The Baby Isn’t Yours

During the time Simon was away, time passed in a whirl for Kalia.

It wasn’t easy to sort out her surroundings in a short amount of time.

Her position within the Empire was higher than she thought.

From being the escort of the Crown Prince, her military accomplishments accumulated frighteningly after the start of the war.

In fact, when it came down to it, she was brutally defeated in the war.

She had felt the threat to her life multiple times due to assassination and poisoning threats, and it was difficult to lead soldiers who didn’t follow a general from a poor background.

But she never backed down or complained each time.

If defeated, she got up and challenged again, eventually seizing victory through continuous confrontation.

She was always concerned about minimizing the casualties of the soldiers who didn’t follow her, and didn’t hesitate to criticize herself in the process.

Thus, slowly but surely, she stacked up victories.

As she gained the trust of the soldiers, her body was worn out.

At some point, joining her brigade became the highest honor and pride for the soldiers, and that was when Kalia became a general.

By then, it was hard to find a soldier who didn’t follow her, and it was natural for her subordinates to resist Kalia’s decision to retire as she was the pride of the Knight Order.

Starting from her direct subordinate, the vice-captain, he knelt down from the morning, insisting it shouldn’t be done.

He hit the marble floor with his forehead, shouting adamant opposition.

“I can never be the successor to the General! If you must go, make me suitable for that position and then go!”

With his forehead swollen bright red, Brik defiantly shouted.

This has been going on for 3 days now.

‘Ah, I don’t have time for this…’

Kalia called him with a slightly tired voice.

“Brik Ukraa. Get up.”

“The knights will be confused if they find out! No, if the enemy country finds out about the General’s absence, they might immediately proceed with the invasion!”

“The Empire’s military force doesn’t completely disappear just because I’m gone. And you know they don’t have the strength to fight anymore because they have already been defeated.”

“Other countries will invade!”

“There needs to be a justification and timing for war. It’s not that easy to decide.”

At Kalia’s calm response, Brik’s face turned as bright red as his forehead.

“No. No! Still, it can’t be! It absolutely can’t be! You can’t go! If you insist on retiring, at least tell me the reason!”

Now he was almost throwing a tantrum, rolling around on the floor without dignity.

His size was three times hers, the sight of him rolling around on the ground was rather ugly.

Did Brik forget that he was a giant who swung a 7kg morning star with one hand?

Kalia coldly spoke, looking at Brik rolling around at her feet as if he was pathetic.

“I said it’s a personal matter.”

“Do you think the excuse of a personal matter is acceptable in state affairs!”

He abruptly stood up and furiously spat words towards her.

Kalia felt fatigue creeping in.

At the same time, she felt increasingly tired these days and now sleepiness was creeping in.

She had heard that you get very sleepy in the early stages of pregnancy, but she didn’t expect to be so sleepy that it would give her a headache.

She pressed her throbbing forehead for a moment, then put strength into the hand holding the armrest of the chair at Brik’s shouting.

Crack! Creak!

The armrest, made of oak, the strongest wood in the Empire, was crushed and broken under her touch, like a paper chain.

‘Ah, dear.’

She lightly dusted off the falling wood fragments, pressed her forehead, and quietly looked at Brik.

“…Sorry, what did you say, Brik?”

“Hiccup.”

Brik, who had been rolling on the spot, stood up abruptly.

Even if he was a giant who swung a 7kg morning star with one hand, he didn’t have the ability to crush an oak armrest with a few fingers.

He looked at Kalia, trembling as if the broken wooden pieces on the floor were his own skull.

General Kalia was usually serious and quiet, but when she got angry, she was a fiery person who could even break a skull.

“…I mean, it would be…better…if the General doesn’t retire…”

“Then you act as the temporary commander-in-chief until I return. Think of it as a vacation.”

“So, are you coming back after 1 year?”

“…Well, we’ll see.”

Kalia murmured lazily as she rubbed her forehead.

She had a dull headache because of the sleepiness.

This shouldn’t be happening, Kalia’s head was so fuzzy that it was hard to regain her senses.

‘Ugh, why is this happening?’

Kalia, pressing her sleep-ridden eyes, barely managed to send Brik off.

