TPECIAD 10

10. A Flower Resembling Her

Demon looked at the bowl in his hand and calmed his confused emotions. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt this way. She sometimes unsettled him in unexpected ways, and perhaps because of that, it left a deep impression on him and had a powerful impact.

‘Is this how it feels to be suddenly attacked?’

He had lived his life with outstanding tactics and incomparable skill, never once having been ambushed. However, just now, when he received the dish Elise had prepared, he felt as though he had experienced something entirely new. The moment he smelled the aroma of the food, his heart dropped, and soon after, he trembled with anticipation. After finishing the meal deliciously, his body grew warm and a light shiver ran through him.

‘The taste is the same.’

He had previously requested and instructed the chefs of the ducal household to recreate the feeling of his mother’s soup, but none of them had been able to imitate its texture or taste. Yet the dish he had just received from Elise was very similar to his mother’s soup. It seemed unlikely that she had ever tasted his mother’s chicken soup herself.

‘How mysterious.’

Along with gratitude, an indescribable emotion welled up within him. A warmth spread somewhere in his chest, while at the same time, a faint aching sensation followed. It resembled the feeling of longing for something, of wanting to see something again.

‘Is it because I’m thinking of my mother…?’

His emotions regarding his mother, who had lost her life because of him, were very deep and complex. He concluded that the swirling emotions within him were likely due to thoughts of her after a long time. Then suddenly—

‘This isn’t the time to be idly lost in old memories.’

Whenever his chest grew warm and he began to feel emotional, he habitually grounded himself in reality. Just like now. In fact, Demon had just returned after confirming something significant at the training grounds. His internal magical power had increased. It seemed that his mana had strengthened through his contact with Elise.

“Then that would mean she possesses a power that affects mana…”

The head of the Cremian ducal family had traditionally possessed strong mana. However, such power came with a drawback: if the mana exceeded a certain limit, it would go out of control. This was a major weakness of the ducal house and had been passed down as a closely guarded secret known only to a few. The loss of Demon’s beloved mother had also occurred because her first rampage could not be stopped. That rampage was his only weakness and a painful scar. As he grew, his mana became stronger, leading to periodic rampages. He could not allow anyone precious to stay close to him. He always had to be mindful of his mana levels. And during each rampage, because of that cursed “promise,” he had to feel as though he was beneath the feet of the cowardly imperial family. The only power capable of purifying and controlling dangerous mana was that of spirits. That was why the Cremian family had been searching for spirit-infused objects for decades, and at the recent family council, they had entrusted this critical task to a vassal family.

‘But a human possessing the power of spirits… I’ve never heard of such a thing.’

Demon called his aide, who was working in a corner of his room.

“Haime. Has there been any contact from Count Taylor yet?”

“Yes. Not yet. Could it be that Lady Elise truly possesses that power?”

“I cannot say for certain yet, but if the count succeeds in his mission, we may find out.”

“Then I will send a message to Count Taylor to check on the progress.”

Hearing Haime’s words, Demon nodded and fell into another important thought. His crimson eyes grew serious.

‘Strange.’

There had been no movement from the sorcerer. It was clear that, having been discovered using dark magic, they would try to use Elise more aggressively to achieve their goal—but a day had passed with nothing happening.

‘But it’s only a matter of time before it activates again.’

Within a few days, her body would once again fall under the influence of the curse. He needed to stay near her as much as possible to absorb the curse’s energy.

‘I should go to her soon.’

Even just thinking about her made it feel as though a fragrance was drifting from somewhere. A sweet rose scent.

‘Even earlier at the training ground…’

When he had embraced her to save her, he had also sensed a sweet, refreshing rose fragrance from her. As he recalled her silver hair flowing and her startled, wide-eyed expression in his arms, he felt a ticklish sensation somewhere around his chest. He wanted to confirm that she was safe as soon as possible.

“I will go see Lady Elise.”

