The Beloved New Daughter-In-Law of the Wolf Mansion Chapter 194 - Side story 7

“Linsy!”

 

Leona ran over, almost crying, and threw herself into my arms.

 

“Kyaa, Leon! Have you been…” 

 

“Hng…” 

 

“…Are you crying?”

 

I heard a sob from Leona’s throat.

 

I struggled to pull Leona away.

 

If she’s really crying, I have to comfort her!

 

“Don’t pull me away, don’t run off, hnnng…”

 

But Leona held me tightly and wouldn’t let go.

 

In the end, I gave up on looking at Leona’s face and patted her back.

 

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

 

“That’s what I’m talking about!”

 

“I didn’t think you’d miss me this much…!”

 

“You fool, how could I not miss you when you just disappeared like that? Did you forget I told you that you could come live at our house? Idiot…”

 

Leona’s shoulders shook.

 

I hugged Leona.

 

You’re as much of a baby as you were two years ago.

 

‘Or maybe… has she grown a bit taller?’

 

“What have you been up to? Where have you been?”

 

“In other words, it’s really long…”

 

I glanced at Cain and Arsene, who were sitting at the table beside me.

 

And I rested my head on Leona’s shoulder.

 

“Arsene already knows the whole story, but if you want to hear it…!

 

***

 

What happened over the past five years?

 

Leona and Cain were shocked to hear the full story of why I couldn’t return to Yeckhart right away.

 

“So you’re saying he couldn’t even find his own wife right in front of him!?”

 

“…Leona.”

 

“Nonsense!”

 

“That makes sense. The Yeckhart estate isn’t exactly a small village, and now that Tamar has been added too, isn’t it even bigger than Fernando’s?”

 

Cain, who had been quietly drinking his tea, spoke.

 

“Are you saying Fernando is small?”

 

“I didn’t say anything, and technically, Hezeth is smaller than Fernando’s.”

 

Cain, now the head of the Hezeth family and leader of the Snake clan, spoke.

 

“Fighting again, huh? Stop it. Why is it that you two fight every time your eyes meet?”

 

Arsene spoke in a deliberately composed manner.

 

Leona finally calmed down a little and sat down with a slightly sulky expression.

 

Then, after taking a sip of tea, she spoke.

 

“I brought the gifts I collected while traveling. Some I bought thinking of you, and the rest I grabbed in a hurry when I heard you were coming back.” 

 

“Leon, you don’t mean all the things that were piled up outside…?”

 

“That’s right! You’re not going to say you won’t take them, are you? I bought them thinking of you.”

 

“How could I not accept it after hearing that…?”

 

“I knew you would.”

 

Leon smiled proudly.

 

She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, her face beaming. 

 

And then she looked at me with sparkling eyes.

 

“So, Linsy.”

 

“Mhm?” 

 

“What exactly do you mean by ‘something to say’?”

 

I suddenly felt embarrassed and scratched my cheek.

 

“Well, you see….”

 

The reason she called Leon and Cain was partly just to see their faces after a long time.

 

It was also to say something important.

 

But…

 

‘I can’t open my mouth…’

 

When Leon and Cain were in front of me, I couldn’t open my mouth at all.

 

Leon’s eyes were sparkling,

 

Cain, pretending not to care, looked at me with his eyes slightly widened.

 

I felt that gaze fully and suddenly turned to look at Arsene.

 

“Arsene!”

 

“Let’s get married.”

 

Arsene, who seemed to have perfectly read my mind, spoke with a relaxed expression.

 

“…Huh?”

 

“What? You’re already married.”

 

The former was Leon, the latter Cain.

 

Leon and Cain exchanged bewildered looks.

 

“Weren’t you two a couple a long time ago?”

 

“Isn’t Linsy already Yekhart’s Young Madam?”

 

Leon and Cain were right.

 

I came to Yeckhart in the first place to become Yeckhart’s young daughter-in-law.

 

Everyone in Yeckhart considered me Arsene’s wife.

 

The Wolf clan felt the same way, and now even other clans regarded me as Arsene’s wife.

 

But…

 

“Yes, but we never had a proper wedding. We never even wore a veil.”

 

He seemed to have kept in mind that they hadn’t had a proper ‘wedding.’

 

Arsene spoke in a rather serious voice, as if making a declaration.

 

“So, this time, we’re going to do it. Marriage.”

