Don’T Get Caught By Your Husband! [EN]: Chapter 50

#50. Meeting with Scarlett (2)

2024.04.19.

“Huh…? You, you are…?”

Belladonna’s eyes widened as she looked back and forth between them. Scarlett raised an eyebrow and asked,

“You didn’t consider your wife’s opinion at all?”

“I brought her here to treat her well.”

“You have no conscience.”

Belladonna blinked, watching the unusual siblings’ conversation.

She figured Escalion was answering that way to be considerate of her.

“Your wife must be going through a lot.”

[My husband treats me so well; I have no hardships.]

“You don’t need to lie for Escalion’s sake.”

It’s not a lie…….

With no change in her expression, Scarlett quietly said,

“Still, that’s a relief. It seems he doesn’t neglect his wife.”

“……”

Escalion, who was sitting next to her, quietly put down his silverware at her prickly words.

Belladonna swallowed hard, looking at him.

“Scarlett.”

Soon, Escalion opened his mouth.

Scarlett nodded, still slicing the tomato on her plate into small pieces with a long knife.

“Yes.”

“I have something to tell you.”

“Go ahead.”

Escalion stopped talking and looked at Belladonna.

When Belladonna met his eyes and nodded slightly, he sighed softly, swept the hair that had fallen over his forehead, and opened his mouth.

“I apologize for being so indifferent all this time.”

At the sudden apology, Scarlett looked up. She frowned with an expression similar to when she had made the ‘Ugh’ sound earlier.

“What’s with you all of a sudden?”

“You might have thought I neglected and ignored you.”

“Because it’s true.”

“At the time, I didn’t think I had the strength to protect you, and I was very immature since it was the first time I had a younger sister.”

“I never asked you to take responsibility for me. I never asked you to suddenly show up and act like my brother.”

Scarlett spat out in a rather sharp tone. It seemed that her relationship with Escalion had become a bigger wound than she thought.

Escalion stared silently at Scarlett, who was like a hedgehog putting up its quills, before speaking again.

“I know.”

“……”

“I wanted to do it for you.”

At Escalion’s words, Scarlett trembled her lower lip slightly and put down her fork.

She looked at Escalion with trembling eyes.

“When our parents passed away and I was living alone, I heard that I had family left.”

“……”

“At first, I tried to ignore it. I didn’t think of a child I had never lived with or met as my family.”

Scarlett picked up the glass of water on the table with trembling hands and gulped it down.

“But seeing you, who looked just like our father… so, like me.”

Escalion paused. He looked at Belladonna once more, as if struggling, and then slowly said,

“…I wanted to take care of you.”

“……”

“I apologize for the way I went about it being so clumsy. I also apologize for unintentionally hurting you. It’s not that I was ashamed of you or didn’t want to show you to others.”

“Ha…….”

“I’m also sorry for causing unnecessary misunderstandings. I don’t usually care about what others think, so I didn’t pay attention, but it seems the misunderstandings grew and worsened. I now understand how hard it must have been for you not being able to clear things up.”

Belladonna watched Scarlett suppress her emotions.

She could see her desperately holding back tears, despite maintaining a blank expression the whole time.

“Anyway… Ah, I think you both know I’m not good with words.”

Belladonna nodded slightly.

“Yeah, I’m sorry, and that’s the end of what I wanted to say. That’s all. Let’s finish our meal.”

After speaking, Escalion picked up his fork again, stabbed a piece of steak, and moved it onto Belladonna’s plate.

Belladonna, realizing that he was doing it out of awkwardness, gave him a warm smile.

Silence fell over the table where they sat.

Only the small sounds of Escalion moving his silverware could be heard occasionally.

No one could easily open their mouth.

“…You really suck at talking.”

Then, Scarlett, who had been holding back her emotions, slowly spoke.

Escalion and Belladonna turned to her at the same time.

Scarlett had returned to her usual expression, as if nothing had happened, and let out a small breath.

“Then, can I come visit often from now on? Don’t get the wrong idea; it’s not because I want to see you, but because I want to see your wife.”

Escalion raised one corner of his mouth and nodded.

“As much as you want.”

* * *

Belladonna, who had briefly left her seat, returned to the drawing room.

The siblings, who had been spending an awkward and difficult time alone after the meal, looked at Belladonna entering the drawing room as if she were a savior.

“Bella.”

“Welcome back! Where did you go?”

*Were they waiting for me?* Belladonna smiled, looking at the siblings who were equally sparkling their eyes.

