Your Grace, It Was a Mistake! - Chapter 18

A dark bedroom, dimly lit by the faint glow of a lamp. I stood on the opposite side of the bed from the Grand Duke, facing him in a standoff as I asked in an anxious voice.

“Grand Duke, are you really going to sleep with me?”

To my question, he replied as if it were no big deal.

“I’m only going to hold your hand.”

“I don’t believe you.”

As I tried to steal away by backing up, the Grand Duke stepped over the bed and strode toward me. Wow. Perhaps it was because his legs were so long, but he reached me in an instant. He pulled me gently toward him and spoke.

“I really am only going to hold your hand. Doesn’t that happen in the novels you wrote, too, Vivian?”

“?”

…? About ten seconds later, I asked in a trembling voice.

“What… did you just say?”

The Grand Duke, who had trapped me in his arms before I knew it, whispered into my ear.

“『The Empire’s Only Grand Duke is My Lover?!』, Vivian.”

Upon hearing those words, for a fleeting moment, my consciousness simply cut out.

If I wait with hope, maybe one day I can actually date the Grand Duke.

In the past, I truly believed that. The novels I wrote under the pen name “Bibi Rabbit” were projections of those desires. Things I wanted to do with him, places I wanted to go, dishes I wanted to eat, gifts I wanted to give.

The things I had built up while praying that my wishes would come true one day were my:

Dark history!

“Kyahhhh!”

I rolled around frantically on the wide bed. It was the Grand Duke who had moved me there. He was sitting on the edge of the bed with a delighted expression.

“That’s a more violent reaction than I expected.”

“Ughhhhh.”

The Grand Duke pulled me toward him as I lay limp like a squid at the edge of the mattress and said:

“Don’t be so embarrassed. Now that we’re actually dating, we can do everything you wanted to do, can’t we?”

Grand Duke, you’re enjoying this, aren’t you? I glared at him with an indignant face, but it was useless. He began to recite lines from my novel.

“You are my life, and my soul.”

“Argh!”

I jumped, nearly having a fit. The Grand Duke burst into laughter and spoke again.

“Shall we try another one? My lovely lady, I don’t want to be apart from you for even a second.”

“Uwah, stop! Stop it!”

I quickly covered the Grand Duke’s mouth. Truly, that mouth was a weapon of terror. With his mouth muffled by my hand, the Grand Duke’s eyes crinkled as he gave a broad smirk. It was a somewhat lewd smile.

Startled, just as I was about to pull my hand away, something wet and soft touched my palm.

“Hic!”

The Grand Duke had licked my palm! I pulled my hand back in horror, but he caught it immediately.

“The lines from the novels Vivian wrote,” he said, licking my fingers one by one. “I have memorized them all.”

“!”

Why on earth did you memorize those?! I protested tearfully, but the Grand Duke only chuckled, looking incredibly pleased.

“Ha, damn, you’re so cute.”

He pulled me into his arms and hugged me tight. I could feel his body heat clearly through my thin pajamas, and I trembled.

“I really will only hold your hand. Don’t worry. Okay?”

“…”

The Grand Duke coaxed me with a voice that was nothing but gentle. I knew for sure he was teasing me, and it was so annoying, yet I couldn’t bring myself to hate him. My only defense was a petty rebellion; I turned my head away sharply, pretending to be sulky.

Then the Grand Duke laughed again. I suppose everything I do is funny to him.

“Ah, cute Vivian.”

The Grand Duke rolled me up in the blanket and laid me straight on the bed. I felt a bit like a caterpillar.

But if he does this, he can’t hold my hand, can he?

As I tilted my head in confusion, the Grand Duke softly kissed my forehead, the bridge of my nose, and around my eyes while whispering.

“Goodnight, Vivian. I’ll sing you a lullaby.”

“Really?”

I asked with wide eyes. A Grand Duke singing a lullaby? I couldn’t imagine it. The Grand Duke smiled and lay down diagonally beside me.

“I can do anything for you, Vivian.”

He began to pat me gently while singing a low-pitched song. It really was a lullaby. A song my mother used to sing to me when I was little.

