When Adi opened her eyes, there was a familiar ceiling in front of her. Snow-white, with decorative stucco molding. But at the same time strangely unfamiliar.
Her room is rectangular, and this one is square. Unfamiliar ceiling?
Adi stood up. The body was light. The clothes remained the same. Soaked in sweat, it stuck unpleasantly to the skin, but the physical condition seemed surprisingly good.
But where is it? Adi looked around. Nothing that could be used as a weapon. However, the hidden dagger apparently was not found - it was still on the inside of the thigh. Clutching the dagger in her hand, Adi opened the door and went outside.
Unfamiliar bedroom.
There is red hair on the snow-white bed linen.
For a moment, Adi felt relieved. A familiar person. But not the size she remembered. The red hair was familiar, but the length and overall build didn't match the Duke at all.
- Your Mightiness?
No reaction.
Adi went to the bed.
A man who sleeps with his eyes closed is not a duke.
As Adi took the dagger out of its sheath, the man opened his eyes. Seeing the blade in front of him, he grabbed Adi by the wrist, pulled her to the bed and pressed her.
- What are you doing?
Does he look like a Duke? Don't understand. The beard is long. The physique and voice are completely different. Even the strength was so great that Adi could not escape.
He may not be inferior to a man in technique and endurance, but his muscular strength cannot be surpassed. It’s impossible to cope with this force that presses your hands. Physical capabilities - nothing can be done, but the reflexes must be different, Adi decided, and at the moment when he tried to raise his knee, it also turned out to be pressed. The man looked at Adi with bewilderment.
- Adi Grimaldi.
-...Who are you?
- What?
The man asked again. At that moment, having apparently heard a noise from inside, the door opened and a servant entered.
- Your Mightiness?
The servant stopped, looking at the man. Then, looking at the man pressed below him, he called: “Sir Adrian Grimaldi?”
- What is this...
The servant froze, holding the door, unable to move closer or retreat, and faltered.
- Your Highness?
-What are you talking about?
The man ran his hand through his hair. Her hair fell again, covering her face. They interfere. The man tried to brush his hair back, but stopped. And he looked down at his hand.
- What is it?
Juls silently looked at his hair, which blocked his view, and at his hand.
When growth stopped, both hair and nails stopped growing. The overgrown nails looked like animal claws.
- Hands.
- Your Mightiness!
Juls looked down at Adi. Adi didn’t understand anything either. Duke Woodpecker was undoubtedly...
- You.
A thirteen year old boy.
- What have you done?
The man standing in front of her now was an adult. He seemed much taller than Adi.
- Gavin! Billy! Ivan!
The servant rushed out, shouting the names of the other servants. Roy, who was just in the reception room, heard the servant's call - although he did not hear his name - hastened to help. He believed that if something happened, he would be more useful than a servant.
However, upon arriving in the bedroom, Roy realized that his help was not required.
Roy's gaze fell on Adi, who was sitting on the bed, and on the red-haired man standing next to him. But Duke Woodpecker, whom he wished to serve, was nowhere to be seen.
For that matter, the eyes of this man with red hair and beard were similar to the eyes of a Duke. But the Duke, his body.
- ...Your Mightiness?
- Zer, mirror! Mirror, your lordship!
The servant brought a mirror the size of half a torso and presented it to Yuls. The muslin nightgown seemed about to burst. Adi still, apparently, could not understand what was happening and looked at Yuls, saying: “Your Grace...”
Jules, looking in the mirror, spoke: “The reason you took the sword.”
“Did you think I was a different person?”
-...
Anyone would have thought the same. If the Duke grew up, if the curse were lifted, it would be a cause for joy, but it is impossible for a person to grow ten years older overnight.
— The face remains the same.
How can you, looking at this bearded face, say that it has remained the same?
— First you have to trim your beard and nails.
The Duke said.
- Joel, call Bert. And bring some clothes at the same time. Your clothes... will be too small. It's better to wear something big.
Saying this and looking at Adi, Jules, apparently deciding that those clothes definitely wouldn’t fit, said to Roy: “Sorry, can you borrow some clothes?” - Roy nodded and left the bedroom.
- Adi, get off the bed and sit on the chair.
Adi looked at Yuls in bewilderment.
- Let's talk about what happened.
Why with me...
While Adi was thinking, Bert, who had already arrived, exclaimed: “Your Grace!” “The man before his eyes was not the Jules Woodpecker they knew, but only a huge fellow who looked like a bear with a long beard, hair and nails, but Bert hugged this Jules tightly.
“I knew you would grow up like this.” You really look like the late Duke!
There was a tremble in Bert's voice. Two huge bears...
Adi looked at the hugging men with a confused look, not knowing what to do with them. Fortunately, the servant soon brought water and shaving supplies.
* * *The long nails were trimmed and filed. The beard was trimmed with scissors with frequent clicking, then shaving began.
It was the first time she had seen another person shaving someone. It was interesting to watch the foam being applied to the face and how the skin became smooth with each movement of the blade. It’s even strange how the skin didn’t get cut.
The Duke's face still retained its youthful softness after shaving. He looked more like eighteen or nineteen than twenty-six.
As the last image of Adrian in Adrina’s memory, he is not quite a young man yet, but no longer a boy.
-...
- Still not fully mature.
“And still, this is quite enough to count on success.”
Bert said. The servants and Bert did not seem to find the Duke's new appearance strange. Maybe because he looks like the late Duke. But Adi and Roy, who did not know this, felt awkward looking at the matured Duke.
- Roy, clothes?
- Here, Your Grace.
Roy held out his clothes. It was just trousers and a chemise. Having put on his clothes, the Duke winced - the legs were too short. There were no problems with the shemiz.
“I’m going to cancel all meetings for the near future, but Marchioness Conolly insists that you must see her at all costs...
- Cancel the evening meeting and offer to meet for tea. Between three and four o'clock in the afternoon.
— The tailor will come at about ten. I plan to order thirty sets of clothes to be sewn according to the measurements taken from your lordship, and also to make about fifty more sets according to the same patterns and send them to the estate.
— Order ten sets for the estate. I can still grow.
- Understood. Then there will be forty sets in total.
“And buy something right now that I can wear.” These clothes are uncomfortable, I can’t stand it for long.
- Yes, I will.
-...
Roy once again squeezed his already tightly closed lips. Adi also stood silently next to him.
-Are you feeling well?
“In just a day, the look became from a different height, unusual. My muscles are aching. And my bones seem to ache.
- Growing pains. Joel will solve this problem.
- Fine.
Jules replied. For someone who spoke of unfamiliarity, he moved in this body surprisingly naturally, as if he was constantly growing in it. He didn't hit anything, and looking down on people was clearly nothing new to him.
Juls, standing with his arms crossed and talking with a servant, felt eyes on him, looked at Adi and Roy, then called Bert over and said something to him. What exactly was not heard. Bert nodded, walked over and called out: “Adi, Roy.”
- Yes, sir.
“This morning, no, all day today I will be the guard myself.” Rest both of you. Roy, you, too, are probably tired during this time.
Roy nodded, stunned.
“Tomorrow morning we’ll discuss the new security schedule.”
- Yes, I understand.
- And one more thing, Adi.
- Yes, sir.
- It's good that you recovered safely.
-......
For a moment, Adi didn't know what reaction to show here. Restoring health is, of course, good, but is that usually what people say to others? Or is Bert such a warm-hearted person by nature?
No one had ever said such words to her. Since no one spoke them, Adi herself never addressed them to others. If only she knew that such words could be spoken.
-......Yes, thank you.
Adrian, I would tell them to you too.