After I, a Penniless Noble, Entered a Fake Engagement with the Most Elegant Duke’s Daughter at the Academy, For Some Reason She Started Showering Me with Love - V2 Chapter 01.2: Alone in the Duke’s Daughter’s Room

Chapter 01.2: Alone in the Duke’s Daughter’s Room

“Oh? You’re here already?”

That was the first thing Yuri said when I stepped into her room in the girls’ dorm.

“…You’re the one who called me.”

“Well, it’s during class. I assumed you’d come after school.”

“As if I could show up during peak traffic hours.”

The girls’ dorm was a forbidden zone within the academy.

A sacred place. A hidden garden.

Plenty of guys probably dreamed of sneaking in.

No one actually did—because the consequences were far too severe.

So why was I doing something this reckless?

If I hadn’t felt guilty about my loose mouth yesterday, there’s no way I would’ve come. I seriously hated how I sometimes spoke without thinking.

Skipping class to visit her at least felt slightly safer than coming after school.

“Hmm. My maid told you I received proper permission, didn’t she?”

“She did.”

I pulled a chair closer to the bed, asked for permission with a glance, and sat down while recalling her exact words.

My brow furrowed.

“She said you bribed the dorm supervisor. And I’m supposed to just accept that?”

“Money and power are wonderful things.”

She didn’t look guilty in the slightest.

Maybe this sort of thing was normal for nobles. But to me, it just felt… wrong. Rules being bent because someone had money never sat well with me.

Part of that was probably because I grew up poor.

But more than that, I’d simply never lived in a world where problems could be solved by tossing coins at them.

“Does it bother you?”

“Hm? Ah… well, I wouldn’t go out of my way to do that.”

“I see. Then I’ll be more careful.”

Her immediate, straightforward reply caught me off guard.

Considering she privately owned part of the academy garden, I’d assumed she had no hesitation about using special privileges. 

For someone like her—a duke’s daughter—it was probably natural to be treated differently. 

Something to accept. Even expect.

Maybe she noticed my surprise, because Yuri gave a small, amused smile.

“Of course a duke and a viscount see things differently. But thinking I would deliberately do something you dislike? That’s unfair. No girl tries to make herself hated.”

“…Right.”

That… made me oddly embarrassed.

I found myself fiddling with my sideburns.

Saying she’d avoid it because she didn’t want me to dislike her—especially after that confession the other day—did absolutely nothing to steady my heart.

“Are you blushing?”

“I’m not.”

I turned away, but she only grinned wider.

“Cute.”

Heat rushed straight to my face.

I came here to check on her, so why was I the one overheating?

“For someone stuck in bed with a cold, you seem pretty lively.”

“It’s only mild. If it were worse, I wouldn’t have called for you.”

So she had thought about that, at least.

“In that case, shouldn’t there be something else you’re more concerned about?”

“For example?”

Yuri leaned forward slightly, mischief flickering in her eyes.

Through the small gap in her white nightdress, I caught a glimpse of soft curves. 

She looked energetic enough, but perhaps she still had a fever—there was a faint sheen of sweat on her skin, and a droplet slowly traced along its smooth line.

I tried not to notice.

This was the girls’ dorm.

A girl’s room.

That alone was enough to make me tense. And there she was, sitting on her bed in her sleepwear. 

I’d seen her in her academy uniform and in elegant party dresses—but this was different. 

This was something she normally would never show.

Even with the thick shawl wrapped around her shoulders, I couldn’t help wondering whether I should even be looking.

Yes, she had called me here.

That was my excuse.

Even so, it didn’t feel like something a proper lady should casually show a man.

Yuri let out a soft, refined laugh.

“You’re cute, dear husband.”

“Yuri, could you be a little more careful?”

“Don’t worry. I wouldn’t show this side of me to anyone but you.”

“See, that’s exactly the kind of thing—”

She knew exactly what she was doing. That was the worst part.

Being alone with her in her room was already strange enough. I really wished she wouldn’t make it worse. 

The maid who had guided me here was supposedly waiting outside, but she was so quiet I nearly forgot she existed.

“You know I’m a guy, right?”

“I know.”

Yuri simply smiled.

“…Right.”

All I could do was act indifferent. 

That was the only way I knew to resist her.

“But… was that really okay?”

“Okay? What do you mean?”

I tilted my head at the sudden shift in topic, and she clarified.

“Class. I was the one who asked you to visit, yes. But I assumed you’d come after school. Unlike the other students hunting for marriage prospects, you actually came here to study, didn’t you? So I do feel a little bad for making you skip class because of me.”

“Oh? So Yuri does have common sense after all.”

“I am practically made of good sense.”

“Wow. Listen to yourself.”

“This very mouth.”

She lightly tapped her lips with her index finger.

My gaze flickered there for a moment—those faintly reddened lips—and I quickly shut my eyes.

Stop making me notice that.

“Did I make your heart race?”

“It nearly stopped.”

Honestly.

“Skipping class wasn’t ideal… but I wanted to come when there weren’t many people around.”

I opened my eyes slightly.

She looked lively enough, but her pale skin was flushed, and her breathing just a little uneven. Her confident smile hadn’t changed, but it was clear the cold wasn’t an act.

“I was worried. That takes priority.”

“…Oh. Right. Yes. I suppose.”

Yuri’s blue eyes widened just a little.

Then she hunched her shoulders and pulled the blanket up, as if hiding herself beneath it.

This was…

“‘Did I make your heart race?’ was it?”

“Is it fun, bullying someone who’s sick?”

“Honestly? A little.”

“If I say I’m usually the one being bullied, you know.”

She puffed out her cheeks in protest like a child. 

I laughed at the sight—and immediately had a pillow thrown at my face.

It struck me squarely. A faint scent of flowers… and sweat.

Commenting on that would be—yes. Definitely crossing a line.

I lightly tossed the pillow back and stood from my chair.

“Are you leaving?”

For just a moment, I thought I saw loneliness flicker in her eyes.

So calling me here hadn’t just been revenge for yesterday after all. 

When you’re unwell, anyone would want someone nearby.

“What? You want me to stay until you fall asleep?”

She nodded with almost childlike sincerity.

So honest.

“I don’t have anything better to do, so fine. But I’m leaving before the other dorm students return.”

“Of course.”

She smiled brightly.

Whether she truly understood or not… who could say.

Still, being relied on didn’t feel bad at all.

And I could only shake my head at how simple I was.

◆◆◆

I caught a cold.

Not a severe one. 

By the third day, Yuri was completely back to normal. I visited her a few times, but at some point it stopped feeling like I was tending to someone sick and more like we were simply spending time together. It wasn’t that different from sitting in the garden.

The only real difference was that we were in her room, and a maid brought us tea.

…All right, that’s actually a very big difference.

“—Would you mind repeating what you just said, dear husband?”

And so, after some time, we were back in the garden having tea again.

The sky was perfectly clear, not a single cloud in sight. It was chilly, but still pleasant enough to sit outside.

And yet, Yuri’s mood was dreadful.

Actually, “dreadful” might not even cover it. The moment I made a certain suggestion, her mood dropped like an avalanche.

The ironic part? She’d been in a better mood when she had a fever.

Now she sat there visibly sulking, displeasure written plainly across her face. 

I let out a sigh and, as requested, explained myself again.

“I’m just saying… since it’s getting colder, maybe we should take a break from these garden tea parties for a while.”

“Why?”

“…Were you even listening?”

I already explained. Because it’s cold.

But how exactly was I supposed to persuade a stubborn young lady who had no intention of hearing me out?

Unlike the clear sky above us, the situation ahead looked nothing but stormy.

And my sigh only grew longer.