Ch.141Wedding Ceremony (1)

Receiving a letter in the quiet countryside wasn’t a common occurrence.

What business could someone have with the old man wearing a straw hat pulled low over his face?

The carrier pigeon flew through the sky with the letter tied to its leg, tilting its head in confusion, unable to shake off that small doubt.

The old man was alone on a boat in the wide lake, fishing away the hours—or rather, growing irritated after hours without catching a single fish—when he finally spotted the carrier pigeon.

“What is it? If you have a letter, leave it here and go.”

Seeing the intimidating glare, the pigeon hastily dropped the letter and flew away. The old man watched it depart before slowly picking up the letter. After confirming the emblem on it—a shield surrounded by thorns, the crest of House Yuris, one of the Empire’s three great families—the old man whistled softly.

“Let’s see, I heard the children were born already.”

Opening the letter revealed a single sheet of paper with quite clear intentions. A paper with “Wedding Invitation” written in large letters. After staring blankly at it for a moment, the old man finally shouted toward the edge of the lake.

“Rofena! We need to return to Yuris!”

A maple leaf precariously hanging from a tree fell weakly into the lake. Come to think of it, it was already autumn.

Chris carefully folded the paper and tucked it into his chest, smirking. Evan and Irene were getting married—how could he miss it?

The arm holding the oar bulged briefly, and then with a thunderous sound, a huge splash erupted in the lake.

“…I told you not to do that, Dad.”

Rofena, now soaked with water, seemed ready to unleash her fury on Chris very soon.

#

Waaah—

When had those once-wrinkled little bodies become so plump?

Irene smiled faintly as she watched the two babies crying energetically in their small bed.

These children were already approaching two months old. Arthur was dressed in black, while Robelia wore white.

Irene unconsciously poked the cheek of one crying baby who had just finished eating, then flinched.

“…When did they get so big?”

They seemed to have been smaller than her forearm when they were born, but now, after just two months, they had grown remarkably. The feeling was quite peculiar.

She wondered what would happen if they suddenly started talking. What if she woke up tomorrow morning to find these children walking around?

“……”

As the babies who had been crying until just now suddenly quieted down, Irene leaned against the crib railing and stared at them intently.

Sometimes she smiled to herself, and other times she gazed more seriously at the peacefully sleeping children. Examining the children’s features was always enjoyable. After a moment of studying their faces, Irene’s lips moved slightly.

“…I think they look like me?”

Robelia’s hair was golden like Evan’s. Conversely, Arthur’s was white like her own.

She would have preferred if Robelia resembled her, but the thought that she might take after Evan instead made her feel unnecessarily worried. What if she inherited Evan’s personality too? Irene was thinking she should probably educate her properly from an early age when a maid carefully spoke from behind her.

“Young Mistress, your husband is here to see you?”

“Husband”—it was an awkward title, but Irene immediately knew who it referred to.

Hurriedly fixing her hair and adjusting her clothes, Irene looked at the maid and nodded. The maid quickly opened the door and disappeared, revealing Evan peeking his head through.

“Were you with the children?”

“I just put them to sleep, so be quiet. Will you take responsibility if they wake up?”

“They quiet down when I hold them. I think they might like me a bit more.”

“Ha. Children naturally prefer their mothers.”

Irene frowned slightly at Evan’s words.

She wanted to argue, but sadly, the children did seem to follow Evan a bit more. Why did the babies, who cried constantly except when nursing, quiet down only when they saw Evan?

Looking at his face, though, she thought she might understand why. Finally, she sighed deeply and looked at Evan.

“Why are you here?”

“…Now I’m even being asked why I came. I’ll be going then.”

“Ah, fine. Sit here. Just don’t wake the children.”

At that, Evan turned back with a wry smile. He sat down next to where Irene had been sitting, and pinching both her cheeks with his hands, he spoke.

“I’ve sent out all the wedding invitations. Are you sure this is okay? I’m fine with having the ceremony in winter.”

“I can’t wear my dress in winter. I don’t want to spend my once-in-a-lifetime ceremony like that.”

Her body had recovered well, and the postpartum symptoms were gradually disappearing, so Irene had set the date for just a few days away. Some women experienced depression after childbirth, but thanks to Evan’s attentiveness, she had fortunately overcome such difficulties easily. Whether “attentiveness” was the right word for it or not, Irene was simply grateful for Evan’s care.

He had prepared meals for her when she was exhausted after giving birth… and even stayed up all night to nurse her when she had a fever. Considering what she had done when Evan was injured before, she had received far more care than she deserved.

