“...It was wrong to find out that Evan was alive.”
Ships and ports traveling between the Ita Continent and the Sol Continent were completely controlled.
There was no way for Evan to return to the Oberon Kingdom without Duke Vermont's permission.
That's why he let his guard down.
He knew that his younger brother, who had been dragged away while resenting his older brother, had caused a commotion several times at the Sol Continent's port, asking the Duke to take him on a ship and saying that he had work to do.
However, he was originally very busy with the affairs of the territory that he had to govern, so when Evan became quiet after that, he completely forgot about it.
No news was good news, so if Evan met a woman on the Sol Continent and had a child, he would forget all the loneliness.
The tribesmen of the Sol Continent did not have a unified nation, so they did not have identification like the Kingdom of Oberon.
So if he really decides to leave the port and infiltrate them, you may have the opportunity to board a ship this way.
Thinking back to Evan, who was burning with the will to take revenge, he felt a chill.
'The Sol Continent Mercenaries.'
The situation was turning strangely.
He did not know why King Valquiterre was obsessed with Claudel, but in any case, he sent Irena away as if he were cutting off his finger to clean up the mess. It made no sense to send his beloved daughter to the arms of a man who seemed to be out of his mind.
However, it was inevitable.
Instead, Claudel, who was supposed to fill her place, ran away, so there was no other way.
He recited to Irena using the excuse of his duties as a lord, but it was not all a lie - and he was barely able to console his sadness.
However, Evan, who suddenly appeared, made him have a different feeling.
“The key is how much the lowly Pagos men will reduce the royal army.”
It was understandable that Valquiterre was trying to take the land of Pagos.
Since Kaian returned from the war and began to personally take care of the Rowen territory, he had been gradually releasing the status of the serfs in the territory three years ago, and the other nobles had been feeling uncomfortable and had been petitioning the King a long time.
“You should have chosen the right time.”
If Rowen was attacked anyway, the rights of the remote territory he had ruled would have rolled in, but he used Claudel as bait to take the land from Kaian in a single meeting.
When he watched from the side, he thought he was a real jerk, but when he looked back, it was too much.
“By the way, I wonder if she’s still alive since there’s no news of her death.”
Considering Claudel’s health when she escaped the palace, it seemed unlikely that she would live long.
“If something goes wrong with Claudel before the war starts in earnest, it could be a freeloader.”
The Duke of Vermont got up from his seat and pushed the center of the bookcase in his office with his weight.
Then, with a thud, the bookcase opened like a door.
The entire room, the size of an office, was the secret vault of the Duke of Vermont.
In the center of the dazzling space, where gold bars were piled like bricks from floor to ceiling, was a large table, and all sorts of precious-looking jewels were piled here and there.
Each item was a treasure, spread out like weeds in a garden.
In the middle of them, there was a splendid crown on a velvet cushion.
A set of larger, more crude ones, delicate ones, and beautiful ones with jewels like a work of art.
It was a crown that the King and Queen would wear together.
“If I use Evan well, the kingdom of Oberon could fall into my hands.”
If a rebellion had broken out in Pagos after the expedition, the allied forces of Valmonde could have fought together by now.
Since the rebellion had broken out before the promised date, there was an excuse to avoid it.
“Is it about time for Evan to arrive in Rowen?”
The fact that King Valquiterre didn’t know about Evan’s existence served as a hidden card.
“It would be really fun if Evan hit Rowen while that brat is being held captive by the serfs.”
Just imagining it made him laugh out of satisfaction.
It was as if he had found a weakness because of Claudel, and he was going to force Irena into the position of Queen and get dragged into the war.
“It wouldn’t be bad to become the King of Oberon while I'm at it.”
His eyes turned to the Queen’s crown.
His wife, who had protested that she was hurt and left for the capital, decided to come back if he put the crown on her head.
***
Kaian’s visit was sudden.
“Claudel.”
Kaian, who had been staring at the small, delicate face of a baby for a long time, looked up and suddenly looked bigger as if he had seen a giant.
“You’re here.”
He was dressed in his jacket as if he had been out of town.
“I have somewhere to go with you for a bit.”
“Right now?”
I blinked.
“Is it difficult?”
His eyes turned to Julien, who was lying in the baby basket.
“No. Just a quick trip.”
As I stood up, leaving Hannah to look after the baby, Kaian came without hesitation from the dressing room with a wide-brimmed hat.
“How did you know where that was?”
I, who had no idea that Kaian had been rolling around in my bedroom for the months since I had left Rowen, was simply amazed by the man who knew everything.
