Chapter 24: Son-in-Law

"Fufufu~"

"Hey, did you just laugh at me right now? You're laughing at me, right?"

"Mmn, I wasn't. Pfft~"

"Look! You did laugh at me. And you just lied while feeling funny, right?"

"Hmm...maybe? Who knows."

"Laughing at your husband, huh! It looks like you need a taste of my wrath!"

Juan retracted his hands that were wrapped around Ceth before placing them around her waist area.

"Ah! What are you doing?!"

Suddenly, Ceth had a very bad feeling right at this moment.

In the next second, Juan's fingers moved and started tickling her rather strongly.

"Hngh—?!!"

"Hehe, this is your punishment for laughing at your husband. Even saying your first lie in front of me."

"N-no! Ha—ha ha...s-stop it! I'm...my back...is facing you! Ha ha ha—noo!"

"It doesn't matter; what's important is what's already happened! You can't escape this my wife. Hehe."

For the first time in his life, Juan felt what it felt like to have a wife. To have someone to share the joy of the opposite sex.

To experience love and responsibilities. The happiness and wonderful emotions in life. He didn't expect it to be this colorful.

And he also got to see Ceth's other expression.

Those laugher and smiles caused him to burst out with more warmth and affection that had just started emerging out of his heart.

Those every frown and silent look in her eyes when she looked at him.

"I didn't expect this. For you to show me a different you, could this be possible because you're my wife now?"

Juan stopped tickling her after seeing that she couldn't really take it anymore. Some tears even appeared because she laughed too much.

"I really like the way you smile and laugh just now, you know. I want to see more of you like that."

Ceth giggled softly as she started to calm down. She turned around and looked at Juan with her faint yet enchanting smile.

"Mm, I'll show you...but only for you."

Bathump~!

...

After a few minutes, Juan closed the door to his house. Beside him is Ceth, who was holding onto the folded bedsheet.

"Are you really going to take that back?"

Juan asked curiously. He now faced a problem of where should he asked for another bedsheet like this.

"Mm."

Ceth has already returned to her expressionless persona, but it can't hide the faint smile hanging around her lips as well as the mature charm she started to exude subconsciously.

"Going to wash it? The blood might not disappeared, though."

'There's no bleach here.'

Only adults will understand where this blood came from. Juan wouldn't explain it either, since it's somewhat of an embarrassing topic.

"No, for us. The first night is a ritual. The blood on this sheet will be our proof of marriage. I'm going to show it to my mother and store it safe."

Ceth shook her head before she replied.

Juan nodded after hearing that. Then he steps forward and places his arms on Ceth's legs and shoulders before lifting her up in a princess carry.

"I have been wanting to do this, you know, and Ceth is very lucky to be the one to experience it firsthand."

"You know this is very embarrassing, right?"

Ceth looked around her nervously while she spoke to Juan softly.

"So you know how to be embarrassed too, huh? And yet you were so glued to me when we first met."

Juan chuckled.

"Well, that was different..."

Looking down, Juan could see Ceth's face sticking close to his chest, seemingly wanting to hide the fact that her face is red.

"Your ears and neck are red, you know. Well, don't worry about it; I know a path secretive enough for us not to be a seen by anyone."

Seeing her like this made Juan feel like life was interesting after all. This is one of the reason he didn't want to die.

He can't bear to part with the happiness and all kinds of fun and joyful things in the world.

"Really?"

Peeking around her while they were moving, Ceth looked around from time to time warily.

"Hm."

The journey is coincidentally smooth, with no unexpected people popping out somewhere along the way.

Though Juan seems attentive on the road, half of his thoughts were actually on Ceth's body, which he was carrying with him.

It can only be said that he was a real pervert, hidden as a gentleman in disguise.

Ceth must have felt it too, noticing some dishonest movement while they were moving.

Although she didn't say anything, her looks were practically saying she knew it all, but she didn't stop him or anything.

'My wife indeed, I'm starting to love you more and more with each passing second, you know.'

