I Snatched The Duke

Chapter 9. Pounding And Prickling In The Heart

She blinked and looked at him again. To be precise, he was ‘shirtless’. Heat soon rose to her face.

“…..”

The one who came to his senses first was Mihalis.

With his long legs, Mihalis strode forward and pulled the frozen Eliana inside.

Thud.

As soon as she was pulled in, the door closed.

“Kyaa!”

She let out a short scream. This was because, as soon as she was pulled inside, she instantly landed on Mihalis’ bare body! He had accidentally grabbed Eliana’s waist as she collided with him.

“I-I apologize.”

Mihalis hurriedly stepped back and apologized with a red face.

“I-I didn’t have bad intentions.”

I expected her to be light, but what kind of person’s body is like a sheet of paper… He stuttered until the end due to the embarrassment.

He never meant to hug her. He just wanted to quickly close the door because he couldn’t push Eliana out and show his subordinates such an embarrassing scene.

Actually, Iadis would have only seen Eliana’s back due to the position of his desk.

“I-I see.”

Eliana, unable to look at him, looked down at the floor and responded. Her heart seemed to be pounding harder because of the subtle scent of soap.

“Did you get hurt?”

“I’m alright. Can you put on clothes first?”

“Oh, please sit down for a moment.”

Only then did Mihalis, recognizing his state of undress, guide Eliana to the sofa in his office.

“Did I come too suddenly?”

Sitting down on the sofa, Eliana was able to calm down to some extent.

“I didn’t expect you to come and see me.”

Mihalis answered as he took out and wore a shirt from the closet in the corner of the office.

Every time he moved, the well-structured small muscles around his chocolate abs twitched. It was as if she was looking at a sculpture by a master artisan; it was a body that naturally attracted attention.

“By any chance, do you always do your work without your clothes?”

Eliana asked, involuntarily staring at Mihalis’s body.

“Please don’t misunderstand. I had just come out after washing up.”

Mihalis calmly answered the question mixed with subtle playfulness.

Like he said, he had not been able to properly wash up during their naval training. As soon as he arrived, he simply washed up in the shower room attached to his office and came out.

“What brings you here?”

Now fully clothed, Mihalis sat down on the sofa opposite her. He thought he would see her at their wedding… This was an encounter earlier than he anticipated.

“Your gift.”

Taking in a short breath, Eliana made direct eye contact with Mihalis who was sitting across from her.

This man already looked sexy just by breathing alone. But now, his slightly wet, disheveled hair accentuated his decadent vibe, and her heartbeat naturally quickened.

“I wanted to tell you that I received the gift well.”

“Ah.”

Only then did Mihalis recall the instructions he had given before leaving for their naval training, and gazed at Eliana again.

Her light sky blue dress, which nicely exposed her neck, suited her so well.

“Thank you very much. I will wear them well.”

“Then repay me.”

They were words he spat out impulsively without analyzing them in his brain.

“Yes?”

‘Crazy b*st*rd.’ [Mihalis]

It was clearly a mistake. Hearing Eliana’s question, Mihalis recalled what he had said and cursed inwardly. There really is no one as crazy.

“Now that I think about it… I need to practice dancing.”

There was no way to fix the words he had already said, so he had no choice but to move forward.

“Can I ask you to be my partner?”

Was the dance practice such a big deal? Did it bother you that much? Mihalis did not have an easy answer to the questions he was asking himself.

“Oh, then I’ll see you in two days.”

Eliana slipped away from Mihalis’ gaze.

He couldn’t properly see because he felt like he was being sucked into a deep blue swamp as he kept looking at those cobalt-colored eyes.

“Can’t you do it tomorrow?”

Mihalis had a bad feeling.

“Pardon, no. I have an appointment tomorrow.”

Eliana recalled Lord Terius, who was with her at practice today.

He was a comfortable partner to have. An hour of practice wasn’t enough, so she had asked him to practice again tomorrow.

“Is the appointment a dance practice?”

“Yes.”

The bride-to-be’s prompt answer was like a sword. Mihalis suddenly felt awful as he remembered the practice scene he had just seen.

“I only have time tomorrow. Cancel that prior appointment and go with me.”

Perhaps the ‘defense instinct’ engraved in the duke’s genes was activated.

“In any case, must I really be the one to work with you?”

“That’s right.”

Eliana didn’t know why this man was so obsessed with dancing all of a sudden.