“Where are you going?”
Today, I was wearing an overly comfortable outfit that was optimized for holding a baby. It was Rowen’s everyday wear, with a loose, thin white muslin dress, a corset that hugged my body, and a skirt that wrapped around my waist.
“You’ll know when you get there.”
Kaian put the bewildered woman in the carriage.
As the carriage departed, I realized that I had been spending most of my time in the castle.
“It’s been a while since I’ve been outside the castle.”
Even after returning to Rowen, I had been in a state of convalescence and had been taking care of Julien, so I had no time to leave.
“I have something I want to show you.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll know when you get there.”
I gave up asking more questions and wrapped my arms around Kaian’s waist, resting my head on his shoulder. Then as if he had been waiting, Kaian pulled me into his arms and hugged me, pressing his lips to my forehead.
“Kaian. Do you know that?”
“I have something I want to show you.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll know when you get there.”
I gave up asking more questions and wrapped my arms around Kaian’s waist, resting my head on his shoulder. Then as if he had been waiting, Kaian pulled me into his arms and hugged me, pressing his lips to my forehead.
“Kaian. Do you know that?”
I caressed his cheek, which was just a stone’s throw away.
“When you come after being with Julien. I can smell you even better.”
“Smell?”
“Yes. Kaian’s scent. It’s a wonderful, wonderful smell.”
I closed my eyes, hugged Kaian with both arms and buried my face in his arms.
Crunch, crunch.
Every time the carriage shook slightly, my cheeks rubbed and Kaian’s scent grew stronger.
“Julien smells like a baby. He smells like that all the time, and when you come... hmph.”
Kaian pulled me out of his arms and bit my lips. He was skilled at pulling me by the back of my head with his large hands. I hung on to his neck with both arms as he tilted his head down to make it easier to cling to him.
“...”
Today, his kiss reminded me of a very good day. Our first kiss, hot as the pouring sunlight on a splendid summer day at Rowrn Castle. I was the one who kissed him first. However, Kaian quickly took the initiative. I was clumsy and he was good at using his body, so after that, I was dragged along by Kaian.
That was our first kiss. It was such a wonderful memory that I had to give it a name and remember it. However, the countless lips we shared after that were too numerous to count, so I had never given it a name. It was already a daily routine, so when he decided to do it, there was nothing special about it.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Every time Kaian licked my lips with the tip of his tongue, my heart pounded in my ears.
“I missed you.”
My back tickled and I braced myself as he whispered softly while gently biting my earlobe. I had no time to spend quality time leisurely with Kaian. He didn’t object to my insistence on taking Julien to bed. I brought Julien every night, only calling the nanny when he woke up hungry, and trying to take care of him myself the rest of the time, so naturally, I had little time to do good things with Kaian.
“Kaian.”
“Just a little more. Okay?”
When Kaian kissed me under my chin, my body lost all its strength as if I had never been strong before. We had only shared a breath together in his arms, but I had become completely exhausted. Kaian, who had been looking at me with longing eyes, exhaled deeply through his nose.
“Get well soon. I’ll take care of you until then.”
“Ugh. Oh, I understand.”
Was this being considerate? What did you see?
I was filled with doubts, but I focused on calming my flushed cheeks. Soon, the carriage stopped, and my eyes widened.
“Wow.”
The small carriage window was filled with a vivid scent of flowers, and the surrounding area was filled with Margaret flower fields. Kaian helped me get out of the carriage. No, he carried me out of the carriage.
However, I was so busy looking at the flowers that I didn’t even think about what he was doing because I was so absorbed in the sight of the flowers.
Kaian must have prepared in advance because he brought me to a place where he had even set up a tent to avoid the sun.
“How is it? Do you like it?”
“Yes. How did you know about this place?”
“I brought you some flowers when I visited the estate before.”
“Oh. That’s right.”
I remembered that day. I had been diligently embroidering a margaret flower on a pair of socks that were supposedly the size of a baby’s shoes, but Kaian had said something so absurd that it was just a fried egg, and I had been so upset.
“If you hadn’t brought me a margaret flower that day, I would have been really angry.”
It was proof that the fried egg wasn’t sincere.
Yellow buds with white petals spread out endlessly under the blue sky.
I didn’t really like margaret flowers to begin with, but since they were the first flowers Kaian had given me, they felt very special now.
“Haven’t you been busy lately? Why are you suddenly suggesting that we come to a place like this?”
He smiled softly.
“I told you I would take you there myself someday.”
Suddenly, my heart sank.
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