The Credentials of a Couple (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 39
“Really?”
“…….”
“You’re really the father of Margaret’s child?”
The tears clinging to the corners of her eyes finally fell, wetting the floor.
Bake snapped out of his daze at the sight of his wife’s tears falling like glass beads.
Right now, the contents of the letter weren’t what mattered.
The real issue was that Liviana had realized whose bloodline the child in Margaret’s womb belonged to. He had to contain this situation by any means necessary.
“Oh, a misunderstanding.”
“……A misunderstanding?”
Bake forced a smile, ignoring the dryness in his mouth.
There was no need for every truth to come to light. Sometimes secrets had to remain hidden.
“I’d never do something like that. Surely you don’t actually believe this, do you?”
His deliberately raised lips trembled slightly. Though meant as a reassuring smile, his strained facial muscles made it look awkward instead.
But Bake was too anxious to notice. Unable to endure his wife’s prolonged silence any longer, he reached out his hand.
“You think I wouldn’t recognize my friend’s handwriting?”
Before his hand could touch her, Liviana stepped back.
Growing even more flustered, Bake leaned closer toward her.
“Handwriting can be easily forged.”
“Forged? By whom?”
“Well… obviously Duke Pierne or the Emperor…!”
He quickly covered his mouth, but the words were already out. Bake bit his lips tightly. He already knew what Liviana’s next question would be, even without her asking.
“Why would they do that?”
“W-well….”
“It’s true I had a connection with Duke Pierne in the past, but that was ages ago.”
“…….”
How much should he say, and what should he leave unsaid?
Bake’s lips moved silently, yet no sound came out. To explain why the Emperor and Duke Pierne were targeting Liviana, he would have to dredge up the past.
“Don’t think you can get away without a proper explanation. If what’s written in this letter is true, then I—”
“No! Absolutely not! This is all a scheme to slander me—to drive a wedge between us!”
Though his mind was in chaos, he couldn’t just stay silent.
Bake reached out again with an impatient hand and firmly gripped Liviana’s shoulders. This time, she couldn’t escape.
“The Emperor hates me. And Duke Pierne is no different.”
“……Hates you?”
“Yes. They’re not as virtuous as you think. On the contrary, they’re devious.”
“Words like that don’t explain anything.”
“I’ll explain! Just let me! I can explain everything!”
Afraid she might wriggle free, Bake tightened his grip whenever Liviana tried to pull away. Though not naturally strong, he wasn’t so weak he couldn’t hold down a frail woman.
“There was a struggle over the throne in the past. Back then, I sided with a different prince—not the current Emperor. That’s when the Emperor started resenting me.”
“…….”
“Duke Pierne still holds feelings for you. The Emperor knows that better than anyone, which is why he’s trying to sabotage our relationship.”
“…….”
“Since you lost your memories, they must have thought this was the perfect opportunity to stir up trouble.”
Once he started talking, excuses poured out like a broken dam.
Bake looked at Liviana with desperate eyes as she remained firmly silent, lowering his head pleadingly.
“Don’t you trust me?”
“……I want to.”
“Then—”
“But I can’t trust you so easily.”
Liviana turned her head away.
Seeing her averted gaze, Bake hastily leaned forward, following her movement.
“Liviana.”
“If you had problems with the Emperor’s faction, you should have told me earlier. Yet you never said a word to me all this time.”
“I just didn’t want to worry you. You know that—I’ve always put your health first.”
“Worry?”
“There was that accident. And because of it, you’ve forgotten everything that happened before.”
He tried his best to soothe her, but Liviana didn’t smile back. Her expression remained as cold as frost in midsummer.
Bake pondered what else to say and ran his tongue over his parched lips.
“Everything was for you.”
“…….”
“I-I admit, I was really anxious too! After all, I know how deeply you loved Duke Pierne in the past….”
“…….”
“I can explain everything, so please—just listen to me. Please believe me.”
His last words bordered on tears rather than mere pleading. Unable to bear looking into his wife’s icy eyes any longer, Bake buried his face helplessly into her shoulders.
“Ask me anything you’re curious about. Just… please don’t look at me with those eyes. When you look at me like that, it feels as if my heart is being torn into a thousand pieces.”
“……Are you really not the father?”
Did it work?
Bake suddenly lifted his head.
Though the change was subtle, it was unmistakable—her eyes, once frozen solid, had softened slightly.
If that was the case, there was no time to lose.
Bake hurriedly continued.
“Just give me a little time. I’ll resolve everything. If you wait for me, I’ll definitely bring you proof you can accept.”
“…….”
“If I weren’t telling the truth, how could I possibly say these things to your face? I swear—I’m not the father. Never.”
“How will you prove it?”
Finally, his chance.
Bake swallowed hard. His dry mouth made his tongue stick uncomfortably to the roof, but he couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity.
“However you wish.”
Liviana folded her arms silently. She was clearly just as confused, unable to make sense of the situation.
