In the office where the Duke had stormed off, Adelin leaned against the door, trying to calm her unsettled heart.
"I need to gulp down some cold water."
With her breath still ragged, Adelin eventually moved to the kitchen.
Despite drinking a whole bowl of cold water, the pounding in her heart persisted, shaking even the cup in her hand.
"Why can't I calm down?"
She furrowed her brows, squeezing her eyes shut.
In her darkness, the blood-red eyes of the Duke vividly came back to her, as if right in front of her. Even though it wasn't real, Adelin felt wrapped up in those eyes.
The trembling that started in her hands soon spread throughout her body, leaving her unable to stand.
The Duke, currently a kind and gentle Mel who had lost his memory, still made her unable to face those red eyes.
Because she had impulsively decided to cut his hair.
His red eyes, usually hidden by his unevenly cut hair, were always there, and Adelin knew it.
Why didn't she think of it? She had been overwhelmed by those red eyes before.
Adelin had always been anxious, fearing her impending death.
That's why she never ventured into social circles, avoiding anything that might catch the Prince's attention.
Perhaps due to this, the secluded daughter of the Duke's family gradually faded from the memory of the nobles.
However, there was one day she couldn't escape.
Her debutante ball.
It was an event that every noble in the central government had to attend.
While everyone tried to stand out, Adelin chose the most plain dress.
Her beauty was hard to hide, but the coldness of the Duke and her own indifferent responses helped her remain unnoticed. That was her plan.
It seemed like she would get through the debutante ball unnoticed until Adelin felt a piercing gaze directed at her.
"Is it the Prince?"
Unable to turn towards the intense gaze, Adelin looked away, only to meet another compelling stare.
Blood-red eyes, absorbing everything around them.
Adelin recalled her first encounter with the Duke.
The lies she blurted out in desperation to escape imminent danger. Now, the potential consequences of those lies seemed even more terrifying.
Just like at her debutante ball, facing the Duke's eyes felt like she couldn't move.
She couldn't avoid his gaze forever.
Feeling overwhelmed, Adelin remembered a way to partly hide those eyes.
Glasses!
Recalling the glasses she had put on him when they went to town, Adelin headed to the bedroom.
Maybe it would be easier with lenses between them.
Staring at the glasses on the bedroom table, Adelin's thoughts spiraled deeper.
She sighed heavily, feeling foolish for rushing to this villa relying on a single comment.
"To think I could ask that ruthless Duke to save my life in return for help."
Unable to even properly meet his eyes.
Reflecting on it now, it was a foolish plan.
Her family, the Dukes, did the dirty work for the royal family.
Regardless of the reason, the current Empress, who had ousted the former Empress, was close to her father, the Duke. Yet her family was diametrically opposed to the Duke's house.
Moreover, for the daughter of the Duke, a person of the royal family, to seek the Duke to escape a marriage with the Prince, knowing she might get hurt in the process.
Looking back, it was truly fortunate that the Duke had lost his memory.
Just as Adelin was about to leave the bedroom after finding the glasses, she seemed to remember something and approached the bed.
She reached under the bed and pulled out a box.
Inside the small box was the Duke's ring, bearing the seal of the Thorpeo family.
Relieved to find the item still there, Adelin sighed in relief.
It might have been a good idea to hide it in advance.
It was a seal she had hidden in preparation for the day the Duke's memory might return.
Although she had saved the Duke, he could have threatened her with a sword just like before.
Considering the Duke's impulsive nature, it was highly likely he wouldn't listen to her plea of being his lifesaver.
This ring, signifying the head of the family, was a slight insurance for that time.
The mealtime of the two was filled only with the clinking of utensils, devoid of conversation.
Breaking this unbearable silence was Cassis.
"Weren't we going to cut your hair after dinner? Are we doing it right away?"
Perhaps due to the constant tension, Adelin let out a sigh at the Duke's voice.
"It seems fine as it is right now. If it really bothers you, we can go to town and get it cut."
"How do you know without looking?"
Adelin, contrary to the Duke's hope of changing the atmosphere by cutting his hair again, showed a reluctance to do so.
Seeing her reaction, the Duke began to believe that she was indeed avoiding him.
Adelin's strange behavior was not just limited to cutting his hair today.
The day they went to town to buy clothes, didn't she suddenly put glasses on him?
Del saddened by the uncertainty of when his memory might return.
Del who abruptly put glasses on his face.
Del who cut his hair and then seemed to dislike his appearance, covering up his face.
Cassis, who had guessed a few reasons for Adelin avoiding him, could only speculate and couldn't ascertain the exact cause.
He continued to glance at Adelin.
Even now, during their meal together, Adelin neither made eye contact nor engaged in conversation with him.
Overwhelmed by frustration, Cassis put down his utensils and started to stare intently at Adelin.
Feeling as if she was being poked in the face by his gaze, Adelin still pretended not to notice and continued eating quietly.
"Del."
"Yes."
Even though she only responded to his call and did not make eye contact, Cassis mistakenly thought that Adelin was very angry.
"Look at me, please."
Reluctantly, Adelin lifted her head at Cassis's request, but as soon as she met his gaze, she quickly looked down again.
'I had given him the glasses.'
Still unable to face Cassis's red eyes, Adelin had handed over the glasses before the meal.
"Why aren't you wearing the glasses I gave you?"
Adelin responded curtly.
Although the glasses were meant to hide his presence, Cassis, unaware of the reason, couldn't understand why Adelin kept insisting on him wearing them.
Thus, misunderstandings continued to grow between them.
'Does she want to hide my face with the glasses?'
Recalling how Adelin slightly frowned every time she looked at his eyes, Cassis seemed to reach some conclusion.
"Why are you telling me to wear glasses?"
"Just because. I'll leave first."
But Adelin, having no real excuse, just wanted to escape from there.
It was when she was about to leave her seat, putting down her utensils.
Cassis rose from his seat and stood in front of her, blocking her way.
"Why can't you face me?"
"I'm just tired," she replied, still avoiding his gaze and trying to rise from her seat.
Cassis, grasping Adelin's shoulder, lowered his head to prevent her from avoiding his gaze. Closer.
Confronted with Cassis' red eyes filling her vision, Adelin tightly shut her eyes.
She felt as if her lies would be exposed under those penetrating red eyes.
Unaware of her reasons, Cassis thought Adelin shut her eyes because she disliked seeing him.
His irritation surged.
"Do you find me so repulsive? What have I done wrong? Or are you angry because I still can't remember?"
Adelin, at a loss under Cassis' pressing questions, just opened and closed her mouth, unsure of what to say. Then, she was shocked by his next words.
"Or am I so ugly that you have to close your eyes?"
"What?" she exclaimed.
Who could call the Duke of Thorpeo ugly?
Adelin, unable to believe Cassis' absurd question, inadvertently met his gaze, which she had been avoiding.
Oops. Quickly lowering her gaze, Adelin's head was enveloped by his large hand.
"Look at me."
His large hand firmly held her cheeks, preventing her from looking away.
"So why can't you look straight into my eyes?"
Unable to escape his gaze any longer, Adelin swallowed nervously.
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