Chapter 174

Kaizen looked so sad as he would run to Astelle at any moment and kneel down and weep.

On the other hand, the Marquis drank the wine leisurely.

“When I heard about her pregnancy, I was so shocked I almost fainted.”

The two men in front of him didn’t respond and just listened.

The Marquis looked at Kaizen. No matter how many times he looks at him, he has the same face as Theor’s.

As the old memories came up today, he felt more disgusted with him.

He wanted his young granddaughter to give up on the emperor’s child and live comfortably.

However, Astelle was firm and the Marquis decided to help her in the end.

“It was really hard to hide her pregnancy.”

The Marquis found a small cabin in the forest near the mansion for Astelle.

Everything was handled very carefully so no one knew. But seeking shelter was nothing.

After a while, morning sickness set in, and the real ordeal began.

“At first, the morning sickness was so severe that she couldn’t even eat and just lay without energy. She was sick, but I couldn’t call a doctor.”

“It was like that……?” asked Fritz.

Because during her second pregnancy she was having a hard time, Fritz thought that the first one was easy.

The Marquis replied, “A twenty-year-old is pregnant for the first time. Do you think it’s that easy?”

Kaizen’s expression grew sadder and sadder.

The Marquis was exaggerating on purpose, but Astelle’s pregnancy was really difficult.

It was because her morning sickness was severe and she was getting weaker day by day.

However, it was also a surprisingly simple and enjoyable period.

At that time, the Marquis was wealthy in his own way. Because he had a lot of money saved up, he could get anything for Astelle.

The granddaughter he cherished was hiding in the woods with her baby. Without his savings, he would have sought a loan at all costs to provide for his granddaughter.

The Marquis spent his savings on decorating Astelle’s hideout and buying all kinds of rare foods and medicines good for pregnant women.

So that Astelle did not feel any inconvenience, the interior of the house was decorated with luxurious furniture, and everything from tableware to bedding was of the highest quality.

In order to give only good meals, he contacted the guild of each region to bring all the best ingredients and medicinal herbs to nourish the body.

Of course, the Marquis said he would eat it himself. He had the maids cook the food as if it was for himself, and secretly brought it to Astelle.

It was a series of precarious moments as if walking on thin ice, but fortunately, it was handled so carefully that no one noticed.

The servants who were watching whispered anxiously instead of doubting.

“Could it be that the old Marquis have done something wrong because he was shocked by what happened to his grandson?”

They were very worried that it might be something big.

The Marquis listened to the whispers of the servants but said nothing.

Rather, as if confirming that the rumors were true, he would sit in the house and spend money without meeting anyone.

If you were to play the role of ‘an old noble who lost his one and only heir and spent his fortune recklessly’, no one would suspect why you suddenly spent money like water.

He contacted the guild every day and had them buy medicines and high-quality ingredients.

Astelle also looked worried as she watched her grandfather buy things too much.

“Aren’t you spending too much money because of me?”

The Marquis dismissed his granddaughter’s worries with a light laugh.

“I’m already old and have savings ready to spend, what else can I do besides this?”

That’s not entirely a lie either. He’ll get a pension until he dies anyway.

He received several medals and once served as Minister of Military Affairs, so his pension was quite large.

Kaizen, who had been listening quietly, averted his gaze for a moment.

People say that you regret only when you lose it. The Marquis bitterly regretted not saving more money only after his pension was cut off.

But even in the middle of it, he did not regret spending money on his only granddaughter.

‘I have no regrets at all.’

The pregnancy period went smoothly, but the hardest hurdle came during childbirth.

Perhaps because it was the first time for her, the delivery process lasted almost 10 hours.

After endless screams and blood spills, the baby’s cry was heard.

“This is a healthy baby boy.”

The old midwife came out with the baby and said so, looking exhausted after struggling for more than 10 hours.

“What about the mother?”

“Don’t worry, Madam is also fine.”

The midwife didn’t know Astelle’s identity, so she just called her Madam.

The Marquis received the baby from the midwife and held it. The baby has reddish skin and has not opened his eyes properly.

And he couldn’t pretend not to know that the baby resembled his father.

He’s been very worried about the baby, and he’s resented the emperor countless times. But after receiving and holding the baby, his anger subsided a little.

“Good job.”

“The baby is really healthy. He will grow up to be a strong knight.”

The Marquis smiled with a tired face and glanced at the midwife.

At that moment, he thought for a moment whether he should kill her.

‘To keep it a secret, I’d better kill her.’

Killing the old midwife is easy.

Although he lost his estate, he is still a marquis and is acquainted with the praetor[1] of the region.
[1] a government authority who served under a consul.

Moreover, this midwife was brought here secretly, so even if she suddenly disappeared, no one would suspect him.

‘…….’

But he couldn’t kill the old midwife.

It was because of the worries that seeing blood on the birthday of his young great-grandson might bring bad luck to the baby’s life.

The Marquis, a soldier, despised such petty superstition all his life.

But it wasn’t until he held his young great-grandson in his arms that he realized it. How terrifying a fate that cannot be controlled by one’s own hands, even if it is an unfounded superstition.

He handed the midwife a heavy money bag.

“Keep this a secret.”

The midwife said not to worry, took the money, and left.

