Beast of the Frozen Night - Chapter 108.1

“What could have upset my daughter this much?”

Reading the slightly awkward atmosphere between mother and daughter, Daymond gently wiped away the tears brimming in Isabella’s eyes with his thumb and asked softly. Her bright, clear eyes seemed on the verge of spilling tears with the slightest touch.

“I wanted to go out and play, but Mom scolded me.”

Finding her ally in her father, Isabella quickly wrapped her arms around Daymond’s neck, eagerly telling him of her misfortunes as if she had been waiting for this moment. Daymond ran his hand through Isabella’s thick golden hair with a soft smile.

Anne looked incredulously at Isabella, who was comfortably nestled in her father’s embrace and putting on an innocent face. It was nothing more than a gentle reprimand to apologize rather than a scolding. Yet any hint of scolding would send her running to her father for refuge.

“Isabella.”

Daymond quietly laughed, seeing Anne’s wronged expression.

Isabella, who was prone to sulking, was still too young to avoid exaggerating situations. It was likely she threw a tantrum and got a talking-to. Daymond looked sympathetically into Isabella’s moist blue eyes.

Isablle, who had Anne’s hair and even eyes, pouted.

“Dad, I want to go out and play.”

“Oh dear. It’s too cold outside to allow that.”

“Uung. Daaad!”

Daymond’s lips softened at his daughter’s plea. He patted her small back gently as he tried to comfort her with a soft tone.

“You should listen to Mom. Even Dad often gets scolded by her.”

Whispering that Mom was the scarier one, Isabella looked up at Daymond with wide eyes before puffing her cheeks, still looking visibly upset.

“Mom says no, and Dad says no too.”

Feeling betrayed by her Dad that she thought would always be on her side, Isabella’s eyes welled up with tears again. It was always hard for Daymond to say no when Isabella pleaded like this.

“Should Dad take you out for just a little while?”

As Isabella began to sniffle, the seemingly weakened Daymond, quietly tried to comfort her. Isabella nodded vigorously, eager for his approval. But was immediately stopped by Anne’s firm look.

“Don’t be ridiculous. You’ve just come back, and now you want to go out again in this weather?”

Daymond had only just returned from being out early in the morning. Although he used to be impervious to the cold, he was now a mere mortal who felt its bite just like anyone else.

Anne always had concerns about Daymond not taking enough care of himself, fearing the worst might happen one day. Although he wasn’t reckless with his body, he tended to dismiss any injuries from sparring as trivial, saying that he didn’t need any treatment.

Daymond’s father, Eamon, had lost his life to a contagious disease while looking for Mariel. Anne, who occasionally lamented what could have been if they had met, wished for Daymond to stay healthy and stay with them for a long time.

Caught between his daughter’s tearful face and the woman he loves, Daymond was torn but inevitably made a decision as always.

“Mom says no, so let’s go out once the snow stops.”

Daymond felt sorry for the disheartened Isabella, wiped away her tears and caressed her cheek. Isabella pouted and buried her face in Daymond’s chest.

“Bella. Even if you plan to hide, you should apologize to Eroel and the nanny.”

“Mother, I’m fine.”

“I don’t know what happened, but since Eroel says it’s okay, let’s forgive her.”

Predictably, Daymond was easily swayed by Isabella’s sobs. It wasn’t the first time Isabella had exploited her father’s weakness and worsened her habits.

At least one of them needed to be strict, so Anne reiterated Isabella’s mistake to Daymond, who seemed to think it was no big deal.

“She’s still young.”

“Being young isn’t an excuse for Bella to keep being rude to people.”

“I’ll talk to her properly.”

“You say that but you won’t.”

Each time, Daymond promised to speak with Isabella. But then she would return with a candy and a beaming smile. Looking at her, it was clear she had not been scolded but rather showered with affection.

It wasn’t the first time Daymond always covered for Isabella. If this continued, Anne felt increasingly like the bad guy in their daughter’s eyes. Recently, Isabella seemed to have realized she could manipulate Daymond to her advantage.

“I’ll handle it properly today, so don’t worry.”

“I’m worried.”

Anne wasn’t convinced, even if she might have relented on another day normally.

The conversation that wasn’t quite an argument between Daymond, who suggested letting it slide, and Anne, who insisted absolutely not, continued for a while. It was quiet in anyone’s ears but it was rare for their opinions to clash this long over the years.

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