Isadora decided to stay in the Duke’s bedroom that night.
Her plan? To eavesdrop on his sleep-talking.
Of course, getting “permission” wasn’t easy.
“Get that thing out of here!”
“Caw! Caaaw!”
“Bring a broom, quickly!”
The servants tried desperately to chase the noisy bird out of their master’s chamber.
But Isadora just darted under the bed, dodging every broom that came poking in.
“Caw! Caw!”
Her deafening squawks echoed beneath the bedframe, doubling in volume.
Things only settled down when the Duke himself finally came in.
“Leave.”
At that command, the crow instantly fell silent.
The servants glanced at each other, frustrated, but they had no choice but to obey.
Besides, if they stayed, they were sure the racket would make them go deaf.
As soon as the room quieted, Isadora fluttered up onto the bed.
The Duke narrowed his eyes at her.
‘What? Is he saying I can stay in the bedroom but not on the bed?’
But he only muttered as he walked past the bird clinging to his blanket.
“You sure went quiet fast.”
Well, mission accomplished.
Pretending to be just a normal crow, Isadora tilted her head innocently.
And so, her chaotic first day in the Duke’s castle ended in victory—for her.
Isadora’s twin brother Edgar was cautious. Sometimes too cautious, so much so that he missed his chances.
Isadora, on the other hand, acted before she even thought.
‘Aren’t you being too reckless with the Duke?’
She could almost hear Edgar’s voice in her head.
Her brother often worried on her behalf, since she never did.
She’d heard him so often that even when he wasn’t there, his “imaginary” nagging followed her.
‘What if you end up dead?’
[That’ll never happen. Look—he’s just letting me stay!]
“Caw, caaaw!”
The Duke’s eyes shot open.
“…Caw.”
Oops. She’d squawked by accident—at two in the morning.
His eyes glowed in the darkness, clear and awake, fixed on her perched at the end of the bed.
Apparently, the “strange crow” was bothering him more than he let on.
‘Cold as ice… but wow, he really is handsome.’
The thought of putting that face back on the Black Bird Daily’s front page made her feel giddy.
He was flawless, like a sculpture.
Except for one small, faint scar on his chin.
‘Where did that come from?’
She crept closer to get a better look—
…And that was her mistake.
“…”
The Duke finally had enough and turned his back on her.
“Caw!”
She cried out in frustration, but he didn’t budge.
Soon, his broad back rose and fell in slow, steady rhythm.
She gave up with a sigh.
But she knew the truth—
He hadn’t slept a wink.
[Aren’t you tired?]
She asked the next morning as he headed to his office.
The Duke flinched, turning his head suddenly.
His pale face came so close that her beak almost bumped into his lips.
‘Ack!’
She quickly leaned back.
[Hey, watch it! I nearly poked your chin!]
“All that useless screeching…” he muttered.
To him, her words were nothing but meaningless noise.
He started walking again.
[Waaah! Waaahhh!]
The ride was bumpy—like clinging to a wild stallion.
She dug her claws into his coat for balance.
Riiip!
The fabric tore, but he didn’t even blink, just kept walking forward.
‘And this is supposed to be the terrifying Black Duke? He doesn’t even care that his coat is ruined!’
When they reached his office, Isadora watched him work.
Unlike the messy nobles she’d spied on before, he was neat, precise, and professional.
It was so… “by the book” that it felt strange to her.
She peeked over at the papers he was working on.
‘Wait a sec—these are the castle’s financial ledgers!’
Excited, she hopped off his shoulder and stuck her beak into the pages.
‘Wow, he’s really detailed. Other nobles would’ve just dumped this work on their treasurer and stamped the papers without reading.’
But then—
She felt something prickle at the back of her head.
She turned.
The Duke was staring right at her.
“Move.”
“Caw?”
She tilted her head, pretending not to understand.
A crow moving out of the way on command would be suspicious, after all.
When he tried to nudge her aside, she hunkered down stubbornly.
‘Go ahead, try it. Touch me again and I’ll make your ears bleed.’
But his touch wasn’t harsh.
And after a few tries, he simply gave up and shut the ledger.
[Hey! Why are you closing it?! Get back to work!]
“Caw! Caw! Caaaw!”
Of course, he couldn’t understand her, so the book stayed closed.
All she accomplished was blasting his ear again.
She could only watch in despair as the ledger was put away.
‘No, it’s fine! I’ve got time. I’ll uncover every secret in this castle before my wing heals!’
The Duke now had two new problems in life.
One: his ear still rang thanks to the noisy crow.
Two: the bird refused to get off his shoulder.
“Caw! Caaaw!”
“Quiet.”
“Caaaw! Caw!”
“…”
At last, the Duke had to kneel on one knee.
Only then did the crow settle down.
Sometimes she tugged on his collar with her beak, signaling she wanted to go somewhere.
She’d vanish for a bit, then come back and do it again.
“You’re using me as your personal perch,” he muttered darkly.
At first, she’d stand on two feet.
Now, too lazy—or too comfortable—she sprawled out on her belly across his shoulder.
As a result, his right shoulder was always warm from her body heat.
The servants were at their wits’ end.
“My lord, that crow spilled ink all over the study!”
“It’s been ripping buttons off every jacket in the castle!”
“It won’t eat unless it’s the finest steak!”
“Please, Duke, get rid of it!”
They practically wept as they complained.
“Leave it.”
The Duke’s single command silenced the room.
— pluck, pluck.
The only sound left was Isadora tugging out the fur on his coat.
‘Ugh, bird instincts are strong.’
She couldn’t resist the soft grey fur lining his collar.
So she yanked out tufts and made herself a little mat under her belly to keep her feet warm.
‘So the rumors were true—up here in the North, you can’t even brew tea outside in winter.’
The Duke, unlike normal people, still went for walks every day despite the freezing weather.
“Go inside. Stop bothering me.”
Last night, she’d followed him out and caught such a bad chill that she sneezed all night, keeping him awake.
So this time, at the castle gates, he tried to set her down.
But she spread her wings and protested.
“Caaaw!”
The servants watched nervously.
They felt like they were walking on thin ice every day now.
What if the Duke finally snapped and drew his sword again—because of that crow?
Leonard Caribou was a man who knew how to destroy and kill.
He’d even killed his own father.
Right here, in front of the castle gates.
“Go back inside.”
[No way! A reporter never abandons her duty!]
“Caw! Caaaw!”
Once again, the loser was the Duke.
Isadora perched proudly on his shoulder as they walked out the gate.
‘So cold…’
After just ten minutes outside, she regretted following.
The world beyond the castle was bleak, the wind harsher, the air even colder.
‘I’m freezing… so cold!’
Thankfully, his body heat was like a furnace.
She pressed herself tight against his neck just to survive.
— Whoosh!
An icy blast howled across the land.
The Duke suddenly stopped walking.
The crow clinging to his neck shivered violently.
Without warning, he grabbed her.
“Squawk!”
And shoved her into something.
