20 A Good Night's Sleep

"It is time to wake up, Your Grace. We have arrived," said Melva for nearly the fifth time already. How could Vance be in such a deep sleep when it was only a half-an-hour ride?

Mr. Horgan was holding open the door for them, but when he saw Vance asleep, leaning on Melva's shoulder and holding her hand, he quickly turned his back and gave them privacy. While Melva felt bad that Mr. Horgan had to stand by near the door to the carriage, waiting for them to step out.

What should she do to wake him up? He was sleeping like a log. There was no sign of him waking up anytime soon.

"I am sorry, Mr. Horgan," said Melva apologetically. "His Grace seems to be exhausted. You can leave if you want. I will wait here until he wakes up."

She could have just left Vance here and deprived him of her warmth so that he would eventually wake up late because he was cold. But he had been nice to her today, so she should repay his kindness before he made her owe him and used it against her one day.

Mr. Horgan nodded politely. "I will leave you two alone, milady. I will return later to park the carriage."

The coachman proceeded to close the door again and released the horse which drew the carriage to presumably return it to the stable for the moment. He rode the horse, the two wooden boxes tied to the saddle, and halted beside the window where Melva was sitting, bowing his head at her before leaving them alone.

It was now only Melva and Vance who still remained inside the carriage. She had stopped trying to wake him up, for it seemed to be pointless if the man was deep in his slumber. Thus, she decided to just wait until he woke up on his own, letting herself become his personal heater.

Seeing him deep in sleep like an unconscious man, she couldn't help but think k just how exhausted and sleep deprived this man was. She vaguely remembered him visiting her chamber late in the night to hold her hand. Had he been unable to sleep because it was cold?

However, not having one good night's sleep shouldn't cause him to be this fatigued. It must have been the curse's doing, affecting him more than it should. Depleting his energy until he was weak and powerless. And only her warmth could restore all that.

She should be glad to know that she was stronger than him in a way, but she didn't for unexplainable reasons. He was undoubtedly strong, but he had to rely on her for warmth, which made him not that much powerful in her eyes. Somehow, she felt bad for him, although she shouldn't when he was the one who had given Ichorhold no choice but to send her here. Seeing how pitiful he was like this made her feel like a bad person for depriving him of the warmth he needed.

If this secret of his was leaked to the public, everyone would definitely come after him. She didn't need to tag along with him for long to know just how many his enemies were. It was understandable that he found it difficult to trust anyone. It also made her curious about his past where he had implied that someone close to him had betrayed him. Living near the top of the social rank must not be as simple as she had thought.

For someone as distrustful as him, he dared to sleep in her presence. It was either he was overly exhausted that he was unable to bear his drowsiness or he thought she was smart enough not to try harming him in his sleep. The latter was more likely, because that was why Melva could go back to sleep even after knowing that he had entered her chamber.

"I thought I told you to wake me up when we arrive," mumbled Vance sleepily as he began to wake up. He straightened up his back to stretch slightly, his hand not leaving her.

"I tried waking you up and failed miserably, Your Grace," answered Melva honestly.

"Of course, that was the best sleep I have ever got after a very long time." Vance offered her a smile as he opened the door to the carriage for them. "Shall we?"

They climbed out of the carriage and walked hand in hand into the manor. Melva's gaze dropped down to look at their hands and a dreadful thought crossed her mind that this might turn into something bad if it went on. Vance could turn codependent if he kept holding her hand all the time like this.

They had to figure something out soon to remove the curse. But it was her only leverage for bargaining with him to save Ichorhold. She was torn whether she should help him or find out how to lift the curse herself and exchange it for freeing her town.

For the moment, she decided to pretend she didn't know anything and observe her surroundings. After all, today was only the second day since she had come into the Kingdom of Ethia. There were a lot of things for her to learn before making any moves.

Vance took out his pocket watch to look at the time. "It is already two hours past dinner time. I guess we are eating in my chamber then."

"Were you planning to take me to eat dinner in the dining hall?" asked Melva, pleasantly surprised.

She had thought she would never be allowed to go anywhere that was not his chamber besides her own. Although they were eating in Vance's chamber tonight, knowing that there was a possibility that he might take her somewhere else inside the manor was pleasing. It meant that she would not be forever stuck in her chamber.

"Yes. I have to keep an eye on Corbett. He is planning something behind my back and I dislike it," said Vance with a sour tone, his hatred audible in his voice.

Melva nodded in understanding as she recalled his conversation with Davis back in Silver Moon Tavern. "Lord Corbett is your step brother, right?"

Vance gaped at her as the answer was obvious. "Good. You were paying attention. Yes, he is my step brother who has been aiming to steal my duke title. I have to show him that he will never get that chance."

Lord Corbett was someone living in this manor and yet, she had never seen him at all since yesterday. The manor was so big that it was difficult to cross paths with people living in the same establishment. She was sure that there must be many people living in this huge manor, even if she had only met Elisha, Wilber, Mr. Horgan, and Vance.

Coincidentally, when Vance and Melva climbed up the stairs to go to the Duke's chamber, they stumbled across Lord Corbett and his company, who must be the guest Elisha had mentioned yesterday occupying her chamber before she had arrived here.

Lord Corbett had a completely different appearance from Vance even if they were step brothers. He had reddish brown hair and yellow eyes. No one would ever realise they had shared the same blood by only judging from their outer appearance.

The young lady who was accompanying him reminded her a lot of Rosetta who they had met earlier in the Crescent Light Forge; they had the same maroon hair and blood red lips, although this lady seemed to be less arrogant than Rosetta. Were they possibly sisters? That would explain Vance's dislike towards the blacksmith because her sister was Lord Corbett's ally.

Lord Corbett smiled cunningly as he spotted Vance and Melva walking up the stairs while they were heading downstairs. "Well, well. My beloved brother has finally awakened. Good to see you up and about, dear brother. I would be careful if I were you, though. I would not want to see you collapse again."

"Thank you for your concern, brother. I will pay attention to my health from now on, hence you will often find this lady to be by my side," said Vance with a sickeningly sweet tone that he obviously faked. He wrapped an arm around Melva's shoulders to pull her closer to him, as if he needed all the support he could get. "Let me introduce you to Lady Melva Winchell, who will soon be Duchess of Nightwind."

"Congratulations to both of you," said the maroon-haired woman genuinely. "Nice to meet you, Lady Melva. I am Rosina Harvey."

"Nice to meet you, too, Lady Rosina." Melva offered her a smile.

Lord Corbett clapped his hands excitedly. "Good news one after another! Congratulations, dear brother! When is the big day?"

"On the next full moon," said Vance straightforwardly.

"Great. We shall continue the conversation tomorrow. Join us for breakfast in the dining hall."

Lord Corbett and Lady Rosina continued to walk downstairs and turned right at the corner, probably retiring to their chambers. Vance and Melva were still standing in the middle of the stairs, engulfed in silence. He finally let go of her shoulder and held her hand again. She noticed his hand was trembling, but she was not sure whether it was because of fear or anger.

"Please let me sleep in your room tonight," pleaded Vance in a low voice, merely a whisper. After looking at her hesitation to answer, he quickly added, "I will not climb onto your bed. You have my word. I will only sit on the chair next to your bed and sleep while holding your hand. I need all the strength I can get to deal with Corbett tomorrow. Please."