Chapter 35
I gasped and quickly covered my mouth, then lowered my head deeply.
“I’m sorry….”
It was an apology for practically admitting the scandal of the Diern family.
“…No. Thank you for saying that.”
Darius did not avoid the topic or ask where I had heard it. He only gave a hollow laugh.
“That’s right. Back then, I could only see my mother suffering. I was desperate to protect her… I wished that my half-brother would just disappear….”
By saying “half-brother,” he quietly confirmed that the rumors were true.
“…I would have done the same. You’re not a bad person, Darius oppa.”
Even without the incident he had experienced, what kind of saint would welcome a half-sibling born from their father’s affair?
Especially as a child who couldn’t think rationally.
“…Thank you.”
“I’ll try to persuade Kyle too, so he can forgive you and accept you. I’ll be happy if you two get along.”
Darius slowly shook his head, his eyes dim.
“It’s okay. This is something I must solve myself. If I ask for that, it might damage the friendship between you and Kyle instead.”
“Ah….”
He was right. I had already promised not to force anything on Kyle.
“Lady Riez, just stay as you are and be comfortable with Kyle.”
“……”
“While we had our picnic, I noticed that when Kyle is with you, he becomes gentle—like a completely different person. It was shocking. I’ve never seen him show such softness to anyone except our parents.”
That is gentle? Just how badly does Kyle usually behave toward Darius?
While I blinked in disbelief, Darius held out one hand to me.
“Lady Riez. I know it’s shameless to ask, but please continue to take good care of Kyle.”
“Ah, yes! Leave it to me!”
I was already planning to stay friends with Kyle and prevent him from turning dark in the future, so I grabbed his hand and shook it firmly.
Darius smiled faintly at my cheerful answer.
“That’s reassuring. Kyle having such a reliable friend almost makes me jealous.”
“…But you have my brother. He’s stubborn and nagging, but he’s loyal in his own way.”
When I defended my brother weakly, Darius laughed out loud.
“That’s right. That’s why I like Simon.”
His straightforward confession made goosebumps rise on my arm.
No, I support your friendship… I need you two to stay friends so I can keep hanging around near you…
“Lady Riez, I owe you greatly. If you ever have a request in the future, I will definitely grant it.”
He spoke seriously.
A request? I had plenty.
‘Be happy. Be healthy. Do everything you want. Keep that holy handsome face. Live long enough to grow old and grey.’
…Of course I couldn’t say that, so I just smiled and shook my head.
“Then repay me by playing with my family again next time.”
“That doesn’t seem like a fair exchange.”
Darius laughed deeply.
After speaking honestly, he looked refreshed.
I already knew his past and his inner thoughts from the original story, but if he felt even a little relieved now, that was enough.
Maybe this small moment could slightly change the future where the brothers fight each other.
With that hopeful thought, I looked up. The blue sky had turned soft orange.
“It seems quite some time has passed.”
“It has.”
As the warm sunlight faded, the air felt cold.
I rubbed my arms as I shivered, and Darius began unbuttoning his shirt.
“Ah, no!”
I waved my arms in shock.
But Darius gently placed his shirt over my shoulders.
“I-I’m fine!”
My eyes accidentally met his firm chest and abs, and I quickly tried to return the shirt in embarrassment.
“If we stay trapped here, Simon won’t be able to find us.”
When Darius suddenly stood up and removed his shoes and accessories, placing them on the deck, I finally realized what he was about to do.
“Darius oppa!”
The loud splash of his dive swallowed my scream.
Crouching down, I followed his shadow with my eyes as it sank deep underwater.
After a long dive, he finally came up, coughing a few times, then laughed.
“It’s so dark underwater. I wanted to take a look.”
Then he grabbed the back of the boat and began kicking his legs.
He was going to push the boat while swimming?!
I crawled closer and shouted.
“What are you doing?! You’ll catch a cold! Please come back up!”
“Look ahead, Lady Riez.”
“Huh?”
“Look ahead.”
Confused, I turned my head.
The front of the boat was pushing through the willow leaves and moving out of the hidden space.
“Fast, right? Much faster than rowing.”
Well… it was fast!
The wind brushed against my face and hair, and soon the wide lake opened before us.
The speed of the boat cutting through the water was indeed quick—so quick that it was hard to believe someone was pushing it while swimming.
“Come up now, Darius oppa! We’re out of the blind spot!”
“Haha, this is fun! I should’ve done this from the start!”
Ignoring my worry, Darius laughed innocently.
“Lady Riez, someone poured red paint into the lake.”
Just as he said, the reddish sky and lake looked like a beautiful painting. His wet golden hair sparkled under the sunset light.
Looking at his bright face, I couldn’t help but laugh softly.
Darius… he still has a childish side.
Since he didn’t seem cold or tired, maybe I should just let him be for now.
About twenty minutes earlier—
“Seriously. If you get seasick, you should’ve said so.”
Simon scolded Kyleus while patting his back carelessly.
Kyleus glared at him fiercely.
It was his first time riding a boat—how was he supposed to know? Besides, he had said several times that he didn’t want to ride it!
He wanted to argue, but all that came out of his mouth was bitter vomit.
After emptying his stomach into the lake, they quickly returned to the dock and tied up the boat.
They stood under a tree, waiting for Darius and Riez to return.
Simon kept patting Kyleus’s back, bringing him water, and asking if he was okay.
But Kyleus already felt deep resentment toward him.
“I said I’m sorry. Stop glaring at me like that, brat. By the way, why aren’t they back yet? It feels like it’s already been over two hours.”
As he said, the sun was already setting.
All the other people who had been boating had long since returned to land and left the lakeside.
Even if you slowly circled Lake Lagria, it would only take about an hour.
After carefully scanning the lake surface, Simon approached the boatman at the dock.
Kyleus, exhausted, wanted to return to the count’s mansion first, but he was worried about Riez and Darius, so he silently followed.
“Hey. The group that went out on a boat hasn’t returned yet.”
“Huh? Ah, one moment. One, two, three, four…”
After counting the boats tied at the dock and looking over the lake, the boatman tilted his head.
“One boat hasn’t come back.”
“There isn’t a single boat left on the lake.”
“Well, in cases like this, there are two possibilities… Either the guests docked somewhere else instead of the pier, or an accident happened.”
Hearing the last words, Simon flinched and immediately jumped onto a boat.
“I’ll go look for them.”
“Ah? Sir! I’ll go too!”
In the blink of an eye, Simon untied the rope and rowed like a storm. The boatman also got into another boat and began searching.
Kyleus, hating how powerless he felt on the water, could only stare blankly as the two boats moved farther away.
Thirty minutes later, the boatman and Simon returned—
with Darius and Riez’s boat.
