FYERIL - Chapter 120 < Paradise (3) > < END >

"Lou, Louis. When did you wake up again?" 

Louis was looking at me with his green eyes wide open. I broke out in a cold sweat as I stared at his bright eyes. 

'I just put him to sleep a little while ago.' 

I wondered if he woke up because of some discomfort, but Louis' expression was too calm. Louis rarely cried. Even the servants who had been through all sorts of things were flustered. 

"The Duke was also like this when he was young... um, how should I put it? Were you polite?"

 I wondered if it was right to describe a baby as polite. That was the thought, but I couldn't find a more accurate expression. 

"Me?" 

Dante chuckled. 

"As soon as I got my teeth, I bit everything I could touch. Including my half-brothers' fingers." 

I nodded slightly, looking at his rather smug smile. 

"... I see." 

I whispered to myself as I stroked Louis. 

'I'm glad you don't look too much like your father.' 

Louis smiled as if he liked my touch. Even though it was late at night, I sighed as I looked at his drowsy eyes. I hugged the baby tightly and whispered. 

"Can't you sleep? Should I sing you a lullaby?" 

Louis' eyes sparkled as if he understood what I said. 

"You're pretty." 

"That kid is deliberately staying awake to listen to you sing." 

Then Dante interjected. 

"Look at that. He's squeezing his eyes shut to stay awake." 

"What are you talking about?" 

I burst out laughing and opened my mouth. 

"What song would be good for today... Oh, right." 

When I was little, my mother used to sing lullabies to me at my bedside every night. Most of the events before the carriage accident were vague, but those memories were still vivid. 

"Will nights like these be unforgettable memories for you too?" 

I gently stroked Louis and put the lyrics into my mouth. 

Close your eyes and believe in fairies. 

A world of happy dreams will unfold like magic. 

Let's sing slowly, reminiscing. 

The baby's eyes fluttered shut.

Fairy dust, bring me starlight. 

It will give me dreams in the dark night. 

I couldn't remember a certain part, so I had to create it. 

'This development seems okay.'

While I was stroking Louis, satisfied with the impromptu lullaby, I suddenly realized that the baby was completely asleep. It was the moment I looked back with a pleased smile.

"Ah." 

It seemed that Louis wasn't the only one who had been hit by the fairy dust. 

"..." 

I quietly swallowed a laugh as I looked at Dante, who was leaning against the crib and closing his eyes. 

'Come to think of it, I'm not the only one who lacks sleep.' 

Dante was also up all night trying to put Louis, who was babbling, to sleep. Besides, he couldn't rest from the aftermath of the war and managing the territory, so he must have been much more tired than me. 

'Let's get up quietly.' 

I should call you to bed soon, but since you were already asleep, I thought it would be okay to leave you like this for a little while. Thinking that, I carefully got up. 

"Where are you going?" 

A large hand grabbed my wrist. When I turned around in surprise, Dante, who had already opened his eyes, smiled languidly and pulled me closer. 

"I barely got you to sleep." 

A low voice seeped into my ear. I didn't have time to blush at the secretive energy in that voice. 

"Ah...!" 

I swallowed a scream as he hugged me tightly. Dante, who had picked me up like a light piece of junk, whispered as he left the nursery. 

"Adults should spend time with adults."

***

The warm morning sunlight tickled my eyelids. I opened my eyes slightly and habitually felt my side. However, I could not feel any body heat. When I turned my head, I saw a card lying on the empty bed. 

[I have something to do at the palace. I will be back before dinner.]

The affectionate tone of the writing reminded me of the conversations we used to have in the past. I looked down at the note and smiled. 

'This is not the kind of handwriting I've ever seen!'

The neat font was so elegant that it reminded me of an official imperial document. But I knew. Dante's handwriting when he worked was free-spirited, like dust blowing in the wind. 

I laughed when I thought about the effort he put into writing in this style.

"..." 

But the smile slowly disappeared. It was because my hazy head came back to me and I remembered last night's events. 

Hmm...

I dropped my face on the pillow. Last night, we slept together, holding hands. Just like the night before last, and the night before that. To be exact, we hadn't spent a single night together since Louis was born. That is nights in a more precise sense. Before I found out about the pregnancy, the circumstances were different, but they were so different. If I were to list the circumstances, there was a word that came to mind. 

'Boredom?' 

But that was not the case, even last night.

"Pretty. Ariana. Really."

I remembered the face that whispered and kissed me continuously, and my cheeks suddenly heated up. But that was it. Dante, who had been kissing me sweetly for a long time as if he were melting my heart at one point laid me down in a proper position and covered me with the blanket all the way to my neck.

"Then sleep well, Ariana. I have work to finish."

Leaving such absurd words behind. And then, without even being able to protest, he quickly went out onto the terrace.

'Are you worried about my health?'

I furrowed my brows seriously. But for that to be the case, it had already been more than three months since Louis was born. While I was deep in thought, I heard a noise outside the door. 