"I got found out."

Juan could only helplessly laugh wryly in a light voice this time.

Soon, they reached their destination. The village chief's house was where Ceth and her parents lived.

Gulp.

"What's this? Are you going to run away after feeling scared?"

Seeing Juan's reaction made Ceth happy in her heart. She couldn't help but taunt him instead, subconsciously.

"N-no, I'm not that kind of person. I won't run away. And also, I'm just a little bit nervous. This should be normal, right?"

Juan may seem to have agreed with what he said, but the stuttering and his expression fail to hide what he truly express.

"Pfft~ fufufu. Well then, let's enter then."

Ceth chuckled, her eyes turning into a slit like an upturned crescent moon.

'Ahhhh! It has already come to this! I'm already here; this is inevitable! I must face this consequences! I only hope they will accept me peacefully.'

Juan steeled his heart after taking a deep breath. Determination appeared on his face after feeling Ceth in his arms and looking at her happy face.

This reward is enough to motivate him to face the trial head-on.

'Here I come! '

The door is already opened, so Juan, with Ceth in his arms, doesn't need to knock just to enter.

"Village Chief, it's me, Juan. Please pardon my intrusion."

Inside the house, around the table where food was already prepared, Garu was eating his food seriously with his wife, who sat by his side gently.

Their arrival made Garu and his wife stop what they're doing as they turned over, only to see how Juan was carrying their daughter in his arms.

This made Garu eyelids twitch while his wife reacted much more surprised, with a smile on her lips covered by her hand.

"Oh my~ congratulations!"

Ceth's mother seems to understand something after seeing her daughter carrying something in addition to her being carried.

She stood up and immediately came toward Ceth. Juan put Ceth on the chair and let her sit on it with his gentle care.

"Mother, Father."

Ceth shows the folded bedsheet in her hand to her parents with a pinkish blush on her expressionless face.

Juan stood rooted from behind, like a statue. He just wanted his presence to be as little as it could possibly be.

Because there was someone who had been glaring at him with a very ferocious glare the moment he stepped into this house.

Garu seems to want to rip him to shreds with his gaze, bite him to pieces, and throw all his remains to be eaten by wild pigs so that everything about him will disappear.

This made Juan subconsciously shiver.

All he could do in response was to look at the ceiling to show that he didn't notice anything.

However, it was different from the eyes of the two women looking at them. Ceth and her mother were actually staying silent all this time.

Observing the two men, one was glaring and emitting dangerous vibes, wanting to kill, while the other wanted to turn into a statue, counting webs on the ceiling.

"Pfft~"

"Fufufu~"

The two women couldn't help but chuckle at this sight.

"Alright, that should be enough. You're scaring our son-in-law, you know. Ceth has already become his wife, right?" 

The madam's words mean that this is an inevitable event for their daughter. He should let go already and accept reality.

"Yes!"

Hearing his name being called made Juan subconsciously stand straighter than he was doing right now.

Sweat subconsciously slid down from his cheek to his jaw.

It wasn't hot, but Juan felt like he was being baked personally in the presence of Ceth's parents.

In the end, after a few minutes of ever-changing expression, Garu finally heaved in and out of a deep breath, calming down his somewhere aching heart.

"Juan, let's talk after this breakfast. For now, sit and eat with us. Ceth too, eat more to take care of your....body!"

Looking at how tired-looking his daughter was when she arrived and being carried here, she seemingly had just had the most painful experience and hardships he could imagine.

Garu subconsciously crushed the wooden spoon in his bulging right hand as he couldn't help but turn towards Juan with a murderous expression on his face.

"Why are you slow? Sit immediately and eat fast."

Juan heard this normal-sounding conversation, but he couldn't relax because the one who spoke those words seemed ready to jump on him and pulverize him to dust.

'Ahh, please don't hit me, father! I've done nothing wrong! It's me who was the victim of your daughter! '

Juan could only cry out everything in his heart, while on the outside, he was as obedient as the first honor child.

"Yes!"