A Wise Life in Captivity with the Mad Duke - Chapter 10

“…What?”

How many times had I spaced out today?

Whenever I was around this man, my mind went blank. It probably meant I was getting flustered by him far too often.

“I want to hear it. You calling my name. Since I came here, no one’s ever called me by my name.”

Now that I thought about it, it was the same for me too. The duke was the only one who called me by my name; everyone else just called me Number 44 or ‘Noona.’

Feeling awkward at his somewhat deflating request, I nodded shyly. Calling someone by name wasn’t exactly a difficult task, so there was no reason I couldn’t do it.

Still, one thing bothered me.

“If I call you by your name, will you really help me whenever I need it?”

“Yes. I promise.”

The duke replied instantly, his eyes curving into a beautiful smile. Even if it was a lie, the words were sweet enough that I wanted to believe them, at least for this moment.

“Alright. Let’s do that.”

The deal was sealed, and without a trace of hesitation, the duke stood up and left.

After he was gone, I lay down on the bed and stared blankly at the ceiling.

‘So… does this mean I can order the duke around like a dog now? Whatever it is, I feel like I’ve become someone powerful.’

At the same time, I couldn’t help but think he seemed like someone starved for affection. To think he’d make calling his name a condition.

“Eden.”

Calling Duke Gray by his name for the first time felt so strange that goosebumps ran down my arms.

Still, even if it turned me into a plucked chicken, it was worth it. After all, I’d just gained someone with enormous power on my side.

At this point, even the director didn’t seem so intimidating anymore. Of course, whether the duke—or rather, Eden—would actually help me when I needed him remained to be seen.

***

After sleeping soundly for the first time in a while, I finished my meal and sat on a bench in the yard, soaking in the sun.

“It’s so bright.”

I didn’t like harsh sunlight, but a little exposure was necessary. Otherwise, a person could easily sink into depression. That was one of the things I’d learned firsthand during my years in the entertainment industry.

Rubbing my growing drowsiness away, I was enjoying a rare moment of peace when suddenly the atmosphere around me turned noisy.

‘Did something happen again?’

When I turned my head, I saw two people in front of the cafeteria, each wearing a dazzling crown and locked in a standoff.

One was a woman, the other a man, and both had red cloaks draped over their shoulders.

‘They must be nobles.’

That was the only explanation. Each of them was followed by five or six attendants, moving in perfect formation.

When the person at the front stopped, the rest halted too, creating quite the spectacle.

“I heard you were speaking ill of me after our meeting with the director yesterday, weren’t you?”

The woman, chin raised high, gave the man and his attendants a cold, scornful look.

“If you’re royalty, then act like it. If you can’t say something to someone’s face, you shouldn’t say it behind their back either.”

“Shouldn’t that be my line, Princess? Do you think I don’t know you’ve been badmouthing me during every tea time with the young ladies? Who was it that ruined my engagement prospects first?”

“Oh, my. Were there even any young ladies who admired you in the first place, Prince?”

Their argument was fierce, neither side backing down. They were close enough that I couldn’t help overhearing, but just listening to them made me feel like my energy was being drained.

Judging by the content of their quarrel, they were probably royalty—a prince and a princess from the same kingdom, perhaps. But why would people like them end up in a monastery like Modnaga?

“Noona!”

Right then, Joel spotted me and waved cheerfully. Normally, I would’ve just waved back casually and left it at that, but since I had a lot I wanted to ask him, I immediately motioned for him to come over.

Joel quickly sent off the people he was with and ran to my side.

“What? Got more questions again?”

Joel loved to talk, but he loved explaining things other people didn’t know even more.

That’s probably why he always tried to stick close to me. I was exactly the type of person Joel liked, someone who knew nothing about the monastery’s system, like a blank sheet of paper.

And since I was that kind of person, I needed the information Joel fed me. A perfectly symbiotic relationship.

“Who are those two? I heard someone say they were royalty or something.”

“Yeah. They’re the prince and princess who represent the monastery! They’re originally Number 1 and Number 2, but since they go into fits whenever someone calls them by the numbers on their tags, everyone just calls them that.”

“Oh… so they’re not real royalty?”

“Nope. Think of it as a roleplay. They used to be lovers, but then the prince cheated on her with another patient. Ever since then, they’ve been fighting every time they see each other.”

According to Joel, after their relationship had completely fallen apart, they’d been in a constant power struggle over who got to lead the ward.

‘In reality, neither of them has even the slightest connection to actual royalty….’

Apparently, those crowns and cloaks were children’s toys that the caregivers had gotten for them.

