"You have a desire to learn and understand the family, but you respect it."
Allen prayed in his heart that this sweet, bright young lady would be with him in this house for a long time.
White snow fluttered against the cloudy sky.
On the path of white snow, an elegant carriage slowly ran with a faint light.
In the swirling snowstorm, the traces of Grand Duke La Carte was seen and disappeared.
The carriage bearing the emblem of the Grand Duke soon stopped at the entrance to the magnificent mansion.
“How have you been, my lord?”
Everyone in the house went out to greet Mathius, who had been to the territory.
Outside, there was heavy snow in late winter, so white snow fell on Mathius" shoulders as soon as he went out of the carriage.
Ariel did not go out to the door but as a hostess, she stood inside the front door and greeted Mathius.
Mathius, who was shaking his shoulders and coming in without acknowledging the servants" greetings, stopped when he saw Ariel.
“Ariella.”
Ariel gently lifted the hem of her skirt to greet him.
“Welcome back, Sir Mathius.”
Mathius signaled his hand to Dalton who was following him.
Dalton quickly reached out the box he was holding to him.
“It"s a gift.”
Mathius held out a beautifully packed box to Ariel.
Ariel"s heart throbbed for a moment.
"I"ve read this from a book."
Ariel was reading a picture book given by Dalton as a gift these days.
There were many children her age in the book, who waited for gifts when their father went out and came back.
There were even times when they begged their father to bring them a present before they left.
Ariel thought it would never happen to her all her life.
The only thing she could expect most from her biological father, the Marquis, was indifference.
She would rather have him not pay attention to her than to be hit or cursed.
When Ariel lived at the Marquis, she was relieved when her father was out, and when it was time to return, she would be terrified.
"I"ve never felt the excitement of waiting for my father to return like the children in the book. "
Ariel was a little curious about how it feels like to be a daughter waiting for her father.
Ariel, who received the gift box from Mathius, blushed and curled her toes.
"I think…I know a little bit about how it feels now."
Although they are father and daughter bound by law, she thought it was ridiculous to ask for a gift because he was just her husband"s father, not her real father.
Besides, she didn"t want to have anything anymore because she already received many gifts right after she came to the Grand Duke"s estate.
"But….. "
Ariel clasped the gift box with her hands.
She was very happy with the present Mathius brought back for her.
It"s a sign that he remembered Ariel while he was out.
Ariel trembled at the unfamiliar feeling. A feeling that she was also a part of a family.
" So this is how it feels."
To feel empty without them, to remember each other even they are apart, and to feel happy when they return safely.
Ariel realized.
The reason why the children in the book run to the door and cling to the father with so much joy when the father comes back.
It"s not just about gifts.
It was nothing more than an element of joy.
The real gift is that their father returned safely to their family without any problems.
Ariel could finally understand the relief and joy.
Ariel said, “Wait a minute,” and gestured to Mathius to lower his head.
Mathius lowered his height by bending down without asking why.
Ariel put down the gift box and expressed her grat.i.tude.
“Thank you, Sir Mathius.”
When the man with long black-haired with a solemn atmosphere smiled, everything suddenly felt bright.
*chu*
Mathius, who was kissed by a little girl, smiled slowly.
“Hmm.”
He tapped Ariel on the cheek and spoke.
“……I should buy more gifts.”
Ariel"s eyes widened.
"Why did he come to such a conclusion?"
She shook quickly.
Mathius tilted his head back.
“Or perhaps, I should leave home often.”
Ariel shouted unknowingly.
“I-I don"t like that!”
Mathius grinned.
Ariel"s cheeks, whose true intentions were revealed, were red.
Mathius picked up the gift box on the floor and gave it back to Ariel.
“Children should like gifts more than adults. Now, go to your room and open it.”
Ariel came back to the room with a present in her arms.
Susan, who followed, asked.
“Oh my, I guess the Grand Duke bought you a present, didn"t he?”
“Yes.”
“I"ve been waiting to see this all this happen in my life.”
Susan said with a happy smile.
Then Ariel became puzzled.
"Has Sir Mathius never given his son, Lucian a gift?"
“Go ahead and open it.”
She unwrapped carefully and opened the lid of the box.
"What could it be?"
When she took off another layer of thin pink paper wrapped in the lid, a small object fell to Ariel"s palm.
It was a splendid castle-shaped ornament carved with dazzling white stone.
“Pretty…. “
And it looks very expensive.
"How much is this kind of stuff? How much did Sir Mathius spend to buy it?"
