Can You Save Me Duke? - 12

Lina closed the lid of the steaming teapot and looked at the duke. He was constantly flipping through the papers and playing with his pen.

‘You said I could rest today, but you suddenly want me to make tea.’

The duke, who said he needed her with a dark expression, thought it was serious. But he didn’t think the only thing he was asking her to do was make tea.

I was dumbfounded by his words, so I stupidly asked him back.

‘You could have asked other maids to do this kind of work.’

The duke’s attitude that seemed to have changed in the morning was definitely an illusion.

‘Haa-.’

Lina let out a sigh without anyone noticing, and tilted the teapot to fill the empty cup.

“Duke.”

Lina approached Belege with the tray and carefully put the teacup down.

“It’s hot, so be careful.”

The duke, who had been glancing at her, drank the tea with a graceful gesture. However, the duke’s eyebrows twitched as he took a sip of tea.

“Why does it taste like this?”

“What’s the problem… … .”

“It tastes too bitter.”

It seemed that the tea leaves had been boiled for too long. Lina took the teacup in front of the duke with an expression of regret.

“I’m sorry. I’ll boil it again.”

Lina emptied the teapot containing the hot black tea and began to improve the tea leaves again.

‘Will it be okay this time?’

The temperature at which the tea leaves are said to come out the best. Black tea brewed at the right time. Everything was perfect.

“Here it is, Your Majesty.”

But this time, she rejected it without even drinking it properly.

“Why does it smell like this? Is there something wrong with the tea leaves?”

“Huh? That’s impossible.”

The black tea served to the Duke was made with the finest tea leaves that ordinary people would not even be able to see.

She carefully brought her face close to the teacup. Judging by the fragrant tea scent tickling her nose, it must have been brewed well.

“Brew it again.”

“… … Yes. I understand.”

But what if the Duke asks her to brew it again? She would have to brew it a hundred times until he was satisfied.

‘Are you feeling bad?’

Lina took the teacup off the table and observed his face. The Duke seemed very uncomfortable, as if something unpleasant had happened in the meantime.

‘He seemed fine until this morning, so why is he acting like this? Did I do something wrong?’

Lina, who was thinking about her actions today, was about to pour the tea into the empty bowl.

While thinking about something else, she accidentally spilled the hot tea on her own hand instead of the empty bowl.

“Ah!”

She dropped the teapot, startled by the sudden burning sensation.

Clang-!

With the sound of porcelain breaking, the shards of the teapot still filled with hot tea scattered everywhere.

The luxurious carpet was already a mess with tea and broken porcelain.

“Ugh.”

Lina covered her red, swollen hands and looked around.

‘I’m screwed.’

The floor that had become a mess in an instant was dizzying, but there was an even bigger problem.

‘I said that teapot was something the previous duke treasured so much!’

The teapot she had broken was a tea set used by the dukes of the Permanence family for generations.

Cullen’s voice, warning her to be careful whenever she used them, still lingered in her ears.

‘If I make a mistake, it has to be on a day like this!’

She made a mistake that she usually wouldn’t make when the duke was upset. The timing was bad, but it was too bad.

When Lina was biting her lip, forgetting that her hand had been burned, she was worried about the future.

As expected, the surprised Duke was approaching her with angry steps.

“What the heck is this-!”

Lina tightly shut her eyes at the Duke’s voice mentioned above.

“I’m sorry, Duke. I made a mistake… … .”

As she knelt down and begged, the Duke’s brow furrowed even deeper. Looking at the man’s face, Lina let out a silent scream.

‘I think you’re really angry… … . Let’s at least clean up the broken pieces.’

If the Duke’s body was injured by the broken pieces, things could get worse. Thinking that, Lina reached out her arm toward the broken pieces.

Thump-.

Beleg, who had been silently watching Lina’s actions, grabbed her wrist.

“Ugh.”

“What are you doing?”

Beleg, who had come close, muttered.

“I should clean this up quickly… … .”

The duke, who had been looking down at her with an expression that seemed to dislike something, glanced at Lina’s reddened hand.

“Like this now?”

A breath tickled her cheek. Lina suddenly took a deep breath as Belige grabbed her hand.

‘It seems too close.’

The presence of the man who had come close to her back made her whole body tense. Lina carefully turned her head and glanced at the duke.

The duke, who was examining the wound on her hand, looked angry for some reason, but also seemed worried.

‘Why?’

He should have been angry at her and scolded her. But with that expression, did he mistake her for a child who had fallen on the street?

Beleg seemed to be saying something, but the words wouldn’t come into her head.

‘Are you really worried about me…?’

Lina looked at the duke blankly.

“Lina.”

Lina’s eyes, which had been staring at the duke, met Belge’s.

