Mom's Possessed - Chapter 4

Dalton muttered while glancing at the light still on in the office.

“Well, he probably hasn’t gone to sleep yet.”

He thought the Duke wouldn’t want to meet Aria in the middle of the night, but wasn’t entirely sure.

The Duke was such a devoted husband that he hadn’t remarried even 6 years after his wife’s death.

Even when people whispered that the Lisianthus line might end, the Duke just stayed holed up in the mansion, working like a machine.

There were ominous rumors that he had even resorted to black magic to try to save his wife. The once lively and cheerful ducal residence was no more.

In such a situation, if a fallen noble maid who was cherished like a close friend by the former duchess were to appear—

How would the Duke react?

Instead of answering that question, Dalton slightly lowered his head and asked:

“Who’s that child next to you? She doesn’t look anything like your daughter.”

“Watch your mouth. She’s the Lisianthus young lady.”

“What?!”

Dalton jumped up upon hearing Aria’s words.

“What kind of crazy talk is that?! Are you on drugs again?”

“I’ve never done drugs, you know? You’re the one spouting nonsense! Look carefully!”

“Even if I look carefully…”

Dalton grumbled as he bent down. Then he came face to face with Bonita’s bright red eyes.

“Huh?”

Lovely pink hair, fair skin, round and gentle eyes, a cute little nose. Coral-colored irises.

She looked like a miniature version of the former madam. Though the madam had passed away 6 years ago, there was no way Dalton, who had served the ducal family his entire life, wouldn’t recognize her.

“She, she really does look exactly the same?”

“Right?”

“But at this point, didn’t you give birth to her alone…? She doesn’t resemble His Grace the Duke at all.”

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

Aria snorted at Dalton’s dumbfounded words.

“Anyway, tell His Grace immediately. Tell him that I, Aria Hilton, have returned with his one and only daughter!”

* * *

“My daughter, you say?”

“Y-Yes, Your Grace.”

Luke Lisianthus, the Duke, wore a fierce expression upon hearing Dalton’s report.

“My only child was the one Elodie miscarried 7 years ago. Are you trying to tell me that dead child has come back to life?”

“That’s not it, Your Grace…!”

“Or are you insinuating that I fathered a child with a woman other than Elodie?”

His blood-red irises flashed.

“I didn’t know you had a death wish, Dalton. If that’s your desire, I’ll grant you a clean beheading out of consideration for your loyalty.”

“No, it’s the truth! And I don’t want to die!”

Dalton protested with a wailing voice.

“I saw the child, and she really looks exactly like the late madam! And, we never actually saw the body of the child that was said to be stillborn, did we?”

The Duke’s eyes twitched at those words. Noticing his hesitation, Dalton added in a servile tone:

“Well, there are rare cases where children thought to be dead turn out to be alive. Moreover, the one who brought the child is none other than Aria, whom the madam cherished so much…”

“Aria? The Aria Hilton I know?”

“Yes. It’s definitely that Aria Hilton.”

Tock, tock.

Luke’s fingers tapped the desk in a regular rhythm.

A daughter, he said.

After Elodie’s passing, he had thoroughly forgotten about the existence of children. Since he had no intention of meeting another woman besides Elodie, the idea of having a child was nothing but an unattainable illusion to him.

But… the maid that Elodie cherished the most had brought a girl who looked exactly like Elodie?

Dalton was someone who had served the Lisianthus dukes for generations.

He had been watching Elodie since Luke’s sweet courtship with her, so for Dalton to say the child ‘looks exactly the same,’ it must be more than just similar hair or eye color.

‘But you never know.’

The Lisianthus bloodline is special. That’s why he was able to dabble in life-consuming black magic.

He made his decision.

“I’ll see her. Call that woman to the reception room.”

“Yes!”

Dalton answered energetically and left the office.

Luke’s red eyes turned towards the window.

It was a bright moonlit night.

Just like the day Elodie left.

* * *

“His Grace is coming, so please wait a moment, Miss Aria.”

“Alright.”

What on earth is happening?

Bonita hid her trembling hands under the folds of her skirt.

Entering the ducal residence and suddenly wanting to meet His Grace the Duke? She thought they would be chased out immediately, but instead, she and her mother were guided into the mansion’s splendid reception room.

And that’s not all – the Duke, who was rumored to be terrifying, was coming here! Bonita wished this situation was just a dream.

“Ouch!”

“Bonita! Are you alright?”

“Y-Yes…”

However, judging by how much her bumped shin hurt, it clearly wasn’t a dream. Bonita’s gaze turned to Aria’s excited face.

‘Did Mother really work in a noble household?’

Aria had absolutely denied it, but Bonita thought that perhaps her mother might have been the Duke’s ‘mistress’.

‘But why now?’

Her head ached as if it would burst from thinking so hard. Seeing Bonita’s distressed expression, Aria fussed over her.

“Bonita! Does something hurt?”

“Mother…”

Bonita instinctively whined, then sharply inhaled. However, instead of scolding Bonita, Aria gently stroked the child’s head.

“May all our daughter’s pain fly away, shoo!”

“…Mother?”

“How is it? Does it hurt less now?”

