I Became the Childhood Friend of the Northern Duchess – Chapter 55

The next morning, at the breakfast table, Yulken had returned from where he had been absent during last night’s dinner.

Was it because of that? Unlike the friendly atmosphere of last night’s meal, all that could be heard in the dining room was the clattering of forks and knives.

While continuing with the meal, Ariel, who still had a portion of food left, dabbed her mouth with a napkin.

Yulken’s gaze inadvertently fell upon her.

‘With that little amount for breakfast, it’s going to be tough on her.’

Regardless of the era or region, a father’s heart remained the same.

Only the degree to which they vocalized it differed slightly.

“Father.”

“Hmm? What is it, Ariel?”

Noticing Yulken’s gaze, Ariel spoke, a small smile blooming on her lips.

Yulken feigned ignorance, responding deliberately late to put on a show of his own.

“I want to go hunting with you tomorrow. May I have your permission?”

“Hunting, huh…”

Yulken was noticeably taken aback by his daughter’s sudden request.

Recently, hunting had come to be viewed as an undignified activity, reverenced among the nobles, but not long ago, it was one of the forms of leisure.

That meant Ariel was expressing her desire to spend leisure time with Yulken.

‘Why is that?’

Just yesterday, he had embarrassed himself in front of a friend as a foolish father, so what reason could there be for her to request to spend time together?

This was behavior he had never witnessed from his daughter before.

He had assumed that when she met him this morning, she’d have a gloomy expression, yet that was off the mark.

Could it just be a passing whim?

“Since it’s a rare occasion, wouldn’t it be nice, dear? There are no official duties for you tomorrow, right?”

“However, my dear…”

Yulken wanted to retort to his wife, who chimed in, but he had no solid arguments to oppose her.

Indeed, there were no pressing official duties or places to go tomorrow.

He had also been mulling over what to do with his time after work was expected to wrap up around this afternoon.

In the end, caught in a subtle battle of wits with Ariel, Yulken had no choice but to nod in agreement.

He didn’t know what change had occurred, but it wasn’t too difficult to indulge in leisure with his daughter as a father.

Until now, he simply hadn’t dared to consider it.

“Alright, have Elpelt prepare. We’ll need enough for three, including your friend, right?”

Yulken thought Ariel would prefer to have her friend around rather than just being alone with him.

After all, Helene wasn’t in good shape and would struggle to go hunting anyway.

But the reply he received hit him harder than expected.

“Thank you, Father. But you don’t need to prepare for Ed’s share.”

“Hmm?”

“I want to go just with you, Father. Ed has plans tomorrow, so he won’t be able to join us.”

Taken aback by the unexpected answer, Yulken raised an eyebrow and turned to Ed, who offered a soft smile of agreement.

Yulken’s expression became even more perplexed.

Why was there such an eagerness to demand a situation where it was just the two of them?

There was no way he could understand why unless there was something private to discuss.

Looking back at how he had treated his daughter all this time, it was hard to believe she would make such a request with that smile.

However, voicing such questions was taboo for Yulken.

It would end up being him digging his own grave.

Ultimately, nodding with an inexplicable sense of déjà vu, Yulken found Ariel’s face blooming like a bright flower.

“That’s wonderful. Make sure to go and catch up on the things you haven’t shared yet, dear.”

“Things I haven’t shared?”

A look of confusion crossed Yulken’s face at his wife’s vague words.

What could there possibly be to discuss?

For Ariel, Yulken Robeheim was someone she might even feel averse to calling ‘father.’

Helene noticed his confusion and, with a gentle smile, stroked the back of his hand.

“There must be something. After all, you haven’t spent time with Ariel at all.”

“If you say so… then I suppose I’ll understand.”

Unspoken stories.

Yulken chewed on the three-word phrase internally as he continued his meal.

It seemed today would be a day filled with thoughts, in many ways.

* * * * * * *

As the sky gradually lost its blue hue and specks of light began to scatter,

A surprise visitor arrived for Edgar, who was lying alone in his room.

With neatly tied hair and glasses perched on her eyes, it was Alisa, Yulken’s personal maid, bringing a businesslike and rigid atmosphere with her.

