### Chapter: 179
The morning sunlight poured into the room.
A girl who had woken up a bit late slowly lifted her eyelids.
Through the white hair that cascaded down after raising her eyelids, her blue eyes quietly sparkled.
This was Bianca Hardenhartz, now 14 years old.
As the summer approached, she unconsciously raised her hand to feel around the side of her bed.
Soon, she held a letter delicately, her sleepy eyes bobbing as she read.
The letter was from none other than Kraush.
Just seeing the letter alone brightened her spirits, shaking off the fatigue of the morning.
Feeling the slight ache in her knees from growing pains, which had recently kicked in, Bianca finished reading the letter and got out of bed.
‘Today, I need to train after breakfast again.’
Following Kraush, she had been tirelessly repeating her training every day.
It was tough, but she was determined not to skip even one day, fully committing herself to training.
Especially after hearing about Kraush’s recent adventures, she felt even more motivated.
Kraush had faced the World Erosion!
When she heard that, her heart sank, but she managed to compose herself.
As long as Kraush was safe, she could handle anything.
Even when her worries bubbled up inside, she trusted him, allowing herself to calm down repeatedly.
Stepping out of her room, she tidied her hair while walking down the corridor.
Walking through the corridor brought back memories of times spent with Kraush.
Though a hint of longing weighed in her heart, recalling those moments always made her feel good.
“Why are you smiling so early? Got good news or something?”
The voice that popped into her head was not the one she just remembered.
Feeling nostalgic, Bianca slowly turned her head to check if she had misheard.
There stood a man.
He was a bit taller than before, yet the kind smile under his dark blue-black hair remained.
One notable thing was that he was wearing a uniform she had never seen before.
Bianca quickly realized it was the uniform of Rahern Academy.
“…Kraush-nim?”
When she asked with disbelief in her voice, Kraush raised his hand slightly.
“Just got back.”
In that moment, Bianca suddenly found herself thrown to the ground.
Her emotions had bypassed her brain and acted before she could process anything.
Though she longed to see him every day, she had buried her feelings deep while focusing on her training.
She had endured the urge to run to him time and again.
But the moment she saw Kraush, all those thoughts flew out the window.
What she had managed to hold together no longer mattered.
All that mattered now was that Kraush was right in front of her.
Before she knew it, she dashed into his arms.
As she nestled against him, the warmth made her feel as if she was about to cry, but she held it back as Kraush’s warm hand ruffled her hair.
“You’ll fall if you keep doing that.”
“I’ll be fine. Kraush-nim will catch me, right?”
“Well, I guess that’s true.”
His usual gentle words made Bianca’s heart tingle.
Although she felt slightly annoyed that he didn’t acknowledge her newfound growth, being by his side was more important.
“Did you grow a bit? You seem different from before.”
“I’ve grown a lot. I’ve been eating and sleeping well so that you don’t worry.”
“Good job.”
Though she showed signs of maturity from not seeing him for a while, Kraush still treated her like a little sister.
In the past, she didn’t mind being treated that way, but for some reason today, it rubbed her the wrong way.
“I really have grown, you know.”
Bianca clung to Kraush more, wanting him to understand her feelings.
Her noticeably fuller figure was proof enough.
It seemed her maid, Ellie, had told her that men liked women with larger busts.
But Kraush didn’t seem to care much about that.
Bianca felt a slight twinge of irritation.
It seemed Ellie had lied to her.
“Oh, I brought a gift.”
“A gift?”
But when he pulled out the next item, Bianca felt all her grievances wash away.
Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
Seeing this, Kraush smirked and took her hand.
He gently slid a ring, shimmering white and blue, onto her ring finger.
Bianca stared at the ring adorning her finger in a daze.
When she finally lifted her gaze, her eyes met Kraush’s.
Kraush smiled awkwardly, scratching his head.
“I thought since we were talking about rings, I’d bring one.”
He had intentionally prepared this ring with her in mind.
Bianca felt a strange warmth at the tip of her nose.
Her heart raced uncontrollably.
She felt weak to the point of her knees buckling.
At the same time, her entire face turned bright red.
She felt like tears might well up at any moment.
Perhaps it was because she hadn’t seen him in a while, but her emotions felt like they were running wild.
Without her doll, Bianca found it impossible to control her feelings when it came to Kraush.
Thus, she held onto the ring, letting out a sigh of appreciation.
It was the most valuable thing she needed to cherish for the rest of her life.
“I love it so much…”
Seeing the sincerity in her eyes made Kraush feel pretty good too.