She wanted to repay him somehow, but couldn’t think of a good way. If she were to repay him… perhaps during their honeymoon. That would be right.

Irene’s cheeks flushed red as she thought about their upcoming honeymoon. The preparations she had been making for months were perhaps impressive enough to surprise Evan. If Evan knew… Irene tried to shake off the thoughts flooding her mind and looked at him.

“Have you heard who’s coming?”

“Ah, I heard the Crown Prince will be attending.”

Evan naturally curled up the corners of his mouth as he recalled Kaisel’s name. They were officially dating now, weren’t they? He remembered how much he had laughed when he heard that Kaisel and Scarlet had confessed at the same time. Still, he was glad they seemed to be getting along well now. The organization called Extinction had completely disappeared. Although black magicians occasionally appeared, even the knights of the Expert rank could handle them sufficiently.

He thought he would probably only need to step in if the Empire faced a crisis severe enough to be called a national calamity. Now that he had children, he didn’t want to be on the front lines anyway, and besides, he had resigned as a guard knight.

“The letters should have reached Rofena and Sir Chris by now.”

“I wonder if Rofena is doing well there. It can’t be a very comfortable place to live.”

“Well, isn’t it better to be with her family?”

Though she had been a bit awkward at first, Rofena was getting along well with her new family. Irene’s lips curved gently as she recalled hearing that Rofena now called him “Dad.”

It had only been a few months, but she had always been fond of Sir Chris. Sometimes Irene worried that Rofena might settle down there permanently.

Rofena was quite special to Irene. A maid who had grown up with her since childhood, and one of the few people in this ducal residence she felt close to. Sometimes she wanted to treat her like a friend, but the status difference between a noble lady and a maid occasionally caused frustration.

Still, knowing that Rofena was happy there now, Irene thought that should be consolation enough. She turned her gaze back to the children. It was endearing how well they slept even with the conversation going on, and she stroked their still-growing hair with a smile.

“I’m worried about the children.”

“What are you worried about?”

“If the children call me ‘Mama’ first, you’ll be upset. That’s what I’m worried about.”

Evan stared blankly at Irene after hearing her words, then quietly spoke.

“The children like me more, so shouldn’t you be the one preparing yourself?”

“I read in a book that children usually say ‘Mama’ first.”

“…What if they call me first? What are you planning?”

“Want to make a bet with a wish as the prize? Whether they say ‘Daddy’ or ‘Mommy’ first.”

“Sure. No backing out?”

Evan was confident about this bet. Of course the children would like Irene, but didn’t they smile brightly whenever they saw him? He was also the one who changed their diapers, so he seriously began to consider what wish he should make with his one wish.

“Don’t act like you’ve already won.”

“…Fine, I have plenty of time to think about my wish anyway.”

Of course, Irene was equally confident. She was their mother, after all, and had nursed them herself. How could such children possibly like their father more than her? Not that Evan was a bad father, but… in any case, Irene was confident about this bet.

“Aren’t they beautiful, by the way?”

“They certainly are.”

The children lying there looked beautiful no matter how many times they looked at them. They had been cute even when their skin was all wrinkled, but now with their plump skin, it was almost addictive. Irene kept poking their cheeks and smiled brightly.

Evan stared at Irene intently. Though she had told him to look at the children, his gaze was actually drawn more to Irene. Was it his imagination that she looked even more beautiful after giving birth? Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Evan expressed those feelings as his lips moved.

“You certainly are beautiful.”

When Irene turned her head at Evan’s words, she saw two green eyes staring not at the baby, but at her. Despite her frown, his gaze didn’t waver. Seeing Irene’s cheeks flush, Evan quietly gripped her shoulder.

“T-the babies are right here!”

“There are plenty of rooms, aren’t there? This is a ducal residence, after all.”

“…But I need to feed the babies.”

Evan chuckled at Irene’s words as she covered her chest. Slowly removing her arms and caressing the cheeks of Irene, who had become somewhat more mature after giving birth, he spoke.

“The children are just borrowed. In the end, aren’t you mine?”

*Gulp*

As the curtain fluttered in the wind and blocked the sunlight for a moment, Irene dazedly stood up with Evan. The two left the room hand in hand, leaving only silence in the room where the children quietly stared at the ceiling with open eyes.

How long would it take for these young children to understand the sounds coming from the next room? Robelia, who had been blinking her eyes, soon closed them again while listening to those strange sounds. A curious smile formed on Robelia’s lips as she fell asleep much more quietly than usual.