I spread my arms and pulled Hadel into a tight embrace.

“Good job, Hadel!”

Seriously, how long has it been since we last met? Holding his neck, Hadel’s soft black hair tickled my cheek. And a pleasant warmth completely enveloped my body.

‘Ah, it’s really Hadel.’

There might have been some uneasiness in my heart. When I felt Hadel’s warmth, my body became heavy and sluggish like a soaked cotton.

“…….”

Oops, I might fall asleep like this.

How warm and comfortable Hadel’s embrace was; my briefly awakened mind was on the verge of becoming blurry.

I quickly snapped back to reality and shook my head vigorously.

‘No. No. I shouldn’t fall asleep like this.’

Truly, after such a long time meeting Hadel.

Continuing to shake my head as if trying to drive away sleep, Hadel laughed, purring like a cat.

“Are you sleepy? You can sleep.”

“Oh, no.”

I’m not even a person right now. Absolutely not. No matter what.

‘But Hadel didn’t say anything, did he?’
I twisted my body here and there, trying to regain my composure, realizing that Hadel’s silence had contributed to my almost falling asleep. If Hadel had said something, I probably wouldn’t have dozed off so easily.

‘Hadel must be tired too!’

It wasn’t just me being drowsy and sluggish; Hadel was also extremely tired, naturally leading to a decrease in conversation.

Realizing this, I released my arms that were embracing Hadel. Tapping my bed with my palm, I spoke.

“Is Hadel tired too? W-want to lie down?”

Oops, I bit my tongue while saying that.

My tongue hurt, so I stuck it out and fanned it with my hand. Hadel laughed again. Hadel’s laughter was rare. It was a pity that it wasn’t clearly visible due to the darkness.

“Nah, I’m not that tired. Just seeing Marianne’s sleeping face is enough to recharge.”

“Really?”

Even I’m this busy. It seemed like Hadel’s workload wasn’t less than mine. The malicious rumors about people seemed worse than mine.

‘After all, nobles ignored Hadel even in normal times. That attitude won’t change overnight.’

Rather, while mentally cornering Hadel, wouldn’t they try to manipulate things to their advantage while he was asleep?

I subtly examined Hadel’s face and said to him,

“If it’s hard, you can say so, Hadel. I’m the first one on Hadel’s side in this world.”

At my words, patting my chest, Hadel chuckled again.

“That’s reassuring.”

“Hey! I’m not just saying empty words.”

I felt frustrated because it seemed like Hadel would just laugh off whatever I said. Irritated, I shook my head.

“No, it’s really okay.”

“Lies.”

“It’s not a lie.”

“Then why didn’t you say a word and just stay quiet? You were tired or upset, right?”

At my criticism, Hadel blinked and, pulling me closer again, answered while dragging me towards him.

“No. So it wasn’t that I was staying quiet.”

“Then why?”

Hadel’s lips touched the end of my forehead. Longing, several light kisses landed on my face.

“It tickled.”

I raised my hand to block Hadel’s lips. In response, Hadel, like stamping a seal, lightly kissed my palm. Then, with an affectionate voice, said,

“No. I was waiting for Marian to talk to me.”

“Me?”

What should I say to Hadel? Wondering, I raised both hands and gently stroked Hadel’s head.

“Good, pretty, well done.”

“Enough with the compliments.”

“Hmm.”

Enough with the compliments? Because I couldn’t predict Hadel’s response, I sighed while clenching my fist. Eventually, Hadel provided an answer.

“It’s for our baby. We said we’d talk about it later.”

“Oh.”

A baby.

‘Right, there was that issue.’

I touched the tips of my hair with my fingers.

“That…”

Even after practicing several times to talk to Hadel, my throat choked again. I cleared my throat with a fake cough.
“I went for an examination after returning…”

“Yeah.”

Hadel calmly lent an ear to my words. However, I, on the contrary, felt stifled.

I tightly closed my eyes and shouted, “It wasn’t true!” After saying that, I couldn’t muster the courage to open my eyes.

‘I’m scared that Hadel will be disappointed.’

Having claimed to be pregnant, only to find out it wasn’t true. Even if I were the one, it would be unbelievable. That’s how significant the matter was.

‘Even if Hadel gets angry, I can’t help it. But if Hadel gets angry, I might be disappointed!’

So, let’s get a little upset. No, rather, let’s be sad. I will scold myself, so it’s fine!

While I was trying to gather my emotions, the voice that reached me sounded carefree, as if saying, ‘It seems the wind is blowing.’

“Is that so?”

Is that so? I suddenly raised my head. Then, with the mindset that if Hadel asked me to kneel, I would do it, I opened my mouth, exerting a lot of force in my hands.

“Disappointed? Because I spoke too soon before getting examined, because of my words, you…”

Before my apology could reach the end, Hadel gently interrupted my words.

“Not at all. I’m not disappointed.”

“But.”

Even if Hadel said that, my face didn’t ease.

‘I saw Hadel’s eyes twinkling then.’