Ch.95Side Story – Four Princesses (2)

Roel’s bright eyes sparkle as she lies in my arms.

Her adorable appearance naturally brings a smile to my face, and soon Lael returns after going to prepare formula.

“Here, take it. But I’m not sure if Roel will drink it. When I tried to feed her, she wouldn’t take it at all.”

“Really? Our daughter has refined taste, I see.”

I say this as I accept the formula she hands me. Then I bring it to Roel’s mouth and say:

“Roel, honestly, Daddy would love to breastfeed you every day, but that’s not something Daddy can do. So please enjoy this formula and grow up healthy and strong so we can go on trips together.”

“Awoo…”

Is that an ‘I understand’…?

I’m not sure exactly what she meant, but since Roel is sucking on the formula bottle with little slurping sounds, it must have been something similar.

Seeing this, Lael’s eyes widen in surprise.

“W-what?! Why is she drinking it so well?!”

“I know, right? She drinks well when I feed her. That’s a relief. At least she’s not exclusively breastfeeding.”

“I swear when I fed her, she took one sip and spit everything out! And she kept demanding breast milk…! This little girl must know her daddy is handsome…!”

“Come on, it’s fine. It’s good that our daughter is eating well. Don’t get too upset.”

“I’m not upset. Just surprised.”

“By the way, didn’t you mention there are massages that help with milk production? Should I give you one?”

At my suggestion, Lael seemed to consider it briefly before smiling and shaking her head.

“It’s okay. You’re very tired. You should rest. And also, a little…”

“A little?”

“I feel like it might create that kind of mood, so maybe not right now.”

Ah… I see…

Even if it’s just a massage for milk production, the actions aren’t that different in the end.

In the past, I might have just done it anyway, but lately we’ve both been avoiding intimacy due to physical exhaustion.

While leisurely chatting with Lael, Roel finishes an entire bottle of formula.

“Awoo!”

“Oh my, yes, did you enjoy your meal? Now that you’ve finished, we need to burp you.”

I sit Roel properly on my knee and rub her back from bottom to top. Soon after, a small, cute burping sound is heard.

“Our Roel, you burped so well. Yes, excellent job.”

“Heehee…”

Pleased by my praise, Roel smiles, and I carefully hand her over to Lael.

“Lael, take good care of yourself. Call me if you need anything.”

“Crow, thank you. But I’m more worried about you. You work, help with childcare, and even cook when you have time. Make sure to rest properly when you can.”

“Yes, thanks for worrying about me.”

With that brief farewell, I leave Lael’s room. The wooden corridor creaks under my feet, and just as I’m about to take a rest…

A door opens and Derin comes out into the hallway.

She’s holding her daughter Yuria, who is wrapped in a blanket with only her face showing. I can’t help but smile at the sight.

“Yuria. Look over there. It’s Daddy. Let’s say hello to our daddy. Try to say it—hello, Daddy.”

Derin says this while waving her hand, but Yuria just blinks, seemingly confused.

I approach Yuria and gently stroke her cheek with my finger.

“Yuria, you didn’t say hello to Daddy? That makes Daddy a little sad.”

“Uwoo…”

Yuria reaches out as if she understands and grabs my finger.

Is she trying to shake hands…?

Well, regardless, Yuria is the most well-behaved and calm of all our daughters. At least she wakes up and goes to sleep with her mother, so I don’t need to go put her to bed in the middle of the night.

That temperament probably comes from her mother. Derin is surprisingly calm and thoughtful.

As I’m shaking hands with Yuria, Derin examines my face and says with concern:

“Crow, are you okay? Your complexion doesn’t look good, and those dark circles under your eyes are really pronounced…”

“I’m fine. They’re our princesses, so Daddy needs to take care of them. A little fatigue is something I can handle.”

“I’m still worried… Ah, how about coming to my room to rest for a bit?”

“Your room…?”

“Yes, Yuria doesn’t fuss much anyway, so I thought you might be able to relax a little.”

“Okay, let’s do that.”

I can endure any amount of fatigue to spend time with our princesses.