Without forgetting to threaten Brik, who drooped his shoulders and left, that if he spilled the beans about this, she would bash his head in.

Brik, who had a strong survival instinct, would feel that her threats weren’t false and wouldn’t carelessly talk about it anywhere.

Resting her body on the soft chair, Kalia stood up shaking off the spot as soon as her dizziness got a bit better.

There was no time to be like this. There was only a week left until Simon’s return.

She had to move quickly.

‘…I was supposed to give an answer today.’

It was time to meet the doctor introduced by Viscountess Arendi, Allen Makker.

* * *

Most of Kalia’s casual clothes were pants and shirts. She also wore training clothes provided by the knight corps.

Since she was a swordsman who always carried a sword, pants were much more comfortable than a frilly dress.

However, today, Kalia awkwardly dressed in a dress.

Because she was known in the Empire for her impressive appearance, it was difficult to stroll outside in the clothes she usually wore.

If her whereabouts were known and Simon or Louismond chased after her, it was obvious she would have a headache.

So Kalia disguised herself in a ‘normal dress’, wore incongruous silver glasses, and hid her striking lemon-colored hair in a hat with an unusually wide brim.

‘…As expected, dresses are uncomfortable.’

She hadn’t even worn a fashionable corset, nor had she put on high heels, yet standing alone was tiring.

The only good point was that the inside of her wide skirt was cool.

“Wow, how does even a dress suit you so well, Miss Kalia!”

Hemmie, who helped with the dress, glistened her eyes and spoke at the sight of Kalia.

Hemmie proudly circled around her, who was standing awkwardly.

“Hmm.”

Kalia, uncomfortable, coughed and briefly conveyed her thanks.

“Thank you for helping, Hemmie. If it wasn’t for you, it would have taken me hours just to put on the dress.”

She spread out the dress she had difficultly obtained to go out, but had no idea how to put it on.

Since she was sneaking out, she couldn’t even call the servants to help her.

First, she struggled to tuck her legs in and pull up the zipper, but her hand didn’t reach behind her back.

While trying to somehow pull up the zipper, she twisted her arm and turned around in the same spot, just when Hemmie happened to visit.

Actually, for the sake of her alibi, Kalia was supposed to have already left.

Hemmie, thinking that the room was empty, opened the door without knocking and ran into Kalia.

If it were someone else’s presence, she would have hidden appropriately, but Kalia, who realized it was Hemmie’s presence, didn’t hide and waited for her to come in.

Just in time, she needed someone, and she felt she could trust Hemmie.

Kindly, Hemmie wasn’t greatly flustered even when faced with a sudden situation.

She was surprised, but quickly assessed the situation, closed the door quickly and came inside, saying,

“I will help you!”

And with her skilful hands, she helped pull up the dress zipper smoothly, adjusting the seams and even caring for details that Kalia hadn’t asked for.

“It’s my job to help Miss Kalia.”

Hemmie smiled kindly, looking at Kalia like a child expecting praise.

When Kalia reached out and stroked Hemmie’s hair, Hemmie smiled with a blushing face.

She was a lovely child.

Despite experiencing the sorrow of losing all her parents and siblings to the plague three years ago, she never lost her bright energy.

Kalia even felt proud of such a Hemmie.

‘I should find a particularly excellent master for Hemmie before leaving. It can’t be Brik because he already has a squire… Ideally, someone who uses a delicate sword rather than a crude weapon would be good.’

Thinking about finding a new master for Hemmie made her feel even more rushed. Looking at Hemmie, who was watching her with slightly diminished curiosity, Kalia quietly commanded.

“You can’t talk about what you saw today, Hemmie. Even if His Majesty the Emperor comes… You understand what I mean, right?”

“Yes, of course! I serve not His Majesty the Emperor, but Miss Kalia!”

Hemmie was not only adorable but also smart.

“Miss Kalia, if you’re going out like this, can I go with you?”

Looking at Hemmie, who asked with twinkling eyes, Kalia considered.

The situation that had already been discovered, unexpected situations, and Hemmie’s sharp intuition.

The consideration didn’t last long, and Kalia nodded coolly.

“Okay. I guess I’ll need you after all.”

Kalia sneaked out of the mansion with Hemmie, who was smiling happily.”