She held out what she was holding towards Scarlett.

“Oh? This is…….”

In Belladonna’s hand was the sparkling red ruby necklace that she had found in her room sometime ago.

Scarlett, who took the necklace she was holding out, asked.

“Where was it? I thought I had lost it when I stayed in this castle for a while before.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s what you gave me for my birthday, you idiot.”

“Ah.”

Scarlett, glaring at Escalion who was turning his head in embarrassment, looked up at Belladonna and raised the corners of her mouth.

“Thank you so much for finding it. It was something I cherished… I was a little sad that I lost it.”

“……”

“I don’t know who had the eye for it, but it was the best birthday present I ever received. Although the person who gave it seems to have completely forgotten about it.”

“I remembered. It was the first time in my life I spent a fortune to buy something.”

Escalion grumbled. He pulled out a chair for Belladonna and held her hand.

Scarlett, watching Escalion treat his wife as carefully as if she were a glass doll, blurted out.

“You two seem to be getting along well.”

“I’m always good to my people.”

“Where did your conscience go? Or, do you have a bad memory?”

“It seems you don’t remember a single thing you’ve received so far.”

Belladonna watched the siblings, who had started bickering again, with interest.

As she was listening to the conversation that was going back and forth quickly like a small ball between the center net [like a fast-paced rally in tennis], someone knocked on the drawing room door.

When she turned her head, Volf was standing in front of the door with a troubled face.

“Lord…….”

“What’s wrong?”

Volf, glancing at Belladonna for a moment, opened his mouth.

“There’s a letter that you need to check urgently; could you spare 10 minutes? I’m sorry to take away from your cozy family time.”

“Does it have to be right now?”

“I don’t know for sure, but the letter envelope has a seal indicating confidentiality. I was worried that it might be an emergency……”

Belladonna felt Volf constantly looking at her as he spoke.

*What is it……?* At his gaze, Belladonna tightened her grip on the hand she had placed on her lap.

She didn’t know what it was, but she had a bad feeling that it might be related to the Pope.

“An emergency?”

“Ah, it might not be an emergency. I’m just worried… But letters with confidential seals are rare, so I’d like to ask you to check it quickly.”

Escalion frowned as if he was annoyed.

He didn’t seem to want to leave his wife and sister alone.

However, Belladonna, having confirmed Volf’s subtle gaze, gently pushed Escalion, signaling him to go quickly.

She wanted to find out what was going on and check it quickly.

“Yes, go ahead. I want to have a conversation with your wife alone.”

When Scarlett joined in, Escalion stood up from his seat as if he couldn’t help it.

He had a dissatisfied expression on his face, but he showered Belladonna’s hand with light kisses and turned to leave the drawing room.

“Wow…….”

As soon as Escalion disappeared, Scarlett opened her mouth wide and exclaimed.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen Escalion make such a dazed expression.”

Dazed……?

Belladonna was taken aback by Scarlett’s ruthless choice of words and looked at her.

“He’s either completely cold and expressionless, or completely weightless and light. He was someone I couldn’t figure out at all, but he was someone who could make such an expression?”

“……”

“It seems he really cherishes his wife.”

Scarlett said, stirring the straw in her drink.

Belladonna picked up the notepad on the table and quickly wrote down the words.

[He cherishes his sister that much too.]

Scarlett, who glanced down and checked Belladonna’s writing, smiled and nodded.

“I know. I know that he’s doing it for me in his own way. Even though I’m grateful, I also have a bad personality, so I only reacted crookedly. I have to apologize for that too…….”

Scarlett, who trailed off, continued to stir her drink with the straw before opening her mouth again.

“I’m glad Escalion met a good person.”

“……”

“I was worried if he could build a proper family with that personality. He takes most things indifferently and lightly, but he’s afraid of deep relationships.”

Scarlett continued with a soft smile. She shook her crossed legs slowly and said playfully.

“Escalion is secretly soft-hearted.”

*Escalion is soft-hearted…….* Belladonna quietly listened to her story.

“In my opinion, I think he doesn’t make deep relationships on purpose because he’s afraid of getting hurt badly. He was very popular with women since he was young, but he never had a serious relationship.”

“……”

“At first, I simply thought, is there something wrong with him, or does he have a different taste than others? But as I got older, I understood.”

Scarlett’s voice, which had been playful and light all along, calmed down.

“Escalion lost his family when he was young.”

*That’s right…….*

Belladonna lowered her head as if understanding.

Escalion was feeling fear.

That the newly formed family would leave again easily…….