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T/N: Today I’d like to thank my two repeat Cookie Donors, Anthony and Rich! Thanks for the sweets, guys~!
Why did Duke-Sama come into my room?
He’s literally the last person that I wanted to see me like this….
I’ve been moaning in pain for a while now… There’s probably no way he didn’t hear any of it, right? Somehow, it feels kind of like he’s gotten ahold of my weakness.
I must look terrible right now too. I was so confident that I would be able to become an amazing villainess! But look at me now….
My throat is still unbearably sore. And it’s so hard to breathe that I’m sure anyone in the same room as me would notice.
Plus my body hurts so much that I can’t move even an inch.
“Alicia, here. Drink this,” Duke-Sama says, handing me a cup.
Or at least, he tries to pass it to me, but I don’t have enough strength to lift my arm and take it from him.
How am I supposed to drink this exactly? I can’t even sit up straight.
Duke-Sama draws back the offered cup when I don’t make any motion to grab it.
I’m really sorry, Duke-Sama. I hope you understand that it’s just too painful for me to move right now.
I don’t hear any footsteps, so I know he didn’t leave, but he’s also not saying anything… I wonder if he’s mad?
The only sounds that can be heard are my labored breathing and gasps of pain.
I have no idea what sort of face Duke-Sama is making right now either.
But just as I’m thinking that, I feel Duke-Sama’s hand sliding behind my neck.
And before I can even feel surprised at his sudden touch, his face appears directly in front of me.
Even though my eyes are just barely open, seeing his face from this close I notice how unbelievably attractive he is…. Mmm, and he even smells great.
Then his face is drawing even closer and his lips are pressing against mine.
Hm–? As we stay in that position, I feel a cool liquid entering my mouth.
I try to make sense of the situation, but I’m so shocked that my mind doesn’t seem to be working properly.
What is happening right now?
I swallow the liquid, and slowly my body starts to feel more comfortable. Even my breathing is starting to come more easily now.
Josiah really does work fast. Now that I’ve felt its effectiveness firsthand, I can appreciate just how amazing it is.
…..And, now that I’m feeling better, let’s think about what just happened.
He put his soft lips onto mine…. and then fed me mouth-to-mouth?
Does this count as my first kiss?
…..Nah, it was on the same level as CPR… Just a lifesaving procedure, right? I mean, I was practically on the verge of death just now!
And if you consider my age, I’m still only 10 years old, you know. And Duke-Sama is 15.
There’s a whole five year age gap! So there’s no way Duke-Sama would have had any of those sorts of thoughts while he was feeding me the medicine.
I’m sure he was just being nice. He was just trying to help a little girl who was too weak to move take her medicine….
But… what if I’m wrong? I need to think this through calmly and rationally. There’s nothing more annoying than dense and thickheaded girls, so I can’t let myself fall prey to that inclination. I’m not some facetious heroine after all. So, let’s think.
I don’t think he would have saved me using that sort of mouth-to-mouth maneuver if I was someone he hated.
Plus, if he hated me, he could have gotten a servant to bring me my medicine instead of coming here himself in the first place, right?
So, does this mean that Duke-Sama actually likes me?
But, probably not in a romantic capacity, right?
…..If he really does like me platonically though, that would be a disaster.
I mean, Duke-Sama’s supposed to fall in love with the heroine! That’s part of his character setting!
So, if he likes me as a friend and still treats me well even after I start bullying her, then that would just be me bullying the weak!
And no matter how much a villainess enjoys harassing people, she would never lay her hand on someone weak and defenseless for no reason!
Speaking of which, the heroine should be attending the magic academy now, right?
By this point, Duke-Sama should have met her already!
I wonder if he’s fallen in love with her yet?
Though if he has, he probably wouldn’t have fed me using mouth-to-mouth, right?
My mind keeps going round in circles, questions popping up one after another. Since none of the guys ever seem to talk about what goes on at the academy, I have no way of knowing what’s happening right now.
“Are you feeling better now?” Duke-Sama whispers, softly stroking my head.
Eek! I feel like I’m dying for a whole different reason now. If he keeps acting like this, I feel like my heart is going to leap right out of my chest. But somehow, this time I manage to maintain my presence of mind.
…..And my fully functioning, no longer fever crazed head finally remembered something.
Noble boys are purposely exposed to low level poisons and bacteria when they are young so that they can develop antibodies for the weaker viruses and such that they are likely to come across.
So it was no wonder they weren’t worried about catching whatever I have….
By suffering a little when they are young, once they grow up they can take it a lot easier and don’t have to worry as much.
As I’m thinking about this, my attention once again is drawn by Duke-Sama’s proximity. He’s so close, right next to me.
When exactly is he planning on leaving, anyway….?
And I may not be sleeping at the moment, but I still have my eyes closed. I’m basically making a sleeping face!
I really, really don’t want him to be observing my sleeping face.
And the side effect of the Josiah is slowly setting in, making me feel sleepy. It seems that quick acting medication also has quick acting side effects.
And as I’m thinking that, I fall back into sleep once again.
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T/N: Good old Alicia. There she is. Dying. Having breathing problems. But she can still take the opportunity to smell a handsome man when he draws close to her XD I also love how she can think clearly and rationally about their sort-of kiss and still come to the wrong conclusion! Nope. She’s not dense at all~
On an unrelated note, thanks for all the congratulations in the comments section!! You guys are so sweet ❤
