Chapter 6
Chapter 6
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Do Your Best
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Theodor's words were cold, but Lara nodded as if she understood.
The moment Lara, fork in hand, carefully scooped up a piece of fish and brought it to her mouth for a taste, her eyes flew wide open.
"……."
Lara stared down at her plate with trembling eyes before slipping another piece of fish into her mouth.
After that, it was easier.
Theo silently watched as Lara began devouring her breakfast with quick little bites.
Lara hesitated under his gaze and asked Theo in a quiet voice.
"...Aren't you going to eat, Lord Theo?"
"I've already eaten."
I see. Lara nodded once more.
It felt a little embarrassing to eat in front of someone, but she kept going anyway. She was simply too hungry after not eating properly for days.
The clinking of her plate rang out for a while.
Theo simply watched her with an ambiguous expression.
'Her nutritional state is extremely poor.'
'Is it okay for her to eat regular food right away in this condition?'
'Yes. Fortunately, there don't seem to be any major illnesses, so the important thing now is for her to eat plenty of proper food made with good ingredients to replenish her nutrients. If she won't eat, force her to. Whether beastkin or human, they recover faster when they eat well.'
Fortunately, judging by how she was eating now, there wouldn't be any need to force her.
'Any signs of abuse?'
'…….'
'Is it serious?'
'Her body is extremely weakened from prolonged abuse. A little longer, and it might have been irreversible. It seems the young lady has some luck on her side.'
Luck?
The back of the hand gripping the fork was rough like that of a laborer who'd toiled for years, and her exposed arms and legs were covered in bruises that wouldn't fade. Could that really be called luck?
A strange feeling settled over him.
Theodor couldn't quite put a name to the emotion.
This was a child he'd only brought along out of necessity, yet she kept nagging at his thoughts.
And that irritation scratched at him in the strangest way.
"All done."
Lara's eyes met Theodor's, who was still watching her. She flinched out of habit and spoke in a small voice.
Theodor's brow furrowed slightly.
She'd set down her fork, so it looked like she'd finished, but there was still a lot of food left on her plate.
"Why are you eating so little?"
"...Pardon?"
"Doesn't the food agree with you?"
Marsha startled at Theodor's remark. After all, she'd stubbornly insisted on preparing the young lady's first meal herself.
"Miss, doesn't it suit your taste...?"
Marsha asked cautiously. Even the head chef had come out with his ladle, his face grave.
Lara felt flustered by their reactions.
It had tasted wonderful, and it was the first time in her life she'd eaten her fill like this.
She shook her head hurriedly.
"No, it's delicious. But... there's just too much."
Lara's voice trailed off.
Theodor and Marsha both looked utterly baffled.
"...Do human children normally eat this little?"
"I-it seems so, Master."
"At this rate, when will she ever gain any weight? Frustrating."
"I'm worried too, Master."
This wasn't Lara's fault. Theodor and Marsha were simply inexperienced with humans.
Beastkin like them didn't realize that even a starving human child couldn't eat that much in one sitting.
Hearing the two discuss her putting on weight so seriously, Lara picked up her fork again.
But she could only manage a few more bites before her hand came to a stop.
Theodor let out a sigh.
"No need to force it."
Lara set down her fork, looking a little downcast.
Was he disappointed?
She didn't want him to hate her, but it seemed she was failing at this.
"Um..."
Once the plates were cleared and only dessert remained before her, Lara hesitated before speaking up.
"What... should I do now?"
She'd woken early and wandered around with a broom to do some cleaning, but Theodor had said he hadn't brought her here for that.
If not for chores, then what had he brought her for?
He'd called her his "bride," but Lara had no idea what a bride was supposed to do.
If she just sat around doing nothing and proved useless, she might get thrown away again.
'What if...'
What if he sold her off to somewhere else...?
The image of the old noble who'd gripped and yanked her wrist so painfully flashed in her mind. Just thinking of it made her tremble.
'I don't want to be sold to someone that awful.'
She never wanted to go through that again.
She wanted to stay here.
Even at the little orphanage, she'd had so much to do. In a mansion this grand, surely even more? What did a bride have to do?
"I..."
Gathering her voice, Lara mustered her courage.
"I can do housework. I can scrub stairs without breaking anything, and clean other things carefully. I can't cook well... but I can prep ingredients."
As she thought about how much the meal she'd just wolfed down must have cost, regret suddenly flooded her.
"If you don't need cleaning or cooking, I can learn whatever's needed. I can read a little, too."
Of course, she couldn't handle anything difficult, but saying that wouldn't help.
"And I can do laundry. Um, and..."
Listing off her skills one by one, she ran out quickly.
"And..."
Lara's voice grew quieter and quieter.
Proving her own worth had always been hard.
Even to her own eyes, she didn't seem useful at all right now.
This massive mansion was full of workers who all looked far more capable, stronger, and smarter than her.
"......"
In the end, Lara closed her mouth.
There was nothing more to say.
After a long silence, Theodor spoke coldly.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
His voice made Lara's head droop further.
Her hands clutched tightly at the hem of her pretty new dress.
"I mean..."
"......"
"I want... to stay here."
Lara's voice trembled.
Having come this far, there was no turning back.
She wanted to live, and she'd do anything to survive.
"Please let me stay."
Lara looked up.
"I'll do anything."
A trembling voice. Shaking eyes. She looked as desperate as when she'd begged him to take her away.
"......"
So this was the face a child used to rejection made.
Theodor frowned at the unpleasant sensation.
What was this feeling that had been creeping in since earlier?
His intended prey was right in his grasp, and no matter what the child did, that fact wouldn't change.
But seeing that chopstick-thin body marked with abuse always soured his mood.
And it wasn't just her body—it seemed to dominate her mind as well.
Theodor gazed steadily into her mismatched eyes before speaking.
Those eyes as symbols of misfortune? Ridiculous.
"What did you say to me yesterday?"
"...Pardon?"
"What you said to me back there. Think back."
Lara blinked.
On that blizzard-swept night, she'd met him. And she'd said to him...
"...Take me with you..."
"Right. And that's why you're here."
"......"
"You're the bride I brought home."
Theodor had no idea how to handle a human girl.
He was a proud wolfkin, after all.
Arrogant by nature, and at the pinnacle he'd clawed his way to, it was more than allowed.
Among the five great wolfkin families, House Diarc—led by Theodor—was second only to the Lycans in strength.
He had the power to do as he pleased from that position.
"Even if you said you didn't want to be here, I have no intention of letting you go..."
"......"
"So do your best as a child of this house."
It didn't matter if what she was doing now didn't suit Theodor Diarc.
And the child, oblivious to how terrifying a wolf's obsession could be, pondered his words that he would never let her go.
"My best..."
She murmured it softly, clearly still not grasping it.
...What was he doing, bringing home a clueless human child like this? Theodor sighed and added,
"First, put on some weight and get healthy. Let your wounds heal completely."
This child was the "Bride of the Wolf" he'd brought home. Theodor had a duty to protect Lara. And she had the right to his protection.
"That's the best you can do. So..."
Lara gazed up at Theodor unwaveringly. Meeting her eyes, he commanded,
"Make sure you do."