“Then I’ll presume that you will cancel your prior appointment.”

“If that’s so, then indeed. I’ll do that.”

Eliana replied reluctantly, swept away by Mihalis’ forward-ahead attitude.

‘Why, are you as worried about dancing as I was?’

Eliana stared at Mihalis, whom she was unable to figure out at all.

‘What a strange man.’

[T/N: Oh my, is this the girl version of “Interesting…”? XD]

Looks like he was planning to devour evening high society…. Truly a very strange man.

***

The second banquet hall the next day.

The rich waltz melody filled the spacious banquet hall.

Eliana, who took a step away from Mihalis’ hand and gracefully spun around, grabbed his hand again.

“Was there really a need for you to practice?”

Eliana looked up questioningly at Mihalis who was leading her naturally. She thought he was obsessed with practicing because he was not confident in dancing at all, but his skills were so good that she wondered if he actually needed practicing.

“My body just remembers.”

Mihalis answered silently as he lightly supported Eliana’s back.

It was true. He learned liberal arts as a compulsory class to be a successor, but his practical experience was that he had reluctantly danced once on the day of his coming-of-age ceremony—only because it was necessary. His body simply remembered the repeated training back in his childhood.

“Were there any inconveniences during your stay?”

Gazing at each other for a long time, the conversation flowed naturally.

“No, everyone is friendly and the meals are delicious.”

“That’s a relief.”

He wondered if she had been eating due to her waist, but she said she liked them, so he had to believe it.

“Is there anything else you want or would like to do?”

“Will you grant it?”

Eliana stared at Mihalis, who was strangely kind today.

“Tell me.”

“I want to go outside the castle.”

Although her movement had not been restricted, the places Eliana could actually go were limited to some buildings and gardens in the castle.

No matter how wide the duchy was, it was mostly occupied by knights and soldiers. Not that anyone was particularly stopping her, but little by little, Eliana’s mental frustration was building up.

“…..”

Mihalis was silent for a moment at her unexpected request.

This was a time when a large number of outsiders were pouring into the territory as their marriage was drawing nearer. No one knows how many people with impure intentions would approach.

“By chance, is it not possible?”

Eliana, a little uneasy at the prolonged silence, narrowed her brows.

“I will send escort knights tomorrow. Go and come back.”

“Wow.”

Eliana smiled widely, feeling better at the answer of Mihalis, who was lost in thought for a while.

“Thank you, Duke.”

“…..”

‘Is she really supposed to shine like this?’

It was just a normal smile. Mihalis felt a bizarre prickling in his heart.

“I think that’s enough practice.”

He missed the beat by 3 seconds like a fool. Mihalis hurriedly ended practice, as if he had intended the mistake.

“Since you and I have worked together, you can’t practice with other people anymore.”

There was no emphasis on the things that kept bothering him.

“I see.”

“I will take you to your room.”

At the sight of Mihalis who was even going to escort her unexpectedly, Eliana placed her hand on his arm and thought.

‘I thought you’re just a blunt and cold black-haired character, but you’re unexpectedly kind too?’

That thought the next morning… Was mercilessly smashed into pieces.

***

“Attention!”

After excitedly finishing her preparations to go out, Eliana was horrified at the sight of the knights filling the first floor lobby.

“There are too many knights, milady.”

Even Amy, who was following Eliana, got scared and stopped walking. He said he would assign escort knights, so she vaguely assumed that it would just be one or two…

“Salute to Lady Aclera!”

Eliana, decked out in active streetwear, took the last step on the stairway. With a unified voice, the knights lined up in a row and shouted their salute.

“Defend!”

“Forthright!”

Eliana was deafened by their roaring cries.

“Greetings. I am Puellini Carlisle, the leader of the 1st Knights who have been entrusted with escorting the lady today.”

Eliana, surprised by the knights’ energy, stood firm for a moment, then a knight standing in the center stepped out with a stoic attitude and greeted her.

“It is an honor to meet you like this.”

He was a large man in a blue uniform.

“Ah. Yes, Sir Carlisle.”

His rock-hard thighs were thicker than her waist. Feeling intimidated by his size, she took a deep breath.

“Could it be that all of these people were entrusted with escorting me?”

“Yes. That’s right. The entire 1st Knights had been tasked with the lady’s escort mission today.”

‘No way….’

At the answer that immediately followed, Eliana’s mind went blank.