The physician glanced back and forth between Nobert and Adam, gauging their reactions. When Nobert didn’t object, he placed the disinfectant, ointment, clean water, and a thin gauze handkerchief on the table and retreated.
As soon as he left, Adam stood up.
“Then, I’ll quickly treat it and come back. Please wait a moment, Miss.”
Adam roughly gathered the medicine on the table and bowed to Ariella. Ariella looked at him and let out a hollow laugh.
“Where are you saying you’re going?”
“…As a mere guard, I cannot dare to sit next to the Miss and His Grace the Grand Duke and attend to personal matters. If you allow me, I will step away for a moment to finish the treatment and return, but…”
“I won’t allow it. So don’t say strange things and sit down.”
“Ah, Miss!”
Ariella answered firmly and grabbed Adam’s hand, pulling him down. Adam, flustered by the sudden contact, uncharacteristically stuttered and was forcibly seated.
Nobert, sitting on the opposite sofa with his legs crossed elegantly, watched the scene quietly.
Ariella, unaware of the gaze directed at her, continued.
“How are you going to treat your face by yourself? Stay still. I’ll do it for you.”
Grabbing his hand was to snatch the medicine bottle he was holding. As a result, Ariella was now holding rubbing alcohol and a round ointment container.
“Yes? No, it’s alright! I can do it myself…!”
“Why, are you wary of even me? It’s been six years since you became my guard, so I think we’ve known each other for quite a while now. You’re still not uncomfortable with me, are you?”
Adam was speechless, only moving his lips.
Uncomfortable. If there was anyone in the world who made him the most uncomfortable, it would be his Miss.
But he couldn’t show this true feeling. He was too afraid of her face twisting in distress.
“That’s… not it.”
“Then stay still, Sir Adam. First, let’s wash it and disinfect it. I’ll try to be as gentle as possible, but tell me if it hurts too much.”
Adam stiffened like a stone as Ariella’s soft palm slowly cupped his chin.
The place he was injured was his face, specifically his cheek and lips. That meant…
She was going to touch his lips.
‘That can’t happen.’
Feeling his heart drop, Adam bit his lip.
He couldn’t. He absolutely couldn’t. A desperate resolution swirled in his head along with a sense of guilt.
He hurriedly pulled his face back, trying to get away from Ariella. That was his intention.
Until he made eye contact with Nobert.
The man with the picturesque appearance sitting across from him. The Royster Grand Duke he had so admired and… the person who was building an affectionate relationship with the Miss.
Seeing him clench his fist tightly while staring intently at him, a strange feeling suddenly began to arise.
Nobert’s posture, sitting with his legs crossed, was as docile as a well-trained beast, but his gaze revealed the ferocity of the wild.
Adam certainly knew what emotion was contained within it. Rather, it was so familiar that it felt almost intimate.
Perhaps because of that, the desire he had been holding back so well suddenly surged up. It was for that reason that he sat in the seat he should have refused and retreated from.
“Does it sting?”
“…It’s alright.”
The wound with the disinfectant stung, but Adam didn’t notice. Intoxicated by the desire he couldn’t suppress, he simply felt the gentle touch and affectionate gaze that caressed his face.
Beautiful violet eyes, surprisingly clear skin, a small, delicate nose, and a graceful neckline as elegant as a painting…
The appearance he had been trying so hard to ignore captivated his gaze. It was quite different from what he had seen when he faced her again six years ago.
She had grown up and become an adult, and even the feelings Adam had harbored for her had grown uncontrollably and changed into something else.
“Sir Adam.”
A soft voice called his name, and his green eyes trembled slightly.
“From now on… don’t do that like you did earlier.”
Then, soft fingertips tapped his lips as if testing them.
“I really hate it when you get hurt so helplessly because of me.”
She was talking about how he had passively allowed David to hit him.
As a knight of Bedford, Adam had no other choice, but Ariella couldn’t tolerate it. She couldn’t stand to see David or anyone else touch her people anymore.
Ariella, having applied the sticky ointment to all the wounds, slowly moved her eyes to meet Adam’s gaze.
Looking into eyes that seemed like lush greenery swaying in the wind, she smiled brightly.
“But thank you. For protecting me.”
Ariella didn’t know.
How complicated that word and smile made Adam feel. How much more the desire he had briefly indulged in tormented him.
Also, she didn’t even realize what Nobert, who was watching the scene, was feeling. She purely expressed her gratitude without realizing it.
“…It seems like the treatment is over, so I’ll be leaving now.”
Adam hurriedly stood up. His face was not clearly visible because he was bowing his head deeply, but judging from his demeanor, he seemed embarrassed.
Knowing that he was more shy than he looked, Ariella decided not to hold Adam back and bother him any further.
When she nodded, Adam quickly retreated, opened the door, and left. He seemed to be planning to stand and wait in front of the door as always.