When the Marquis entered the bedroom holding the baby, he saw Astelle lying on the bed, drained of energy.

The smell of blood still lingered in the bedroom.

Astelle, who struggled to lift her eyelids, looked at him and asked.

“……what about the baby?”

“Don’t worry. The baby is healthy.”

The Marquis showed the baby to Astelle.

Astelle, who was lying down without energy, smiled only when she saw the small baby.

As she looked at the little baby in her grandfather’s arms, a glimmer of happiness appeared on her corpse-pale face.

At that moment, the Marquis also felt his eyes getting teary.

***

Kaizen was listening to the Marquis without saying a word.

Although he did not let his emotions out, his eyes vividly contained painful sorrow.

There was a heavy silence on the terrace for a moment.

-knock, knock.

A knock from outside broke the silence.

“Your Majesty.”

With a knock, the attendant opened the glass door.

“His Highness the Crown Prince is here.”

“What?”

Theor in his pajamas walked into the terrace. Beside him is a large hunting dog, Blynn.

Theor came closer to the three of them, rubbing his eyes. He said, “I can not sleep.”

The attendant added, “I saw His Highness alone and brought him here.”

Theor looked over the three of them with sleepy eyes, then went to the Marquis first and hugged him.

“Grandpa.”

The Marquis held Theor dearly in his arms.

The memory of receiving and holding a newborn baby a long time ago was vividly revived.

“You should sleep more. Are you not tired?”

“I’m not tired. I’m not even sleepy anymore.”

He must have woken up while coming here.

As Theor came out of his grandfather’s embrace and set his feet on the floor, Kaizen, who was looking a little sad, called him.

“Come here.”

Kaizen sat Theor down in the empty chair and handed him a small plate of dessert.

In the meantime, he has become very good at handling a child.

The Marquis still doesn’t like Kaizen, but he has to admit that he’s very sincere with Theor.

“How is my mom?”

“She took medicine and fell asleep.”

“Then is she not sick anymore?”

“She’s a little tired, but she’ll be fine.”

Kaizen gave Theor a small butter cookie, but he just accepted it without eating it.

“Is my mom sick because of my little sibling?”

Instead of Kaizen, Fritz soothed Theor. “Having children is inherently difficult. However, both of them are healthy, so don’t worry too much.”

Even after hearing that, Theor didn’t seem to feel much better.

Theor, sitting in a chair, lowered his head with a sad expression and murmured, “My mom is having a hard time, but I don’t know why I suddenly got a little sibling.”

Fritz, who was sipping cold wine, cleared his throat slightly at that moment. He avoided Kaizen’s gaze as if embarrassed.

Kaizen looked at his son with an indescribable expression and carefully brought up words of comfort.

“Astelle will be fine. Don’t worry too much about her, and the baby…….”

Kaizen who was trying to comfort Theor couldn’t finish his words.

Seeing Astelle having a hard time, Kaizen actually felt guilty as well.

Had I known she would suffer like this, I would have been careful not to have children.

It was a fact he realized several times, but he couldn’t undo what he had done.

‘I only regret it every time.’

After sighing, Kaizen unwittingly uttered a question. “You don’t like having a little sibling?”

Theor looked at the distant lake for a moment as if pondering, then shook his head.

“Because mom likes it, so do I.”

Kaizen smiled bitterly and hugged Theor.

“Cute boy.”

Theor, held in his arms, grumbled as if he was frustrated.

“Father, it’s hot.”

Kaizen’s eyes filled with deep remorse and affection as he embraced Theor.

The Marquis quietly clicked his tongue as he watched the two men.

By now, the time was past midnight.

The moonlight illuminates the calmly undulating lake.

Looking down at the night lake, the Marquis felt refreshed.

After taking out and releasing the memories he had been holding heavily, his heart felt much lighter.

The Marquis hadn’t told this story to anyone until now. He wouldn’t be talking about this anywhere in the future, so this was the first and last.

‘Now, I hope Astelle will have a safe delivery.’

It hurt his heart to see her having a harder time than when she had Theor.

‘The morning sickness hasn’t even started yet so why is she so out of energy?’

His wife and daughter had a hard time having another child after giving birth, could it be that Astelle is following a similar path?

In fact, they have more in common than that.

Both his wife the Marchioness, and his daughter Jacqueline, had a harder time having daughters.

Jacqueline did not disclose it to others, but she also experienced a miscarriage before giving birth to Fritz.

She didn’t really have a hard time then. According to his wife, the miscarried baby was a boy.

‘Could the baby in Astelle’s womb be a girl?’

Such a thought came to his mind, but he didn’t bother to say it, because the emperor might want a boy from her.

‘Since descendants are precious in the imperial family, they naturally want one more prince to be born.’

However, the moment the Marquis saw Kaizen holding Theor, he changed his thoughts a bit.

This young emperor seems to love Astelle’s child, whether it’s a boy or a girl.

‘But I don’t know if it’s a son or a daughter yet, so there’s no need to say that.’

Anyway, it wasn’t too bad to see the emperor tremble in panic while pampering Astelle.

Hopefully, Astelle will have a safe delivery without compromising her health, and the emperor will continue to be anxious for the time being.

The Marquis drank a glass of cold wine while thinking such vicious thoughts.