Became Pregnant With the Demon King’s Child

“Whoever planned this… they know how to handle people.”

Lowell clicked his tongue as he listened to Zephyros’s explanation. After grasping that hot-blooded and simple-minded personality, they hadn’t issued a direct order, but had instead led him to bring up the mission first on his own. They made it seem like an act of goodwill that he’d chosen himself.
“It’s absolutely not a lie. I acted out of pure goodwill—”
“It wasn’t goodwill, but self-satisfaction, wasn’t it.”

When Lowell saw Felix’s hand clench tightly, he placed his own on top of it, cutting Zephyros off mid-sentence. It wasn’t that he didn’t feel pity for someone so easily manipulated due to lacking any political instincts, but there were points that needed to be clearly stated. Zephyros’s tightly pressed lips trembled.
“Did I ever personally ask you for help, Lord Zephyros?”
“No.”

“Then did the Imperial Family say I sent a signal asking to be rescued?”
“Well…”
Zephyros, about to refute him, suddenly fell silent. He’d only thought that way on his own. Now that he thought back on it, nowhere in their conversation had Lowell directly asked for rescue. It had only been a collection of rumors and plausible anecdotes stitched together and agitated—so it was natural.

The Imperial Family would never leave behind direct evidence. The letter would’ve been destroyed as soon as it was read. All that remains are testimonies, and even those—if you think about it—are things that could be brushed off as simple misunderstandings.
No matter how strong the circumstantial evidence, without material proof, it couldn’t become an issue. Zephyros finally realized something was off.
“No. It was my judgment. The Imperial Family told me not to interfere since it wasn’t confirmed, even tried to stop me once. But I insisted on coming. I only said that I would act on my own if I felt danger once I arrived at the castle.”

Lowell was satisfied with Zephyros’s refusal to make excuses. At the very least, he wasn’t the type to blame others, and Lowell didn’t think he was a bad person for that. Thanks to that, his voice relaxed considerably.
“Do you still think I’m here against my will?”
Even to Zephyros’s young eyes, Lowell looked at ease as he smiled. Throughout the conversation, Lowell had constantly read Felix’s mood, and Felix hadn’t been able to keep his hands still as if he found his partner too lovely to bear. Without affection that had naturally taken root, it would’ve been impossible.

“No. It all seems to have «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» been a misunderstanding on my part.”
Having drawn out the answer he wanted, Lowell exhaled deeply in relief.
“Well then, I’ve said everything I needed to. Now, Your Grace, ask the question you’ve been harboring doubts about.”

Felix, who had been quietly listening, fixed his gaze on Lowell’s eyes as Lowell leaned against him. The faint trembling in those eyes spoke of just how much effort this had taken. Seeing that, all the prepared questions crumbled like a sandcastle swept away by the tide.
“You saw me and Lowell together when you arrived at the castle, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“What part looked coercive?”

“…Pardon?”
The once-cold atmosphere in the room shifted with a single question. Unlike Zephyros, who stood there stunned with his mouth open, Lowell felt like laughing out loud.
“You looked at us and assumed I forced Lowell to come to Nyx. Which means, you must’ve seen something coercive or aggressive in how I treated him. I’m asking which part made it look that way.”

Thinking Zephyros hadn’t understood the question, Felix patiently laid it out in more detail. Zephyros had understood the question itself, but hadn’t grasped the intent behind it, so he couldn’t formulate a reply easily. Realizing that hesitating further would only make things worse, Zephyros finally opened his mouth.
“When I first met the Young Master, he seemed frightened. And Your Grace wouldn’t leave his side for even a moment. You even assigned two knights to him when apart—and I saw you had three or more shadow knights posted as well, which made me think you were watching him to prevent an escape attempt.”
The part about shadow knights was new to Lowell too, but he wasn’t angry or surprised.

