As I opened my eyes, I found myself in bed. The uncertainty of what happened after losing consciousness gave way to relief— I was alive.
"Duchess, you've awakened! Let me quickly inform the duke; he was quite worried," a maid said, heading towards the door to summon the duke. Despite her advice to stay lying down, I struggled to sit up.
"No, there's no need for all this. I can manage," the duke said, rushing towards me. I refused his hand, determined to stand on my own.
"Has the culprit been caught?" I inquired, focused on finding the one responsible.
"Culprit? What culprit are you talking about?" he responded, seemingly oblivious to any wrongdoing.
"Are you out of your mind?" I retorted.
"What did you say?" he asked.
"You heard me. Where is the culprit?" I pressed on.
"Wife, there's no culprit. You had food poisoning," he claimed, causing my anger to escalate.