If he had known it would have such an effect, he would have given her one sooner.
Bianca, who kept staring at the ring on her finger, lifted her gaze again.
“So does this mean we’re getting married now?”
Her eyes sparkled with expectancy, unbeknownst to her.
If Kraush wasn’t sensitive to Bianca’s feelings, he might have missed it entirely.
It seemed she interpreted the ring as a sign of their marriage.
While it felt strange for a 14-year-old girl to already be talking about marriage, the affection in Bianca’s eyes was real.
Kraush always prioritized Bianca’s feelings.
Even though he had previously broken off an engagement due to mistakes made by her family, he maintained a respectful distance to keep watch over her.
Though Bianca often squeezed into Kraush’s space, he was prepared to let her go if she ever wished to leave.
He thought that was part of the debt he owed to the White Ghost that day.
“Do you really want to get married?”
As Kraush scratched the back of her head, he looked at her.
The kindness in his eyes was enough to embolden Bianca to respond with certainty.
“Yes.”
Bianca buried her face against Kraush’s chest.
Due to his height, her face disappeared entirely when she buried herself in his chest, which was a bit disappointing.
But the warmth of his embrace made it okay.
“Kraush-nim, I want to marry you.”
With emotions stripped of all artifice, unfiltered, and truly genuine.
Bianca conveyed her honest feelings.
It was amazing.
Even with her heart racing so fast, she felt calm.
At the moment her fingers brushed against him, she didn’t want to move away, ever.
“When you turn 15.”
Kraush gently caressed the nape of her neck with his hand.
Her fair neck flushed redder than ever.
The warmth of it was even more intense compared to the training techniques he had mastered.
“When that time comes, if you want, we’ll hold the ceremony.”
The engagement period was more than enough.
At her age, becoming an adult would make holding the ceremony quite normal.
So, Kraush decided to proceed with the wedding at Bianca’s request.
Most importantly, he knew.
Even if he were to keep Bianca by his side forever, he wouldn’t mind.
For someone like Kraush, who often showed his temper, that realization meant a lot.
Bianca raised her head from his chest, her eyes wide open.
Somehow, her eyes sparkled with unshed tears, gradually blossoming into a bright smile.
That smile suited her the best—she was indeed the flower of Hardenhartz.
“Does that make you happy?”
“Yes, very much!”
Knowing Bianca’s smile was genuine, Kraush could only laugh cluelessly.
Suddenly, Bianca pressed her cheek against Kraush’s chest again.
“Well, does that mean we’re going to have a baby now?”
But the innocent question that followed left Kraush speechless.
He wondered if he had misheard at first, but Bianca’s expression was dead serious.
Where the heck had she heard that?
Kraush didn’t really have doubts about how she came about the knowledge.
After all, Ellie, her personal maid, often filled Bianca’s head with peculiar ideas.
He had scolded her once before and now figured it was time to do it properly.
“… Let’s talk about that later.”
Eventually, she would understand what that meant.
“I want both a daughter and a son.”
[Definitely a handful, huh?]
As if on cue, a crow outside the window cackled in laughter.
“Caw!”
And for some reason, the corpse rat in his pocket seemed to tumble about in a fit of rage.
That must mean ‘wrap it up and get over here.’
“You were off to training, right? Go ahead, I’ll catch up after I’m done.”
“Yes, alright.”
Bianca obediently stepped away from Kraush’s side.
This showed how seriously she took her training.
Seeing this made Kraush feel a sense of pride.
“Take care.”
Waving lightly, he watched as Bianca bowed her head before moving on.
Just then, she paused and turned back.
“Kraush-nim.”
“Yeah?”
“What can you tell me about someone named Haring Lagrain and another named Sigrid Ephania?”
And the moment he heard that question, Kraush stiffened for a different reason.
Staring at her with a blank expression, Bianca, for some reason, wore a slightly cold smile.
He felt like he was catching a glimpse of the White Ghost era.
“It’s okay. I’m going to marry you, Kraush-nim.”
In that moment, an icy aura that seemed even stronger than the cursed days of the doll emanated from Bianca.
Before Kraush could respond, Bianca turned and started to walk away.
Her white hair danced as she strode like a wife protecting her honored husband.
Tap tap—
At that moment, the corpse rat poked its head out of his pocket.
“Hey, everything’s ready.”
The voice from the corpse rat belonged to Ebelasque, now sounding somewhat downcast.
He seemed a bit more gloomy than earlier.
[Looks like the main wife is finally making her move.]
The Crimson Garden chuckled to itself, clearly entertained.
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