28 - I Got Engaged to the Blind Duke
Engaged to the Blind Duke - Episode 28
“So, attacking me is helping me?”
He asked persistently in a low, resonant voice.
“No. That can’t be.”
Marin shook her head quickly in surprise. Cold sweat ran down her back. She barely managed to resist the urge to pull the trolley back.
“You said it touches the body?”
“No, not me, something else. What that is….”
Flustered, Marin babbled and quickly lowered her gaze to the herb on the plate.
Yes, that.
She was about to continue when he cut her off again.
“You’re going to attack me with something else? A knife? A spy always uses a knife. Right?”
“Huh?”
Marin’s green eyes widened at his frightening words.
Marin gripped the trolley handle tightly.
Or else she might want to punch that handsome, annoying mouth.
“Are you admitting it now?”
The corner of his lips tilted crookedly.
“No. No. Absolutely not. That can’t be. I was wrong.”
She was going to be misunderstood again.
Marin shook her head vigorously, strongly denying it.
“What were you wrong about?”
He leaned back in his chair and asked leisurely.
“I think I was wrong about everything.”
Marin whispered with a dejected face, feeling upset. She was trying to help the Duke, but she was about to be branded a spy again.
“Ahem.”
That clearing of his throat sounded strangely like laughter.
She raised her head sharply, but the Duke was still sitting there with an indifferent expression.
“Your Grace, it doesn’t seem like the right time. Should I come back later?”
“Without helping?”
“It seems like Your Grace is misunderstanding… It’s not a knife or anything, it’s an herb.”
“Herb?”
“Yes, yes. It’s made by grinding flowers into a paste, and it has a cooling effect.”
“I don’t have a fever.”
The Duke replied nonchalantly.
“It’s also good for headaches, and people always have a slight fever anyway. It’s really good if you try it.”
Marin felt a sense of reality check as she spoke.
If the Duke’s eyes were visible, he would have looked at her with a ‘Where are you trying to sell me medicine?’ gaze.
“No fever.”
“Really, there’s nothing more refreshing than this in the world. They say that in other regions, people only use this….”
What if I’m selling medicine? As long as it heals.
“Imsi.”
He called her name in a low, warning tone.
“Please. Just once. Just try it once, and if it’s not good, I won’t do it again. Okay?”
Marin clasped her hands together and pleaded earnestly. Since she couldn’t make him eat it, she had to at least put it on his eyes.
“Haa, do it.”
“Yes. Thank you, thank you!”
Marin was so happy that she bowed deeply, then stopped abruptly.
Tch, this is all for the Duke’s benefit.
She didn’t know why she had to say thank you like this.
Marin pouted and spread plenty of paste on the cloth on the plate. She had deliberately brought a wide, thin cloth so that it could cover his forehead and eyes.
The Duke remained still, leaning his head against the chair.
She carefully approached him and lowered her voice to a whisper.
“Then, excuse me.”
The Duke nodded slightly without a word.
Marin held her breath and carefully moved the black hair covering his eyes and forehead to the side with her fingers.
The black silk ribbon covering his handsome forehead and eyes was revealed.
Marin looked at it with a pitiful gaze.
She wanted to take off the ribbon covering his eyes and put the cloth on.
But she held back, fearing that she would be called something worse than a spy if she said that.
“I’ll put it on now.”
Marin placed the cloth smeared with paste on his forehead and eyes.
Then, she carefully smoothed it out to prevent the paste from running down.
“Why are you putting it on my eyes?”
“It’s good to cool the eyes too. It’s a folk remedy. When you lower a fever, it’s good to take the heat out of the eyes too.”
“Does that folk remedy not say not to use it on people who don’t have a fever in the first place?”
“All done.”
Marin pretended not to hear the Duke’s words.
Just as she was about to straighten her back, the Duke suddenly grabbed her wrist. Her face was still very close to his.
Worried that her breath might touch him, Marin swallowed and asked quietly.
“What’s wrong?”