So I enter the room with her and settle into a comfortable chair. Drowsiness washes over me, and I feel like I could fall asleep at any moment.

Perhaps noticing my condition, Derin sits beside me and pats her thigh, as if inviting me to lie down.

“I’m skinny, so it won’t be as soft as the other wives, but it should be usable enough.”

“It’s not just usable, it’s the best.”

I say this as I lie down on the bed, using Derin’s thigh as a pillow.

The sensation on my head is definitely less soft than my other wives, but it’s by no means unpleasant.

Actually, it feels a bit softer than the last time I touched it…

Has she gained some weight?

I only thought this and didn’t say it out loud.

I was happy that Derin was eating well despite the stress of childcare.

Besides, no matter how much weight she gains, I’ll still love her. Though for health reasons, we should exercise together.

As these thoughts continued, Derin began stroking my hair. Her gentle touch makes drowsiness wash over me, and my eyelids grow heavy.

Just as my eyes are about to close completely…

“Abang…!”

Yuria’s utterance makes my eyes snap wide open.

Did she just say “Daddy”…?!

It wasn’t pronounced perfectly, but it was unmistakably that word.

Apparently I wasn’t the only one who thought so, as Derin’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yuria, did you just say ‘Daddy’? Can you say it again?”

“Abang!”

“Oh, it’s true…! Crow! Did you hear Yuria just said ‘Daddy’…?”

With a bright smile, she met my eyes, then paused and tilted her head, asking, “Crow, are you crying…?”

I’m crying…?

Confused, I raised my hand and wiped my eyes. Sure enough, they were wet.

What, really…?

“Yuria, Daddy is crying because he’s so happy? Daddy’s a crybaby, right?”

“Abang…! Abang…!”

Seeing how she keeps saying “Daddy,” it seems she enjoys getting reactions from her mom and dad.

I approach Yuria, who is giggling happily, and gently kiss her forehead.

With a soft smooching sound, my lips part from her skin, and Yuria looks up at me with clear eyes.

“Yuria, I love you. Today too, I realize I’m the happiest person in the world because of all of you.”

“Abang…!”

“Yes, Daddy. Daddy.”

How can she be so lovable? Just looking at her makes my heart warm and brings a smile to my face.

After chatting with Yuria for a while, Derin lightly tapped my shoulder.

“Crow, could you give me a forehead kiss too…?”

“Hm? You want one?”

“Yes… Actually, we haven’t had much time since the babies were born…”

“I see… I’m sorry. I should have been more attentive.”

Being busy is just an excuse. If I had shown them just a little more affection, even just five minutes a day, this wouldn’t have been an issue.

Hearing my words, Derin shook her head and said, “That’s absolutely not true. Don’t misunderstand.”

Then she presented her forehead to me…

I kissed her cute forehead with an audible smooch.

Then I moved down to her lips and kissed her there, which made Derin’s eyes widen in surprise.

Not wanting to part, I hold the kiss a bit longer than usual, creating a slightly longer smooching sound that echoes through the room.

“Really… I asked for a forehead kiss and you kiss my lips instead…”

“I haven’t been attentive enough until now. From today, I’ll give you kisses morning and night, so keep that in mind.”

“I told you it’s fine… Just don’t overdo it.”

“Okay, I won’t overdo it.”

Unless we move to the next step, just kissing certainly isn’t overdoing it.

After spending some time with Derin and Yuria, I decided it was time to leave and got up from the bed.

“Crow, are you going?”

“Yes, I should. Our last princesses are waiting.”

“When you say princesses, you must mean Elin?”

I nodded in affirmation to her question.

Then Derin looked at Yuria and said:

“Yuria, Daddy’s leaving now. You should say ‘goodbye’.”

Despite Derin’s prompt, Yuria didn’t say anything, but judging by her expression, she seemed sad that I was leaving.

“Crow, I think Yuria doesn’t want to say goodbye.”

“Can’t be helped.”

I waved goodbye to both of them and left the room.

So now, all that’s left is Elin and Ceres…

Though tired, I was looking forward to seeing my wife and daughter.