At the End of the Hidden Greenery - Chapter 270
After Lanceil helped Jiwoo off to rest, the husbands continued preparing for the festival while admiring the gifts Jiwoo had given them. Not being used to receiving presents, the men took their time examining what they’d each gotten, genuinely delighted.
When they’d received marron glace before, it had been so rare that it left them bewildered, but now they could simply enjoy the happiness it brought.
They had more time now, all that’s left ahead if to love each other even more deeply.
“After we finished our business at the first stop and left the coast, our El…”
“Is that so…?”
Solmih gave Helka a brief rundown of what had happened before Jiwoo could share the full story herself.
It was natural for those who took on the responsibilities of the eldest brothers to be filled in first. Meanwhile, the others were eager to hear all about the journey.
“What’s this?”
“Ahem, so, if you dissolve this in water…”
“But to do it, you have to be really sneaky…”
Lancet and Arven were showing off their beach ‘treasure’ to their usual friends. Taking advantage of Solmih’s distraction talking to Helka, they just had to share their spoils in secret.
“Wait, you guys did this by yourselves?”
Tevon, for one, was extremely interested. It was clear they’d all be dragged before Solmih once this mischief was discovered, but the temptation was just too much to ignore.
But Tevon had his own track record. Lancet and Arven just stared wordlessly at him, then flanked him on either side, each grabbing an arm.
“What, what’s up? Why?”
“Solmih wants to talk to you.”
“Yes, come on, let’s see Solmih.”
“Huh? Me? Why?”
Without any further explanation, they marched Tevon off to Solmih. Seeing Tevon, Solmih left Helka and led Tevon away somewhere.
Kaman was chatting with Callan.
“…Those things. What do you think about El wanting to see those old portraits of us?”
“Those things?”
They were talking about the old portraits Jiwoo once said she’d like to see when she returned home.
Kaman idly twirled a lock of his short hair around his finger.
“But… does El actually like long hair?”
“Seems that way?”
“And our crying, too…”
They even discussed Jiwoo’s tastes, some that even Jiwoo herself didn’t realize she had.
“It’s harder to maintain short hair than you’d think, unless you’re like Helka. El doesn’t even notice the effort.”
Kaman gave a half-hearted grumble.
“Hmm. Maybe we should do a family portrait for the festival, especially since we’ve just sown all the seeds. I bet Jiwoo would love that.”
Because of the long age gaps between brothers, they’d never actually had a full family portrait before.
“Ah… but you want to get everyone in? That’ll take ages.”
“Let’s not make everyone stand around awkwardly, just memorize it and paint from memory.”
Callan’s perfectionism made Kaman grimace.
“You’re asking for the impossible…”
“It’s nothing for you. I’ll help.”
“Well, if you help…”
It might be nice to make one with Jiwoo for this year’s festival. Of course, there would be a minor war over who got to stand next to Jiwoo in the painting, maybe best to keep that a secret. Not that they’d only make one, anyway.
“Alright, let’s go dig through the old drawings.”
Kaman led Callan to where the old portraits were stored. As they left, Kaman glanced back at Jiwoo, who was being carried off to rest by Lanceil, and his expression darkened.
“…Do you ever think El might suddenly disappear?”
“Did something happen?”
Kaman briefly explained how Jiwoo had suddenly vanished before his eyes, even though she had come back in the end, and how he’d felt in that moment.
He meant it as a serious concern, but Callan just laughed.
“I get it. There was a time I wondered whether to physically tie Jiwoo down or tie her to us emotionally instead.”
Kaman really had picked the right person to talk to.
After what he’d witnessed, he had no idea how to calm the lingering anxiety that Jiwoo might vanish again, no matter how quickly she’d returned.
“Don’t worry. Jiwoo loves us more than you think…”
Callan saw the skeptical look in Kaman’s eyes and just laughed.
“We’re very much loved.”
He never thought Callan would say something like that himself.
Meanwhile, Enci had immediately spotted Skiass.
“Hey, what’s with that look?”
Skiass just gave Enci a glance.
Then without saying a word, he tucked his hair behind his ear. The array of ornaments in his hair jingled and shimmered in the sunlight.
As one of the more conservative brothers, Enci was momentarily at a loss for words and was about to scold him but completely distracted when Night suddenly appeared.
“Wow. I need her to do that for me, too!”
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