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chapter 83
“Oh my, you shouldn’t talk with your mouth full.”
As As scolded gently, buying a bit of time in the name of manners—
“Now that you mention it,” Noah quickly cut in, turning everyone’s attention to herself. Her slightly raised voice cracked just a bit, but not enough to sound odd.
I have to change the topic fast…!
It was obvious what that wild younger sister was about to say.
She was absolutely going to bring up the time when she got drunk while Noah was dating Reto and went off calling him a rabid dog.
That can never happen!
Noah had already braced herself to fight with her in-laws if she had to—but only if she was sure Reto was being treated unfairly.
Fortunately, she had a perfect topic on hand.
“I heard from Reto that the person he respects most is you, General.”
“Ahem! Ahem!”
Albus coughed loudly, clearing his throat for no apparent reason.
Noah remembered perfectly well that he always did that whenever he was embarrassed or bashful.
“I also heard that the dolphin you rode during the transfer ceremony was named after General Okeanus!”
“Ahem, well! Ahem!”
He coughed again as if to say “nonsense,” but his snowy white beard trembled with delight all the same.
“Noah…”
Reto, looking flustered, tried to stop her.
“Why are you saying things like that?”
“You mean you didn’t know?”
Noah, unusually cheeky, went on boldly—raising her voice so everyone could hear.
“You told me so many times how much you admired him. I just assumed the General already knew. You even said you joined the navy because you wanted to be like him!”
“T-That’s…”
“Wasn’t it true?”
All eyes naturally turned toward Reto. Especially the piercing stares of Albus and Aitra, silently pressing him.
Is that true?
If you’re lying, I’m going to cry.
“…”
In the end, Reto nodded, his face burning red.
“Well, of course it’s true! Hah! Isn’t that obvious?”
Albus’s booming voice filled the room, and even then he couldn’t hide his grin as he clapped his hands together.
“Our fine young man has excellent taste! Ha! That’s why he married such a fine young lady and found himself such a wonderful family!”
“Oh, Father, really now.”
Aitra quickly regained her composure and tried to calm him down.
“I told you, keep that kind of bragging to yourself.”
Still, she couldn’t resist joining in her husband’s pride.
“Reto’s always been clever since he was a boy. I’m sure our in-laws already know that.”
“You’re right about that, dear.”
“My brother’s amazing!”
Even Karina, who had been quietly eating, chimed in.
“It seems our son-in-law is quite loved by his family,” Xenius said with a smile, lifting his glass.
“To our beloved son-in-law—no, our new son—Reto.”
“Here, here!”
Albus raised his glass, and everyone followed suit.
Even the children lifted their juice glasses with both hands.
“Cheers!”
“Cheers!”
Their voices blended warmly together, blessing Reto’s future.
Only two people remained silent.
“…”
One was Reto—too embarrassed, but also deeply moved and grateful for this moment—raising his glass only slightly with his head bowed.
And the other—
“…”
—was Gloria, who didn’t seem quite as pleased by the heartwarming scene.
“Clare,” she suddenly called out to her youngest granddaughter, deliberately interrupting the mood.
“My little dumpling, what was it you were about to say earlier?”
Noah and Reto both screamed inwardly.
“Um.”
After swallowing everything in her mouth and rinsing perfectly with juice, Clare replied innocently,
“You know, brother-in-law used to come by our house all the time when he wanted to marry my sister.”
She blinked her big, bright eyes as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Grandma, when my sister was sick, he even came to visit her in the hospital.”
“Oh my.”
Aitra turned to Reto with a look that asked, Is that true?
Too shy to speak, Reto simply nodded.
“…Tsk.”
Gloria clicked her tongue quietly.
***
After the meal, the families decided to go to the Bello mansion atop the hill for tea.
They could’ve just stayed in the hotel café, but it was a thoughtful choice for Reto’s family, who hadn’t even seen the wedding.
Even then, Albus still hadn’t realized who Gloria truly was.
He only thought she was a stylish old lady with great taste in sunglasses—just like him.
“Grandma.”
As Noah climbed into Gloria’s black mana-powered car, she asked,
“How long are you planning to keep this up?”
“Hey, I was the one who was shocked, okay?”
Gloria herself was still flustered. She had planned to reveal her identity at the right moment and surprise Albus—but she hadn’t expected the “White Lion” to be that oblivious.
“How could he not recognize me just because I’m wearing sunglasses!”
She sighed. The thought that she had to cooperate with that same man to capture a spy made her feel even sorrier for herself.
“Do you think he can even do his job properly?”
