By Zephyria 
“I just wondered if you’d changed your mind. Then it’ll be four of us, including you and me.”
“One more person is fine, right?”
“One more?”
As Cassian frowned at the sudden remark, Jeffrey replied with a grin.
“Yeah, a friend of mine. The more people, the merrier, right?”
He followed this with a wink. Cassian felt somewhat uneasy, but Jeffrey soon let out a loud laugh and gave his arm a playful nudge.
“Didn’t you say you wanted to spend a decadent and thrilling vacation? Why the sudden timidness?”
It was a very small, trivial provocation, but it worked. Cassian soon let his guard down and shrugged.
“I was just curious. Do whatever you want; I don’t mind.”
“Right, let’s play properly wild.”
As he spoke, Jeffrey raised his beer bottle as if making a toast before bringing it to his lips. After draining the rest of the drink in one go, he clapped his hands and gestured with his chin behind Cassian. When Cassian instinctively looked back, he immediately locked eyes with some women.
“Hi.”
To the woman who smiled and greeted him first, Cassian also softened his expression and replied.
“Hi, I’m Cassian. And you are?”
“I’m Kitty. This is my friend Vivi.”
After introducing her friend, Kitty tilted her head and asked.
“Are you a celebrity? I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere.”
Cassian gave a short laugh and shook his head.
“Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not.”
“Really? Then are you a trait bearer? An Alpha?”
At the following question, Cassian denied it again.
“Sorry, but no to that as well. I’m a Beta.”
“…Really?”
Just as Kitty blinked in surprise, the music changed. Cassian looked down at her and asked.
“Shall we dance?”
Instead of answering, Kitty took the hand he offered. Not long after they stepped out onto the floor, they shared a deep kiss.
“Young Master, wake up. Young Master.”
The employee struggled to support Cassian, continuing his efforts to wake him. However, Cassian could barely move his feet as instructed and simply could not open his eyes.
It was a relief that they had taken a taxi. Perhaps thanks to the Duke’s strict teaching that one must never drive after drinking even a single drop of alcohol, he always returned by taxi in these situations. The problem now was that the employees had to go retrieve the car. Regardless, how fortunate was it that he hadn’t caused an accident by driving out of reckless bravado?
“Now, from the right. That’s it.”
As they groaned and walked down the hallway supporting Cassian from both sides, a small shadow was hiding and watching their backs. The employees, busy moving Cassian, were completely unaware of the gaze as they diligently crossed the hallway and reached Cassian’s room.
“Phew.”
Having finally lowered their young master onto the bed, they looked down at the fast-asleep Cassian before returning to their duties.
“I’ll go get the car, so you look after the Young Master’s sleep.”
“Got it. The keys are… found them, here.”
When one of them tossed the keys found after rummaging through a pocket, the other caught them lightly and hurried out of the room. The remaining employee took off Cassian’s shoes and outer coat, unbuttoned a couple of buttons on his shirt, and let out a sigh. Only after pulling the sheet up to his chest did he finally leave, and Cassian was finally alone.
In the room where only the sound of deep, rhythmic breathing repeated, the morning sun began to shine, and the firmly closed door slid open quietly. Completely unaware of the small, ominous shadow approaching cautiously on tiptoes, Cassian remained in a deep slumber.
He thought he could hear birds chirping in the distance. His hearing returned first, but the next thing he realized was that his chest felt stifled.
…What is this?
“Ugh.”
Cassian frowned and let out a groan. Something was there. It was pressing down on him. Was this what they called sleep paralysis? He had never experienced it before, but he had heard of it. He also knew it was simply a type of sleep disorder.
However, the suffocating feeling of difficulty breathing and the sensation of something pressing on his chest were utterly unpleasant. To make matters worse, the alcohol he had drunk all night returned as a vicious hangover. His head was heavy, his stomach felt terrible, and now he was experiencing sleep paralysis.
He could roughly predict what would happen next. He would see hallucinations while thinking his eyes were open when they actually weren’t. He had never seen a ghost in this castle in his entire life, so what on earth was this entity sitting on his chest…?
“…Hah.”
A hollow sigh escaped Cassian’s lips as he finally managed to open his eyes and confirm the identity of the ‘something.’ A small, round face was looking down at him.
“You’re awake! Cassian, did you sleep well?”
The child, who had been waiting all along, didn’t miss the opportunity; he grabbed Cassian’s face and gave his cheek a mwah kiss.
“Ugh, the smell!”
Despite the surprise attack, Cassian could only blink, unable to react properly, while Bliss pinched his nose and turned his head away, making a pained sound. While Cassian was still blinking, wondering what on earth was happening, Bliss spoke with a giggle.
“I waited for you to wake up. Cassian is such a sleepyhead. I woke up a loooong time ago.”
Hee-hee. Seeing the child laughing while covering his mouth with both hands, Cassian’s mind slowly cleared. So, this brat entered my room on his own and just woke me up…?
To think he would be hit by a surprise attack like this after spending days trying so hard to avoid him. As he thought that, fatigue suddenly washed over him. Letting out a groan, he covered his face with one hand.
“Huh? Cassian, what is this?”
Cassian froze at Bliss’s sudden words. What is it now, this damn brat? With a sigh, he opened his eyes through the gaps in his fingers and looked down to see Bliss looking back while sitting on his chest. What is he doing? He couldn’t see clearly because the child’s body was blocking the view. As he frowned, Bliss suddenly moved downward and spoke.
“That’s weird. What did you put inside the sheet? Is it a balloon? Or bread?”
At the sensation of the child lightly poking it with a fingertip, Cassian grasped the situation. That thing, which naturally occurs in the morning, had unfortunately attracted the child’s interest. Blood rushed to his face instantly, and he urgently reached out.
“Wait, Bliss. You shouldn’t touch tha—”
There was no time to feel the ominous premonition. The child, tilting his head, delivered a powerful punch with his fist to the thing protruding from the sheet.
Thwack.
Aaaaaagh!
The thing that had pleased Kitty last night met its valiant end. A scream that couldn’t even escape his lips lingered in his mouth, and Cassian curled his entire body up violently.
“Waaaah!”
Consequently, Bliss tumbled off and went rolling across the bed.
The breakfast table was silent. In a stillness where nothing could be heard except the occasional clinking of cutlery, Bliss cautiously watched Cassian’s reaction.
Cassian sat at the table with a face even more hollow than when he first woke up, continuously tearing at his bread. Unable to stand the sight of the bread being torn to shreds and piling up on the plate without ever being eaten, the Duchess spoke.
“Cassian, what are you doing? You must eat properly.”
Despite the warning, he gave no reaction. Finally, after tearing a piece of bread into a thin scrap of paper, he stopped his hand.
“Mother.”
“Yes?”
At the quiet call, the Duchess answered in surprise, and Cassian spoke while still staring into the distance.
“You said it was for one month, right?”
“What? Ah, yes, that’s right.”
As the Duchess nodded, realizing the meaning a beat late, he lowered his head and muttered.
“Sigh, one month…”
A great deal of emotion was contained within that deep sigh. The Duchess could not understand the situation and could only blink.
“Um, Cassian.”
After finishing the meal and returning to his room, he heard a cautious voice calling from behind. As expected, the troublemaker brat was standing there, hesitating and gauging his mood. When Cassian turned toward him as if to ask what it was now, Bliss spoke worriedly.