Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: Unwavering Gaze
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"...Yes."
This time, Lara answered clearly.
Theodor silently watched Lara as she met his gaze without flinching. Then he stood up first.
It was strange. No human could instinctively bear looking into the eyes of a Wolfkin for long, yet this girl seemed more afraid of him than anyone—yet she never avoided Theodor's gaze.
Not when they first met, not when she asked him to take her away, and not even now.
Theodor swept his eyes over the servants who had watched the entire scene moments ago with their eyes wide open.
A few of them even stood there with their mouths agape, dumbfounded.
The situation had turned out favorably, though he hadn't intended it.
The servants assigned to this mansion were all trusted members of the Diarc Family, but there was a world of difference between having the master's explicit confirmation or not.
"You all heard it with your own ears. This is the girl I brought back as my bride, so treat her accordingly. I won't let any rudeness slide."
"Yes, Master."
"My bride isn't familiar with this place yet, so make sure she's comfortable in every way."
"Understood, Master."
Marsha quietly closed her mouth at the young master's unexpected demeanor. The head maid also seemed to tense up at Theodor's words.
As Theodor left, the remaining servants began whispering things like, "Even that prickly master..."
The way they looked at Lara even seemed to have changed.
All the Diarc Family servants were beastkin, and beastkin didn't particularly like humans on instinct.
Because of this, even with Marsha keeping them in line, some had grumbled about a mere human girl coming to live in the mansion.
But they wouldn't dare now.
Their master, Theodor, had brought her back himself and declared her his bride right in front of them.
Any servant in their right mind would know what that meant.
As soon as Theodor disappeared, even Breina let out a whistle.
"My goodness, Master Theodor... That's not at all what I expected. You're more... well, ahem."
"Breina, what's gotten into you?"
"Be honest. Even you were surprised, Marsha, weren't you? Have you ever seen the master act like that?"
Marsha fell silent at Breina's words.
She was right.
Marsha had served the Diarc Family for a long time, but she'd never seen Master Theodor like this.
"Anyway, the master doesn't mince words... I'm just worried the young lady wasn't too startled. She's still so young."
"Breina, Lara is seventeen, even if she doesn't look it. Watch your words and don't treat her like a child."
Lara was oblivious to the whispers about her. She simply sat there motionless.
Some emotion was sweeping over her like a wave.
Lara lifted her right hand and placed it gently over her chest.
Thump, thump. The small echoes transmitted straight to her palm.
Lara closed her eyes and took a slow, deep breath.
The surrounding noises gradually faded away.
The director's scolding voice that had tormented her, Helen's laughter—none of it reached her anymore.
'This isn't Laden Orphanage.'
In just one night, Lara's world had changed.
'I'll never go back.'
She could feel it.
Because Lara
was the Bride of the Wolf.
"My goodness, miss. You look absolutely lovely."
Lara felt awkward seeing herself in front of the large mirror.
Lovely? She wasn't sure.
The reflection showed the same skinny, plain girl as always.
Of course, she was wearing new clothes, and her long hair was braided up.
"Indeed."
But when Theodor, standing nearby with arms crossed, readily agreed, Lara wavered slightly.
The boutique owner nodded with a smile at Duke Theodor Diarc and the girl he'd brought.
"Even Your Grace thinks so, yes? How about this? It would suit the young lady's bright hair color perfectly. Emily, bring it over."
"...No need. Just bring everything that seems necessary. No need to show me one by one. It's her first Aren winter, so focus on warm clothes."
"Yes, yes, my lord."
One of the staff, who had been about to show Theodor a pamphlet, quickly backed away when he scowled.
Watching Theodor up close, Lara thought to herself.
'He really doesn't like people getting too close.'
In fact, it was a conclusion she'd reached after quite some observation.
Even at the mansion, Theodor always kept his distance from the other servants. Noticing that deliberate space, Lara felt a strange mix of emotions—realizing that even this handsome, impressive adult had a somewhat childish side.
To Lara, Theodor Diarc was a perfect man.
But somehow, that flaw didn't bother her.
'I should be careful not to get too close either.'
Lara, who had grown more sensitive to others' moods and glances than most during her orphanage days, resolved to keep a few more steps away from Theodor.
"Where are you going? Come here."
But before she could take a few steps, Theodor caught her.
Theodor stared incredulously at Lara trying to boldly step away from his side, then lightly pulled her hand toward him.
"......"
Lara felt his large hand, clad in black leather gloves, grasp hers.
It wasn't a strong grip, but it told her he didn't want her leaving his side.