“Check.”
“Ah, yes.”
His red lips were right in front of her eyes.
He probably didn’t wear makeup like the young ladies, but they were a truly red and beautiful color.
Anyway, he was measuring her wrist size very carefully today.
Her back was getting more and more stiff because she was still bent over.
“The same.”
“I told you, I’m already all grown up.”
“Grow more.”
“Yes.”
She had to do as she was told.
She answered quickly because she wanted to straighten her back.
Finally, he released her wrist.
Marin quickly moved away from him and took a hurried breath of the air she had been lacking.
She thought she was going to suffocate.
She walked back to the trolley and picked up the fairy tale book.
“Today’s fairy tale is the story of the Grateful Crow.”
“Was there such a fairy tale?”
“Yes.”
…There wasn’t.
She had simply written it based on her old memories. She could see the densely written words she had written on the paper inserted between the fairy tale books.
She felt like she had become a grateful magpie, so to speak, as if she had become one with the magpie.
Instead, there were no magpies in this world, so she changed it to a crow.
Originally, it was a short folk tale, but the story, which included the protagonist’s various hardships and friendship with the crow, ended only after more than an hour.
“…Although the crow lied, the Count finally realized what the crow had done for him all this time. The crow, having repaid his kindness, soared high into the sky. And so, the Count lived happily ever after, forever grateful to the crow.”
Marin was moved by the fairy tale she had written and closed the book with a proud face.
The Count was the Duke, and the crow was herself.
It was a story written with the meaning that he should not kill her even if her lies were discovered.
Of course, the Duke didn’t notice.
The Duke was quiet, as if he had fallen asleep.
She had realized after reading fairy tales to him several times that the Duke seemed to wake up the moment she finished reading the fairy tale.
So, she was choosing very long stories.
The reason she had deliberately written the story she brought today so long was that she wanted the Duke to sleep a little longer.
She put the fairy tale book down on the trolley and picked up the pre-prepared wet towel.
She walked to the Duke, walking lightly to minimize the sound of her footsteps.
He was even more still than usual today.
Was he still sleeping?
Marin whispered in the smallest voice she could make.
“I’ll take the cloth off.”
The moment Marin carefully reached out her hand, the Duke’s hand quickly snatched her wrist.
“What is this?”
The Duke’s low, sunken voice was ominous.
“Yes?”
Marin’s pupils shook greatly in surprise.
“This herb. What is it?”
“It’s just like a weed that grows on the side of the road.”
Why was he suddenly showing interest?
Marin chose her words as carefully as possible.
“Is that the flower you ate yesterday?”
“How did you know?”
“Because it smells the same.”
Wow, a bloodhound.
Marin admired inwardly, but she didn’t let her guard down. He mustn’t find out that it was a poisonous herb.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“This is a folk remedy for lowering fever?”
The Duke asked again as if to confirm.
“Yes.”
“What’s the flower’s name?”
“The name is… Mandelesong.”
Marin hesitated whether she should tell him the name, then closed her eyes tightly and said it.
It was listed in the book of poisonous herbs, but she hadn’t fed it to him directly.
She had also heard from Yuria that it was actually a folk remedy.
Marin trembled inwardly and watched the Duke’s expression.
Would it be okay?
The Duke took off the cloth that had been covering his forehead and eyes himself.
Marin quickly handed him the wet towel she had prepared in advance.
“Would you like to wipe it off? I’ll wipe it for you….”
“I’m fine.”
He snatched the wet towel from her hand, roughly wiped his forehead and eyes, and threw it on the desk.
Marin took the cloth and wet towel and quickly backed away from him.
“Your Grace, then I’ll be on my way.”
Unlike usual, the Duke was sitting with a serious expression, frowning.
Marin felt like she was going to get caught in the crossfire, so she quickly pushed the trolley and left.
“Kay.”
“……”
Kay, who had appeared before the Duke, prostrated himself.
“Mandelesong. Investigate everything.”