“Don’t most people do that?”
Felix furrowed his brow.
“Protecting a delicate omega who’s pregnant is only natural. Worrying he might get hurt when I’m not there, that he might have nightmares in his sleep, or even feeling uneasy just watching him walk—if I didn’t feel that way, wouldn’t that disqualify me as a spouse?”

The more he spoke, the more Zephyros closed his eyes tightly. He was beginning to realize just how close he had come to triggering Felix’s wrath.
“It may not be typical… No, it was all just a misunderstanding on my part. There’s no need for Your Grace to take it to heart.”
Zephyros, trying to speak honestly, barely regained control and quickly lowered his head. Lowell lightly ran his hand along Felix’s thigh, which was still furrowed with tension.

“Why is that what you’re most curious about? Shouldn’t clearing your suspicions come first?”
“I understand now that you didn’t initiate the contact. And that he isn’t the type to lie that easily.”
It was only half-trust, but Felix admitted that he’d let fear get ahead of him and avoided having a proper conversation. Lowell didn’t bother pointing that out. Progressing one step at a time was what mattered.

“Then Lord Zephyros, when you return to the capital, please tell them: ‘Lowell Clarke is in Nyx of his own will.’ And you may share everything you saw here, except for what happened in this room.”
This would expose Felix’s weakness and put Lowell at risk—but Lowell had no doubt that the one beside him would protect him.
“Th-then… what exactly should I say?”

Zephyros, now barely halfway in his right mind, was struggling to think straight. He had already admitted he was wrong, so it was only natural that he’d lost confidence in his own judgment.
“Hmm… how about just saying we looked like a happy couple?”
Lowell lifted the corners of his mouth mischievously. At that suspiciously scheming tone, Felix looked toward him.

“Like this.”
At that moment, Lowell tugged Felix’s scarf. Taken off guard, Felix followed without resistance and met Lowell’s lips just as he wanted. It was meant to be a light French kiss, but out of habit, their tongues brushed slightly. Felix’s ears turned red.
“Got it? Just say we seemed like a perfectly ordinary married couple.”

What they looked like was closer to a lovey-dovey couple who couldn’t get enough of each other than anything ordinary, but Lowell said it boldly, without a hint of embarrassment. Zephyros, having watched the entire thing, blushed all the way down to the nape of his neck.
“Understood. I’ll relay it exactly like that.”
Zephyros quickly averted his eyes and stared at the floor. He didn’t seem to realize that Felix was now looking at him with clear displeasure.

“If you have nothing else to explain, then leave.”
Though it should’ve been a relief to escape after being dismissed, Zephyros somehow moved slowly, like he was reluctant.
“Hurry and get out.”

It wasn’t until Felix barked sharply that Zephyros finally left the room with the knights through the door that had been opened for him. As soon as the third wheel was gone, Felix stormed toward the sofa where Lowell sat.
“Lowell.”
The heat from their kiss still hadn’t cooled. In fact, now that the intruder had been chased out, it only burned hotter.

“I want to kiss you again.”
Felix, who always asked for permission before kissing, was so endearing that Lowell opened his arms.
“As much as you like.”

Felix did just as Lowell had earlier—gently brushing his lips with his tongue, then tapping them like knocking on a door. Lowell opened his mouth as if waiting. Their tongues intertwined as if they had always been one and didn’t part for a long time.
It was a slow, tender kiss, one that teased each other’s soft palates and grazed their teeth with affection. When they finally pulled apart, as if reluctant, they ran their hands along each other’s arms. The pheromones clinging to the air no longer belonged to either of them—they both carried the scent of seduction. Felix, nose buried in Lowell’s nape, clenched his jaw and stood.
“I should go regulate my pheromones.”

The veins rising on his neck revealed how hard he was working to suppress his arousal.
“There’s no need.”
Lowell tugged at the hem of Felix’s coat as he turned away. It was a touch lighter than a breeze, yet Felix was as easily swayed by it as a dandelion seed.

“Lowell. You may not realize, but… it’s still too soon for us to have relations.”
He began sternly, but ended in a voice that sounded more like pleading.