Still, the attendants following them treated them as if they were real royalty, serving them with utmost sincerity.

‘If I could gain those two people’s trust, wouldn’t life in the ward become a lot easier?’

Many of the patients truly believed the two were real royalty, and even the caregivers played along and treated them as such. If I could use that fact wisely, it could definitely work to my advantage.

So whenever I had free time, I made sure to gather information that might be useful for my future.

One particularly interesting thing I noticed was that ever since the day I gave Scott a drink, Eden had been spending much more time with him.

“I’ll drop by again this afternoon.”

“Alright, see you later.”

Just look at them now. I’d seen them paired together before, but never this often.

Had they suddenly become close? Or was I just noticing things I hadn’t paid attention to before because I was now more aware of them?

As Eden turned in the opposite direction from Scott, he suddenly paused, as if sensing my gaze, and looked down toward where I stood on the eighth floor.

Caught off guard by the sudden eye contact, I froze. Then Eden approached the railing and waved lightly.

“Hi, Rosetta.”

I looked up at him from the eighth floor to where he stood on the tenth and awkwardly waved back.

“Hello.”

“Did you eat?”

“Yes. What about you, Eden?”

“I did.”

A brief silence followed.

Even though our exchange was clearly over, Eden just stood there, smiling softly as he stared at me.

‘What’s with him? If he doesn’t have anything else to say, can’t he just leave?’

Somehow, ever since we made that deal, I’d been even more cautious, worried I might accidentally upset him. After all, if Eden decided to call off the arrangement, it would end right there.

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have agreed. It probably would’ve been easier on my nerves if I’d chosen to build ties with another caregiver instead….’

As my thoughts tangled, unsure what to make of him, Eden suddenly narrowed his eyes slightly and spoke in a gentle tone.

“Keep calling me by my name like that. I like hearing it.”

Smiling brightly, he left a short farewell and walked away without a trace of hesitation, just as he always did.

Left alone in the hallway, I stared blankly at the spot where Eden had disappeared.

“…What the hell?”

What was this weird, ticklish feeling?

Feeling awkward from the strange rush of emotion that hit me out of nowhere, I rubbed my arm.

***

The ward that had been calm for a while suddenly plunged into chaos again. Duris, who’d quieted down after being intimidated by Eden once, started acting up once more for some reason.

Unlike before, he didn’t even try to make excuses for his violent behavior this time. Instead, he seemed to have been waiting for Eden to appear, swinging his baton right in front of him as if on purpose.

‘Has he lost his mind from holding a grudge?’

I thought Duris was deliberately provoking Eden. That was the only way to explain the sudden change in his attitude.

But after witnessing Eden’s reaction to Duris’s behavior, I realized how narrow my understanding had been.

‘They say there are no eternal allies or enemies in this world….’

Instead of stopping Duris, Eden said softly, “You’re working hard.”

He even encouraged him and patted him on the shoulder in a friendly way.

Every time Eden laid a hand on him like that, Duris became even more full of himself, twirling his baton like he was dancing with a sword.

Because of that, we had to live every day in constant tension, like balloons tossed into a thorn field, never knowing when we might pop.

“This is worse than playing tag. I feel like I’m going to die of stress.”

After managing to finish my meal without entering Duris’s territory, I flopped onto my bed and stared at the ceiling.

There wasn’t much to do once I got back to my room. Without a TV or smartphone, all I could do was lie there and think. Maybe this was what it felt like to train your mind.

I’d always been a homebody, so I didn’t think staying inside all the time would be hard, but I was realizing the difference between staying in by choice and being forced to.

‘Now that I have Eden backing me, isn’t there some way to speed up my escape?’

I’d gotten him to promise he’d help me when I needed it, but he probably had no idea that I was thinking of escape when I made him say it.

If I were to ask him outright to help me escape, the plan would most likely backfire immediately. I’d end up under tighter surveillance, or worse, they might start drugging me to keep me under control.

Even if I somehow managed to escape the monastery, I’d still need a boat to reach the mainland.

Considering all that, there were countless possibilities to account for, and above all, I’d need absolute trust in anyone helping me.

Was that even possible between me and Eden? It had been an impulsive deal, and I couldn’t even say the word ‘escape’ around him without risking suspicion.

‘Forget it. I shouldn’t rush things.’

If I acted recklessly and got caught before I even tried, that would ruin everything. It was better to take the long way around, even if it took more time.

Besides, I needed to figure out just how far I could trust Eden and how much I could use him.

“…So when is he coming today?”

At the unconscious mumble that slipped out of my mouth, I jerked upright in shock.

“Wait. What the hell did I just say?”