“Meriel. Meriel. Meriel. Meriel. Meriel. Meriel. Meriel. Meriel. Meriel.”
I can’t remember what I was thinking as I ran.
I just ran, repeatedly chewing on my daughter’s name like a broken machine.
I couldn’t hide this anxiety until I could see with my own eyes that my daughter was safe.
But the voluminous dress and highheeled shoes were not suitable for running. If I let my heart rush ahead, I would only fall after not going far.
“Ugh!”
I tried to get up again, but a sharp pain pierced my ankle. It seemed to have twisted when I fell. But the anxiety to get up as soon as possible overcame the thought of pain.
I clenched my teeth and stubbornly got up.
My twisted ankle couldn’t properly balance, so my body wobbled as I walked, but I didn’t care. I could see the shoes that had fallen heavily on the floor and the dirtied dress, but what did it matter?
Meriel, my little girl, was a girl who laughed a lot, but also cried a lot.
She was a child who, when frightened, would cry uncontrollably and aimlessly look for her mother, so I had to be by her side.
“Sister, calm down. Meriel will be fine. I will look for her.”
“I have to go.”
Cheshire, who was late in chasing me, blocked my way.
His face, pale with shock, showed a surprised look, but I had no energy to offer a word of consolation.
I was afraid. Afraid I might lose everything again.
Just as it happened with my father and my brother.
I groped my throat tentatively. Strangely, the faces of my father and my brother were gradually blurring, but the choking sensation was as clear as yesterday.
“Lend me a horse.”
“Sister.”
“If I go by carriage, it will be too late.”
It was more of an announcement than a request.
I pushed away Cheshire’s hand that was trying to support me and walked again. I couldn’t gain speed with my limping steps, but I had to go.
But again, I had to stop after taking a few steps.
Duke Pieren, taking advantage of the gap when Cheshire stopped me, blocked my way.
“You won’t be able to ride a horse in that condition.”
“Your Grace, it’s not your concern.”
“Ride my horse.”
“….”
“I will escort you. Anyway, it’s impossible to go to the academy alone in that state.”
He seemed to have misunderstood that I had forgotten everything because I kept holding back.
I still have many sleepless nights because of that day’s nightmare.
Looking into his unusually black eyes, I gave a short laugh.
Then I stared straight at him and opened my mouth.
“Cheshire.”
“Yes, sister.”
“Come with me.”
His sunken eyes reflected me like a mirror.
Seeing a woman whose face was flushed as if she would cry at any moment, I extended my hand towards Cheshire.
[This is the time separator]“You rushed out like a rabbit with a fire at its tail, and came back like a wet puppy. Calix.”
“…..”
“Is it so pretty that you ran for the blood of another man? Especially, it’s the child of a woman who betrayed you.”
“…..”
“So, is it love?”
With a thump, the stem of the rose was cut, and the blooming flower shook and spat out petals in response.
The unusually red petals looked like bloodstains.
Ruhen, as if to show off, smelled the scent of the cut rose and narrowed his eyes.
Calix stared at Ruhen quietly, then slowly closed and opened his eyes.
The face of the woman looking up at him just wouldn’t be forgotten.
“Really, everything about the Countess of Creyton is unexpected. She looks so gentle, but she handles a crazy cat. Indeed, people can’t understand by looks alone.”
“…..”
“Ah, you might not know. You’ve been away from the capital for a long time. Cheshire Cat, a mercenary who has been disturbing the capital since two years ago.”
“I know.”
“Oh? Really? How do you know? Has the fame of the crazy cat spread to the border?”
Instead of answering, Calix closed his mouth tightly.
He didn’t feel the need to brag about seeing the little boy with Riviana before.
The ten years Calix had been away from the capital was enough for a boy to become a man.
The time when a boy who couldn’t easily hand over a single flower and only held it until the flower wilted and then weakly returned, couldn’t be certain that he had grown in the same way.
Just as he himself had become a completely different person.
“Anyway, if it’s that madman, he could do enough… No. No. Let’s stop talking about him. That’s not what’s important.”
Ruhen laughed with a smirk and raised his hand.
Between his index and middle fingers was an opened letter.
“News came from the Academy. The fire has been suppressed, and they’re currently tallying the damage….”
Lucian deliberately drew out his words, observing Cale with narrowed eyes.
The indifferent man, as always, didn’t show much expression, but Lucian was no longer deceived.
Normally, if Cale saw him beating around the bush, he would prepare to leave.
The fact that he was waiting patiently for his words was all too clear.
Of course, that wasn’t the only obvious thing.
Lucian crossed his long legs and leaned back on the sofa.
“Just be honest. You can’t forget, can you?”
“……”
The Villainous Demon Lord Laid an Egg for Her (Female-Dominated)
Several months after transmigrating into a book, Yu Wu found herself facing the demon lord Li You, who could no longer conceal his dragon horns. With one hand on her aching waist and the other gripping a sharp sword, she stared at him.
The demon lord’s eyes were red with fury:
“This is all your doing! Today, I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Yu Wu rubbed her temples. Putting aside the taboo against bloodshed during pregnancy, wasn’t it this very man who willingly walked into her trap that day?!
Warnings:
- Male pregnancy.
- Height ratios are set to mirror typical male-female height proportions.
- Characters include a foot-loving demon lord and an eldest daughter from an immortal family’s concubine lineage.
