CH 3

Britia glared sternly at her brother.

Leon, on the other hand, was preoccupied with something else and didn’t see the seriousness his sister showed by glaring at him.

Instead, he tightened his grip on the spear he was clutching. When he heard Britia’s screams, he dashed out of the hall and grabbed something that was hanging in the hallway.

“What’s the deal with the mad dog from the north traveling in the wagon on his way to my house?”

“Leon!”

When Britia observed her younger brother saying something rude again, she poked him in the side and told him not to do it.

His trained side, on the other hand, was so rigid that she couldn’t push her fingers into it.

“Especially on such a rainy day,”

Leon was prepared to act quickly if Sig Turas showed any suspicious behavior.

“Explain to me honestly why you came to my place at such a late hour?”

Leon was still nervous and wary of Sig Turas despite the fact that he was probing him.

He may have been a guest at the party, but he immediately dismissed that possibility.

Even the invitation that Leon had sent went unanswered by Sig Turas.

Leon sent the invitation letter to the military academy since he didn’t know where else to send it, therefore it was unlikely that The Northern Mad Dog got one.

The fact that Sig was carrying a sword at his waist further dispelled the idea that he would be a guest at their party.

Who in the world would bring such a good sword to a party if he wasn’t planning to do a sword dance there?

“There seems to be a misunderstanding.”

Sig interrupted Evry as he attempted to approach Leon and explain the circumstances. He then stood motionless as he watched Leon, who was cautious of him.

There was a tense atmosphere between the two.

Britia, who often thought of Leon as a big-bodied clown, held her breath at the sharp sight of Leon. They were still facing one other in silence, and she wished she could say something.

Redness spread across Britia’s face. She was barely able to hold her breath.

“Poo-ha!”

Sig’s gaze briefly shifted to her as she briefly gathered her breath. He again averted his gaze after that.

He must have thought she was a strange woman!

Britia’s cheeks, which had previously been hot, became crimson from embarrassment and extended to her neck.

“You would have answered to my invitation if you were coming to the party.”

Leon’s face twitched, thinking Sig was cocky and wanting to attend the party without bothering to answer to the invitation he had sent earlier.

“I didn’t receive anything.”

Leon and Britia were both taken aback. And they had no idea who had sent him the invitation.

“Could it be my elder brother?”

If he had sent him the invitation personally behind their back and pretended to be somewhere else, he might have been able to pull it off.

The Earl questioned earlier why Leon hadn’t sent an invitation, but there’s a high probability the Earl himself had done so and was checking to see if his younger brother had also invited the Northern Mad Dog!

“I attended due to Countess Lockhart’s invitation. Naturally, I also gave her a letter of acceptance.”

Duke Sig had no knowledge about such matters because Evry, of course, handled them.

As a result, Evry said it since he couldn’t just watch them question his boss.

Eyes widened in Britain. She immediately thought of her sister-in-law because she said that she could be hosting a secret guest.

Perhaps, she was talking about the Duke Sig Turas that time.

“Did you simply attend a real party and not come to attack Lockhart? Unbelievable!”

Leon looked suspiciously at Sig and Evry’s faces.

The two’s attire did not appear to be very party-appropriate, even if they were drenched from the rain.

It wouldn’t be incorrect if someone assumed they went hunting.

“Lenny!”

Earl Lockhart eventually followed Leon with his wife in behind.

“How on earth can you run so quickly without eating?”

After racing from the hall, the Earl stopped to catch his breath, placing his hands on his knees and breathing heavily. When he noticed a huge shadow, he lifted his head.

“kyaa!”

Countess Lockhart let out a short scream seeing the giant figure of Sig.

Leon raised his chin gradually after observing that reaction and asked.

“You’ve been invited to our house by Countess Lockhart, right?”

Britia had never heard of Northern Mad Dog being invited to a party before, so hearing it directly from the guest surprised her. According to what she overheard her brothers discussing earlier, Duke Sig wasn’t the type of person who would attend any parties. She wondered whether he may be lying.