“Sleep well, pretty child, the moon will watch over you.”

It was a pleasant, deep voice. Somehow, my mind and body felt at peace, and a wave of drowsiness washed over me. Soon, I fell into a deep, deep sleep. Even in my dreams, I felt as if I could hear the Grand Duke’s singing.

“Mmm.”

In the morning, I woke up frowning at the sensation of something tightly constricting my body. When I opened my eyes, I saw a firm chest. I froze stiff instantly.

Gasp, who? Oh, right, I fell asleep with the Grand Duke.

The Grand Duke was still fast asleep. He had his arms wrapped tightly around my body and his legs entwined with mine from my hips down to my calves. It was a situation where I literally couldn’t budge.

“Nnggh.”

I struggled to push him away and escape his embrace, but it was no use. Is he really asleep? He was so strong that he didn’t move an inch.

Should I wake him up?

I hesitated. Looking up surreptitiously, I saw the Grand Duke sleeping with an angelic face. Smoothly glowing cheeks, long silver eyelashes, a straight bridge of the nose, a clean forehead, and the silver hair lightly covering it. It was a beauty bestowed by God. No, the Grand Duke himself felt like a god.

I forgot about having to get up and studied his face intently. How could he be so dazzling?

Come to think of it, I think this is the first time I’ve stared at him so closely.

I took in every detail: how thick and long his eyelashes were, how pretty the shape of his double eyelids was, and the curve of his lips.

That such a cool, handsome, and beautiful person…

…is my lover! And soon to be my fiancé? It felt like a dream. But all these events were too vivid to be a dream, so it had to be reality.

“Grand Duke.”

I made a secret confession with just the shape of my lips.

I like you.

In that moment, the Grand Duke’s eyelids seemed to tremble, so I clamped my mouth shut. After making sure he was still sound asleep, I whispered again.

I love you.

Aaaah! I screamed internally. To confess with just the shape of my lips and then be unable to bear the embarrassment; I was such a fool. I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart and squirmed in the Grand Duke’s arms.

He didn’t notice, right?

As I stole another glance at him, the corner of the Grand Duke’s mouth suddenly curled upward.

Huh? I froze like a block of ice. G-Grand Duke, did he just smile?

No way. Was he awake? No, impossible! I definitely checked to make sure his eyes were closed!

Soon, the Grand Duke slowly opened his eyes. Please, let him not have noticed my foolish confession. I looked at him desperately. When our eyes met, he smiled tenderly and spoke.

“Vivian, what did you just say?”

“Pardon?”

I replied reflexively and blinked. I didn’t understand the situation for a moment, but then it hit me.

My confession, the lip shapes, he saw them!

Uwah! An immense wave of shame washed over me. I struggled violently. I wanted to escape the Grand Duke’s arms right this second. But of course, my struggling was as trivial as a caterpillar wriggling in a hand.

The most I could do was turn my back to him. The Grand Duke hugged me tight from behind and pressed his lips to my shoulder.

“You should say those things out loud, Vivian.”

“Please, let me go.”

I grabbed his forearms, struggling to pull them away from my body. The sound of the Grand Duke’s laughter brushing past my ear felt like he was mocking me. I yelled out.

“You said you’d only hold my hand while we slept!”

Then the Grand Duke replied with an annoyingly relaxed tone.

“I untied the blanket after you fell asleep in case you were uncomfortable, and I certainly only held your hand while I slept; I must have hugged you in my subconscious.”

“It’s a huge relief you only hugged me in your subconscious!”

“I want to tease you more, but it’s late, so we should get up. We have guests coming today.”

My ears perked up at the word “guests.” Come to think of it, did he say he had put in a request to the Mages Guild in the capital so my family could travel comfortably to the Grand Duchy?

Teleportation magic, for three or more people… the cost must be astronomical.

Probably enough money to buy five luxury villas. Using that kind of money so casually made the wealth of the Grand Ducal family feel real and terrifying at the same time.

Am I doing the right thing? They say you shouldn’t wear clothes that don’t fit your station.