“Lord Edgar, the lord is calling for you urgently.”

“Yes.”

Despite the sudden summons, Edgar calmly got up and left the room.

It was only natural that he wasn’t startled; he had received a hint from Helene after lunch.

What did catch him off guard, however, was that the place he was being directed to was not the office but in a different direction.

Confused, Edgar carefully asked where they were headed, and Alisa answered succinctly, “To the study.”

‘The study, huh.’

Edgar recalled that the office he visited yesterday also had a considerable number of bookshelves, so he thought it might double as a study.

Or perhaps, the study was meant to be solely private space.

Various speculations raced through his mind, but he quickly dismissed them as trivial thoughts, shaking his head lightly.

From now on, he needed to clear his mind and calm his emotions.

Being caught up in such thoughts would make it hard to find the right words to say.

“This way, please. Just a moment.”

Upon arriving in front of the study, Alisa bowed slightly to Edgar and carefully knocked on the door.

After a short while, Yulken’s deep voice called from within, prompting Alisa to turn back toward Edgar.

“You may enter.”

“Yes, thank you. Oh, and…”

Having not exchanged many words with her, Edgar replied formally as he entered the study through the opened door.

Without forgetting to make one request beforehand.

Yulken, with his gaze fixed outside, didn’t even spare a glance at the visitor, holding a wine glass in hand.

Edgar suspected this was his way of not wanting to reveal his expression.

Click.

The door closed, and after a brief moment of silence, Yulken finally parted his heavy lips.

“I’ve heard from my wife.”

It was a blunt statement without any context, but Edgar nodded nonchalantly.

It was what he had been expecting.

“Yes, I heard as well. Lady Helene said she would arrange a meeting.”

Although he hadn’t anticipated this particular method of arranging the meeting.

But the means didn’t matter to him.

He had simply come here to hear what this man had to say and, in the end, to keep the promise he made with his friend.

That was the sole purpose for which he had walked in here.

“Have a seat. By the way, can you drink?”

“Yes, my father enjoys wine, so I can handle a bit…”

“Glad to hear that.”

Yulken filled an empty wine glass with red wine, stepped away from the window, approached Edgar, and passed it to him.

“It’s quite a fine one. Not sure if it’ll suit your taste.”

“I’m not particular enough to mind the flavor, so it should be fine.”

“Is that so?”

Yulken wordlessly extended his wine glass for a toast.

Edgar gently clinked his glass against Yulken’s.

The sound resonated in the quiet study, and Yulken, a bit late, sat down opposite Edgar and lifted his glass.

“So, you heard from my wife, huh?”

“That’s correct.”

“I hear she figured out quite a bit about the situation. It seems she was quite surprised as well.”

“…I apologize if I displeased you.”

As Edgar bowed his head, Yulken waved his hand lightly and tilted his wine glass again.

He didn’t intend to blame the boy.

Although he had received a hint from his wife, he didn’t think Edgar was the type to intrude on another’s family affairs lightly.

“Although I did summon you, it’s actually because you wanted to see me. What do you want?”

“What do you think I desire?”

“Answering a question with another question isn’t a good habit. But I’ll let it slide this time.”

Yulken frowned for a moment before placing his wine glass on the table and leaning back into the sofa.

‘What does he want?’

He already had a hunch that this would be about apologizing to his daughter or asking what he was thinking when he did such a thing.

After all, what he had mentioned was merely a supposition; it had never crossed Yulken’s mind directly.

“Do you wish for an apology from me to my daughter?”

“For an apology, does that mean you recognize your wrongdoings?”

“Did you think I was so foolish as to not even realize the wrong I did to her?”

“There’s no way. It just felt odd hearing it directly from your mouth.”

Edgar couldn’t believe that Yulken would honestly admit his mistakes.

Of course, he thought Yulken would realize his wrongdoings, but he suspected he would rationalize it by saying it was for a greater good or that he had no other option.

At Edgar’s candid response, a bitter smile appeared on Yulken’s lips, and he nodded as if to encourage him to continue speaking.

He was genuinely curious about what this boy truly wanted.