Chapter 13: Family Relationship Improvement

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"Normal Speech"
'Thought'
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Four days later, Cale joined his family for breakfast again after not being able to do so in preparation for the journey to the capital.

He had been visiting Billos's tea shop everyday, sometimes he stayed there until late afternoon to read the books or just waiting for the items he requested from Billos.

Deruth looked at Cale's simple clothes and thought about the young Cale during the time his mother was still around.

The young Cale hated the complicate clothes, ones that his small hands couldn't wear on his own. Cale had been a self-reliance as a child. Only his mother could made him wearing those fancy clothes once in a while, because he looked cute in it.

He had guess that's one of the reason he started to wear those overly fancy clothes in remembrance of his mother. To see his son wearing the clothes he found comfortable in again, meant that he had choose to at least moved on. He couldn't help but smile at that.

"I guess you're leaving today. It's good that you seems to be healthy despite the busy preparation you were doing."

Cale smiled instead of responding. 'Well, I eat well and sleep well, I don't even have a chance to touch any alcohol since the day I met Choi Han. The happiest things are the fact that I didn't get beaten up and all preparations are done.'

Except for one. He looked at Deruth.
"Father, it looks like the number of people in the envoy has grown again. I asked you to please reduce the number."

He had told his father that Hans and Ron is enough for the servant quota. He couldn't effort to bring more people, it would just make it hard to sneak out to save the dragon.

"Ah. About that..." Deruth didn't finish his sentence, he glanced a little at Violan.

"That was my decision." Violan interjected though she was looking at her plate.

Her hair was perfectly formed a bun, without a single stray hair. She looked so similar to Basen. Even the way they both avoid Cale's eyes and the stoic expression on their face.

"We can't have someone from our family looking poor and terrible just because you want to go with small envoy." It was an extremely stoic voice.

Violan then lifted her gaze up to look at Cale's direction and added quickly as if she was afraid that her stepson would misunderstood her. "...I am not saying that you are terrible."

Cale stared at Violan, remembered how she had tried to shield him from an attack when the northern alliance attacked their territory. She had blocked an incoming arrow that was aimed for him. Luckily the arrow only grazed her shoulder.

His eyes soften a little, though no one really see it as it disappeared as fast as it appeared. "Even I know that much."

Violan hesitated for a moment from the unexpected gentle tone from Cale. Cale never spoke harshly to her or Basen, but it had never been this gentle.

She cleared the lump that raised inside her throat and continued, consciously softened her stoic tone. "People, especially nobles, care a lot about appearance."

The Countess, Violan, his stepmother. Cale remembered the first time he saw her and Basen as his father, Deruth, introduced them to him.

He saw how happy his father's smile was and he understood why his grieving father fell in love with such a woman.

Violan had a lot of pride for herself and her life, but she never showed any haughty prideful behavior towards her family. Cale could tell that Violan started to have a lot of pride for this family the moment she fell in love with Deruth.

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