Just as I was starting to feel unnecessarily anxious, the Grand Duke picked me up and walked toward the bathroom. Dazed and lost in thought, I finally snapped to my senses.

Is he going to wash me again?!

My prediction was spot on. Furthermore, the Grand Duke insisted on doing everything the maids usually did himself. Thanks to that, I felt faint multiple times.

Grand Duke, have you forgotten that you are actually a Grand Duke?

The clothes I changed into after a simple—no, lavish—breakfast were so fancy my eyes nearly popped out. Sleeves decorated with layers of lace, pearl-colored fabric embroidered with gold thread. I thought such clothes wouldn’t suit me, but once I put them on, they looked very good.

Beside me, the Grand Duke nodded with a satisfied smile.

“For the jewelry, we’ll go with red diamonds. Bring them in.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

Red diamonds? Aren’t those incredibly expensive? Is it really okay for me to wear them? I looked at the Grand Duke with anxious eyes, but he only gave a beaming smile.

A moment later, a maid returned with a luxury velvet box containing the red diamond set. Necklace, earrings, bracelet, ring, brooch, and tiara.

My goodness… how much is all this worth? I stared at the brilliantly sparkling jewelry set in horror.

“Um, Grand Duke?”

“Yes, Vivian.”

“Is it really okay for me to wear these? I think they might be worth more than my soul.”

The Grand Duke’s eyebrows arched at my words. He replied in a quite dissatisfied tone.

“Compared to Vivian’s soul, these are less than dust.”

“Ugh.”

…I don’t think that’s true. I stole a glance at the Grand Duke. He picked up the necklace and fastened it around my neck. The red, transparent gems sparkled as they touched my skin.

“They suit you well,” the Grand Duke said, resting his hands on my shoulders.

I looked at my reflection in the mirror. Just as the Grand Duke said, the red diamonds suited me perfectly.

But it’s still overwhelming!

However, there was no time to feel overwhelmed. Next, the earrings, bracelet, and ring decorated my body one by one. The elegantly curved brooch was pinned to the ribbon of my dress as an accent, and the small, delicate tiara was placed atop my braided hair.

Dressed like that, I didn’t look like Vivian Lewis but like a princess from some country.

Wow. They say clothes make the man, but I looked like a completely different person. While I was staring blankly into the mirror, I heard the Grand Duke’s laughter. He wrapped his arms loosely around my waist so as not to wrinkle the dress and gave me a light kiss on the cheek. My face in the mirror turned rosy.

“Then I should get ready as well. Wait a moment while having some tea.”

I nodded obediently and sat on the sofa. The maids set a refreshment table on an elegant table carved from white marble. I sipped tea and stole glances at the Grand Duke as he dressed.

He put on a black shirt with a stiff collar and tied a blue necktie. It was a blue similar to the color of his eyes.

I can see his physique clearly even though he’s wearing a shirt.

The perfectly fitted shirt highlighted how beautiful his body was. I watched him as if enchanted. His silver hair, brushed straight down, just barely covered his shoulders. It suited the Grand Duke perfectly.

“I’m finished. Shall we go?”

A moment later, having finished all his preparations, he approached me. It felt as if radiance was pouring from his smiling face. And:

Grand Duke, white looks really good on you.

The Grand Duke was wearing a white vest and trousers made of silk fabric with a subtle sheen. It wasn’t a style just anyone could easily pull off.

It’s my first time seeing someone who looks this good in such clothes.

“Vivian?”

Perhaps I had been staring at him dazedlly, as the Grand Duke called my name again with a voice laced with laughter. I set down my teacup and stood up hurriedly. He was so handsome I was afraid to make eye contact.

He reached out his hand to me. As I tried to take it with my head bowed low, the Grand Duke pulled me gently and whispered in my ear.

“You can look all you want.”

“!”

I knew it. There was no way he hadn’t noticed my enchanted gaze.

I guess it’s really obvious that I like the Grand Duke.

I felt my face heating up. I felt completely exposed.

“When you look at me with that face… it makes me want to devour you.”

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