“Lenny, how is this going? Who are these guys?”

Earl Lockhart questioned his younger brother as he held his startled wife’s shoulder.

He couldn’t see him clearly because it was dark, but based on how he looked, he didn’t appear to be a random commoner.

“The mad dog of the north.”

The Earl opened his eyes wide.

“Mad dog? Duke of Turas?”

“The reason why the duke of Turas lied about being invited… .”

“To, Duke of Turas!”

Cried Countess Lockhart, stopping Leon.

“I received an answer saying he was coming, but I didn’t expect him to come!”

The countess hurriedly called the servants. Seeing this, Leon widened his eyes in a daze.

“Did you notice now?”

Evry smiled awkwardly.

“Lenny! You have treated a guest in an extremely impolite manner. I did not imagine such behavior from a Lockhart family member.

Leon hid the spear he was carrying behind his back as the Countess yelled at him to put it away.

“I am so sorry, Duke. It must have been misunderstood because I didn’t inform them that you’ll be attending.”

The Countess repeatedly apologized to Sig.

Britia’s face became white, and she gripped to Leon tightly.

It was truly quite dishonorable behavior on their part, if she replayed the former event.

Leon, her younger brother, held up a spear and questioned the guest who had really accepted the invitation and attended the party about his motivation for attending.

Additionally, he repeatedly called the visitor “mad dog” and used other insulting words to address him.

It crossed the line, even if only little.

Besides, didn’t he scream in surprise at the sight of his face? He even thought it might be a drowned body walking out of the sea.

She didn’t obstruct her brother while he was performing such an act, hence it was also her fault that he was acting rudely to a guest.

Britia was confused about what she should do in the current situation. 

Sig, however, did not have an extreme response, contrary to Britia’s fears. He just wiped his face with the towel he was given when he entered the mansion, and he never mentioned the topic again.

Britia pondered if, contrary to the terrible image associated with rumours, he was a really gentle and compassionate person.

All sorts of thoughts popped up in Britia’s head.

“We greatly appreciate your participation at our celebration today, and we thank you for traveling this far.”

The Countess tried her utmost to serve her guest well. But she stammered, as if she wasn’t used to dealing with a huge, tough-looking man like him.

“Sig Turas?”

Upon entering the hall, Leon’s friends saw him and murmured.

“He’s real!”

“What?”

“It’s a northern mad dog!”

The murmuring turned into a roar.

Brittia placed her index finger on her lips, begging them to be quiet.

However,they were already drunk, so they made a fuss by clapping their hands and blowing whistles.

“Whoa, mad dog!”

Leon had also joined them before she realized it. She couldn’t believe he was cheering with his pals, who had previously been suspicious of Sig. Britia was embarrassed that those youngsters were so immature even when they were all grown up, and her face felt like it might explode.

“These are the knights of the Holy Knights of Valenderg.”

Evry whispered from the side as Sig’s brows furrowed.

“Can’t you guys shut up right now!”

It was getting to be too much, and Earl Lockhart yelled at them.

“Sorry about the ruckus, those youngsters are friends of my brother.”

Sig also smiled in a kind manner at the same moment.

“The Earl’s younger brother… .”

“There he is, the lively one with the loudest voice is my youngest brother, Leon Lockhart. And… .”

The Earl cleared his throat.

“You can call me Crave, if you feel comfortable.”

Britia felt very uncomfortable seeing her twin, the Ealr pretending to be shy.

“And this is my twin sister, Britia Lockhart.”

Because of the sudden introduction, Britia was startled and her head moved aside. Duke Turas slightly lifted the corners of his mouth as he stared at her as if he were observing her.

She knew that her attitude was rude, but she couldn’t help but be afraid of him.

“Pleased to meet you. I’m Britia Lockhart.”

When Britia raised her skirt slightly to greet him, Sig nodded his head in return.

She may not have been able to adapt to Sig’s gloomy vibe because she was so used to Leon’s lively buddies.

