Translator and Editor: Lea and Aki

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Chapter 10

“I know it would be lonely for you to stay here, but don’t worry, I’ll tell the servants to help you often.”“Pardon?”“Why, do you feel uncomfortable with frequent visits?”“On, no, Marquis. I didn’t mean it that way.”

When Ian asked earnestly, unaware of April being surprised, she replied in a low voice. But Ian replied as if it was no big deal for him.

“This place is only used when we receive guests. After a long time, Miss Quen is the only one who gave this place life. So be at ease.”

Contrary to what he said, the detached house seemed to be not so comfortable. She followed him, capturing the various parts of the house that would be used only by herself in the future. He led her to a big room in the corner of the hallway.

“This is the widest and brightest room on the second floor.”

The first thing in the room that caught her eye was a luxury canopy bed with white curtains hanging on its sides, which seemed like it could accommodate two people.

It was so perfect that she felt if she had lied down, she could fall asleep buried deep in it. There was a small table by the bedside for tea and a spacious closet on the wall.

“Is that the place for the garden?”

As soon as she entered the room, she stood close to the window and glanced outside. She could see the stone road in front of the house and the small lake beside, which she once walked alongside Ian.

There was, for some reason, something that wasn’t sitting with the situation.

“Yes, this place has a field too. The servants will guide you tomorrow.”“Thank you, Marquis. I think I’m asking too much.”“Not at all. Would you like to take a look around the lab too?”“Yes, sure.”

The laboratory was two or three times larger than the pharmacy.

There was a desk wide enough to hold enough tools of its own, and next to it was a row of empty bookshelves. Ian seemed to have expected that storage space would be desperately needed.

On the other side of the lab was a spacious sofa that was definitely necessary for a short break.

“I told them not to touch your research items.”

He pointed to one of the walls. There was a stack of pre-delivered items related to her study. They were piled up unorganized because of April’s request not to be touched.

“Is there any place that I can use as the office? I should be able to treat you whenever your fever rises, but I can’t go to your room.”“Ah….would it be difficult in this lab?”“I’m afraid it would cause a mess.”“I didn’t think of that. But I will arrange it soon.”

At the thought that April might have to be put into a room with him whenever he would face the symptoms, Ian felt his face heating up again. Half of it was because he was ashamed of his behavior.

But April, unaware of his innermost thoughts, tried to take care of every detail.

“And to prepare the correct medicine for you, I must know everything about your physique.”

As soon as she casually looked at him while speaking, April realized that he was quite embarrassed and closed her mouth. Ian was staring down at her with a stiff face, barely half a step away from her.

“If it’s my physique, there must be a specific part.”“W-What a strange remark! I just have to run some tests and show a prototype.”

As April, who got a bit flustered at his remark, started talking again, Ian nodded. She realized that she would have to meet him much more than she thought.

“Okay. It’s late today, please have a good rest. Your bath will be prepared soon.”“Ah, wait, Marquis!”

April called him in a hurry as he was about to turn around. Ian stared at her with his feet suspended to the spot.

“Would it be possible for us to stick around together all day tomorrow?”“Hmm?”“Well, it’s for the research, of course. I was wondering if I could study your lifestyle.”

April, who didn’t want to keep him waiting for long, quickly shifted her gaze away from him so as to give the impression that she would explain them to him the next day. Ian looked troubled for a moment but soon nodded.

“Very well, I’ll let Klaus know.”“Yes. I’ll see you tomorrow, Marquis.”

Ian bowed to her lightly before leaving the room. April gazed at him until he disappeared from her view and soon turned to her pile of luggage.

In order to adapt to the new environment as soon as possible, it was necessary to organize her surroundings quickly. She rolled her sleeves before opening the window widely to let the breeze graze into the room.

***

April was feeling tired as she fell asleep after she had cleaned up the lab late last night. She rubbed her face against a fluffy blanket, trying to savor her remaining slumber a bit more.

“Miss April?”

She wanted to sleep more, but she forced her eyes open at the pretense of someone calling her.