Bake spoke again.
“If it means regaining your trust, I’d do anything.”
Though he added those words, Liviana still remained silent.
As Bake’s eyes darted around in the quiet, he noticed Liviana’s gaze had settled on the letter lying on the floor. He quickly bent down.
The ink had smudged slightly, but the contents remained unchanged—Margaret’s detailed confession clearly stating the child in her womb was Bake’s.
After staring at it for a moment, Liviana finally spoke.
“Let me meet Margaret.”
“……Margaret?”
“If the letter was truly forged, Margaret herself can prove it.”
That wouldn’t be too difficult.
Margaret had been somewhat rising in status lately, but she was still obedient. With a little persuasion, she’d likely spin the story in his favor.
Of course, that was assuming Margaret was still safe.
Bake’s lips twitched.
“Why? Can’t you?”
“No. That’s impossible.”
He briefly considered mentioning Margaret’s abduction but quickly abandoned the idea.
Judging by Liviana’s expression, merely blaming everything on Margaret’s kidnapper wouldn’t be enough to win her trust.
Margaret’s letter didn’t only confess that Bake was the child’s father—it also contained a final farewell, saying she would leave and begging them not to search for her.
Revealing Margaret’s disappearance now would gain him nothing; at best, he’d be lucky if it didn’t deepen Liviana’s suspicions.
“I’ll contact her right away.”
Bake forced another smile.
For the letter to be proven fake, Margaret had to be safe.
His grip tightened around the letter in his hand.
*** *** ***
“Your forgery skills are impressive. I honestly thought it was really from Margaret.”
“I, uh—I mean, it’s not illegal! Well, I mean… When you work as a mercenary, you end up knowing all sorts of people, haha!”
The last laugh sounded far too forced. Anyone could tell it was an awkward attempt to cover up his slip.
Cheshire suppressed the urge to tear his hair out and pressed a hand to his forehead. Of all the things to brag about—what had he been thinking, saying that in front of Liviana?
He let his shoulders slump and stole a sidelong glance at Liviana.
She didn’t seem bothered, yet it still troubled him.
Cheshire Cat—as his name suggested, he wasn’t a noble. Or rather, it was more accurate to say no one knew for sure.
Abandoned secretly in front of an orphanage as a newborn, he had no parents, siblings, or even a proper name to call his own.
On the day a large delivery of cheese arrived at the orphanage, someone started calling him “Cheshire,” and the name stuck. Later, because of his lithe, catlike build, people began using “Cat” as a surname, and it eventually became official.
It wasn’t so bad, though. Cheshire liked his name, and he liked those who called him by it.
He always believed being abandoned at the Crayton-funded orphanage was pure luck.
The wealthy Craytons were generous patrons. Life at the orphanage wasn’t luxurious, but it was never lacking either. Most importantly, Cheshire loved the people there.
Naturally, that included the Crayton young lady who occasionally visited.
“How is Margaret doing?”
Cheshire reflexively held his breath at the sight of her striking blue eyes.
Time had passed, yet it was useless—ever since their first meeting, those eyes alone still made him nervous. He felt like a little boy again.
He was a full-grown man now.
Cheshire steadied himself and released the breath he’d been holding.
“She seems to be nearing her mental limits. Last time, she claimed she’d speak willingly, and today she was on her knees, sobbing and begging.”
“Then it’s about time we begin.”
As Liviana shook her head, her long hair swayed gently.
Her pale blonde hair wasn’t showy, yet it evoked the gentle warmth of spring sunlight—and above all, it unmistakably revealed her Crayton bloodline.
Not every Crayton bore platinum hair, of course. Even a glance at the portraits of past Marquesses Crayton showed varying hair colors.
But at least the Craytons Cheshire had known were like this. Liviana’s late father, the former Marquess Crayton, shared her hair color, as did her older brother—and even her daughter.
Among all the Craytons Cheshire knew, only one had different-colored hair.
Bake Crayton—that man with a name far grander than his station, whom Cheshire intended to end with his own hands someday.
Cheshire ran his thumb lightly over the hilt of his sword.
Though Liviana pretended not to notice his reaction—and he, in turn, acted as if he saw nothing—he wasn’t blind to the details.
A man who’d spent years observing women was sensitive to even their smallest gestures.
Before entering the room where Margaret was held, Liviana had clearly hesitated for a brief moment, unable to step forward immediately. That alone was enough for him to realize something was amiss.
Cheshire suppressed the boiling anger inside him—like a tightly simmering soup—and pushed his sword deeper into its sheath.
He prayed it wasn’t true, yet his heart was already certain.
Liviana, born into high nobility, couldn’t possibly know torture methods. She wasn’t the type to harm others, and even the suspicious incident from ten years ago had been something she’d suffered through passively—not something she’d instigated. She’d never been in a position to torture anyone.
Therefore, there was only one possible conclusion.
Liviana had been subjected to it—the same way Margaret was now.
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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