"Madam! Are you awake?" 

"Sophie." 

I opened the bedroom door wide and said to Sophie. 

"I have a favor to ask." 

*** 

"I'm sorry, Ariana."

The door opened hurriedly. Dante's voice was heard from behind me. 

"I'm a little late... What's that smell?" 

When I turned around, I saw Dante looking around the room with his brow furrowed.

Knock. 

When I placed the glass on the glass table, the sound rang out louder than I expected. Feeling that my body was losing control, I opened my mouth. 

"Duke."

Ariana?"

Dante, who had checked the room, approached me with a bewildered expression. 

"Your face is red. How much did you drink?" 

His gaze turned to the wine bottle standing on the table. 

"Oh, my goodness. This is..." 

Dante glared at the label on the wine bottle. 

"Who brought you such strong alcohol? I have to tell you something. You're not even in good health-" 

"I'm perfectly fine." 

I cut Dante off with a stiff tone. Dante's eyes widened slightly, perhaps sensing something strange. 

"Ariana?" 

"I ate two plates of steak today. My doctor even complimented me, saying that I feel like I've regained my energy." 

"Really? Two plates?" 

I bit my lower lip, glaring at Dante, who was concentrating on a strange point. 

"Sit here." 

When I pointed to the chair across from me, Dante looked surprised but sat down obediently. I moved my lips a few times while sitting across from him, and finally got to the main point. 

"I think you've been avoiding me for some reason lately." 

"Me?" 

Dante immediately retorted with a bewildered face. 

"When have I ever?" 

"Every day." 

"What?" 

"You do that every day!" 

I raised my voice and was inwardly surprised. 

'Oh my god. I must really be drunk.' 

I had asked Sophie to prepare some wine so that we could talk frankly, but I was so nervous that I drank a glass or two and it seemed like I had slightly exceeded my alcohol limit.

However, I had no intention of giving up. Since I had already raised my voice, I shouted out my grievances. 

"Last night, you left me alone in bed and went out onto the terrace!" 

"... Ariana." 

"You've always been strangely avoiding me lately. Why are you doing that?" 

"I'm not avoiding you." 

I glared at Dante, who was just trying to avoid the question. 

"A week ago, when I tried to sleep close to you, you pretended to be asleep and moved all the way to the end of the bed! Do you think I don't know?" 

"I'm sorry."

Dante opened his mouth in a panic and confessed. 

"Yes. Actually, I was trying to distance myself a little." 

My eyes widened at that confession. Dante quickly continued. 

"Because if I don't, I'm sure I won't be able to control myself. But I absolutely don't want to push you too hard. That was the whole reason. I swear." 

I was momentarily speechless at his honest answer. However, as my intoxication. rose, I felt passionate once again. 

"It's been four months since Louis was born?"

"... "

"The doctor said the same thing. He said my health had completely recovered. But how long are you going to take care of me?" 

Words I would never have been able to say when I was sober poured out. I thought | had to end it here and now, even though I might regret it tomorrow. Perhaps sensing my determination, Dante stared blankly at me for a long time before finally opening his mouth. 

"The day Louis was born."

I listened to the voice slowly flowing out. Dante's face hardened as he glared at the floor. 

"That day was a miracle to me... but at the same time, it was a nightmare."

"..." 

"You don't know how terrible the fear of losing you was. You don't need to know." 

Dante, who had been confessing, smiled bitterly and rubbed his forehead. 

"Damn. This is disgusting. I didn't want to be caught like this, but I ended up letting you know first."

 "..."

"I'm sorry, Ariana." 

Dante continued with a sigh. 

"If the same thing happens again and I have to suffer from the fear of losing you again, my body freezes." 

I stared at Dante in silence and slowly opened my mouth. 

"Then, Your Highness, will you continue to spend your nights on the terrace?" 

"..." 

Dante looked at me with hardened eyes. I continued, slowly choosing my words. 

"I was really scared that day too. However, if I hadn't gotten through that day, I wouldn't have had such happy days as these." 

"..."

"It's not like you, Duke, to be so scared that something bad might happen. And above all..." 

I paused for a moment, then looked up at him and said, 

"I want to see Luise." 

Dante's eyes widened. I met his eyes and continued. 

"That's why you shouldn't keep avoiding me." 

Dante, who had been silent for a moment, let out a breath. 

"Yes." 

He muttered softly and suddenly got up. 

"You always say the right things." 

Dante came up to me in an instant and hugged me. Startled, I instinctively hung onto his neck. Dante held my body tighter and made eye contact with me. 

"Actually, my patience was going to run out tonight anyway." 

The voice seeping into my ear was dangerously fast. Dante whispered as he walked deeper into the bedroom. 

"I love you, Ariana." 

I chewed my lower lip and whispered back softly. 

"Me too, Duke."

Yeay! We reach the end of this wonderful series.

If you want me to continue with the side story, please comment below!

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