I Want To Be Your First – R19 - Chapter 76

Ariel, looking up at Eva, asked with a small smile, “What brought you here?”

 

“Oh, I was going to drop off the carriage to the head of the house, but I thought it would be nice if Madam went with me. It’s been a while since you saw him too.”

 

The moment Ariel was ready to answer. She hesitated as she recalled his cold attitude from earlier.

 

‘What to do?’

 

She wanted to drink tea together with him.

 

What if she goes and he shows dislike?

 

‘… No, no. It will be fine. There is no need to think negatively.’

 

After thinking for a moment, Ariel nodded her head and reached for her cane.

 

The entire mansion was revitalised by the return of its Lord. Passing by busy servants, Eva took the lead with a tea set.

 

By the time the two reached the front of the study, Ariel reached out to Eva with her cane on her.

 

“I’ll carry it.”

 

Eva, who was struggling, eventually couldn’t overcome her master’s stubbornness and handed over the tray.

 

Ariel accepted the tray with a polite touch with the cane on her side. Then, she cleared her throat and spoke in the most gentle tone possible.

 

“Count, it’s me, Ariel.”

 

No response.

 

She called again, but there was still no answer, so she just hesitantly opened the door.

 

As soon as she entered the room, an unfamiliar feeling brushed the tip of her nose. The library was always filled with the smell of old books, but instead of the smell of books, the fresh smell of the sea filled the place.

 

Ariel tilted her head to the side and looked around. He was not at the desk, or the bookshelf. She shifted her gaze to the side. She scanned the wall and found Berthwald leaning at an angle and looking out the window.

 

She blinked quickly. His blood-red hair was ruffled by the wind. His side profile, with only a silhouette exposed, and his clear features made her heart flutter without hesitation.

 

‘Why are you doing this to me?’

 

She certainly didn’t feel like this when she was in the capital.

 

‘Why am I so conscious?’

 

“Count. Would you like a cup of tea? Eva freshly blended this tea and it smells great.”

 

Berthwald, noticing that Ariel had entered, slowly turned his head. The sight of Ariel holding a tea set was captured in his icy blue eyes.

 

She was a little lean, but she looked much healthier than when she was back in the capital. Looking at her well-managed, smooth hair and pink-tinted nails, it seems that Leo and Eva did their best to take care of their master, just as he had asked.

 

“Give it to me.”

 

Berthwald got up quickly, took the tray, and made Ariel sit on the sofa.

 

As he poured the tea, the scent of flowers oozed out. He put down the plate of chocolate pie and cookies in front of Ariel and nibbled on them.

 

An awkward silence lingered between the sounds of clinking plates. Berthwald fixed his gaze on Ariel, only tinkering with his pitiful teacup.

 

He didn’t know what to do with his luck.

 

There were so many things he wanted to say as soon as they met, but when he met Ariel, his head turned blank.

 

He wanted to hug her and kiss every part of her.

 

He wanted to cuddle her and roll on the grass.

 

‘D*mn it!’

 

He desperately suppressed his trembling limbs, that were aching just to touch a single part of her.

 

‘Crazy!’

 

It’s not that he’s crazy, but why was she so beautiful and mesmerising that he just couldn’t wait to touch her?

 

He was not like himself, who always maintained a calm and elegant attitude.

 

He was angry.

 

Why was he making such a fuss when he had only been away for a month? He wondered how far he could go without her.

 

He wanted to be friendly, but without realising it, his tone became blunt. Even then, he was struggling like this because he couldn’t find what to say.

This was just…

 

“How have you been?”

 

The words that were uttered after silence were sparse. However, Ariel started talking as if she had waited for it, with a bright face, “It was just, um, the same every day. I woke up regularly and ate on time… I helped the maid a little, and I went out for a walk on the beach with Vieta in the mornings and evenings. Oh, right!”

 

Ariel walked over to the window and she glanced down at the beach. Even though she couldn’t see properly, her eyes stared down at it.

 

“It is said that the beach sparkles at night. A lot of living creatures come in, and it lights up in a very beautiful blue colour. I was curious too, so I followed along, but I couldn’t see anything…”

 

“If you’re talking about the glow worms… That’s right. You can only see it during that time. It’s a pretty good landscape.”

 

“So the Count knows too. I think there are a lot of fascinating things about the sea in Pahar.”

 

Looking back, Ariel smiled brightly.

 

Her ebony hair fluttered softly in the wind. Ariel, who put her hair behind her ear and smiled more deeply…

 

She was like a painting, standing in harmony with the scenery by the window.

 

Ariel, who resembled summer more than winter, was shining in the place with her clear and good-natured beauty. After all, she was Ariel and she was more suited to the splendour of the southern sunshine than the cold northern land.

 

Berthwald raised his lips and asked affectionately, “It must be different from the Northern sea.”

