The Strongest Daughter-In-Law Of The Black Lion Family [EN]: Chapter 34

#34.

Hearthcliff glanced at Rudy, who stood beside him, and hesitated, keeping his thoughts to himself. Rudy seemed completely unaware of the box’s contents.

“Thank you.”

I clutched the box, offering a bright smile. Just then, a hand gently brushed my cheek.

“Ah!”

It wasn’t painful, but the sudden touch startled me. I looked up to see Jerakiel smiling, though his expression felt unsettlingly eerie.

He handed the box to Ivan, his gaze fixed on Heathcliff, and commanded, “Throw it away.”

“What are you doing?” Heathcliff’s voice hardened.

Jerakiel tilted his head. “Why do you keep overstepping?”

“I’m just…”

“Since when have you been so interested in Zabisi’s affairs? It’s a pointless gesture.”

“…….”

“Caring for this child is my concern. Stop interfering.”

Hearthcliff pressed his lips into a thin line at Jerakiel’s sharp words. Rudy, unable to stand by any longer, frowned deeply and protested, “Aren’t you going too far?”

“Oh, come now. It’s hardly excessive. Our young master is entitled to do as he pleases,” Ivan interjected quickly, stepping in front of Rudy with a saccharine smile. Even he, a frequent instigator of insubordination, seemed to recognize when to defer. However, his reaction was so overtly theatrical that it only fueled Rudy’s anger.

“What is…!”

“It’s alright, Rudy. I was being foolish,” Heathcliff said.

“But…!”

“Let’s go.”

Hearthcliff seemed to nudge Rudy forward, then turned his gaze to me.

‘Be careful.’

I offered an awkward smile, having read his lips. I, too, was puzzled by Heathcliff’s protectiveness.

We had barely met.

Moreover, his open display in such a public setting felt like a deliberate provocation of Jerakiel.

‘What’s the issue between those two?’

Given the families’ strained relationship, animosity between the heirs was only natural. Just then…

“Womanizer,” Jerakiel muttered, resting his chin on his hand. I stared at him in disbelief as he grumbled.

“Rejecting my proposal, yet smiling at other men.”

His downcast eyes held a melancholic, yet sharp glint. Anyone would think I had committed some grave offense.

“That’s!”

I was about to retort in frustration when Ivan chimed in, adding fuel to the fire. “Indeed. To think you’d attract the attention of a hyena. Our young master must be suffering.”

“I suppose it’s my fate.”

“Chichi-nim [term of endearment], you must always prioritize our young master. That one is merely a concubine, and this one is…”

“What are you even saying!” Unable to endure it any longer, I jumped up from my seat, seething. Jerakiel and Ivan chuckled in unison.

I felt as though I would die prematurely because of those two crazy lions, who were only in sync during moments like these.

As I stormed away, Jerakiel grabbed my wrist.

“Where are you going?”

“To the restroom!”

“Ah.” Jerakiel released my hand, waving dismissively. Ivan snidely remarked from the side, “Have a pleasant bowel movement, Chichi-nim.”

“Please be quiet, Ivan.”

“So touchy.” I felt mortally wounded by Ivan’s completely unaffected reaction and trudged out of the banquet hall. I felt like I was becoming strange in their presence.

I was returning from composing myself in the restroom when someone addressed me.

“Excuse me…”

It was Bianco. He was hesitant, maintaining a respectful distance. I had worried that Ivan might have beaten him up somewhere, given his fearsome demeanor when dragging him away, but thankfully, his limbs appeared intact.

“Why did you call me over if you’re not going to say anything?”

“…Are you Hayangi?” Bianco asked tentatively, fidgeting with his fingers.

Hayangi was the name he used to call me. Since I was an abandoned weasel without a name, it was a temporary label he used for convenience.

When I remained silent, he added, “I heard from a servant that you were caught raiding the Zabisi family’s warehouse…”

Now that I considered it, he seemed to know everything and had sought me out. I crossed my arms and said, “So, did you come to apologize now?”

Bianco’s pupils widened slightly at my blunt reply.

“So it was you…” He strode closer and suddenly seized my hand. It was a stark contrast to his previous hesitation.

“I’m glad you’re alive. I couldn’t find you in the forest afterward, so I kept searching.”

“Who abandoned me?”

It was absurd. Looking back, it was clear that Bianco had lured me in to use me as bait from the start.

He had acted kindly to the abandoned beastman out of pity, but that was all. At the crucial moment, I was the easiest to discard.

Nevertheless, I had let Bianco go because I had survived thanks to him. I also assumed that we would never meet again, since he wouldn’t recognize me anyway.

But to think he would delve into my past and even consider appearing before me again. I didn’t know his intentions, but it wasn’t a welcome encounter. Bianco said, “…I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have involved you that day.”

“Those words are just excuses. You treated me carelessly because you thought I couldn’t transform into a human, right?”

“…….”

He hung his head, offering no excuses, effectively admitting his guilt. My voice trembled involuntarily.

“You should have just pretended not to know me.”

“Hayangi.”

“I’m not Hayangi anymore.”

“…….”

“I spared you out of consideration for our past relationship, so don’t ever appear before me again.”

Betrayal was nothing new to me. I hadn’t expected anything more from Bianco in the first place, so I wasn’t hurt. It was all just ridiculous. I smiled with a hint of defiance.

“Do you remember the guy who attacked you back then? He originally has no mercy. I stopped him, so you lived, you know.”

“I know. It’s Zabisi’s little master, right?”

“You knew?”

“…Only Zabisi has that kind of pheromone.” Indeed, he was the one who had suffered from Jerakiel’s pheromones, so he seemed to recognize it immediately. Bianco fired off questions like a machine gun as soon as Jerakiel was mentioned. “I heard you’re being raised by Zabisi’s little master. How did you manage that? The young master doesn’t easily give his favor to…”

“So that’s why you came to find me.”

I took a step back from Bianco and said, “Since it’s come to this, let me ask you something too. Where did you disappear to in the warehouse that day? Was your original purpose not food?”

If Bianco had brought only the food as promised, I wouldn’t have been caught by Jerakiel. But he disappeared without a word, causing the delay.

Originally, I didn’t think it was worth asking, but seeing him made me change my mind. The thought suddenly occurred to me that his purpose might not have been the food warehouse.

Of course, it was just a hunch, but there was no harm in checking. If he tries to hide it here, then my judgment will be correct.

Bianco, who had been repeatedly moving his lips, suddenly lowered his head.

“I can’t say.”

“Yeah. I didn’t really expect you to.”

I didn’t expect him to reveal even that much to a bait beastman in the first place.

“Then I won’t say it either.”

I smiled slyly and turned around without hesitation. There was no more conversation to be had.

At that moment, Bianco grabbed me.

“Wait a minute, let’s talk…!” Bianco was quite persistent. I looked at him with eyes full of annoyance.

“Let go.”

The hand holding me was quite rough. I could pull it away if I put strength into it, but I held back because it seemed like quite a scuffle would ensue.

Bianco seemed to interpret this as an agreement to talk and began to pour out his words.