As Lara stiffened awkwardly at his inexplicable action, the boutique owner reappeared.
"Miss, we need you to try on the prepared clothes. This way, please?"
Only then did Theodor release her hand, and Lara entered the fitting room in a daze.
Theodor stood there waiting for her to come out.
'My head hurts.'
He hated crowded places. Especially ones full of humans.
Even here, people recognized their lord, Duke Theodor Diarc, and greeted him, but he ignored most of them.
He was so famously cold and ruthless that his dismissals caused no issue.
The one having trouble now was Theodor himself.
Whether human or beastkin, the presence of anyone but himself tormented him.
His hypersensitive senses made his stomach churn and his head feel like it would split open—until Lara became his sole salvation.
'Ridiculous.'
Theodor scoffed at himself. It was absurd how the situation had reversed in a human-filled place. Just the brief, absentminded touch of Lara's hand had eased his breathing.
'Master. How about a short trip to the city for Miss Lara's sake? The annex garden repairs are tomorrow, so laborers will be coming and going anyway.'
Theodor had accepted Butler Marsha's suggestion. He had no idea what a human girl her age did for fun, but it had to be better than nothing from another woman.
It had only been a few days since Lara arrived at the mansion, but Aren’s grand estate was oppressively quiet. It was a peaceful retreat for Theodor, but perhaps boring for a seventeen-year-old human girl.
And the mansion was especially quiet because of Theodor's constitution.
'Damn it all.'
Theodor closed his weary eyes. The cacophony assaulting his head: people's murmurs like "Isn't that Duke Diarc over there?" Perfume and cosmetics scents. Footsteps. Cane taps on the floor. And the smell of humans. Every sense was unpleasantly heightened.
He regretted not bringing the butler or chief physician. Just as regret over this mismatched errand hit him—
"Well, well. Is that Theodor?"
An unwelcome voice called out to him.
Theodor finally opened his eyes. He already knew who it was.
"You in a place like this. I thought I was seeing things."
The man approaching with a friendly grin was Claude Renar.
The immature second son of the Renar Family, another Wolfkin clan.
A handsome man with soft blond hair and clear blue eyes, he already had women on both arms.
"Hah..."
Typical of a family devoured by lust. Theodor's hand moved to the buckle of his leather glove. After a slow sigh at the nauseating disgust, he issued a cold warning.
"It might've been better if you had seen wrong."
"Come on, it's been ages. We're friends!"
"All my friends must've frozen to death."
Undeterred by Theodor's icy response, Claude smirked and stepped closer—or tried to.
At that moment, unfamiliar women's scents wafted over, along with Claude Renar's.
It was the moment Theodor's patience snapped.
"...Theo."
Lara called Theodor in a small voice.
Theodor's gaze turned to her.
'Hm?'
Claude keenly noticed Theodor's reaction. He vaguely glimpsed a small human girl inside the boutique.
'That girl...'
Claude's eyes narrowed.
Theodor naturally turned to block Claude's view.
"Get lost. Keep your eyes off what's not yours."
He spoke to Claude using the 'power' innate to Wolfkin, infused into human language.
Claude froze instantly. He stared at Theodor's red eyes with interest, then obediently backed off.
"Sheesh, so prickly... Fine. This isn't our space anyway. Too many unfamiliar humans around?"
Leaving those meaningful words, Claude flashed a grin and vanished into the crowd.
"Theo."
Lara looked straight up at Theodor as he approached her.
"...Did I interrupt something?"
It seemed like Theodor had been talking to someone, and she worried she'd gotten in the way by calling him.
But in that moment, she had felt she had to call him. She didn't know why, but the urge was there.
Theodor said nothing, his eyes on the ruby hairpin adorning Lara's silver hair.
"...It matches your eyes."
Theodor's overly amplified emotions were quickly subsiding thanks to Lara.
As he murmured, Lara's gaze trembled slightly.
Matches her eye color? Lara recalled her one red eye. That mismatched eye had never brought her good memories.
And Theodor was saying it while looking right at it.
"...Doesn't it look strange?"
Lara chose her words carefully before asking softly.
Theodor's hand moved past the hairpin to her hair.
He gently stroked her hair as he answered.
"It doesn't."
"......"
"Your eyes are beautiful."
The buzzing noises around them fell silent.
The suffocating din and unnecessary sensations that had tormented Theodor faded away.
The sensory amplification that had relentlessly plagued him for so long miraculously ebbed the moment he was near Lara.
The closer he got to her, the more an unfamiliar peace washed over Theodor—something he'd never felt before.
As the familiar torment of his long curse receded, a strange serenity took its place.