 

“That’s right. The Northern sea is very cold and deep…”

 

“It’s a lot darker, a little scary, there are bears and even killer whales…”

 

Bertwald burst into laughter at her endless remarks.

 

“How does the Southern Ocean feel?”

 

Ariel stopped her hand when she heard his voice from somewhere.

 

The Southern Ocean?

 

“I don’t know because I can’t see it… But it sounds different.”

 

‘…This… Is it the same as a dream?’

 

Sweat was beading on her palms, as she realised the return of her dream.

 

Swallowing her nervousness and responding, Berthwald came a little closer.

 

“How are they different?”

 

“The Northern sea is very assertive, but the sea here is gentle.”

 

The red silhouette followed Ariel and turned his eyes to the window. His laugh was buried in her subsequent words.

 

“Compared to the north, the sea in the south will be kinder. However, when a typhoon comes, it often becomes terrifying without any warning. I like that duality, but I’m not sure how my wife would feel about it.”

 

His voice was calm, but she could feel his pride for the South at a glance.

Just as northerners pride themselves on being nature’s keepers, southerners feel honoured to be pioneers of the sea. A small smile appeared on Ariel’s lips, like she had just taken a glimpse at his unexpected side.

 

An invisible rose bloomed. His voice and the air at the spot it reached her, layer by layer, gathered to form a flower. It was almost overwhelming…

 

“No, I… I like it.”

 

‘Ah. What to do?’

 

She knew what to say next.

 

The fact that she knew the future because of the dream was so heartbreaking.

 

Her trembling hands gripped the hem of her skirt. He would utter words out of context, completely unexpected.

 

“Such duality reminds me of my wife. Quiet, yet full of passion.”

 

‘…Passionate.’

 

Ariel’s face heated up in an instant, as she interpreted it to her liking. At the same time, her beating heart accelerated even more, making it impossible for her to breathe.

 

The prediction wasn’t wrong.

 

This. 

 

This…

 

The hand holding the hem of her dress turned white. She looked down blankly with her eyes wide open and then slowly closed her eyelids. She swallowed hard to suppress the soaring emotions.

 

‘Oh my. What should I do?’

 

She opened her eyes again.

 

In her gray world, a red silhouette was sitting in front of her, radiating colours alone.

 

The wind blew from the window and his blood-red hair was tingling. The straight shoulders and muscular curves of the upper body were subtly showing off masculine beauty.

 

The appearance of the eyelashes slowly descending and rising, the defined lines of his jaw, the light, gave an idea of ​​his elegant appearance even though she did not see the real him.

 

An outstretched finger tapped the top of his knee as if he felt happy. His Adam’s apple bobbing shallowly gave her a slightly excited feeling.

 

A wide, flat chest, a sharp jawline.

 

Everywhere she looked, there was no place that was not beautiful. Even the way he raised his hands to tidy up his sleeves looked so elegant.

 

‘Was it like this from the beginning?’

 

‘Or is it because I haven’t seen you in a long time?’

 

It wasn’t both.

 

Ariel lowered her head and bit her lip. Since she has always listened to her inner voice, she could immediately realise the reason for her agitation.

 

‘I like this person so much.’

 

‘I like him…’

 

‘Because he’s that lovely.’

 

‘I love him.’

 

The moment she realised it, a sigh of relief leaked out. The feeling of falling into an endless abyss made her breathless.

 

Who was it who said that when you liked someone, the world became beautiful and exciting?

 

That everything that passed by would shine brightly!

 

It was all lies.

 

You might feel that way if you like each other. But this kind of one-sided love was nothing but heartbreaking.

 

It felt like her heart had been torn out and thrown into the gutter.

 

Simply terrible.

 

‘That’s why I was dreaming… And had all these feelings… to make me aware.’

 

“Wife?”

 

Taking hold of her trembling shoulders, Berthwald put his face close to her anxiously. As she stepped back, his brows narrowed, he came closer.

 

“Why…all of a sudden. Are you feeling sick again?”

 

“Oh, no. That… Nothing, nothing.”

 

“If it’s nothing, then why are you crying?”

 

Only then did she realize that her cheeks were wet. His long, straight fingers brushed her chin and rubbed Ariel’s cheek.

 

“I said I am fine… It’s nothing.”

 

Ariel winced at his worried voice and shrugged her neck.

 

‘Maybe he’s not tired of me…?’

 

If she had been the Ariel from before, she would have understood the concern in his words, but right now she was too much to control her feelings. Berthwald let out a small sigh and hugged Ariel lightly.

 

“C–Count, let go of me…!”

 

“I will take you to your room.”

 

“I can walk! I’m fine, really, really, so please let go of me…!”

 

She was so desperate that she pushed him and continued to talk. Berthwald wondered if it was good to continue this, but he followed her will.

 

“Sometimes, if I keep my eyes open for too long… It becomes like this. Don’t worry.”

 

The trembling Ariel, picked up her cane, and wiped away those mournful tears with her sleeve.