SCMBRN Chapter 20
by flowieI had to scream silently when I saw Eugen waving at me so casually.
‘Why is he here again?!’
It was obvious. He must have come for the same reason as Reynard.
That much was easy to guess after hearing what Reynard had said earlier.
If Reynard was suffering from the bed’s curse again, then Eugen must be in the same situation.
More than a week had already passed since he had last slept in my bed.
‘I know. I know that, but…’
Why did he have to show up on the same day as Reynard?
There was no way I could be happy about this visit.
“CHARLOTTE?”
Eugen tilted his head when I didn’t respond after spotting him.
When I saw him raise a hand to his mouth, ready to shout, I flailed and waved my arms in a panic.
‘No! Absolutely not!’
If he raised his voice even a little, Reynard would surely wake up.
Fortunately, Eugen must have noticed me crossing my arms into an X. He shut his mouth.
I placed my index finger over my lips and beckoned him over with my other hand.
Just like Reynard earlier, Eugen climbed the tree in front of the terrace and came up.
‘Reynard is said to be a light sleeper.’
Recalling what I read in the novel, I spoke in a voice barely louder than a mosquito’s buzz.
“Eugen, hi. But I have a situation right now, so could you go back for today?”
“But I…”
“Can you come tomorrow instead? After 9 p.m., I’m mostly free. Okay?”
Eugen clearly looked disappointed, but he nodded like an obedient child.
So adorable. If only the person inside my room could be this well-behaved too.
“Sorry. I don’t know what’s going on, but let’s talk about it in detail tomorrow. I really need to go now.”
“Is someone there?”
“Huh?”
“In the room.”
Eugen glanced toward the terrace window, but thankfully the curtains blocked the view.
Even though it was late at night, Reynard’s visit had to remain secret, so I had made sure to draw the curtains tightly.
“Ah, well…”
“There’s another presence. Who is it?”
A presence? Was he seriously sensing someone without seeing them? That’s the kind of setup usually found in fantasy or martial arts novels.
It was hard to believe, but Eugen looked convinced that someone was there.
‘What do I do? Should I just tell the truth?’
What should I say? I imagined myself explaining the situation honestly to both Eugen and Reynard.
The truth is, you’re both cursed. Quite the surprise, right? And here’s an even bigger twist! There are two more people who also need to sleep in my bed!
‘Why all four of you have to use my bed, I don’t know either. Just understand I have nothing to do with the curse and am an innocent citizen.’
No matter how I pictured it, the whole scenario felt ridiculous. No way they wouldn’t suspect me.
To make things worse, in the novel, Reynard and Eugen were rivals for the same woman. Their personalities were complete opposites, and they genuinely disliked each other.
Reynard was calculating and two-faced, while Eugen was blunt and overly candid.
They were bound to clash.
“Is it a secret?”
Eugen urged me with a bright face.
I’m weak against that face. I didn’t want to disappoint him, so I decided to improvise.
“My younger sibling. Came to ask me to read a fairy tale and fell asleep, so I let them sleep in my room.”
Not bad. A plausible excuse. My little sibling CARRIE wasn’t that close to me, but there was no way Eugen would know that.
“Really?”
Then Eugen narrowed his eyes with a strange look.
“Your sibling’s impressive.”
“What do you mean?”
“I can’t say exactly, but that presence feels like a strong one. That much is clear. They’ve reached a high level at such a young age.”
It must have piqued the interest of someone known as the King of Mercenaries. Eugen spoke with uncharacteristic enthusiasm, his eyes shining.
“I definitely want to recommend them to our unit someday.”
And just like that, my six-year-old sibling Carrie, a cry baby scared of bugs, was about to be recruited into a mercenary group.
“No, actually. They’re much older.”
I quickly switched courses.
“They’re already twenty. You’ve probably seen them at banquets. Red hair, always putting on airs for no reason.”
“Oh.”
“That’s the one. A bit eccentric, right? Please keep it a secret. They’re super embarrassed that they can’t sleep without a fairy tale at that age.”
I’m sorry, Jayden! Forgive your hopeless older sister!
“Okay.”
Eugen accepted my lie without hesitation, nodding solemnly, as if taking on a mission.
“I’m good at keeping secrets.”
“I know. But I really have to go now…”
The five minutes I had allotted before leaving the bed had already passed.
“I’ll go. I don’t want to make things difficult for you.”
Saying something so admirable, Eugen hopped down from the terrace and ran toward the wall. He moved quickly and quietly.
Before jumping over, he looked back and waved. I waved in return and went back inside.
“Hey.”
A low, irritated voice greeted me.
“Who was that?”
Reynard, sitting on the bed and pressing his forehead, looked at me with tired eyes.
“Your Highness…”
My heart dropped. Did he see Eugen? As I watched, Reynard slowly approached.
“No wonder my dreams were restless. It was because you left the bed.”
“I’m sorry.”
I apologized politely and gauged his mood, but he didn’t seem as upset as I had feared.
“It’s fine. More importantly, was someone on the terrace? I felt a vague presence in my half-sleep.”
What is with all this presence-sensing? Everyone but me seems to notice.
“…I’m not sure. Maybe a cat? I saw a stray and talked to it a little.”
“A cat? Maybe I mistook its meowing for a human presence.”
He must have been half-asleep, since he looked unsure.
Without asking more, Reynard patted the empty spot next to him.
“If you’re done, come lie down. I’d appreciate it if you considered how heavy my eyelids feel.”
I rushed over to the bed.
“My mistake. I just wanted some fresh air.”
“How long were you away from the bed?”
“About 15 minutes, I think.”
“Then ten minutes is about my limit. That’s how long I can sleep without you.”
To me, it felt like such a short time.
“I understand bodily needs and all, so I can’t demand you stay glued to the bed forever.”
Reynard, now lying down again, gently pressed near his eyes.
“But if possible, try to come back within ten minutes. Please.”
A handsome man desperately asking me to return to him, such a romantic situation. If only it weren’t for the curse.
⚜︎ ⚜︎ ⚜︎
The next day, Reynard woke me up looking much more refreshed.
Since it was still too early for the maids to come, unlike fifteen days ago, we had some time to chat.
“Have you thought about living independently?”
“Independently?”
“Yes. I need to sleep in your bed regularly. But I can’t sneak into the Marquis Lindsay every time like a thief.”
Can’t he, though? He seems pretty good at it.
“So if you lived independently, wouldn’t that be easier? I could come and go more freely.”
“Well, I’ve thought about living alone at the villa abroad.”
“That’s a bit of a problem. Even if it’s just the neighboring country, I can’t realistically travel back and forth.”
“I mean, it wasn’t something I planned to do anytime soon.”
“Good. Unfortunately, you’ll have to put that on hold until I break this curse.”
“Yes, I suppose so.”
Honestly, when I heard yesterday that Reynard’s curse had returned, I already gave up on that dream.
In this situation, worrying about the cursed ones would keep me from leaving in peace, and they wouldn’t exactly let me go easily either.
‘But how exactly do we break this curse…?’
Troubled by a problem with no clue in sight, I poured water into a glass from the pitcher in the room.
The maids replaced it every evening, just in case I got thirsty in the night.
I offered a glass to Reynard, just in case, but he shook his head.
Of course, he seemed to be even deeper in thought than me.
“Ah.”
Suddenly, a strange glint appeared in Reynard’s eyes.
“I just had a good idea.”
Had he already thought of a way to break the curse? As expected of a second male lead, he really was something else.
I stopped mid-sip and leaned in to listen.
“Will you marry me?”
And the next moment, I spat out all the water in my mouth.