he ate.
The Duke was acting strange.
After suddenly jumping out of the carriage, he had switched carriages with Dia and was avoiding her.
He, who wouldn't let her stray more than five steps away from him, was acting as if she were a germ, keeping his distance.
Could it be? Marin cautiously touched her lips.
Was there something really dirty on my lips? Is that why it took so long to remove it?
How did the Duke even know about that when he can't see? How embarrassing!
Marin roughly cut a piece of steak and then sullenly put down her fork and knife.
"Aren't you eating any more?"
Dia, who was eating right next to her, raised her head.
"I don't have an appetite."
"Marin, eat more."
The Duke, who was sitting far away, said sternly.
It was as if she were a child throwing a tantrum about food.
"Yes."
Marin sighed and picked up her fork again, poking at the steak.
Ugh. You suffer instead.
Dia watched Marin take out her anger on the steak and suppressed a laugh. It was similar to how Garnet used to take out her anger on food.
"Marin, is something wrong?"
Marin glanced at the Duke, who was far away, and then whispered in Dia's ear.
"Dia, am I dirty?"
"Pardon?"
Dia's eyes widened as if she didn't understand what she was saying.
"Lord Gerald has been keeping his distance ever since he removed something from my lip—no, my face. What does that mean? He's avoiding me because I'm dirty, right?"
Marin drooped her shoulders with a dejected expression like a dog caught in the rain.
Dia trembled and pressed her lips tightly to suppress her laughter.
Marin was clearly older than her, but there were times when she was unbelievably cute like this.
"……I don't think so."
"No, he always used to say, 'Five steps,' next to me, but suddenly he's running away like that?"
Dia couldn't help but burst out laughing when Marin imitated Gerald's tone.
"Dia?"
Marin stared at Dia with a puzzled expression.
"S-Sorry, Marin. Ugh."
Dia wiped away the tears that had welled up in her eyes and tried to suppress her laughter again.
Marin tilted her head, wondering if what she had said was that funny, and then turned her gaze to the Duke.
The Duke also had a smile on his lips.
Marin stared at him in surprise.
Why is he suddenly laughing while eating?
Could it be, he heard us?
Marin blinked in surprise. And then, only moving her lips so that Dia could hear, she whispered.
"Lord Gerald didn't hear what we said, did he?"
"Whispering? How far is it from here to there? I don't think so."
Dia, who had also whispered, looked at the Duke with a doubtful expression.
Marin stared intently at the Duke with suspicious eyes.
The Duke was calmly continuing his meal.
Whew, he didn't hear us.
The Duke chuckled as he slowly cut the steak.
As if I would avoid her.
He was so anxious that she might leave him that he was trembling like this.
Crack. In an instant, the steak plate shattered.
He had put too much strength into his hand just at the thought that she might leave him.
The Duke placed a napkin on the plate to cover it up as if nothing had happened and drank his wine.
\ \ \
Unlike the journey to the capital, the road back to the west was smooth.
Because they had been cooped up in the carriage for a long time and felt restless, Marin and Dia came out to get some fresh air while the carriage stopped for a moment.
It had been winter when they were in the capital, but before they knew it, spring had arrived.
Everywhere along the road was filled with vibrant young sprouts and fresh spring flowers.
"Lord Gerald, would it be alright if we took a walk nearby?"
"Yes."
"Dia, do you want to come with me?"
"Sure."
As they walked arm in arm, the Duke followed slowly behind them.
He had seemed to be avoiding her for several days, but now he was back to his old self.
She had been bothered while he was avoiding her, but now that he was close again, that bothered her too.
Marin secretly sighed deeply. She didn't know her own heart either.
"Marin, was your ideal type your uncle?"
"What?"
Dia smiled shyly as Marin's eyes widened at the unexpected question.
"My ideal type was a more fun man, but Crown Prince is an inflexible, rigid type, right? He's the opposite of my ideal type, but what can I do? He's the man I chose."
Before answering, Marin glanced back.
The Duke was walking slowly behind them, leaning on his cane and keeping a slight distance.
Marin thought carefully about her ideal type.
"Um, I want him to be tall, have a nice voice, have a lot of money, be good at fighting……."
The more Marin spoke, the more a smile appeared on Dia's face.
When she glanced back, she could see the corners of the Duke's lips gradually rising.
Can he hear us from this far away?
"Most importantly, I want him to be as kind as my late father."
Dia looked back again with a strange look in her eyes. This might be a little different.
As expected, the Duke's face had already turned expressionless.
"Your uncle is also secretly kind, isn't he? Then Marin's ideal type is your uncle!"
Dia raised her voice on purpose so that the Duke could hear. And when she turned her head back to Marin, she couldn't help but be surprised.
Marin was frozen stiff as if she had realized something.
