The day Kayan was born was, like today, a winter day when rather thick snowflakes fell for the first snow.
Kasallin’s belly was quite swollen, and with her due date approaching quickly, Parnes did not leave her side for most of that time.
As it was winter and his schedule was not particularly tight, he thought he could respond immediately if she suddenly went into labor.
One day, a significant conflict arose among the merchant guilds in the capital, resulting in injuries. Due to this incident, Parnes had to briefly step away to chair an unscheduled meeting.
Since Kasallin was sound asleep, he planned to resolve the situation and return before she woke up.
The meeting proceeded smoothly, as usual. While giving instructions to the nobles and soldiers, the door to the meeting hall suddenly burst open.
For someone to barge into the palace’s most solemn meeting hall without notice was unthinkable, so Parnes was slightly irritated.
The intruder was none other than Nigel Ludwig.
As soon as Parnes saw his breathless face, he instinctively knew something had happened to Kasallin.
“Her Majesty the Empress has gone into labor!”
Nigel shouted so loudly it seemed the ceiling would collapse. A few seconds of silence fell over the meeting hall filled with many people.
Parnes could not clearly recall what thoughts ran through his mind as he sprang from his seat and ran to the Empress’s palace.
Leaving the meeting and everything else behind, he arrived at the delivery room, where the door was already firmly shut. As Parnes moved to enter as if it were only natural, Duke Ludwig, who had barely caught up, gasped and blocked his way.
“Your Majesty, please restrain yourself. According to palace protocol, Your Majesty must not enter the delivery room.”
What had he replied to that? Yes, he had probably said that if such a protocol still existed, it would be abolished from this moment onward.
Parnes believed he absolutely had to be by her side. If he did not stay with her, who else could take that role? Then Duke Ludwig spoke.
“Seeing Her Majesty the Empress in her current state, Your Majesty would hardly be able to remain calm. That might make Her Majesty anxious as well.”
Hearing his words, Parnes hesitated.
Around the time autumn turned to winter, Kasallin had once casually mentioned that when her next delivery came, she hoped he would not get overly excited and would trust the physician and wait patiently. It seemed she had already anticipated how Parnes would react.
Parnes desperately wanted to fling open the delivery room door and check on Kasallin’s condition, but he restrained himself and waited outside.
One hour turned into two, and two hours became six. Even as the sun, which had risen high in the sky, began to set, the delivery room door showed no sign of opening.
Parnes grew anxious. Was it normal for labor to take this long? Especially since Kasallin was frailer compared to other women, could she really endure such prolonged pain?
His heart burned with worry. When about eight hours had passed since Kasallin entered the delivery room, Parnes’s patience finally reached its limit.
He decided that, regardless of everything else, he needed to see her. Just as he was about to force open the tightly shut door, it happened.
“Your Majesty, congratulations! It’s a prince!”
The door burst open from the inside, and the sound of a baby’s cry filled the outer hall. The physician’s assistant, drenched in sweat, was soothing a baby wrapped in a blanket. The Empress’s attendants and servants cheered with joy at the prince’s birth.
But in that moment, Parnes’s eyes did not register the baby. That was not what mattered. He rushed past the assistant into the small bedroom adjacent to the delivery room.
Kasallin lay on the bed, and Lady Dawson was carefully wiping her face and body with a towel.
“Kasallin!”
Kasallin, breathing heavily through parched lips, lifted her eyelids. She gave a faint, almost imperceptible smile. It seemed she tried to say “Your Majesty,” but her voice was too hoarse to come out.
Parnes approached the bed and took her hand. It somehow felt smaller and more delicate than before, an illusion perhaps.
“You should see the prince first,”
Kasallin said in a barely audible voice, as if scolding him. Parnes shook his head.
“That can wait. I need to make sure you’re alright first.”
“I’d like to say I’m fine… but I’m a bit exhausted.”
Kasallin murmured with a pale complexion. Parnes gently brushed the hair from her forehead, cooling the heat from her face, and said,
“A bit? You’ve been through so much. I want to say more, but I can’t find the words to express this feeling.”
“I know what you’re thinking.”
