🔊 TTS Settings
chapter 80
The prediction of Marquis Aitra Oceanus had been spot on.
“Puahahahaha!”
The news that the kidnapper was none other than General Albus Oceanus had quickly spread through the Bello mansion.
Gloria was laughing so hard she could barely breathe.
“The mighty White Lion in a jail cell? And being accused of kidnapping a child?”
“He lured me with ice cream! That bad old man!”
Clare was proudly recounting how she had defeated the kidnapper. She bragged about how she had subdued him. There was a lot of exaggeration, but Gloria didn’t mind at all.
The important thing was one thing:
“Well done! Absolutely wonderful!”
Her granddaughter had bested that wretched man.
Elated, Gloria hugged Clare tightly, kissing her on the forehead and cheeks.
Startled by her grandmother’s intense affection, Clare wriggled free as if fleeing.
“Still, you mustn’t follow strangers from now on. Understand?”
Viss gently wiped Clare’s wet face with a handkerchief and spoke seriously. Clare obediently nodded.
“And how are the other children?”
“They weren’t too scared, thankfully.”
Asa replied. They had called each child’s home earlier, and though they had been a little startled, everything seemed normal. They would still keep an eye on them for a few days.
“That’s a relief, but…”
Viss glanced toward the sofa.
In the far corner sat the son-in-law, shoulders slumped, head buried in his hands, looking utterly dejected.
“It’s okay, darling.”
Noah, sitting beside Leto, gently patted his back in comfort.
“They just wanted to give Clare some ice cream because she’s cute. There was a little misunderstanding, I think.”
“……”
“And you didn’t insult the General on purpose…”
Leto slumped further.
The words he had spoken earlier had come back to haunt him. He had insulted the kidnapper, thinking him an ill-mannered old man. When he learned the kidnapper’s grandchild was in the navy, he even had the wicked thought of throwing him out.
But it turned out the kidnapper was Albus.
And that grandchild was him.
It was as if he had cursed his own face.
Leto couldn’t raise his head out of guilt. More than embarrassment, he was shocked that he had spoken such words to a general he respected.
“By the way, they must have arrived today.”
Noah awkwardly changed the subject.
Asa joined in. She also felt pity for Leto in his current state.
“We’ll meet soon. I wonder what they’re like?”
They must be good people, she thought, her voice full of expectation. Noah felt the same.
“They said they would contact us before meeting, so let’s wait.”
The Marquis of Oceanus had said he would arrive, rest for a few days, and then reach out.
But now, given the situation…
‘Are they not going to contact us?’
Noah worried inwardly.
“Oh, what silly thoughts you’re having.”
Gloria read his mind and sternly dismissed it.
“Grandma, did you laugh enough?”
Clare twisted her wrist backward to demonstrate.
“Look at grandma’s back just now!”
“Thanks to you, I laughed so much I feel four years younger.”
After planting another kiss on her proud granddaughter, Gloria said,
“You must feel wronged too, but the old man started it.”
Who told him to spy on the wedding banquet secretly anyway?
“You only know the kids’ faces. They don’t know the old man’s face.”
“But he meant well…”
“Well or not…”
Even good intentions can turn malicious if the time and place are wrong. Unfortunately, this was such a case.
“That old man needed to be scolded from the start.”
Albus had fallen for the ridiculous delusion that his face appealed to children.
“…It’s a face that works well.”
Leto subtly argued back.
“Where else can you find a man as handsome and magnificent as him?”
“You’d say that.”
“My brother thinks so too.”
“So it’s the grandchildren who caused the White Lion to have such delusions.”
Gloria clicked her tongue.
Ring-ring-
“……”
“……”
When the phone rang, the family all instantly went silent, as if by agreement.
“Shall I answer?”
None of the adults moved, so Clare bravely stepped forward.
“Hello? Bello residence.”
“……”
“……”
The adults watched Clare intently.
‘…What am I doing?’
Asa, suddenly embarrassed at their nosy behavior, blushed. It wasn’t just the warm weather.
“Yes. Y-yes. One moment, please.”
Clare, talking earnestly into the receiver, suddenly turned around. The observing adults flinched.
“Brother-in-law!”
Clare handed the phone to Leto.
“Brother-in-law, Mom wants you to take the call!”
Finally, the formal meeting between the two families was scheduled.
