I Refuse To Be A Character In A Novel - Chapter 17

Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Jonas since breakfast, I should go and take a look at him before I fall asleep.

I had already gotten used to spending time with him everyday.

Now, I miss him whenever I don’t see him for a few hours.

Erna unconsciously smiled while thinking of her son.

He speaks so comfortably to me now.

We’re making a lot of improvement.

I wonder if he looks for me when i’m not around…

Maybe we’re not there yet?

Yawn~

Along with Rose’s fingertips that were gently pressing on her shoulders and neck muscles that had become stiff from hours of sitting in the same position, the scent emitted from the lit candles made her feel a peaceful drowsiness.

Despite her attempt to stay awake, Erna fell asleep without the chance to wish her son a good night.

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Under the faint candlelight, the Delaro couple laid intimately in bed.

“Did you have fun today?”

Ryan asked while fiddling with his wife’s hair.

“I did, actually. It was a great success for my very first tea party.”

Julia jumped from her seat as she exclaimed happily.

“The other ladies seemed to have a pleasant time as well.”

With short brown hair, and an overall ordinary face, she was not very noticeable.

But one could mistake Julia to be the most beautiful woman in the world if they witnessed her husband’s gaze as he listened to her.

“I even made friends with the duchess.”

“..The duchess?”

Ryan raised his eyebrows at his wife’s statement.

“Huhum.”

It was surprising enough that she was willing to attend his wife’s humble gathering.

The duchess he once saw when he once visited their house to report to the duke wasn’t exactly keen on making friends.

She didn’t seem like a person one would be excited to befriend either, yet his wife giggled like a child while telling him about her.

“Oh. Come to think of it, I still haven’t opened the gift.”

Julia left her place and put on a light robe to call for her maid to bring the gift.

‘Sigh. I shouldn’t have asked.’

Too late to regret, Ryan prepared himself to attentively listen to his wife chattering about her tea party and the duchess’ gift for the next 2 hours.

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“Oh!”

“M-madam”

Rose whispered in Erna’s ear.

Oh my god, she fell asleep like this…

She looks incredibly peaceful too.

I would feel bad if I woke her up.

What should I do?

Rose quietly left the room in order to call for Mielle.

She feared that if the duchess woke up while she was trying to flip her into a comfortable position, she would be angry with her.

‘She just recently started treating me comfortably, I don’t want to risk that.’

Knock-knock

“Mielle, are you asleep?”

Rose peeked into the room as she opened the door.

“What is it?”

Mielle answered in an annoyed tone as she was just about to sleep.

“The duchess fell asleep during the massage.”

Rose approached and lit the candle by Mielle’s bedside.

“So?”

“What do you mean ‘so’ ? She is laying on her belly with only a towel around her body.”

“Pffft. Haha. My poor madam, she must’ve been exhausted.”

“Come with me”

Rose grumbled and pulled Mielle’s sleeve.

“Sigh~ Alright, fine. We can’t leave her like that since she might catch a cold.”

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Late at night, as darkness filled the hallways of the Argentine mansion, only the small lamp in Rose’s hand lit up the hallway with an orange glow.

The two of them climbed up the stairs quietly.

However, before reaching the floor where the duchess’ chambers were, they heard faint voices drawing near.

“I’ll finish them tomorrow, sort out the ones about-”

Zachary slowed his steps at the sight of the maids coming into his view.

The butler who followed him did the same.

It was late in the night and aside from the duke who was working and the butler who was escorting him, everyone else should be asleep.

Zachary was about to walk past  the maids, but he noticed that they were heading towards the third floor.

Where his and his wife’s chambers were.

“What’s going on?”

He asked in a dull voice.

“Uh-I…”

Unable to withstand the duke’s dark eyes which reflected the flame of the candle, Rose unwillingly shrank behind Mielle.

On the other hand, Mielle, who occasionally came across the duke while escorting Erna, thought he wasn’t as scary as when she first met him.

Actually, he was quite friendly.

Or maybe not.

Looking straight into his eyes, Mielle erased that thought.

Perhaps it was due to the light of the candles that cast a dark shadow on his handsome face.