Leaving those words for Haime, Demon left the room as though it was only natural for him to be by her side. Whether it was to prepare for the unpredictable activation of dark magic, or for another reason entirely, Demon himself did not know.

After giving the chicken porridge to Demon and returning to her room, my heart still hadn’t calmed down. It felt like my heart was malfunctioning—it kept beating rapidly.

“Right, it must be because I went to express my gratitude. Still, I hope he enjoyed it.”

Earlier, when he received the food, his eyes seemed somewhat sad, which lingered in my mind. Was it just my imagination that his red eyes looked even redder, as if they were moist?

“Maybe it’s because he had just finished washing up.”

“Just finished washing up.” My thoughts naturally drifted to how he looked earlier.

Ah… the shampoo scent was nice. His wet hair looked good too. And the way he held me when he saved me… and what he said…

“‘The longer and more frequent, the better.’”

“Ah! I’m thinking about it again!”

No matter how hard I tried not to think about it, it was useless. That phrase kept echoing in my head. The idea that I should kiss him for as long and as often as possible was enough to make my head spin. It felt like the vivid, fiery adult world was welcoming me with open arms. I collapsed face-first onto the bed.

“Ah… I’m going crazy…”

I even went out to get some fresh air earlier. Though, it backfired.

I had risked my life and fallen for him all over again. That said everything.

“Ah, and why does that line sound so cool to me…”

“The longer and more frequently you kiss, the better.”

Have I always been someone who falls for people this quickly?

I had thought I only sought him out desperately because he was the only one who could break the curse. Or so I had believed.

“But maybe that wasn’t it.”

His perfect, handsome appearance that made him hard to approach. Unlike that, his warm and considerate personality. His deeply attractive voice, his solid physique, and the way he worried and cared for me.

“And on top of that, he’s my savior.”

I had been captivated by all of those things without even realizing it. Moreover, his unexpected kindness and attentive nature made me fall even faster.

“Ha… what should I do now? I shouldn’t develop feelings for Demon…”

Will Roan just let me be? Should I run away? Am I going to die at Roan’s hands instead of Psyche’s?

A chill ran down my spine. At that moment, there was a knock at the door.

“Lady Elise, may I come in?”

It was Demon!

Why is he here already? Did he enjoy the food? Wait! My face must be red, right?

“Yes!”

In my flustered state, the door opened and Demon entered. It was strange. I had just seen him earlier after delivering the food at his room, yet even hearing his voice made me tremble.

This is bad! I think I really like this man.

He entered the room and greeted me politely.

“Thank you very much for the soup.”

“Oh! Did you enjoy it?”

“Yes. It was truly delicious.”

What a relief! I felt so happy I could float. Seeing his smile made me want to dance with joy.

“Thank you as well for enjoying it.”

“If you have no other plans, I would like to stay with you for the rest of the day.”

“Stay together…?”

My heart began to race without permission. No! Don’t get ahead of yourself!

“Since we don’t know when the curse might activate, may I continue holding your hand?”

Is it really okay to just hold hands?

Swallowing my inner thoughts, I nodded.

“Yes. Then please wait a moment.”

I hurried to the bathroom. After taking a deep breath, I checked myself in the mirror. Ah, my face—it’s overly pretty. And overly red. Huh?

“Gasp! It’s all showing on my face.”

To regain even a bit of composure, I took another deep breath and washed my hands with a solemn mindset, as if preparing for some sacred ritual.

I have no idea how the afternoon passed. I sat on the couch holding Demon’s hand, and thanks to Haime bringing over a pile of work, I ended up feeling like I was helping with the ducal household’s affairs as well.

‘At least this is a relief. With Haime here, my heart can stay somewhat rational.’

If it had just been the two of us, I probably wouldn’t have been able to breathe properly. Even the way he worked looked incredibly attractive to me. As he focused on his tasks, I could observe his concentrated demeanor, his deep, attractive voice, and his efficient way of handling things.

‘Now that I think about it, he’s my ideal type!’

I didn’t realize I’d become so weak. My condition: lovesickness.