The location was the hotel Noah and Leto had visited on their honeymoon but never left the premises.
“So, what should we do?”
During a brief rest after lunch, Noah, Ami, and Celine sat under the wisteria gazebo, drinking coffee.
Noah was about to meet his in-laws and didn’t know how to prepare, so he sought advice from his friends.
“The mighty Noah Bello is nervous too, huh…”
Ami said, chewing on some snacks bought from the kiosk.
“The Oceanus family? I’d be nervous too.”
Celine frowned, collecting crumbs from Ami, but didn’t say anything since she too was getting snacks.
“Hmm, we shouldn’t make a bad impression?”
“I heard on a radio show that the husband should keep things steady in in-law life.”
“Should I threaten my husband then?”
“First, maybe some armbar techniques on the bed…”
Ami and Celine applied their own, somewhat questionable, wisdom.
“…I’ll just think it through myself.”
Noah decided to handle it alone. This was the first encounter between the two families, after all.
The Bello family was tense in their own ways, preparing diligently.
“What should I wear to make the in-laws like me?”
Clare pulled out her outfits daily in front of the mirror, comparing them.
“Should it be a pure look? Or a bold one?”
“Hopefully it’s not that ‘bold’ outfit in your right hand?”
Asa asked, noticing Clare holding the Butcher Bunny costume.
“Butcher Bunny has rugged charm! The adults will love it! I even made money with it last year!”
“Wear that now?”
In this hot season? The sleeves seemed short from last year.
“I think it’s shrunk. I’ll throw it away.”
“No!”
Clare wasn’t ready to part with Butcher Bunny.
“This… is for pajamas!”
“Then try another outfit?”
“I want to wear red. Red ignites my passion.”
“Since it’s a formal occasion, wear blue.”
Asa cleverly guided Clare to give up the costume and wear a normal dress.
“Our puppy is working so hard to prepare.”
Viss, passing by, watched contentedly.
Indeed, Clare was the one preparing the hardest. She had even pushed Noah and Leto to hurry and told friends at school about meeting her in-laws.
“Hurry! Hurry!”
“Why hurry…”
Noah, annoyed by Clare’s constant urging after work, was exasperated.
“Since we’re meeting your family, we must hurry.”
Clare replied resolutely.
“So…?”
“Anything! Everything!”
“…Hmm.”
Noah glanced at Leto, who picked Clare up in his arms. Clare cheered loudly, elevated in height.
“Sis-in-law, what should we prepare?”
“To make a good impression on the in-laws.”
“No need for that!”
Gloria, freshly washed, chuckled. Everyone was somewhat preparing, but Gloria was at ease.
Still, she was anticipating this meeting for another reason.
“I wonder what expression the White Lion will make when he learns I’m the in-law.”
“……”
Leto’s face stiffened. He knew how shocked the General would be.
Gloria eagerly awaited that reaction.
“I hope he wets himself when he sees my face.”
“The General’s bladder and urethra are strong.”
For the first time in a while, Leto fired back.
“How do you know that?”
Disgustingly peculiar!
The tension between Leto and Gloria was sharp.
“Brother-in-law.”
Clare, observing all this, asked:
“Who’s that?”
“That’s my grandfather.”
“Put me down.”
Leto set her down, and Clare ran to sit beside her grandmother.
“Grandma!”
Then she scolded sharply:
“You must get along with your in-laws!”
“Oh, we’ve known that one from the start…”
“Not that one! The in-laws!”
Clare put her hands on her hips, reprimanding the grandmother’s foolishness.
“We need to be nice to our in-laws, so they’ll treat our sister well too!”
“Well, that much…”
“And your mother and grandfather are my mother and grandfather too. They’re all family. How can you just think about tormenting them?”
Hurting people is bad!
“……”
Gloria thought Clare had a point, even though she had just sent Albus to jail herself.
“Got it.”
Gloria raised her hands in surrender.
“Sis-in-law…!”
Moved, Leto lifted Clare in his arms.
“To think you care about me this much…!”
“I may cause trouble sometimes, but I’m the most reasonable person here. Gotta stay sharp.”
Clare patted her chest confidently.
“I’ll protect brother-in-law.”
Overwhelmed, Leto collapsed, covering his face with his hands.
“…So blinding.”
Alone, Gloria quietly returned to her room.
