I Had the Enemy's Baby (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
“It was quite meaningful to me, you know. Didn’t you like the gift?”
Kai An’s question was abrupt and out of the blue.
“Or was it me you didn’t like?”
For a moment, Clodel doubted her own ears.
She was still watching the departing cargo wagons kick up dust into the air when he asked, as if speaking to himself.
“No matter how much you were raised like a commoner before becoming an adopted daughter, you surely wouldn’t have failed to learn that much.”
He slowly turned his body toward her, hands clasped behind his back, and looked down.
“It’s proper etiquette to wear the wedding-night gift immediately upon receiving it and show it off.”
This was the first time she had faced him directly since their wedding.
If Clodel had to describe her impression of the wedding, she’d say it felt like being laundered like a piece of cloth.
She’d lost all will and sense of self, dragged off to be soaked in bathwater and scrubbed clean by maids’ hands.
After being pulled from the water, other servants dried and meticulously combed her hair until it gleamed, then for the first time in her life applied powder to her face and rouge to her lips.
Next, she had to don the unfamiliar, scratchy bridal gown and wear all sorts of ornaments—family heirloom jewels passed down through generations.
Most of them featured chunky gems the size of a finger joint, lavishly dangling and clattering about, each embedded in massive settings of gold or platinum, all firmly affixed to thick leather belts.
Naturally, the belts needed to be sturdy enough to support such heavy precious-metal weights, and once she was draped in them all over her body, she felt as though she were a prisoner sentenced to execution.
Thus dragged along by many hands, when she finally stood before Kai An—her soon-to-be husband—and met his cold, crimson eyes brimming with displeasure, she immediately lowered her head.
That was the last image she retained of Kai An on their wedding day.
Only his expression left a vivid impression; she barely remembered what he had worn or how the ceremony hall had been decorated.
Unlike on their wedding day, Kai An’s eyes now held no trace of disdain toward Vermonde.
His expression probably wasn’t dissatisfaction with Clodel—after all, how could one be dissatisfied with someone completely unknown?
Anyone residing anywhere in Valmont would instantly make the same face at the mere mention of Temnes, so she assumed that explained why he had stared at her with such piercing coldness.
Thus, without realizing it, Clodel found herself observing the man whose silhouette glowed crimson in the fading sunset—
her husband, whom she was properly meeting face-to-face for the first time.
Kai An was so much taller than her that when she inadvertently looked up at him from close range, she had to tilt her chin back to see his face.
Though he wore formal ceremonial attire—no armor at all, since there was a banquet with nobles today—his broad shoulders and thick, muscle-packed arms beneath his clothes looked as formidable as if clad in plate mail.
‘Could that person really be… mine?’
Her gaze swept over his body, and her thoughts drifted involuntarily to their wedding night just the previous evening.
Kai An and Clodel’s builds differed so vastly they might as well have been different species—like a rabbit and a lion.
Recalling how that overwhelmingly large man had hunched his body to fit himself against hers, Clodel’s cheeks flushed and her mind went blank.
Kai An, who had been watching her, raised an eyebrow.
“Didn’t you hear me?”
“…Huh?”
“I asked if you didn’t like the gift.”
“Oh… um…”
Flustered at having been caught daydreaming right in front of him, Clodel blurted out an excuse.
“I liked it… very much.”
“Oh? Then why didn’t you wear it to the cemetery?”
“It’s, um… it just didn’t seem to suit me.”
Her mind went completely blank.
In her panic, the first thing that came out of her mouth was whatever nonsense popped into her head.
“Hmm. I see. So you didn’t reject it because you disliked it?”
“Absolutely not! Not at all! It’s incredibly beautiful and splendid.”
“I see.”
Fortunately, Kai An seemed satisfied with her answer; he gave a slight nod and walked into the castle ahead of her without another word.
Thump, thump.
Her heart pounded oddly, heavily.
A tingling sensation spread through her shoulders and back—probably from having held them tensely hunched—and all strength drained from her body.
‘Oh no, this isn’t right.’
Clodel didn’t know what to do.