Grin.

Bonita’s lips curled up at the smile reminiscent of a mischievous boy. Just as Aria was relieved to see her daughter’s smile return, they heard:

“Your Grace! You’ve arrived!”

“Mm.”

From outside came the tense salute of a knight. Bonita froze up like a pillbug and burrowed into Aria’s embrace.

Just as Aria firmly held the squirming child, the door to the reception room opened.

The gazes of the man and woman crossed. A brief tension flowed.

The one who first broke the silence was Duke Lisianthus.

“…So it really is Aria Hilton.”

“It’s been a long time, Your Grace.”

Unlike Luke’s stiff face, Aria wore a graceful smile. Luke’s blood-red eyes thoroughly scanned her from head to toe.

Honey blonde hair like melted pure gold. Dazzlingly bright blue eyes that seemed transparent, and a femininely curved figure.

It was undoubtedly that Aria Hilton who used to trail a string of besotted knights and servants behind her.

A peerless beauty that would captivate any man.

However, Luke’s gaze as he examined her remained cold. His dry red eyes turned to the small child in Aria’s arms.

Cherry blossom-colored hair flowed down from the round back of her head. It resembled cotton candy that would melt like a fantasy with just one bite. He had only seen such a sweet pink color once in his life.

It was Elodie’s color.

“Will you show me the child?”

At the low, deep voice, Bonita flinched.

“M-Mother.”

“Shh. It’s alright.”

Aria skillfully soothed Bonita while adjusting her hold on the child. Pink irises, slightly darker than her hair, turned towards Luke.

The moment he saw that face, Luke trembled.

There was no mistaking it.

She was his and Elodie’s daughter.

Though there wasn’t a single feature that resembled him, he could tell instinctively.

He instantly understood why Dalton had made such a fuss. His knees buckled slightly.

Realizing the Duke’s emotions, Aria set Bonita down on the floor.

One step, then another.

Luke staggered and stumbled towards Bonita, his expression one of disbelief. His hands shook terribly.

Thump.

The large man, nearly 2 meters tall, fell to his knees before the small child who was barely half his height.

His prominently protruding Adam’s apple trembled miserably. Remorse and longing that squeezed his heart weighed him down.

Bonita, too, noticed the man’s agitation. The child was still stiff, but she didn’t run away and met the eyes of the kneeling man.

Luke’s large hand reached out towards the child, then awkwardly rested on the floor. Afraid that touching her might make the child before his eyes disappear like a mirage, he couldn’t bring himself to make contact.

He asked in a trembling voice:

“Would you tell me your name?”

“It’s… Bonita.”

“I see. So your name is Bonita.”

It was a voice suppressing emotion.

Seven years since losing the child.

Six years since Elodie’s departure.

Years of accumulated loneliness and grief swirled within him. Luke’s eyes became bloodshot.

His body trembled terribly.

“May I hug you?”

At the gently asked question, Bonita’s eyes widened.

Bonita was a cautious child. However, at this moment, the child instinctively knew that the man before her would never harm her.

Bonita nodded.

With permission granted, Luke raised his arms. Extending his hands very slowly so as not to startle the child, Luke was soon able to hold her in his arms.

‘She’s… warm.’

A young child’s body temperature is higher than an adult’s.

So it should be natural for this child to be warm, yet that small warmth filled his heart to bursting. An overwhelming joy pounded in his stomach.

“You resemble her. Truly… Elodie…”

Is he happy to find traces of the deceased Elodie?

Of course, that’s part of the reason for the joy he’s feeling now, but it’s not just that.

Even if Bonita had resembled only him and not Elodie at all, the current emotion wouldn’t have faded.

He exhaled deeply.

Was the story of the stillbirth a lie? How did that former maid Aria end up with Elodie and his daughter? If so, why did she only come now?

There were many unanswered questions.

However, he was far too exhausted to let such facts taint this moment. At least for now, he wanted to fully savor the joy of having his daughter back.

And Bonita seemed to want the same.

“Welcome back, Bonita.”

A terribly cracked voice came out. Bonita, who had been listening quietly, carefully asked:

“Are, are you… really my…?”

“Yes.”

He nodded calmly.

“You are, without a doubt, my daughter.”

When the male lead is punished by carrying the female lead’s child and having periods like a woman

“I’ve given birth to two children for you, yet you still think about him.

Was I nothing but his substitute to you from beginning to end?”

Synopsis:

Meng Huan, a scumbag who has dated countless girlfriends,  transmigrates to a female-dominated country.

Day 1: Whether it’s female dominance or not doesn’t matter. The beauties here are passionate and amorous. Isn’t it easier to date them than in modern times?

Day 2: After a night, Meng Huan discovers the differences in the female-dominated world. Men here actually have chastity locks and menstrual cycles. This hinders his ability to perform, damn it!

Day 3: What’s wrong with sleeping around? I don’t want you to marry me. I’m meant to be a playboy. I don’t care about male virtues… What? You want to drown me in a pig cage? Marry, I’ll marry!

Day N: Meng Huan inexplicably vomits and receives the shocking news of his life… He’s pregnant.

_____

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