“He’s probably just happy to see Reto again,” Noah said mildly.
“Are you taking your in-law’s side now?”
“No, I just think…”
Noah hesitated before admitting her thoughts.
“Finding out we’re from the House of Advel must’ve been a shock to the General.”
Reto had practically collapsed when he learned the truth about her family—especially that his grandmother-in-law was the Gloria, Commander of Advel.
And Noah had a fair point.
“I heard you and the General used to butt heads a lot.”
“Well…”
Gloria didn’t deny it.
“That was just youthful pride clashing for a bit. Nothing more.”
“…”
“You think I’m the only one who played tricks? That old man once put a farting cushion on my chair!”
“…That’s… not something I needed to know.”
To Noah, both the man who planted a farting cushion and the woman who smeared glue on a car handle were just as bad.
A little later, three cars rolled up the hill to the Bello mansion—Jenny Bello’s sleek black car, Okeanus’s blue one, and finally Reto’s bright red one.
“Wanna play in my room?”
“Sure! What toys do you have?”
Clare and Karina had already become close enough to drop formalities. Hand in hand, they ran upstairs, with As following them as their guardian.
“Clare, what’s this bunny?”
“You don’t know? It’s the famous Cleave-Bunny!”
“Its eyes are X-shaped.”
“It symbolizes the resolve to never flee from death.”
As Karina examined the toys, her gaze caught on something—a line of framed photos on the bookshelf.
“This is…”
She couldn’t take her eyes off one picture in particular.
“Oh! That one!” Clare hurried over, eager to explain.
“That’s when I built sandcastles with brother-in-law at the beach! He said I was really good at it!”
“…”
“And this one’s from the wedding banquet! He danced with my sister!”
“With… my brother-in-law…”
Karina stared at the photos for a long time, her expression quietly sorrowful.
As, watching from nearby, noticed immediately.
***
While the children played upstairs, the adults gathered in the drawing room for tea.
The tea had been prepared by Noah and Reto themselves in the kitchen.
“What a lovely aroma,” Aitra said appreciatively after taking a sip.
They had already discussed the newlyweds over lunch; now it was time to grow closer, to learn about each other’s lives and interests.
As it turned out, both families were deeply tied to the military.
Aitra was a renowned strategist and military advisor—so much so that the army often requested her counsel.
Albus, on the other hand, was a former admiral and now the Minister of Defense.
“So the two of you actually participated in developing personal warships?”
Albus was astonished to learn that the other couple worked in the Mage Tower’s military engineering division.
Yet he still hadn’t realized who Gloria truly was.
“To think national heroes sit before me!”
“I should be the one saying that,” Ameta replied politely.
“We only build the ships—but the ones who use them to save the nation are the true heroes.”
It was an indirect compliment to Reto, but Albus’s face tightened. Aitra also grew somber, and Reto fidgeted, rubbing his fingers together over and over.
Noah reached out and held his hand.
His knuckles were red from how hard he’d been rubbing them, but he gripped hers back—like a drowning man clinging to a lifeline.
“…There’s never been a time he caused us more worry,” Albus began gravely.
His story caught Noah completely off guard.
“When he said he wanted to enlist, I’m ashamed to admit I struck him for the first time.”
Seven years ago, when the kingdom’s knights set fire to the prototype warship, nearly ruining a counteroffensive operation—
—a cadet, just about to graduate, had carried an untested weapon across the sea.
His courage had turned the tide of the war. The nation praised him as a hero.
But his family… could only fear and grieve.
“…That’s what war is,” said Vis quietly—the first words he’d spoken all afternoon.
“I understand you, sir.”
Through the lenses of his glasses, his gentle smile conveyed genuine empathy.
What could be more equal and more cruel than war?
It crushed everything alive in its path, stripped every being of dignity, and in the end, even eroded one’s own humanity.
To send a young son into that hell before he’d even earned his commission—what parent could bear that?
“…”
“…”
A heavy silence fell over the drawing room.
Everyone carried at least one scar from war. For a moment, they let that shared grief settle between them.
Noah leaned slightly against Reto, lost in thought.
Her thoughts, however, drifted in a different direction.
…I was wrong about everything.
Reto wasn’t merely putting up with the Okeanus family.
Nor was it a one-sided affection.
They truly cherished one another—an ordinary, loving family.
Then why…
Her gaze naturally found Reto again.
Head bowed, eyes downcast, he still carried guilt toward Aitra and Albus for the pain his past decisions had caused them.
Which only made it more confusing.
…Why do you keep that wall between you and them, Reto?
As if he believed he’d committed an unforgivable sin.