The sun hadn’t even fully set yet, yet she’d recalled her wedding night with her husband outside the castle walls and blurted out such an absurd reply.
‘Why can’t I ever do anything right?’
Her illness, which gnawed away at her body, must surely have begun affecting her mind as well.
Sinking into self-loathing, Clodel staggered back to her room.
That evening, Hanna was once again scolding the maids.
“You lot—are you completely out of your minds? Can’t the head maid even control her own staff?”
The maids of Rowen Castle, watching Hanna’s face flush with anger and her voice rising sharply, acted as if they heard a dog barking somewhere, scratching their ears and turning away indifferently.
“It’s been ages since mealtime! Why haven’t you delivered dinner to the duchess yet?”
“We can’t.”
One maid mimicked Hanna’s words mockingly.
“Even a single slice of bread would be wasted on Vermonde.”
“Even if your mistress starves to death, our lord won’t bat an eye—he’ll marry some beautiful Temnes lady right away.”
“What did you say?”
A passing servant chimed in.
“Even if we laid out a proper feast, would she actually eat even a single bite? She comes right back out of her room without a trace of having eaten.”
The neatly dressed man sneered smugly.
“I’d gladly bring her something myself—if all she needs is one corn kernel, a single bean, a crust of bread, or two spoonfuls of soup.”
“You all…”
Frustrated at their insubordination, Hanna clenched her fists, ready to resort to physical persuasion—
“Hanna. Enough.”
Clodel, emerging from her room, tugged on Hanna’s sleeve.
“My lady.”
“I’m not hungry. You all stop standing around here arguing and go rest.”
No sooner had Clodel spoken than those who’d been confronting Hanna at the doorway and those watching the scene vanished completely.
“You really should eat dinner.”
“I’m telling you—my appetite’s just gone.”
Clodel walked over and sat down in a chair by the window.
Seated in the candlelit spot, she let out a long sigh.
“My lady, what’s wrong? Are you unwell? Is your cold getting worse?”
Hanna fetched her a tea said to be good for colds.
She wanted to call a doctor and administer medicine, but the castle staff had lied to prevent her from summoning one.
“No… no, it’s not that.”
Yet Clodel’s face was shadowed with worry.
“What’s the matter? Please tell me. Everyone in this castle seems to have lost their minds—so many crazy people who can’t even recognize whom they should serve. I’m the only one who can stand by your side, right?”
“…Actually.”
Hanna’s persistence finally coaxed Clodel to speak, and she perked up her ears.
“About the wedding-night gift… He seemed to have given me something.”
“What?”
“He just asked me if I disliked the gift.”
“Well… you’d have to actually receive something to like or dislike it.”
“He asked if I didn’t wear it because I disliked it.”
She couldn’t bring herself to tell Hanna he’d also asked, “Or was it me you didn’t like?”
“He said it was something meaningful to him.”
“You should’ve just told him you received nothing.”
“I know. But…”
Clodel’s expression darkened.
“I accidentally told him I’d received it and liked it—that I just didn’t wear it because it didn’t suit me, but that it was pretty and splendid.”
Confiding in Hanna made her realize just how foolish she’d been.
“What did His Grace say to that?”
“He just said, ‘I see,’ and let it go.”
Clodel clasped her hands together, distressed.
“What should I do, Hanna?”
“Why not just tell him the truth now? When I came in the morning to help you dress, there was absolutely nothing there—I saw it myself.”
“That’s right. There really was nothing at all. But if I tell him I panicked and lied because I received nothing, won’t he think I’m an idiot? He’ll look down on me.”
Even if someone had merely placed and then removed a flower basket, at least a single petal would have remained—but the hallway had been spotless, not even a speck of dust visible.
Hearing Clodel’s words, Hanna fell silent for a moment. When she finally spoke, her expression had turned grave, as if she’d gathered her thoughts.
“Could it be a trap?”
“A trap?”
“He said it was something meaningful to him. What if he’s trying to falsely accuse you of losing something precious to pick a fight?”
“Oh.”
