The Tyrant's Pet

"Thank you."

Aries's brows rose, turning her head to Lilou, who sat down beside her. After they ate, everyone just enjoyed the food and drinks, and the men were now having a friendly spar near the bonfire. Aries ate, but not too much since she couldn't force herself. Though the food tastes better.

"Thank you for?" Aries narrowed her eyes, confused.

"For taking care of my daughter," Lilou clarified, leaning back with a smile. "Sunny told me many things about you and Abel on our way to the mainland. I was nervous about her and had been scared, but I'm glad she met you and Abel."

Lilou's smile stretched wider while her eyes shone beautifully. "Thank you for taking care of her and prioritizing her safety. I am forever indebted."

"It's nothing." Aries shook her head mildly. "Sunny is family. Looking after her while her parents were away is something a family would naturally do."

"Not all families are like that, though." Lilou smacked her lips, peeling her eyes from Aries to the men having a brawl. "Sometimes, the people we call family whom we expect to protect us will be the first people to harm us."

Aries pressed her lips into a thin line, gazing at where Lilou was staring at. "But not our family… right?"

"Mhm." Lilou rocked her head. "Not the Grimsbanne. People deemed them as vicious devils whose existence isn't welcome in this world. However, Sam… Tilly, my children… weren't perfect, but they were good people. They don't harm others unless they crossed the line. As much as possible, they didn't want violence — they never attacked first."

"I've been married to my husband for over a decade and never once did I see him attack first," she continued. "I'm pretty sure Abel is also the same type."

Aries went silent for a moment, reviewing everything from the beginning. It never crossed her before, but now that Lilou mentioned it, Abel always had a reason to hurt someone. No matter how big or small it was, Abel always had a reason.

"How dare they?" whispered Aries, making Lilou's brow arch.

"Bully our men?" Lilou continued in a questioning tone. 𝙛𝘳𝒆𝒆𝒘e𝗯n𝗼𝘷𝚎𝚕.𝒄૦𝓶

"Bu — bully????" Conan, who was just about to join them to sit down and rest, gasped in disbelief.

Both Lilou and Aries glanced at him. They tilted their heads to the side, staring at Conan with genuine wonder in their eyes.

"You two…" Conan carefully sat down across from them and just right beside Tilly. "... don't you get goosebumps on what you are saying? Why are you looking at me as if I said something extremely stupid?!"

"Because you are." Aries clicked her tongue, casting Lilou a meaningful look. "This man just doesn't understand, you see."

Lilou's lips stretched as confidence washed over her countenance. "He will."

Aries's brows rose, watching Lilou face Conan with a smile.

"Your Highness, aren't you having goosebumps saying that?" asked Lilou.

"Hah! Why would I?" Conan snorted. "The word bully isn't something you just threw around as a joke! If there's anyone who is getting bullied, that was me! Those guys — Samael and Abel will never get bullied!"

Conan harrumphed as if he had deep grudges against Abel and Samael. Aries could understand if this was Abel, but Samael? It was only been over a week since Conan met these people. How could he 'detest' Samael so easily?

"How can you be so shallow?" murmured Aries, gazing at Conan in dismay.

"It is true that considering my husband and Abel's strong personality, they wouldn't get bullied. However, it's not like they were purposely picking on others." Lilou shrugged, maintaining her calm mien. "Still, since we are the wives, knowing others were picking on our husbands despite that they weren't doing anything was hard to ignore."

"That's right. It's not like it's just a simple teasing," Aries backed up while Lilou nodded in agreement. "Those people… some of them didn't even interact with them even once. Even just for a brief moment. However, they had the audacity to come at our men and interrupt our lives like children just because they couldn't talk."

"That's not the point!" argued Conan. "Even if the entire world goes against them, it's not like they would fall easily. I won't even pity them since I know if the world is evil, they were double — hundred times evil."

It wasn't like Conan was lying. It was true that it was hard to pity the Grimsbanne men due to their strong personalities. If someone wronged them, that person would be dead. That also applied to many cases. If the world went against them directly, Conan was a hundred percent certain the Grimsbanne men would ruin this world with their bare hands.

Deep down, Lilou and Aries couldn't help but wonder just what sort of monster was their husbands in Conan's eyes. For sure, Samael and Abel weren't that terrible.

"See!?" Conan pointed in the bonfire's direction where the men were sparring.

Lilou and Aries shifted their attention to where Conan was pointing, only to catch Abel and Samael standing around the bonfire while talking casually. Claude and Rufus were still sparring, although it was mostly a playful exchange.

"Are you alright?" asked Aries to Conan, scrunching her face in dismay. "My husband and Samael are literally just chatting."

"They're scheming! Can't you see how evil they look right now?!" Conan looked back, only to gasp as he caught the glint in Abel and Samael's eyes the moment their eyes met with Conan. "See?!"

When Conan looked back, Lilou and Aries were frowning at him. The two fixed their eyes on him. Therefore, they didn't see the death glare Conan received.

"My goodness…" Lilou sighed, waving dismissively. "... that's not the point, Your Highness. It's not that our husbands are the only people who were being picked on. It's the entire Grimsbanne clan. Are you saying Tilly also deserves to be treated this way?"

"Of co —" the rest of Conan's words rolled back in his throat, mouth kept agape. His irises went wide, instinctively casting Tilly a look, only to realize she was looking back at her. 𝐟𝙧ee𝔀e𝐛𝓃𝐨𝚟𝑒𝗹.c𝗼𝚖

Meanwhile, Aries's face showed surprise before facing Lilou squarely. The latter winked at her, making Aries chuckle quietly before they set their devious gaze on Conan.