CH 4

Anna had a reason for saying that. Familiarity…

‘ … this year will be tough.’

Herace’s expression became a little bitter. Anna agonized over how to make her Lady feel better. But while Anna was lost in thought, Herace’s face grew darker as she caught sight of something outside the window.

Herace looked away, lowered her head, and after a while, looked out of the window. It was a slow move, but her entirety was filled with indisputable sadness. Anna quickly peeked out the window due to her Lady’s strange actions.

‘Hey, those people!’

Redness rose on Anna’s face when she saw two people just below the window. In a sunny garden seat, a blonde woman sat in a comfortable position with a swollen belly. And behind her was a man standing and bending over.

Anna stamped her feet without realizing it, but Herace’s gaze remained outside. In the bright sun, Ezekiel was whispering, touching the woman’s cheek. His silver reflection in the sun was dazzling.

Shining. His eyes seemed to be filled with affection for his beloved lover.

‘They match well.’

They were a beautiful couple. The two people with bright hair, resembling fairies from a legend. Herace clutched her black hair, then let go. Ezekiel would look at her hair and praise her that it was like a starry night, but Herace refused to believe it. Of course, an average man would prefer bright and shiny blonde hair rather than such a dull color.

Herace raised her head again and saw the woman smiling softly. It was a smile as dazzling as the blonde hair she had. Herace unknowingly compared her reflection in the window to the woman.

A melancholic expression, opposite to that of the woman outside, came on her face. Herace looked at her gloomy face and forcibly tried to lift the corners of her lips. The expression she wanted didn’t come out. Herace tried to smile one more time but failed. She quit and looked outside again.

The woman’s belly, which she thought was full-term, looked a little more protruding. She thought it wouldn’t be easy for her to walk with that… She looked so healthy that her complexion was incomparable to that of Herace’s. Her green eyes shone with joy, and her cheeks were apple red. Herace reached out to the window, then forced her eyes away.

“Anna.”

“Yes, my lady.”

“Can you help me get to bed?”

Anna quickly rose to her feet. Herace, who noticed the lady’s stiff face and nerved behavior, smiled quietly.

“… I’m a little tired. I want to get some sleep.”

Anna was more upset about it. She thought it would have been better if she had a tough personality. It wouldn’t have been this hard for her if she yelled just like any other woman.

Herace, who had been timid since birth, was almost morbidly aware of other people’s feelings after the collapse of her family, and felt guilty for no reason. Although she gradually improved after her marriage with Ezekael, she quickly returned to her previous form, perhaps because of the shock.

Anna felt pained by this. She was so afraid that Herace would go back into that hole again.

“Thank you…”

Herace, lying on the bed, exhaled a long breath with a pale complexion, and soon fell asleep with a small sigh. As she almost ran away, Anna covered Herace with a thick blanket, while silently swearing at the people outside.

‘Damn people! I hope you both fall down and break your nose!’

If she didn’t do that, she felt like she was going to burn out and die.

***

“By the way, where is it? There’s a separate house right behind the main building. Although it looks small, it is quite pretty, so my eyes are naturally…”

“Duke?”

“……”

“Ezekiel, are you listening to me?”

Charlotte felt strange after talking for a while and turned her head to Ezekiel. Sure enough, her man, who had been paying attention to her just a moment ago, was no longer looking at her. His golden eyes stared at a window just above them.

‘What a truly handsome man.’

She was an endlessly greedy woman. Looking up from below, the man’s jawline was as sharp and straight as his sword. Charlotte ran her tongue across her lips, grabbed Ezekiel’s arm and shook it. Her charming voice was so sweet that no man could ignore it.

“Oh, by the way, you stopped listening. If you don’t say anything, I’ll be embarrassed… “

“Stop.”

It wasn’t strong, but a determined move that shook Charlotte off. The shadow that had been covering her thanks to the man who bent down, disappeared. As the bright sunlight poured down around her eyes, Charlotte frowned and quickly turned her head away.

“Let’s go in first.”

The man had no regrets at all. As soon as he moved, the huge back that was walking in front of her looked cruel. Without a word, Charlotte bit her lip. She kept feeling it, but she was being taken advantage of. Charlotte was angry and resentful.

