Alena felt as though she was going to die a second time soon, and this time from sheer embarrassment. Never before had she experienced such intense mortification! She could hardly believe that the Duke's completely straight-faced delivery of those words somehow felt worse than if he had been openly teasing or mocking her.

Forgetting her initial intention to stay hidden from General Elkhart, Alena was about to tug her hand off the duke’s grip as hard as she could to break free when Elkhart's deep, prolonged sigh finally shifted the Duke's gaze away from her.

"You know, my lord, despite everything... her family trying to kill you and all... you need to remember something important." General Elkhart’s words  prompted Alena to pause her escape plan and decide to listen a bit longer. The thought that she could finally hear something important was enough to make her push away all the useless emotions that were reigning within her at the moment.

"Princess Alena is your wife now," Elkhart continued, his words resonating with a sense of duty and earnestness. "The duchess is now your family. So whatever her family's intentions may be, you have a duty to be good to her. To protect her."

Those words were something Alena had never expected. And almost out of reflex, her gaze focused on the duke’s face, searching for his reaction.

But the duke remained silent. His face was as inscrutable as ever, betraying no hint of his thoughts. The only thing Alena could tell as she stared at him at that moment was the fact that he was listening to everything Elkhart was saying.

“You know, my lord,” General Elkhart began again, his tone more relaxed now and seemingly completely unaffected by the Duke's ongoing silence. It seemed the general's already accustomed to having such one-sided conversations with his stone-faced lord.

"It doesn’t hurt to have some extra strategies up your sleeve," Elkhart advised. "Perhaps even just asking how her day was. Even the smallest gesture makes such a huge difference, believe me."

Still, the Duke didn’t say a word.

"And this is crucial, milord,” Elkhart continued, pausing for emphasis. His voice took on a more serious tone.

“Always… always respond to her, no matter what. If she asks you something, no matter how trivial it may be, make sure to respond." He paused for a moment. "And when I mean 'respond', I don’t mean a nod or one-word replies. Engage in the conversation because that shows you care.”

Elkhart paused once again, as though ensuring that his words were having the desired impact, before continuing. "She still isn’t familiar with the fact that you’re a man of few words. So, don’t expect her to be like us, who’s not even a bit bothered anymore even if you never say a word. And last but not the least… please… at least try to smile at her. Oh, and I'm talking about a genuine smile.”