EPISODE 39

“Big trouble, big trouble indeed.”

Isaac muttered softly, a deep wrinkle forming on his forehead.

“What on earth are you so worried about now?”

Tiella, who was sitting on the bed, let down her golden hair and looked at Isaac, who was pacing around the room with his hands behind his back as if he were acting strange.

It wasn’t the first time her husband had behaved oddly, but she hadn’t seen such a serious expression on his face since his retirement.

As Tiella patted a spot on the bed, Isaac quickly sat down, as if he had been waiting for it. She stared at him quietly, and he spoke with a solemn expression.

“Tiella, listen to me. This guest who came with Cordy this time…”

“Oh my, you mean Prince Ian?”

Isaac’s eyes widened.

“You noticed?”

“Of course. How could I easily forget that face?”

At first, she was uncertain. But after observing him, she noticed several things.

For instance, his gentle speech, which would have been difficult to maintain if he had grown up harshly, and his impeccable table manners stood out the most. Even though half of his face was covered, his distinguished features were evident, and the vivid blue eyes occasionally revealed from behind his hair made it clear.

Tiella, who had once been a companion to the queen who bore the current king, had not interacted much with Ian, who was born of a different mother, but whenever she saw him, she would think that he didn’t resemble his grandfather, the marquis, at all.

“He’s grown into a fine young man.”

As she responded calmly, her eyes, cradling her cheek, were filled with nostalgia.

“Seeing how he treats Cordy, it seems his personality hasn’t changed. If it weren’t for the situation, I’d want to sneak them into a room and tell him to take responsibility for our little darling. Haha.”

What a terrifying joke. Isaac gulped, recalling the rather intense and romantic love story he had shared with his wife.

Of course, he knew she was expressing concern about their youngest daughter, who, unlike their eldest who outright declared she wouldn’t marry, had been meeting people steadily but still hadn’t brought any good news. But still…

“My dear, regardless of the situation, that would be unfair to both of them. There has to be mutual agreement!”

While marriages among noble families were often more about strategy than love, Isaac hadn’t pushed for such arrangements, except in the case of his eldest son, Frederick. They had more than enough land and power without resorting to such means.

He had no choice with his son, though. Isaac clicked his tongue internally as he thought of Frederick, who, despite his strong sense of responsibility, had given him a lot of headaches.

If he hadn’t caused so much trouble with women, would he have had to push for that marriage? Although Frederick was now living well with his wife, there was a time when Isaac worried that he had ruined an innocent woman’s life.

As Isaac raised his voice slightly, Tiella tilted her head.

“Why? It seemed to work quite well on you.”

“That’s—!”

His wife, bringing up memories he wanted to forget, was both unbearably adorable and infuriating.

“You really are something; how could you be so clueless? If you had caught on by now, you could have proposed already. Instead, you kept hesitating, so I had to step in.”

Tiella said with a hint of reproach.

“Well, I may have made a mistake… No, that’s not it!”

‘Surely, you wouldn’t just cast away a woman who shared a bed with you, would you?’

He was stunned when he saw the beautiful woman smiling at him and hugging him that day. Although he had been enamored with Tiella and had sent her letters of courtship for years, seeing her lying beside him in just a slip of nightwear the morning after staying at Marquis Folette’s house made him break into a cold sweat.

“I still remember vividly how my father-in-law was furious. I almost got beaten to death by the renowned swordsman Marquis Folette. In hindsight, it’s all just memories.”

“Heh, my father was indeed quite passionate.”

“He probably wasn’t pleased with me.”

The ideal man the kingdom desired was a knightly figure. Isaac, who chose to read books rather than wield a sword from a young age, wasn’t likely to be well-regarded by a marquis who had lived his life as a knight.

So, Isaac had been waiting for the right time, trying to come up with the perfect proposal that wouldn’t be rejected by the family. Little did he expect such a variable would come into play.

Well, that’s partly why the wedding went smoothly… though he almost had a heart attack.

“Heh, but I believed you’d handle it well.”

“I felt like a shameless person back then.”

“Oh, you’re more of a gentleman than a shameless person. You’re so much of a gentleman that it was a bit of a problem.”

Tiella shook her head and continued with a small complaint.

“Anyway. Even though I say I prefer a refined gentleman who can wait patiently with longing eyes over barbaric men who think just swinging a sword and being intimidating is all there is…”

“My dear?”

Tiella cradled her husband’s face in her hands and lifted his chin.

“A man who doesn’t know how to wait isn’t charming. Our children seem to be finding their matches well enough, though.”

Tiella glanced at her husband with a hint of light-hearted reproach about how, despite having given birth to beautiful children, there was still no news from them.