 

Leona turned her head sharply and looked at me.

 

At the exact same moment, Cain’s gaze landed on my face.

 

I clutched the snack Betty had given me tightly.

 

“That’s how it is…”

 

I gave an awkward smile and scratched the back of my head.  

 

***

 

Kendrick listened to Arsene’s story and sincerely congratulated him.

 

“Then let’s pick a good date and go ahead with it.”

 

“I want to do it as soon as possible.”

 

“A wedding isn’t something you can just have by sticking a single candle on a cake.”

 

Kendrick cut off Arsene’s hasty words firmly.

 

“It has to be held grandly, so the food must be prepared accordingly, and the heads of the other clans will need to be invited, so we shouldn’t set the date too hastily.”

 

Kendrick turned to me.

 

“You made a good choice, Linsy.” 

 

“The truth is, I haven’t been thinking about getting a divorce for a very long time….”

 

I squinted and replied.

 

“I’ve wanted to say this to Arsene, and to Kendrick as well, even before we parted….”

 

At those words, a smile appeared on Kendrick’s face.

 

“Still, I was always worried. I feared you might divorce Arsene and leave Yeckhart.”

 

At Kendrick’s words, Arsene subtly took my hand as if in agreement.

 

And Arsene.

 

Where would I leave these good wolves?

 

Kendrick looked at me with the kindest eyes in the world and spoke.

 

“It’s a wedding that happens only once in a lifetime, so I’ll make sure it’s held grandly enough that you have no regrets.” 

 

“Although, I already feel like I’ve been married about three times…”

 

“That’s true.”

 

Kendrick left, saying he would convene the council to choose a good date.

 

I watched his retreating figure, then turned back to the room with Arsene and spoke.

 

“Will it be alright?”

 

“What?”

 

“I’m talking about the elder grandfathers. The head of a clan is supposed to marry only within their own clan. Besides, wolves naturally have the habit of taking only one mate in their lifetime…”

 

“Who in Yeckhart would oppose you, Linsy? If they value their lives, they wouldn’t dare.”

 

Arsene gently pushed open the door to my room with his hand and spoke.

 

“Not just in Yeckhart, but none of the beastmen will oppose you. You’re the hero who saved them.”

 

Arsene took my hand and gently led me to the bed.

 

I let Arsene lead me to the bed.

 

“Still.”

 

“Ah!”

 

He gently laid me down on the bed.

 

Flop!

 

The bed and blankets sank softly, causing my body to tilt slightly.

 

“Will you marry me?”

 

“If I marry someone else now, it would be an affair.”

 

“Still, I can’t help but keep feeling anxious. Maybe it’s because you’re a bird beastman.”

 

“Because I have wings?”

 

“Mhm, because if you fly away, I can’t chase you.” 

 

“The last time I saw you, you were able to keep up pretty well while running…”

 

I laughed playfully and wrapped my arms around Arsene’s neck.

 

Arsene buried his face in my embrace and laughed for a long while, clearly enjoying himself.

 

He overlapped his large hand with mine, holding and fiddling with it.

 

“Can’t I use my power anymore?”

 

“Hmm… I haven’t used it yet, so I don’t know.”

 

I closed my eyes and tried using my power.

 

Paaaah!

 

A small, light green glow rose in my hand, just like before.

 

However, it wasn’t as large or bright as before.

 

A green aura, no bigger than a leaf, floated gently above my hand before quickly fading away.

 

I spoke, embarrassed.

 

“I can use it, but not like I used to. At best, it’ll probably only be enough to heal minor wounds…”

 

And it won’t hurt much.

 

Probably.

 

I devoted the life of the phoenix, which repeatedly returns to the World Tree, and its powerful healing abilities.

 

Even so, the fact that some of the ability still remains in my body must be someone’s mercy.

 

Arsene watched me, then squeezed my hand tightly and answered.

 

“It doesn’t matter.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah, you won’t get hurt anymore.”

 

Arsene’s paw, tightly gripping my hand, tensed with strength.

 

“Of course, I won’t get hurt either.”

 

“It’s a promise, Arsene.”

 

I thought I was holding his hand tightly enough, but the desire to hold it even more strongly surged within me.

 

‘Arsene.’

 

I wanted to hold Arsene’s hand as tightly as possible, until it overflowed with strength.

 

So that neither of us could let go.