Thump-!

Lina, startled by the sudden meeting of eyes, shook his hand away.

“I, I’m sorry. Th, that.”

Belige’s hand lost its place in the air. She stuttered, flustered by her unintentional act of ignoring the duke’s kindness.

“… … I’ll call someone here, so go to the infirmary.”

“… … Yes, Duke.”

Lina stood up from her seat with a timid gesture. Then, without even meeting the duke’s eyes, she ran out of the room.

Alone in the office, Beleg blankly looked down at the hand the maid had shaken off. The image of her roughly pushing away as if she didn’t want to be touched lingered in his mind.

‘Everything bothers me.’

For some reason, Bellige felt depressed and pulled the rope. Then, Cullen, who came in shortly after, looked at the floor with a blank expression.

“Your Majesty. What the… … .”

Cullen seemed to be saying something as he picked up the broken pieces of porcelain one by one, but it just brushed past his ear.

Bellige soon sat down again as if nothing had happened and began to work on the piled up work. However, soon after, the nib that had been fluttering its elegant writing stopped again.

[I went out to dig up herbs because my colleague was injured… … .]

Suddenly, the incident in the forest where I first encountered Lina flashed through my mind.

“Cullen.”

“Yes. Your Majesty.”

Cullen answered after quickly tidying up the room.

“What did Hans do then?”

“Yes?”

“The guy who refused treatment to certain maids and servants.”

“Since the Duke didn’t say anything, I just gave him a simple warning and let it go.”

“A simple warning.”

Lina’s past infirmary, wandering through the forest without receiving any medicine, came to mind. She started to feel nervous when she thought that she might be refused treatment this time too.

Belige got up from her seat.

“I’ll go out for a bit.”

he was planning to go to the infirmary and give Hans a proper warning and check if Lina was being treated properly.

Belige’s pace quickened, thinking that time was already running out.

* * *

“Why is your face so hot?”

Lina put her hands on her cheeks and hurried her pace. It seemed that the hot water had splashed on her face. Looking at her cheeks burning like this.

“Ugh.”

The pain that I hadn’t felt until a moment ago because I was out of my mind was slowly rising. When I looked at my hand, my skin was redder than before.

“This much of a wound would have healed quickly. But since there are people watching, I should get treatment.”

She thought she should get treatment quickly and clean the  office, so she hurried her steps.

Knock knock- .

“Is there anyone?”

It was fortunate that no one was there. If she had met Hans, it would have been obvious that they would only argue.

“Lina?”

“Henry?”

However, Hans, who was supposed to be there, was nowhere to be seen, and Henry was greeting her.

“Why are you in the infirmary? Where are you hurt?”

“My father hurt his back, so I came to get some medicine. What’s wrong with you?”

“I hurt my hand a little.”

“What? let me Take a look.”

Henry approached her and examined Lina’s hand.

“Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to be a big burn? “Is it okay if I just apply some medicine?”

“Really?”

Henry started searching through the drawers to find the medicine.

“How did this happen?”

“I was making tea.”

“Tea? You’d make a mistake like that.”

Henry shook his head, snorting.

“That’s right, on a day like today.”

But Henry didn’t hear her mumbling quietly, so he started talking about something else.

“But the Duke seemed a little angry earlier.”

“The Duke?”

Henry, who had stopped looking for the medicine and was scratching his head, trailed off.

“I think the Duke doesn’t like me being with you… … .”

“What? That can’t be.”

“No. I told you the look in his eyes was really scary earlier. I thought he had just killed someone.”

Lina shook her head and laughed in vain at his frightened words.

“You must have mistaken.”

“A mistaken?”

“Of course. The Duke saw you for the first time, so there’s no reason for him to have negative feelings toward you.”

Henry let out a breath, relieved by Lina’s words.

“Come here. I’ll apply some medicine for you.”

Henry found the medicine and bandage and called Lina, shaking in his hand.

“I can do it by myself.”

“Okay. Come quickly before Hans comes and says something again.”

Lina approached Henry. Then Henry skillfully applied medicine to the wound and

He wrapped the cloth.

“But wasn’t it your day off today?”

“I thought so too, but I guess not.”

“What? Where did that say?”

“That’s right.”

Henry smiled proudly as if he had finished his treatment.

“I’m done.”

Lina carefully examined her bandaged hand.

“Thank you, I have to go to the Duke right away.”

“It’s not a big injury, but don’t overdo it for the time being!”

Lina smiled faintly at Henry’s words and got up from her seat. And before the door to the infirmary opened, a shadow that had been there quietly disappeared.

“Who was there?”

Lina tilted her head at the strange presence she felt and hurried to the Duke’s room.