#Chapter 11. Family Trip

“Ariel?”

Damian looked at Ariel and immediately frowned.

Ariel ignored Damian and glanced once at Bruno and Jessica sitting in their seats.

“I was heading to the reception room thinking you might be seriously injured, but they said you went up to the study.”

Ariel smiled brightly and lowered her gaze to Bruno’s leg.

“It seems your leg isn’t seriously injured. That’s fortunate.”

“Ah, well……”

When the flustered Bruno tried to continue speaking, Ariel didn’t give him the chance and immediately sat on the sofa.

“Oh right, since I came up to the study, I have something to discuss with you, Damian. We were talking about our family trip yesterday but stopped…… Lucy keeps asking about it. Since I’m up here, I should discuss it and go back down.”

“…… A family trip?”

Ariel, who confirmed that Bruno’s face cracked, clenched her hand under the table tightly. A thought crossed her mind.

Derek’s story about being the heir stuck in Ariel’s heart like a poisoned arrow and slowly spread.

It didn’t take long to dominate her entire mind.

Like someone struck by paralyzing poison, tendons popped up on the back of Ariel’s hand.

Because she put too much strength in her hand, each knuckle had turned white.

Meanwhile, her face was incredibly peaceful, so no one in that place could read Ariel’s true feelings.

Ariel, who glanced down at Bruno’s leg, tilted her head while looking at the white gauze wrapped tightly around it.

The physician said to refrain from walking for a while…….

“Bruno. I think I need to talk with Ariel for a moment first, so if you’re not busy, it would be better to continue our conversation next time.”

Damian first tried to send Bruno and Jessica out of the study.

However, Bruno sitting on the sofa showed no sign of getting up at all.

“Well, I think I need to discuss something quite urgent with you. It seems it will be a family business…… Jessica, go down to the children first.”

Bruno, who looked at Jessica, spoke.

When Damian nodded in agreement to Jessica’s withdrawal, Jessica slowly got up from her seat.

At the same time, both men’s gazes fixed on Ariel.

“…… Lady Ariel?”

Even after Jessica closed the door and left, when Ariel didn’t leave, Bruno called her.

“I heard the physician said to refrain from walking for a while……”

When Ariel brought up the physician’s words, Bruno nodded while stroking the gauze wrapped around his leg.

“Yes. It’s not seriously injured, but it’s only been a few days since I got hurt. Actually, I got injured recently and a worry arose. It seems it will be family business. First, Lady Ariel, you should also……”

“Family business, I’m curious too. I happened to have something to discuss with Damian related to that. The timing is good.”

Ariel smiled brightly at Damian.

Damian’s eyebrow twitched up. He seemed quite flustered by Ariel’s appearance, which was different from usual.

“Well……”

Ariel smiled gently at Bruno who trailed off.

“I’m curious what kind of matter it is. You said it’s related to injuring your leg.”

When Ariel lowered her gaze to Bruno’s leg again, he stroked his leg again like someone who had something to hide.

Like people who touch their nose or avoid eye contact when lying, Bruno stroked his leg every time Ariel lowered her gaze to it.

“Maybe because it hasn’t been long since I fell from my horse. I fell from my horse again. This seems to put some strain on my entire leg.”

Looking at Bruno’s sheepish smile, it seemed he was going to ask Damian for a favor again.

“Actually, just before suppressing the rebellion, didn’t His Majesty the Emperor order you to go briefly as an envoy to the Eastern Continent. At the same time, I had to go out to suppress the rebellion.”

Bruno’s gaze moved to Damian.

Ariel, who learned why he had gone to suppress the rebellion, pressed her finger firmly with her fingernail.

“I was going to go as an envoy to the Eastern Continent within six months. But my leg was…… it wasn’t in a condition to ride a horse and travel around for a long period. It got a bit better now, so I ordered them to prepare for going to the Eastern Continent yesterday. I wanted to share final drinks with you…… but this……”

While saying that, Bruno, who glanced down at his leg, wrinkled his eyes.

“It became difficult……”

While saying that, Bruno, who watched Damian’s reaction, glanced down slightly.

Ariel almost let out a hollow laugh at those absurd words and acting.

It was diplomacy with the Eastern Continent given to the Zenova ducal house by the emperor’s decree.