All color drained from Clodel’s face.
“But surely the people who came to help me dress in the morning also saw there was nothing.”
“We don’t have a single ally in this castle! If something like that happens, do you think those people would honestly admit what really happened? They’re already desperate to torment you.”
Hanna ran her hand through Clodel’s vivid red hair, her face filled with pity.
“My lady—you’re so lovely and refined, yet at the mere sight of red hair, those people charge at you like drunk bulls during a village festival.”
She sighed.
“I wish I had red hair instead. At least then, if anyone had to suffer, it would be me in your place.”
“Hanna.”
Hanna had been Clodel’s childhood friend from their village.
The village, located on the southern outskirts of Valmont territory deep in the mountains, was relatively warm compared to the rest of the frozen, lordly lands.
Flonu Village.
The homeland where Clodel and Hanna were born and raised was truly beautiful.
Half the territory—and even the lord’s castle in Valmont—enjoyed relatively mild weather with distinct spring and autumn seasons.
The mountains provided abundant seasonal foods that richly filled their tables, and as time passed, flowers bloomed everywhere in turn, justifying the village’s name: “Flower-Blooming Village.”
Clodel and Hanna, the same age, clung to each other like sisters.
That day, a merchant caravan had arrived at the small castle down the mountain, setting up a grand market fair.
Clodel’s father, Evanie, had taken both his daughter and her friend Hanna out for a rare outing.
While her father sold his collection of rare medicinal herbs at the market, Clodel happily sucked on a large candy he’d bought her and giggled with Hanna at a little performing bear brought by a traveling apothecary.
That moment was the last peace Clodel and Hanna ever knew.
While they were away from the village, Flonu Village was engulfed by fire.
Having grown up in a place where water was scarce, they’d been taught since childhood to be extremely cautious about fire.
No one ever discovered who—or how—had set the blaze.
Out of the ashes, only three survived: her father, Clodel, and Hanna.
Soon after, her father passed away, leaving only Clodel and Hanna.
Hanna, with her ordinary brown hair and brown eyes, sincerely meant it when she said she’d rather endure the torment in Clodel’s place.
“I’ll never forgive anyone who makes my lady suffer.”
“Thank you.”
To Hanna, Clodel was the only thing she had carried out of that village.
After losing her parents, younger brother, neighbors, and all her memories beneath the ashes, Clodel was the one precious thing Hanna had left to care for.
When Clodel gained noble status in Valmont Castle, Hanna willingly became her personal maid.
She even registered herself as an adopted daughter into the Pebble family—a household serving the ducal family—just to become Clodel’s attendant, and she was content knowing she could stay closer to her friend than anyone else.
“I’ll look into what happened to the missing gift.”
“Will you?”
“Of course.”
Hanna gently comforted Clodel.
“Don’t worry too much, my lady. Except for His Grace, I’m the toughest among all the maids in this castle.”
“Hehe.”
Her words brought Clodel comfort.
That night, Clodel couldn’t fall asleep.
Yesterday, her mind had been too overwhelmed to notice, but the bedroom was astonishingly spacious—almost emptily so.
Having shared a bed with Hanna every night in Valmont Castle, Clodel wasn’t used to sleeping alone.
Moreover, her worry over the vanished gift kept her mind restless.
So when Kai An suddenly opened the bedroom door, Clodel—who had been pacing the room—nearly collided with him as he entered.
Seeing her standing by the door, Kai An asked,
“Were you waiting for me?”
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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Chapter Comments (1)
Inline Comments (118)
‘Should I go to the bedroom now? No. It’d look as if I’d been waiting for nightf
Just say that you love sleeping with your wife; you don’t need to please your assistants
Her face brightened instantly.
Wealth? Please—your wife is living like a beggar, and you say you have a fortune!
But ever since her father’s death, she couldn’t sleep at all.
My poor little one—she is truly suffering and going through a very hard time
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Every time I see the FL, I feel like crying! Also, I laughed so hard when I learned about the emperor’s feelings for the ML; I expected their relationship to be brotherly. It’s funny how he hates him.