Chapter 16

The butler was extremely surprised, never expecting that Auston would change his decision to gouge out his eyes because of a single word from Ruan Tang. Immediately, he bowed with immense gratitude and withdrew.

He felt it necessary to reevaluate this Duchess whom he hadn't taken very seriously before...

After all, the Queen could decide his life and death, but this Duchess whom he had previously disregarded now seemed to be the one who could decide whether he would remain intact in the household.

And the butler was not the only one surprised; the other male servants standing by also showed expressions of astonishment, but fearing they might provoke Auston, they all cast their eyes down and restrained their emotions.

Even Ruan Tang himself, the instigator, had not expected that he could change the demon duke's decision so easily.

Auston stared fixedly at Ruan Tang, as if nothing had happened just now, and asked, 'Why aren't you eating more? You haven't finished yet, have you?'

'Then... I'll continue eating.' Looking at the moody Auston, Ruan Tang felt very uneasy, completely unaware which nerve he had touched in this lunatic just now to make him listen.

He wondered if it was because he ate with such relish and had a good appetite.

He picked up his chopsticks again and brought food to his mouth, but perhaps because of what had just happened, Ruan Tang couldn't really eat anymore, feeling that these delicacies were hard to swallow.

But under Auston's unwavering gaze, Ruan Tang dared not stop for fear of provoking this madman who had finally calmed down.

He could only continue stuffing food into his mouth, as if chewing wax.

'If you don't want to eat, then don't. No one is forcing you.' Auston stared at him for a long moment, sensing that Ruan Tang looked very pained, and suddenly spoke.

Ruan Tang looked at his intimidating expression, unsure whether his words were sincere—whether he truly didn't want him to eat or was forcing him to eat more.

But feeling that he had truly lost his appetite and couldn't bear it anymore, Ruan Tang decided right then to take his words at face value, regardless of their truth. He immediately put down his chopsticks and said to the male servant standing by, 'Bring me a cup of coffee, please.'

While speaking, Ruan Tang had been cautiously watching Auston, and only when he saw that Auston had no reaction to his stopping did he fully breathe a sigh of relief.

Having just experienced that nerve-wracking scene, the male servant served much more cautiously than before.

Ruan Tang, relieved, picked up the coffee and took a gentle sip, feeling much more relaxed.

Not only was breakfast at the Ducal Palace delicious, but the coffee was also very rich and fragrant...

Auston frowned as he watched Ruan Tang drinking his coffee with relish, and then looking at the black tea in his own cup, he suddenly lost his appetite.

The moment he showed displeasure, the attendant male servant immediately removed the black tea and replaced it with a cup of coffee of the same kind as Ruan Tang's...

Auston imitated Ruan Tang and gently lifted the coffee for a sip, but no sooner had it touched his lips than he grimaced, his whole face scrunching up at the bitterness. He spat the coffee back into the cup and said with displeasure, 'What is this? How can it be so awful?'

Seeing this, the male servant who had just replaced his coffee immediately turned pale with fear, trembling, and unconsciously even held his breath.

He was terrified that offending the duke would lead to a fate like the butler's, who had been ordered to harm himself. After what had just happened to the butler, he didn't even dare to defend himself.

He was afraid that any loud noise would only increase the duke's fury and result in even harsher punishment.

'I drink my coffee without sugar or milk, I prefer it strong and black, fresh ground beans... so the taste is indeed not very good. Sorry, you must be amused.' Ruan Tang, trembling with fear, saw that the scene from before was about to repeat itself, and couldn't help but speak up to defend the male servant.

In truth, Ruan Tang wasn't sure if he could convince this madman, but he felt he had to try, unwilling to let others suffer undeserved disaster.

As soon as Auston heard Ruan Tang speak, he frowned unhappily, but turned his gaze away from the male servant and just grunted, 'All the things you like are this strange?'

'This stuff is so bitter, what's good about it? Truly hard to please...' He complained about Ruan Tang in dissatisfaction.

But he said nothing more to the male servant...

This meant he had let the male servant off.

The male servant's face showed surprise at once, not expecting that their duke's anger could subside so quickly this time, but he quickly collected his expression and retreated to the side with his head down.

Ruan Tang looked at Auston in surprise and quickly smiled apologetically, 'My taste really is a bit odd.'

He suddenly felt that this mad duke seemed quite reasonable towards him... as long as he could find the right trigger.

And where exactly was that trigger?

