The Baby Isn’t Yours

Kalia released her hand from the crystal vial and moved away from the tree, holding the small crystal vial carefully.

Shhhh!

“I have to go now. It’s really time to leave. Oh, by the way, if anyone asks about me, please tell the children not to talk about me. Just in case.”

The tree responded with a rustling sound, and Kalia smiled in response.

After bidding farewell, Kalia took her first steps away from the tree. However, as she walked a few steps away, her head suddenly turned.

Under the swaying linen curtains, there was a red-haired man leaning by the window. He had a glass of wine in his hand, and his gaze met Kalia’s as she left.

He didn’t appear surprised at all; instead, he smiled casually and sipped his wine. It was as if they had merely made eye contact by chance, seemingly nonchalant.

However, the temperature of his persistent gaze was cold.

Kalia covered her face with her lowered hat as if she hadn’t seen him and walked calmly to the carriage waiting for her.

* * *

The red-haired man followed Kalia with his eyes as she boarded the carriage. The sharp glint in his eyes, beneath his thick eyebrows, intensified.

‘Who is that woman?’

Wearing a broad-brimmed hat, she wasn’t entirely visible, but she had a distinctive and beautiful silhouette.

It was as if she had a particular fondness for the tree. The way she caressed it and looked at it while speaking couldn’t escape his gaze.

This room was chosen specifically by the man. It had the best view of the square, with nothing obstructing the view of the tree.

This choice was made to observe the tree closely, to see if it was a real ‘Fairy Tree.’

Knock knock.

Damon came in after a knock on the door.

“I brought her.”

Behind her, Damon dragged in a woman with white hair, dark skin, blue eyes and broken wings.

The woman was bawling her eyes out. Crawling to the man’s feet, she pleaded with red eyes:

“P-please… save me.”

The red-haired man, Buford Adio, looked down at the woman with an amused expression.

“We’re here to help you. Now, stand here and look at that tree.”

Buford raised the woman’s body with some force and made her face the tree.

With tearful eyes, she gazed at the tree with great difficulty.

“…Do you see the fairies?”

Peering at the tree through her tear-filled eyes, she shook her head.

“No, I can’t see them very well.”

“Oh, I see. Melina, if you can’t see the fairies, our effort in helping you will be useless. Come on, look closely. Study it.”

Buford whispered sweetly and motioned to Damon, who was standing nearby.

She muttered a spell, and a flash of lightning struck the tree. In that instant, a semi-transparent shield surrounded the tree and immediately repelled the lightning.

Buford didn’t react to the shield’s creation, and he gazed calmly at the tree.

At that moment, the woman’s eyes widened. Under the impact of the lightning, the leaves of the tree fell like a downpour.

Staring at the scene, she inadvertently mumbled.

“…Th-those kids… over there…”

* * *

Flinch.

Just as the carriage left the square, Kalia involuntarily turned her head to the long road outside. The sensation of someone staring at the nape of her neck made her look back.

Though the entrance to the square had become distant, she could see the green leaves of the tree swaying behind the low houses.

She narrowed her eyes and stared intently at the unnatural movement of the leaves.

“What’s wrong? Do you have something you left behind?”

“…No, it’s not that.”

For some reason, it felt uneasy. Perhaps it was because of the man she had made eye contact with at the end.

‘Why is the prince of Akan Kingdom here?’

He didn’t recognize her, but she recognized him.

The Akan Kingdom was a neutral state neighboring Rojas. Originally part of Rojas, it had gained independence about 160 years ago and established its own kingdom. The person who led the departure and establishment of the kingdom was Prince Mahthani, the younger stepbrother of King Karl III at that time.

In fact, Akan and Rojas shared the same royal bloodline.

Not that they got along well, though. Akan was generally known as a ‘neutral state.’ They showed no interest in the wars of the empires, meddled very little in the affairs of other countries, and had virtually no economic exchanges.

There was no interaction with Rojas, let alone any other countries. Unless the nobles of Akan left the country, there was hardly any chance to see them.

Despite this lack of interaction, Kalia recognized him. She had seen him when she went to Akan Kingdom to bid for medical supplies after the war ended.

Akan was famous for its medical products. Their strengthening tonic, recovery tonic, and ‘Akan Cream’ for wound healing were incredibly popular due to their remarkable efficacy.

