The Strongest Daughter-In-Law Of The Black Lion Family [EN]: Chapter 46

After an awkward silence, Balzac bid farewell.

“Thank you for the flower. Ahem. Then, I’ll be going.”

Cercia quietly watched Balzac’s retreating figure as he quickly disappeared.

‘I’m the one who should be leaving?’

Why did Balzac leave?

Seeing him flee from his own room, he must have been embarrassed. A chuckle escaped her lips at the sight.

“Pfft.”

Just then, Ivan, who was standing beside her, cleared his throat and explained Balzac’s behavior.

“My father is shyer than he appears.”

At that moment, Cercia was startled, as if she had overheard something she shouldn’t have.

“Father? No way.”

Cercia blurted out her thoughts, then quickly shut her mouth. Ivan narrowed his eyes at her reaction.

“…What do you mean by that?”

“…”

“Answer me, Ms. Two-Faced!”

“Wh-what are you talking about!”

Cercia pointedly avoided his gaze. Then, she grabbed Ayla’s arm and pulled her along.

“Ayla, let’s go quickly.”

“Where are you going in the middle of our conversation, Cercia Zabis Niiiiim!”

Ivan’s voice, amplified by his cupped hands, echoed loudly through the hallway.

Cercia ran away without looking back.

‘To think that such a fidgety Suin [a person with animal-like features or abilities] could come from such a steadfast man.’

Feeling the mystery of genetics, Cercia moved on to her next destination.

* * *

The place I headed to was Zachary’s study. In my hands, I held a flower each for Zachary and Zerachiel. Ayla had already taken care of my share.

“Oh? Cercia, what brings you here?”

Herman, who was working alone in the study, greeted me warmly. I checked that Zachary’s seat was empty and asked.

“Where is Zachary?”

“He’s gone to the secret garden for a while.”

“Secret garden?”

Was there such a place in the Zabis estate?

The name itself was mysterious, so I tilted my head in question. Herman explained.

“It’s a garden that only direct family members can enter. It holds the history of Zabis.”

“History as in?”

“We haven’t seen it ourselves, so we don’t know much. We only know that it’s a place containing the power of Zabis. Entry is impossible without the Zabis pheromone.”

“Ah.”

If that was the case, there was no way I could go there. Besides, I had a rough idea of what it was like.

‘Secret garden, huh…’

I remembered Zerachiel often visiting some garden in the original story.

Actually, it was questionable whether it could even be called a garden. It was a rather eerie place.

The garden, which only briefly appeared from his point of view, certainly had flowers.

The problem was that the flowers were blooming in separate glass cases. No, to be exact, only traces of them remained, long since withered.

In the novel, except for one, all that remained were the calyxes [the protective outer whorl of a flower] and stems, leaving only skeletal traces.

Zerachiel would only stare at the only flower that was still blooming before leaving.

Unfortunately, that flower was also withering. There were only a few petals left.

‘It wasn’t described what kind of flower it was.’

It was only described as a flower of all black color. Like the black rose on the Zabis seal.

‘Yeah, it was like a graveyard of flowers.’

A garden with only dead and dying flowers.

I couldn’t believe that the power of Zabis resided there.

Lost in thought, I held out one of the flowers in my hand. It was a shame I couldn’t deliver it myself, but there was no helping it.

“Then please give this to Zachary.”

“Isn’t this a flower?”

“Yes. The spring flowers are so pretty, so I brought them. I thought it would be nice to have in the study since the scent is strong.”

“Thank you. I’ll put it in a vase.”

It was when Herman was receiving the flower with a pleased expression. Just in time, Zachary entered the study.

“Hmm?”

His expression clearly said, ‘What are you doing here?’ Herman explained instead.

“Cercia came to gift you spring flowers.”

“You picked them yourself?”

I nodded and continued.

“Well, I realized I didn’t thank you properly.”

Although I was forced to stay here by Zerachiel, the current head of Zabis was Zachary.

It must have been uncomfortable for him to have me staying in the estate without permission, but he only grumbled and didn’t kick me out. He had every right to do so.

Besides, according to Ivan, he was the one who first suggested bringing me into the direct line.

Zerachiel caused the accident, and Zachary was the one who cleaned it up. Of course, Zerachiel had done it with that in mind.

Anyway, to get along well here, it was important to get along with Zachary, the eldest member of the family.

Although our first meeting wasn’t great, there was no need for our relationship to be bad from now on, right?

I diligently bowed my head, showing the manners I had learned in the Land of Eastern Etiquette [a reference to Asian cultures known for their emphasis on etiquette, such as Japan or Korea].

“Thank you for taking care of me in many ways. I heard you’ve been secretly looking after me.”

“Ahem. It’s nothing to mention.”

“Please continue to take care of me!”

At my words, spoken with a bright smile, Zachary cleared his throat and took the flower from Herman.

The pink petals emitted a fragrant scent full of spring.

He stared at the small flower for a long time before opening his mouth.

“You even picked something like you.”

What does that mean?

“Is that why that guy went crazy?”

The crazy guy Zachary was referring to must be Zerachiel. I felt like stomping my feet in frustration.

‘No! It’s not my fault he’s crazy!’

He was already half-crazy when we first met. Zachary, as his father, should know that best, so it was absurd that he was shifting the blame to me.

While I was fuming inwardly, Zachary pointed to my hand.

“Is that Zerachiel’s?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t bother. That guy hates flowers.”

Huh? That can’t be.

How often did he visit the secret garden in the original story?

As I tilted my head in question, Zachary said meaningfully.

“Zabis originally hates flowers. He especially hates them.”

“Why?”

“Flowers make him furious. The sweeter the scent, the more dangerous the poison they hold.”

It wasn’t something Zachary, who had accepted the flower, should be saying.

He’s a Zabis himself!

Moreover, it was even more absurd coming from a family that had a flower emblazoned on their seal.

It’s natural for flowers to be fragrant, so why bring up poison?

Seeing my somewhat sulky expression, Zachary continued.

“But this flower has no poison, and it even tickles the senses. He might even like it.”

It seemed like he was trying to make amends.

“The tickling is because of the pollen.”

I retorted bluntly, but Zachary readily agreed and chuckled.

“Yes. It’s all because of the pollen.”

Then, Zachary suddenly stroked my head. To be exact, it was closer to ruffling it than stroking it.

“Ugh! What are you doing!”

“That’s why I said he brought something like you. You’re perfect for that guy who has a talent for driving people crazy.”

What is he even saying!

I stepped back to avoid Zachary’s touch. Zachary glanced at me and muttered meaningfully.

“Where did such a cheeky thing come from?”

‘I walked in on my own two feet and got caught, you know? Hmph.’

Regardless, I stormed out of Zachary’s study with Ayla.

* * *

“It seems like a storm has passed. She has a knack for making people lose their minds.”

Zachary quietly looked down at the flower in his hand. It was quite admirable that she had picked the flower with her small hands.

Thus, contrary to his gruff words, the corners of his lips didn’t seem to want to go down. Seeing this, Herman replied.

“It seems like Cercia has taken a liking to you.”

“Taken a liking? It’s just that she keeps doing cute things, so it’s amusing.”