One thing was lucky, though. A tail was also attached on his back.

The enormous black tail was so still it seemed practically immobile, although it was sopping wet. It even made it seem a little pitiful.

Leon witnessed him rip the monsters with his hands, and Britia assumed his tail would be exceedingly huge. However, his tail was the same as everyone else’s.

Britia was somehow relieved.

“Would you like to say something to me?”

Britia, who was staring at Sig’s tail, gently raised her head. Sig was looking at her over his broad shoulders.

“Umm.. no, sorry!”

Britia shook her head in surprise.

The duke’s right eye narrowed in doubt. Britia blushed and lowered her head.

People often thought she was strange when she would just looked at empty space. Even though she knew she shouldn’t, she continued to involuntarily look at their tail.

It was only after confirming with a sidelong glance that the Duke had turned his head that Britia felt relieved.

She really didn’t intend to pay it any further attention.

She tried to make up her mind, but it bothered her that water dripped from the tail and soaked the floor.

“What’s the matter?”

The Earl, her twin, called out to Britia, who followed her eyes and glanced at the floor. But since there was nothing there where she was looking dazedly, the Earl’s brow furrowed.

Well, of course, except Britia, no other eye could see the tail or the water dripping from it.

“Nothing.”

Britia, on the other hand, saw it clearly. She felt restless within, filled with the impulse to wipe that tail.

“Looks like the party is already over.”

Sig said, unaware of what thoughts were going on inside Britia’s mind.

When he cast his glance along the corridor, he noticed that all of the lights were off on one side.

“I’m afraid I’m too late, so I’ll go home now.”

When Sig was about to turn away, the Earl raised his hands and blocked his path.

“What do you mean it’s over?”

The Earl snapped his fingers at the orchestra, which was tilting his drinking glass while eating.

“Music. hurry!”

The group quickly shoveled food into their mouths at his prodding. They quickly got up their instruments and began playing, and a tune that began with one note at a time soon filled the room.

“Oh, we were so busy welcoming you that we forgot to take the guest’s coat.”

The Countess, who had been restrained by Sig’s presence, said with a kind smile as if she had realized what was going on. When she turned to look at her butler, he was standing next to the guest.

“I will let it dry.”

Evry removed his coat and handed it to the butler as soon as he said those words. However, Sig only remained still.

“Your Grace?”

Walter held out his hands.

Sig had no choice but to take off his coat, and Walter took it and quickly disappeared to the end of the hallway.

“Are you hungry?”

The Earl had no intention of letting Sig go back to his home any sooner.

Why would he? The legendary mad dog, about whom they had only heard rumors, had joined their party!

His heart was suddenly roiling with excitement.

“The chicken dishes prepared by our chef are excellent.”

“I want you to taste it,” the Earl called the servants.

“Oh, it’s all cold. warm it up right away. Bring more potatoes!”

“Earl, I am grateful for the favor, but… .”

“Oh, please call me Crave!”

The Earl and Sig had a small scuffle. Britia took a towel and crept up behind Sig at this instant. She hoped she could wipe the water from the tail that was soaking the floor.

She reasoned It would be OK if she cleaned it fast without him knowing what she had done. In any case, even if she touches the tail, the duke will not notice.

“I don’t feel hungry… .”

“It’s getting to the point where my belly is sticking to its back. I haven’t had dinner yet.”

When Evry had confessed the truth, Sig turned to him and glared.

“It will be ready in no time.”

In the meantime, Britia gulped and cautiously approached the Duke’s tail.

Wipe just enough to keep the water from dripping on the floor.

“Sister?”

Leon’s friend Philip noticed her strange behaviour.

*shhhh*.

She silenced Philip with her glances, and he became silent.

Britia then wrapped a towel around Sig’s tail. She was also momentarily happy that she had succeeded in wiping secretly.

Suddenly, Sig turned around and grabbed Britia’s arm.

“What did you just do?”