“You’re awake.”

A woman was smiling at her brightly. She had reddish-white skin, neatly tied blonde hair, a skinny body, and a tall height. The woman, who had many similarities with Dalia, was wearing clothes worn by a maid.

“Miss April, my name is Leonore. From today onwards, I will be serving you in the detached house.”“Oh, hello….Can you please tell me what time is it now?”“It’s seven o’clock. I’m here because you asked me to wake you up on time for your work, Miss.”

April slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes. She used to wake up at this time only, but since she was tired from last night, it was a bit difficult.

“Does the Marquis get up around this time?”“No. His Excellency usually gets up at six to train. Actually, I was here by that time too, but it seemed like you were sleeping soundly.”

Apparently, April had boldly declared that she would study him the whole day.

She felt stupid, remembering she had said such a thing like that. It was certainly difficult for her to change her routine in just one day. She wondered how she got up at six o’clock every day when she used to be in boarding school.

“I see, I’m late from the very first day. Is he still there?”“Yes. You can watch him for about thirty minutes only.”“Ah, I’ll be right there then!”

April rushed to the training grounds right after washing her face and changing her clothes. The cold morning air continuously hit her face as she ran away from her warm room.

“That’s a relief.”

Ian was still engaged in training. In line with his reputation as the best martial arts family, his weapon-wielding gesture, without any useless finesse, caught her eye. His slightly wet hair fluttered every time he moved.

“He wakes up at six o’clock, and trains for about one hour…..”

April muttered as she hurriedly wrote it in her notebook.

“You must have a lot to write about. As you can see, I am always busy.”

While she was busy noting it down, he approached her after completing his training.

April, who raised her head to greet him, swallowed her breath as soon as she faced him before pulling back the notebook close to her chest to hide its contents. Ian was just around the corner to look at her notebook.

“When did you arrive?”“I, uh..….”“Sorry to surprise you.”

He apologized with a condescending look. Perhaps it was because of the warmth of his body that the subtle scent grew stronger. His face was sharp, but his strangely drawn scent seemed a little dangerous.

“Let’s get going then.”“Ah, yes.”

As Ian walked away picking up the towel from the chair, April followed him, trying to calm her pounding heart.

After returning to his mansion, he took a warm bath before he called April to his room.

She was guided into his room by Klaus.

“I’ll be waiting downstairs, Miss April.”“Thank you, Klaus.”

It wasn’t the first time that she had met Ian privately, but it was her first time in his room. She was nervous at the thought of stepping into a space that no one had ever been in.

“I need to know your temperature, Marquis.”“Yes. I asked Klaus in advance and he got the best thermometer he could find.”

As April was entering the room, he finished putting a shirt on himself and sat down on his bed.

“It’s been a long time since my childhood.”“From now on, you will need to get your temperature everyday. I’ll be noting down the changes in temperature before the time comes. Also, I made a table.”

April unfolded the pages of her notebook in front of him in triumph. It was packed with dates and square boxes, and it was titled as a body temperature calendar.

“Let’s see……”

April carefully wrote down the scales on the thermometer Ian was holding. No matter how good the instrument was, the mercury level could roughly be measured, so she had to draw a scale on the thermometer for comparison.

“Well.”“Is there anything wrong?”“Excuse me for a moment.”

April, who was squinting her eyes and checking the scale, approached him. As the distance between them narrowed, a subtle scent of lavender from her tickled the tip of his nose.

The scent, mixed with her perfume, seemed to awaken the whole sensation. So he held his breath for a moment after he absorbed it.

“W-What else is left?”“Just a moment.”

April put one hand on Ian’s forehead and the other on hers, to compare his temperature.

Ian looked at her while she was concentrating. Her red lips were right in front of him and he couldn’t tell where to look. Feeling a bit embarrassed, he swallowed his saliva.

‘She’s too close.’

He didn’t want her to know about his agitation. But he also couldn’t ask her, who was doing her best as a benefactor, to back down.

“Ah.”

After a brief moment of silence, she withdrew her hand as if she had realized something.

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