Kasallin was truly strong. She had overcome something not easily endured and even managed to smile with composure.
Parnes felt both sorry and grateful. But since she disliked hearing apologies, he couldn’t say it. Saying thank you felt too shameless. So, Parnes conveyed everything in a single, concise phrase.
“I love you. Always and forever.”
Hearing this, Kasallin smiled so softly her eyes curved gently.
How long did they stay like that? Before falling asleep, Kasallin said she wanted to see the baby once. Parnes immediately instructed the physician’s assistant to bring the baby in.
The assistant, upon being called, carefully placed the baby on the bed where Kasallin lay. The gazes of both Parnes and Kasallin turned to the child.
The baby, inheriting half their blood, was breathtakingly beautiful and lovable despite being newly born.
The curly hair around the delicate white ears was perfectly black, and the features, resembling Kasallin’s, were large yet elegantly harmonious.
Parnes couldn’t help but let out a faint gasp at the sight of the child, who looked like a miniature version of Kasallin. He had thought that if they had a child, it would be wonderful if they resembled her.
As if the gods had heeded his wish, everything from the delicate face shape to even the feet resembled Kasallin.
“How does it feel?”
Parnes asked. Kasallin, who had been staring at the baby’s face with wonder, let out a small chuckle.
“It’s so much like me… it’s a bit startling. But the bone structure seems to take after Your Majesty. It’s extraordinary.”
“You’re right. This one will grow up strong.”
“What shall we name him?”
“Of course, the name you chose. Prince Kayan Escalo. And in three years, Crown Prince Kayan Escalo.”
“Kayan… That’s nice.”
Kasallin slowly blinked, gazing at the baby’s face, then, exhausted, was gently pulled into sleep.
Even afterward, Parnes remained rooted in place, gazing at the two sleeping figures side by side for a long time. Truly, that indescribable feeling from that moment would likely stay with him forever.
[This is the timeline separator]As one or two years passed, Kayan grew to resemble Kasallin more and more.
His black curly hair grew so quickly that, if not trimmed regularly, it would hang down long enough to resemble a girl’s.
His eyes, too, were the same emerald hue as Kasallin’s, but from different angles, they seemed subtly mixed with gold, creating an indescribably mystical aura.
But not everything about him resembled Kasallin. Or rather, to be precise, it would be accurate to say that what he inherited from Kasallin was solely his appearance.
Kayan was remarkably healthy. Compared to other children his age, his physique already stood out, and his innate bone structure was undeniably similar to Parnes’s. In this physical aspect, Kasallin was relieved that Kayan did not take after her.
However, there was one puzzling aspect: his personality.
Kayan didn’t seem to resemble either of his parents’ personalities. Of course, that could change in the future, but at least for now, it was so.
To describe Kayan’s personality in one word: lively, particular, curious, and capricious.
Once Kayan became interested in something, he paid no attention to his surroundings. He couldn’t easily accept spending his days following a structured routine.
He also had a clear distinction between people he liked and those he didn’t.
To those he liked, he was endlessly obedient and openly affectionate, but to those he decided he disliked, he was merciless. In the three years since his birth, seven nursemaids had been replaced, which says it all.
The circle of people Kayan deemed likable was extremely limited. It included only his mother, father, the maid Logia, and Duke Ludwig.
Even within that circle, the degree of affection was strictly ranked. The maid Logia and Duke Ludwig were merely tolerated when they held him, while his father, Parnes, was liked but still somewhat intimidating to him.
In Kayan’s world, the one person who unmistakably and solely occupied the top spot was, of course, Kasallin.
Even when Kayan was being fussy or whining, as soon as Kasallin intervened, he would become as gentle as a lamb, as if nothing had happened.
He refused to leave Kasallin’s arms all day and couldn’t understand why he had to use a separate palace from his mother or why they couldn’t sleep together.
“Who on earth does that personality take after?”
One day, Parnes muttered, utterly baffled. Duke Ludwig, standing nearby, looked at him with a peculiar expression.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I know it’s impudent to say, but in my opinion, His Highness the Prince’s personality is exactly like Your Majesty’s.”
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
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