‘At this rate, I…’

I feel like I might die. Whether due to the curse, Roan’s obsession, Psyche’s jealousy, or Demon’s overwhelming charm, it seems impossible for Elise to live long.

“May I step away for a moment?”

After finishing some of his work, Demon stood up from Elise’s side. The day had already faded into evening.

“I will stay by your side even while you sleep. The power of dark magic grows stronger at night.”

“Yes. Then I’ll get ready for bed as well.”

Giving her some time to be alone, Demon quickly returned to his room as well. On the way, he once again measured his internal mana.

‘It has increased, even if only slightly.’

It was clear that being beside Elise all afternoon had influenced him.

‘How did she come to possess such power?’

To Demon now, Elise was no longer just a maid of the ducal household. She was a member of the family to reclaim, someone to protect as the emperor’s concubine, and now someone who held the fate of both him and the ducal house in her hands. Moreover, she was someone who could recreate the food of his long-lost mother.

Whoosh. A night breeze passed through the window in the hallway. Beyond the window, the dark garden was visible. It felt as though her fragrance was drifting even from the garden.

Having a thought, Demon returned to his room and called for Jeremy. After a short while, he arrived at the guest room but stopped at the doorway instead of entering. Through the open gap, Elise could be seen sitting by the window, gazing outside. She seemed lost in thought, unaware that Demon had arrived.

“……”

Bathed in the moonlight, her shimmering silver hair sparkled as if she were not of this world.

“Mom… Dad… Jihun…”

Calling the names of her family while looking at the moon, she soothed her longing. Demon silently watched her for a long time.

The next day, Elise once again woke up in bed with Demon holding her hand.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. Thanks to you, I slept very well. I’ll go wash up.”

Even though it had already been three days of falling asleep while holding hands, she still hadn’t gotten used to waking up like this in the morning. The strange thing was that when she held his hand while sleeping, she truly slept peacefully.

‘I thought I’d be too excited to sleep…’

Each time, she fell asleep unbelievably quickly and slept deeply.

‘Maybe it’s true that absorbing mana into the body makes you sleepy.’

She recalled what Demon had told her. But when did he rest? He stayed by her side all night like this.

After saying he would go back to his room for a moment, Demon also left the guest room. After Elise finished washing up, a simple breakfast had been prepared for her. At that moment, Jeremy entered the guest room after knocking.

“Did you sleep comfortably last night?”

“Wow! What is all this?”

Following Jeremy, a large bouquet of coral-colored roses—matching the color of her lips—was delivered into the room.

“Is this…?”

“It is a tradition of the ducal house. Guests who stay for several days are gifted flowers from the garden that resemble them.”

Flowers chosen to resemble the guest? Was there ever such a romantic detail in the novel?

She couldn’t remember. It didn’t seem like such a scene existed—but what did that matter? Bathed in the morning sunlight, the coral hues shone even brighter, and the subtle scent of roses lifted her mood.

‘I was actually starting to feel a bit down last night!’

It felt like the flowers had perfectly read her mood and transformed it.

“By order of His Grace, these were given to you today.”

“Thank you so much. I actually wanted to go out to the garden, but I was too scared to do so.”

Elise smiled brightly. Demon, who had just returned, felt relieved seeing her smile. In truth, the tradition of the ducal house was a complete lie. Jeremy had simply prepared the coral roses in advance, as Demon had instructed, and delivered them with a smile that morning. It was Demon’s consideration for Elise, who could not leave her room due to the curse. Jeremy, being loyal to his master, executed the act flawlessly.

‘What if such a tradition didn’t exist? It can simply begin now for His Grace’s sake.’

For the devoted butler, it was not a problem at all. Even traditions that didn’t exist could be created from now on. It was still unclear what might happen that night. Perhaps another kiss would occur between the radiant guest who admired the flowers and the master he served.

‘May whatever happens between the two of them be as fragrant as those roses.’

With a satisfied smile, Jeremy quietly left the guest room, leaving the two of them alone.