She put her hand above her eyes and looked at the window that Ezekiel was staring at with his sharp eyes a while ago. The window located on the left side of the 3rd floor of the castle was in the spot where it received the most light.

‘I thought it was worth a try…’

Recalling the owner of the room, Charlotte pouted. She thought of the Duchess she had met, and got very angry. Charlotte was a confident woman who had everyone fall for her appearance wherever she went. But the moment she saw Herace, she felt defeated, she couldn’t help it. She, the Duchess, was a beauty that was as rumored, able to open the eyes of the blind.

‘It’s okay. It’s not just the face that attracts men.’

Still, Charlotte was confident. She herself endured some storms as she took this place. After she was brought to the hands of her gambling-addicted father, then was sold at a bargain price, she lived like a scoundrel and barely held fortune in her hands. She could never miss it. This luck was her hard-earned reward. The woman, who seemed to have grown up nicely just by looking at it, was right to step down now.

“What would a girl like a dry vegetable do?”

When she remembered the first time she saw Ezekiel, her body felt warm. How surprised she was when the Duke, who had not even brought a maid to his barracks, called her in. She was intimidated by him, who was taller and bigger than most knights, but the fear disappeared because of him who soon broke her shyness.

‘Huh?’

She was thinking of that night with Ezekiel. Like a broken road, she couldn’t picture any of the steamy scenes. Only the memory of seeing him from afar and being thrown out of his barracks crossed her mind.

‘What is this…’

Charlotte looked at her stomach with an eerie feeling. Her stomach was full with the child to be born next month. It was only natural that she was pregnant. However….

Charlotte didn’t know when her stomach had gotten this big. There must have been a time when she first noticed her pregnancy, but she didn’t even remember it. She couldn’t even remember the moment she struggled with being pregnant. Her occasional memories only started dating two months ago. But she felt sick, as if she had eaten something wrong.

A gentle breeze blew through the luxurious fur that covered her body. Charlotte felt confused at her jumbled up memories. She said she was sure until two months ago…

Suddenly, a certain scene and conversation surfaced.

“Why did you call me back when you punished me so brutally?”

“I’ll give you as much gold as you want. Instead, make a deal with me.”

The man she saw after half a year, was still as cold as that day. His eyes had not changed at all from when she entered the barracks. He then ordered for her to be beaten and killed. She remembered her body trembling at the suggestion of her man. And after that?

The man was dressed lightly as if he was going to bed soon. The muscles under the baggy white shirt were bulging. Charlotte was also wearing a thin chemise, not fit for a cold day. But then, he finally put a finger on her body…

It was time for Charlotte to grab hold of the thread floating in her head and pull it. The moment she was about to grasp it, her stomach shook violently.

“Ouch!”

The child in her stomach moved and sharp pain spread in an instant. As soon as it started, Charlotte’s mind cleared again as if she had found her place. However, when the fog was lifted from her mind, there was nothing to see. The unknown sense of loss for no apparent reason and a heavy belly frightened Charlotte.

“Ugh…”

“Ah… My lady!”

She moaned and grabbed her stomach. A surprised maid next to her came to see her condition just then. Charlotte angrily slapped the maid’s hand.

“Get out of the way!”

“Oh!”

Charlotte’s long fingernails that scratched the maid caused a wound. The child kicked one more time, a red line appearing. Charlotte leaned back comfortably on the chair, frowning. Looking at the red line in her mind, she felt strangely uncomfortable with her heart beating.

“Shh… you’re gonna have to behave, baby. This mother is having a hard time. Yes… Quietly…”

Charlotte stroked her belly with one hand and bit her nails. It was a habit that came out whenever she felt anxious.

“…This is my chance. I can’t miss it.”

The slow sounds brought her stability. Her uneasiness melted away like snow, and a strange exaltation enveloped her. In her mind, she could picture everything that was going to be in her hands. She was a beautiful woman who was hungry for endless wealth and power, and the noble status and honor of being a Duchess…

Charlotte’s green eyes became hazy. She lowered her eyebrows and looked at her swollen belly. It was because of this. Everything!

She whispered, stroking her round belly up and down as if possessed.

“My baby, if you are born safely, I can have everything.”