Ariel, who recently learned the concept of money, was deeply troubled.
A commoner family usually uses around 30 denals to live for a month.
A year costs 100 denals, and a day is 50 mino…
Susan, who was watching from a little distance, said kindly.
“It"s a white castle-shaped orgel*.”
(t/n: orgel means music box in German or Dutch.)
“Orgel?”
Ariel, who saw the orgel for the first time, asked again.
“Yes, these are elaborate objects that artisans can only make two or three a year. They"re probably custom-made.”
"So he didn"t buy it, he ordered it. Then it must have been more expensive."
Ariel looked closely at the ornaments.
There was a delicate key-shaped spring with jewels on the back of the castle decoration.
“This is how you play with it.”
Susan came up and returned the spring a couple of times.
As the spring blew, the small castle began to spin round and round, making a brilliant sound of music.
“Waaah!”
Ariel was so surprised and happy that she was so happy.
“I hear a pretty sound.”
She tried to wind the spring herself.
A beautiful tune filled the room with sweetness.
Ariel leaned his arm against the music box and closed her eyes.
"I"m happy."
The tip of my little lip surged up.
It was the afternoon a few days later.
As if the winter was about to go, the sunlight coming through the big window of the mansion was warm.
Ariel walked down the hall, stealthily killing her footsteps.
She also held up her polkdot-patterned mint dress slightly and tiptoed in her ivory-colored low-heeled shoes so that no noise could be made.
Where she was walking was the corridor leading to the Grand Duke"s office.
She already came to see Dalton several times, but this was the first time I"ve come to meet Mathius.
"I wanted to come, but… "
"I"m afraid I"m going to get in the way of his work."
She came here today because she had something special to say to Mathius, but she decided to go look first and if he was busy, she"ll go back quickly.
"If I go back, I wish no one notice that I had visited him."
That"s why Ariel is sneaking now.
Ariel approached the door to Mathius" office carefully.
Then she gently put my ears to the door.
"It"s bad to eavesdrop, but it"s just to find out if he"s busy or not."
*kerchak.*
“Aaat…..!”
The door suddenly opened, and Ariel, who was holding on to it, fell.
Fortunately, she didn"t get hurt because she fell on the carpet.
Ariel rubbed her knee and looked up to see the man who opened the door.
There was no one at the door.
"I mean, no one opened the door inside, so how did it open? Automatically?"
Mathius, who was sitting at his desk far away, stood up when he saw her fall.
“Ariel.”
He clicked his tongue and muttered bluntly.
“You could"ve just opened the door to come in,”
Mathius strode up and carried Ariel up.
“Did you get hurt? “
“No Sir Mathius.”
Even though she said she was unhurt, Mathius looked down at Ariel"s knee and clicked his tongue once again.
He lifted Ariel with one arm and put her down on the chair he had just sat on.
Sitting on Mathius" large chair, the little Ariel looked just like a doll sitting in a human chair.
“Why were you at the door instead of coming in?”
Ariel, who was amazed by the feeling of a chair that was much bigger than her body, quickly came to her senses.
She swung her legs straight from the chair.
“I"m… afraid you might be busy.”
Mathius made a strange expression
“There"s nothing urgent when it comes to La Carte. La Carte keeps others busy, we"re not the busy ones.”
It sounded very arrogant, but Ariel, who spent two months here, was convinced.
In fact, La Carte"s status was indeed that high.
“I see… “
“Yes, so feel free to come and see me.”
Ariel blushed when she heard it.
Fortunately, Mathius didn"t seem to be bothered that much.
Ariel climbed down from Mathius" chair.
“I came here to tell you something.”
Mathius leaned against the wall on the side of the window. He unb.u.t.toned his tight sleeve and rolled it up.
His arms were revealed with beautifully carved blood veins.
“What is it?”
“That… “
Ariel swallowed her saliva.
Is it okay if I say it? Isn"t it a bit out of topic?
Struggling, she closed her eyes tightly and squeezed her voice.
“Well, I want to learn etiquette!”
When Mathius didn"t answer for a long time, Ariel opened her eyes.
She saw the expressionless face of Mathius.
Afraid of being rejected, Ariel took the courage to add.
“I"m still the hostess of the Grand Duke even when I"m young.”
I"ve been thinking about wanting to learn etiquette for some time.
Although she was not criticized for her behavior, she wanted to behave like a good lady.
There"s one condition written in the contract she signed with Lucian that "she needs to do her duty as a wife."
"But I don"t think I"m doing my duty here…"
"I"m just eating, sleeping, and playing."