Regardless of going out for six months to suppress the rebellion, Damian would surely try to go himself if Bruno said he couldn’t go.

Bruno would know this point no less than Ariel.

It was the moment Ariel’s suspicion turned into certainty.

“Oh my, it seems Damian’s schedule won’t match because we’ll be busy with the family trip for a while.”

Ariel spoke to Bruno who didn’t even give her a glance.

“Ariel.”

Damian’s low calling voice echoed through the study.

However, Ariel had no intention of backing down.

Even if he didn’t think of eliminating Damian, it seemed he definitely planned to prevent the heir Ariel would bear.

That’s why he kept making Damian go outside.

“How about…… a prayer trip this time?”

“A prayer trip?”

Ariel, who nodded, looked at Damian as if nothing was wrong.

“They say praying in other places is so good for deepening one’s faith.”

“You can pray at home too, so why do you need to go to other places to do it?”

Damian, who sensed the true meaning of what Ariel was saying, asked puzzledly.

“Since you can offer prayers in various places, wouldn’t your faith deepen from multiple angles?”

“I see. That sounds good too.”

Damian, who nodded obediently, expressed his refusal to Bruno.

Ariel was also surprised that Damian accepted her proposal, but she couldn’t express that emotion here.

Ariel, who slowly nodded as if it was natural, listened to Damian’s words with her hands folded kindly.

“Unfortunately, I’ve already promised a family trip, so that won’t be possible. The role of envoy is a very honorable position, so it would be better to select one of the retainers instead of me.”

“I see. It hasn’t been long since you returned from war, and now a family trip……”

Puzzlement appeared on Bruno’s face.

He clearly thought Damian wouldn’t do such a thing.

He was right. Damian wouldn’t do such a thing. But Ariel was different.

“Travelling is enjoyable especially at times like this. Haha. It seems it will be very enjoyable, brother. Since you said you have something to discuss with Lady Ariel, I’ll withdraw now.”

Bruno composed his expression, nodded, and got up from his seat.

Ariel smiled gently and accepted his greeting. At the same time, she didn’t forget to say one thing.

“They told you to refrain from walking, but it doesn’t seem to be something that puts much strain on you.”

Bruno, who took one step, turned his head stiffly and smiled brightly.

“There’s just pain in walking itself, but it’s not a strain. It would cause problems if used for a long time though.”

“I see. You don’t even frown once despite the pain, so you’re really amazing. My husband is the same way.”

“Haha. Even if there’s pain, being from the Zenova ducal house, I learned not to express it. Then, I’ll really go out now.”

*

Bruno’s expression crumpled completely after crossing the door that closed with a thud.

The person who had been smiling pleasantly just moments ago was nowhere to be found.

There was nothing wrong with his walking at all.

Bruno, who had been walking like that, clenched his fist tightly and trembled his hands.

He roughly pushed his hair back and opened his mouth as if letting out a silent scream.

The area around his neck where veins bulged turned red hot.

Bruno, who completely stopped walking, turned his head back sharply.

“Why is that woman suddenly acting like that?”

Biting his molars tightly, Bruno slowly tilted his head.

All he could see was the study door, but anger accumulated in his pupils as if projecting Ariel beyond the door.

She was a woman who only knew how to smile and couldn’t say a word properly, but suddenly came to the study and interfered.

Since the one thing his brother cherished, if there was one, was that woman, it was also difficult to scold her in front of his brother.

That would rather play a bad role in turning his brother’s heart.

Bruno messed up his hair again and wrinkled his face as much as possible.

Going down the stairs like that, Bruno began to rack his brain.

Since when…….

What made that woman like this?

Bruno rolled his eyes and stopped for a moment in mid-air.

“Could it be…… the story about Derek and Lucy at the award ceremony got twisted?”

Raising only one corner of his mouth particularly high, Bruno spat out curses into the air saying “Huh, really……”

“They said she’s obsessed with the child, so she’s interfering like this because someone said something to that young bitch?”

Bruno, who continued spitting out curses into the air as if it was absurd and giggling, went down to the first floor.

“Right…… I should make that precious little brat completely lose her mind. I just need to make sure she can’t completely get away from that unnecessary young bitch’s side.”

Bruno, who laughed one last time with a snicker, moved his steps toward Lucy’s room.