Auston looked at Ruan Tang, gave a soft snort, then put down his coffee cup and, ignoring everyone, pushed his wheelchair out of the dining room.

...

As a duke, Auston did have some official business to attend to. After spending the morning finishing his work, he felt at a loss for what to do.

'My lord, would you like me to arrange a performance for this afternoon, or perhaps a visit to the arena or the torture department?' As the personal valet, Aaron saw his master's listlessness and stepped forward immediately, suggesting several of Auston's favorite pastimes for his entertainment.

Auston hadn't seen any bloody, cruel scenes for several days, and he was itching for it. He opened his personal terminal intending to arrange a visit to the performance venue or the torture department to have some fun with the criminals.

But unexpectedly, as soon as he opened his personal terminal—

The message that Ruan Tang had sent to the male servant Sette that morning, warning him that the duke had arrived and telling Sette to stay away and hide, immediately popped up.

Suddenly, Auston found this interesting and no longer even wanted to go out.

His tightly furrowed brows suddenly relaxed, and he ordered Aaron, 'No need, I'm not going out today. Change my clothes and take off the mask.'

...

Thus, after not seeing Sette for the entire morning and most of the afternoon, that strange male servant with a disfigured face appeared before Ruan Tang again.

Around three in the afternoon, Auston, carrying afternoon tea, gently knocked on Ruan Tang's door. 'Madam, this is the afternoon tea from the residence.'

At that time, Ruan Tang was lost in thought, staring at the pitch-black scenery outside the window.

Seeing Sette, he immediately returned a polite smile and said, 'Thank you, just set the afternoon tea aside.'

Having said that, he didn't even glance at the lavish afternoon tea, but resumed staring blankly out the window...

'Madam looks a bit unhappy. Why is that?' Auston noticed his low spirits, a smile on his face, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

Ruan Tang felt that after two days of interaction, they had become somewhat close, so he didn't mind the servant's improper questions and familiarity.

He just looked gloomily out the window, absent-minded. '... It's nothing.'

'Is it the duke who has made you unhappy? Is that why you're unhappy?' Auston thought that as the other master of this residence, besides himself, no one else could make Ruan Tang unhappy.

Seeing that he insisted on probing, Ruan Tang, unable to tell a mere servant about the pressure from the Queen, looked at the dark window and said offhandedly, '... Because I don't like the darkness. I prefer natural climates with sunshine and night, but the Ducal Palace only has night, so I'm unhappy...'

In fact, this perpetual night of the Ducal Palace really made him uncomfortable, always in darkness, only able to see by artificial light.

He was living so that he hardly knew what day it was.

Auston looked at Ruan Tang in surprise, saying nothing, never expecting that this was the reason for Ruan Tang's melancholy.

Tch, he had always heard that Omegas were hard to please, and it was true. They were timid, soft-hearted, afraid of blood, ate strange things, and now even the darkness could make him unhappy...

So troublesome.

What's wrong with the night? How could it make him so unhappy?

Auston grumbled impatiently to himself, but showed nothing on his face.

Seeing that he had stopped talking, Ruan Tang didn't initiate conversation either, but chose to continue staring out the window.

...

Ruan Tang was in low spirits that day and went to bed early. After falling asleep, he didn't even know if Duke Auston had come to suck on him.

Because he went to bed much earlier than usual, he woke up very early the next day... even before the time Auston usually came to suck on him, he was already awake.

When he opened his eyes and sat up, Ruan Tang was completely stunned.

Because the perpetually dark Auston Ducal Palace had actually lit up.

Bright sunlight streamed through the window into his room, not only brightening the entire room but also lifting Ruan Tang's spirits.

Ruan Tang hadn't waited for Sette or Auston. The moment he saw the sunlight, he opened the door, grabbed a male servant who was working, pointed at the brilliant sunshine outside the window, and asked in bewilderment, 'This... what's going on?'

Wasn't the Auston Ducal Palace supposed to be in perpetual night?

'Madam, the Duke heard that you dislike darkness. So last night he ordered the restoration of the residence's normal climate operations...' The male servant's attitude towards Ruan Tang was extremely cautious and respectful.

Ruan Tang was completely dumbfounded.

He never expected that Duke Auston had known about his offhand comment about disliking darkness, let alone that he would change the entire residence's weather for him.

But he wasn't the only one stunned; everyone in the Auston Ducal Palace was astonished...

None of them had expected that their eccentric duke would change a habit he had maintained for years for an Omega, just because he didn't like the darkness.

It seemed that the tide was turning in this residence.