“So, what’s the main point?”

“Well, it’s about this…”

Isaac, who had lived closely with his wife for nearly forty years and was always kind to her, had developed a sense for her. He cleared his throat and began to present the excuse he had prepared.

“An ancient sage once said that if you want to uncover someone’s hidden intentions, you should target the time when they are most vulnerable.”

“Yes, I know that. So, how do you plan to make him vulnerable?”

Seeing his wife smile knowingly, despite understanding his schemes, Isaac swallowed hard and continued.

“After all, nothing beats a little trickery when it comes to discerning someone’s true feelings.”

“Oh my.”

“It’s been a while since our youngest came by, so I thought it might be okay to bring out some of the wine from the cellar…”

Tiella said kindly to her husband, who had a nervous look on his face like a cat eyeing a fish.

“Cordy said your tolerance isn’t what it used to be… Will you be okay?”

“Oh, I’m fine with however many bottles… Hmm, let’s just have a modest amount.”

Isaac quickly changed his response, avoiding the sharp gaze, and his green eyes softened again.

“Well, it can’t be helped.”

***

“This time, the wine seems to be well-made. It tastes much better than last year’s.”

Isaac, thoroughly enjoying the alcohol, exclaimed with delight, visibly tipsy. In no time, three barrels of wine had already been emptied. The empty barrels proudly showed their presence behind Isaac.

Calia had only sipped a few glasses. Considering her father’s and youngest sister’s drinking capacity, it seemed almost exaggerated to think of them as human. Sometimes it was amazing to see how they managed to pour so much into their glasses.

The appetizers prepared in advance were nearly all gone. Calia continued to watch the young man, who was steadily finishing his plate, with a disinterested expression.

“Is our Cordy giving up already?”

“Oh, no way. It’s father who would be in trouble if he passed out so soon! Drinking is all about enjoying it together!”

“That’s right, that’s right. That’s my daughter, she knows what’s what!”

Their smiles, full of cheer and intoxication, never faded. Cordelia, who had finished her drink, wiped her mouth and turned to the side.

Noah, sitting right next to her, was intently staring at his empty glass. His serious expression made it seem like he was working on something important.

“Oh?”

“Noah, are you drunk?”

“No.”

Noah shook his head vigorously. When Tiella placed a hat on him, his neat forehead, previously hidden, was now fully exposed. As his clear eyes stared directly at her, his heart fluttered slightly.

His rosy cheeks turned redder.

“You said you can’t handle alcohol. You’re not pushing yourself too hard, are you?”

“No.”

“Are you perhaps sleepy?”

“No.”

“…If I kiss you now, will you get angry?”

“No… Yes.”

He’s drunk.

It was clear that he had indeed been weak with alcohol. Despite this, his attempt to maintain his composure was both cute and amusing.

“Already drunk, are you?”

Isaac chuckled as he got up, took Noah’s glass, and went to refill it. This time, he brought back a relatively weaker, golden apple cider that sloshed in the wooden cup.

It was amusing to see the person who had been relentlessly feeding alcohol now showing some restraint. Of course, if he had any real conscience, he would have stopped pouring the wine.

“Father, he’s reached his limit. Stop feeding him!”

“Hee hee.”

“Disgusting!”

Isaac always became so cheerful when he was drunk. But who would find an elderly father’s antics endearing? Only someone like her mother, might look at him with a slightly cloudy gaze and call it charming.

As Cordelia scratched her arms in disgust, Isaac, looking a bit hurt, retaliated.

“Our Cordy says she doesn’t care much for men who can’t handle their liquor. At this rate, the future is looking bright.”

“Father!”

Why does he always have to say such unnecessary things?

“It’s… alright. To me, you’re someone too good. I’m always in your debt…”

Seeing Noah, sitting upright and firmly rejecting her while still accepting the glass of wine, made the situation even more absurd. Was that a consent or a rejection?

“Come on, eat something too. You’ll ruin your stomach.”

Noah looked up at her and gave a shy smile when she placed a plate with meat in front of him. The sudden brightness of his smile nearly made Cordelia drop the plate she was holding.

“Thank you.”

Is he out of his mind? Why is he so cute?!

The impact of a handsome man looking at her with such gentle eyes was overwhelming. As she reached out and gently stroked his flushed cheek, he rubbed his face against her palm.

Cordelia’s conscience wavered as her rationality and emotions started to clash. In the fleeting moment of their struggle, her emotions proposed a compromise to her rational mind.

Maybe she should just embrace him pretending to be drunk. That wouldn’t be too bad, right?