Danger.
Danger.
Danger.
Every instinct in my body was screaming danger.
Duke Ace de Rubius stood before me with the same face that had made half the female population of the Empire lose their minds.
Blond hair.
Blue eyes.
Perfect posture.
Perfect appearance.
Perfect smile.
The kind of man who looked like he belonged on the cover of a fantasy novel.
Unfortunately for him...
I had already read the novel.
And once you read seven hundred chapters of someone's mistakes, it became difficult to be impressed.
"...Lady Alice?"
I realized I had been staring.
Again.
Why did I keep doing that?
I immediately forced another smile.
Unfortunately, it was somehow even worse than the previous one.
Ace's eyebrow twitched.
"...Have I done something wrong?"
"No."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Why was this so awkward?
In the original story, Alice would have been blushing.
Giggling.
Probably reciting poetry.
Instead, I felt like I was attending a mandatory business meeting.
The Marquis stepped forward.
"Your Grace, welcome."
Ace finally looked away from me.
Thank heavens.
For a moment, I genuinely thought he could see straight into my soul.
And if he did...
I was finished.
Absolutely finished.
---
Dinner that evening was torture.
Pure torture.
The long dining table was filled with nobles.
Servants moved around quietly.
Silverware gleamed beneath the chandelier.
And directly across from me sat Ace.
Of course.
Because the universe hated me.
Every time I looked up...
Blue eyes.
Every.
Single.
Time.
At one point I accidentally made eye contact five times in less than two minutes.
Five.
I counted.
At this point I was beginning to suspect he was doing it intentionally.
"Lady Alice."
I nearly dropped my spoon.
"Y-Yes?"
The Duke tilted his head.
"I heard you suffered an accident."
My heart stopped.
The room suddenly felt colder.
Danger.
Danger.
Danger.
Everyone at the table turned toward me.
Even my father.
I forced myself to remain calm.
"It wasn't serious."
"You lost your memories?"
I nearly choked.
Who told him that?
Who?
WHO?
I slowly looked toward the servants.
Every single one avoided eye contact.
Traitors.
All of them.
Every last one.
Ace continued watching me.
Carefully.
Too carefully.
"I remember most things."
That wasn't entirely a lie.
I remembered the novel.
Which was technically something.
"I see."
His gaze lingered.
Longer than necessary.
Then he smiled.
"That's fortunate."
No.
It wasn't.
Because that smile looked exactly like the smile people made when they didn't believe you.
---
That night I couldn't sleep.
Not because of Noah.
Not because of monsters.
Not because of the future.
No.
It was because of Ace.
The Duke was suspicious.
Not openly.
Not directly.
But enough.
Every question.
Every glance.
Every smile.
He was observing me.
Testing me.
Comparing me to the Alice he remembered.
And that was a problem.
Because I had absolutely no idea how the original Alice acted around him.
Well...
Actually, I knew.
The problem was that I couldn't do it.
Imagine trying to flirt with someone you actively disliked.
Impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
I buried my face in a pillow.
"This is a disaster."
---
The next morning things became worse.
Much worse.
Because Ace wanted to go horseback riding.
With me.
Alone.
I stared at the invitation.
Then stared again.
Then checked if perhaps I had become blind.
Unfortunately, no.
The invitation remained.
The maid looked excited.
Very excited.
Far too excited.
"How romantic."
"It is not romantic."
"It sounds romantic."
"It is an interrogation."
The maid blinked.
"...What?"
Nothing.
Forget it.
There was no point explaining.
Normal people didn't understand the terror of being examined by the smartest character in the novel.
---
Two hours later.
I found myself riding through the forest beside Ace.
Wonderful.
Absolutely wonderful.
The weather was beautiful.
Birds were singing.
The sunlight was warm.
The scenery was perfect.
Which only made the situation more suspicious.
Ace guided his horse calmly.
"You seem quieter lately."
There it was.
A test.
I knew it.
Immediately.
The Duke continued.
"You used to speak endlessly."
I almost said:
Because that wasn't me.
Fortunately, common sense stopped me.
Barely.
"The accident changed some things."
A safe answer.
Probably.
Hopefully.
Please.
Ace hummed thoughtfully.
Then...
"Interesting."
My soul attempted to leave my body again.
What was interesting?
What did he mean interesting?
Why did smart people always talk like villains?
Just explain yourself.
---
Several minutes passed.
Neither of us spoke.
Then suddenly,
CRACK.
My horse froze.
I froze.
The horse froze harder.
A rabbit jumped out of the bushes.
My horse immediately panicked.
So did I.
"AHHHHH!"
The horse bolted forward.
I had exactly two horse-riding lessons.
Two.
The original Alice knew how to ride.
Ae Ri absolutely did not.
Which meant...
I was doomed.
Again.
Why was I always doomed?
The horse ran faster.
Branches blurred.
Trees passed by.
Wind hit my face.
I clung desperately to the saddle.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE TWICE!"
"What?"
Ace shouted from behind.
"NOTHING!"
---
The horse chose violence.
Pure violence.
A low branch appeared ahead.
Very low.
Extremely low.
Dangerously low.
My survival instincts activated.
Unfortunately, my intelligence did not.
Instead of ducking,
I screamed.
Which solved absolutely nothing.
The branch got closer.
Closer.
Closer.
Then suddenly,
Strong arms wrapped around my waist.
The world spun.
Everything blurred.
And before I understood what happened—
I was no longer on my horse.
I was sitting sideways in front of Ace.
On his horse.
His arm around my waist.
My brain immediately stopped functioning.
Completely.
Entirely.
Without warning.
The horse slowed.
The forest became quiet.
And suddenly...
I became aware of one thing.
We were very close.
Extremely close.
Dangerously close.
Too close.
Way too close.
I could hear his heartbeat.
Or maybe it was mine.
Honestly, I couldn't tell anymore.
"Lady Alice."
His voice came from above me.
Calm.
Annoyingly calm.
Unlike me.
Who was internally dying.
"Y-Yes?"
"...You truly have changed."
Oh no.
Not again.
His tone sounded different this time.
More serious.
More thoughtful.
And suddenly the fear returned.
The fear that someone might discover the truth.
That someone might realize Alice wasn't Alice anymore.
I forced a laugh.
A terrible laugh.
An embarrassing laugh.
"Haha?"
Why did that come out as a question?
Ace stared.
I stared.
The horse stared.
Even the forest seemed disappointed.
Then unexpectedly,
Ace sighed.
"...You used to yell at me."
"..."
"You haven't yelled at me once."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Wait.
That was what he was suspicious about?
Not my memories?
Not my personality?
Not my behavior?
Just the fact that I wasn't yelling?
What kind of relationship did those two have?
Good heavens.
No wonder Noah suffered.