Kalia happened to be passing by when she participated in Akan’s medical supplies bidding. The person she encountered at that moment was none other than the prince of Akan, Prince Buford Adio.

He had vivid ruby-red hair and red eyes that left an unforgettable impression. His attire included a carelessly draped cloak, a deeply revealing shirt, and snug-fitting pants. He had an air of someone free-spirited and fiercely independent.

Despite being an Imperial representative involved in the delivery of goods, he didn’t wear his attire properly, and his attitude toward the neighboring country’s generals during the ongoing war was disrespectful.

“Ah, so, you are the famous General Kalia?”

With a lustful look in his eyes, he approached her without permission, attempting to remove her military cap without consent.

“Stop right there, or I’ll cut your wrist.”

In a tone as cold as an exposed nape, Kalia’s warning froze the prince’s hand in mid-air.

At that time, she had recently come back from slitting the throat of the enemy’s general. Her senses were still on edge, and the smell of blood clung to her.

…She hadn’t fully come to terms with the act yet.

In the shadow of her loose military cap, her intimidating eyes glinted ominously. The man who had met her eyes eventually decided not to touch her uniform.

“Wow, you’re more ferocious than the rumors say.”

He chuckled and retreated. His subordinates handed over the goods, and Kalia’s officers checked them. Throughout the process, the two of them didn’t exchange words and simply observed each other.

Kalia hid her face partially under the loosely worn military cap, but Buford didn’t.

She had a vivid memory of his face, especially his red eyes that exuded a palpable desire.

After all the items were handed over, and before the formal greetings could take place, Buford spoke again.

“General Kalia, you truly are an intriguing figure.”

“…”

“Sometime, I’d like to take off myself.”

“…”

“Oh, of course, I mean the cap.”

Kalia wasn’t particularly bothered by his remarks, but her officers were ready to draw their swords immediately.

However, they didn’t need to, as no confrontation ensued. It wasn’t because she stopped him. Rather, it was because a sudden lightning strike turned Buford’s horse into a charred husk.

“Huh?”

Buford’s eyes scanned the area intensely, but he couldn’t find anything.

Lightning magic was without a doubt Simon’s specialty, but in Kalia’s camp, no one dared to reveal that secret. When Akan’s prince had stirred up a fuss back then, claiming that they would find the culprit, there was no way to catch him.

“Kalia, are you okay? You’ve been deep in thought since earlier.”

“Oh, no, it’s nothing.”

She tried to shake off the uncomfortable premonition that had been gnawing at her for a while.

When she arrived at the teleportation spot, she took out the communicator she believed she wouldn’t need.

She wondered if the royal family knew that the prince of Akan was in the country.

He seemed so audacious and unpredictable that she felt uneasy about leaving him unchecked.

‘At least I should inform Brik that the prince of Akan is here. I’ll ask him to relay the message to the king discreetly.’

She connected to Brik via the communicator.

After a while, Brik appeared on the screen.

-Who is this?-

It was a personal communicator that Bricks used. He answered with a guarded tone to an unfamiliar number.

“It’s me, Brik.”

-…General Kalia? General Kalia! Where are you right now? Mr. Simon came to your mansion yesterday and completely demolished it! He’s going crazy asking for you right now! He even came to me earlier, questioning your whereabouts. I seriously thought I was going to die from suffocation!-

“Oh…”

She broke into a cold sweat at the unexpected news about Simon. Even though Simon was more than 500 kilometers away from the capital, she worried that he might come after her.

“Simon is already back?”

-He met with the Crown Prince yesterday and immediately flew right to your mansion! It’s been a mess since then! No one’s allowed access! He didn’t go back to the tower yesterday; he just passed the night in the ruins of Miss’ mansion!-

‘Oh, the ruins…’

Kalia sighed. She was worried about her devastated mansion.

‘Haah… Simon, please, don’t destroy everything. Spare my precious mansion.’

No matter how angry Simon was, to have smashed through her entire house… Maybe she should secretly contact Jacob and ask him to restore it, Kalia thought.

Thinking up to here, Kalia put aside the horrendous situation with her mansion and immediately got to the point:

“More importantly. Brik, there’s something you need to look into.”

-What? What do I need to do?-

“It’s about the Kingdom of Akan.”

Kalia briefly explained the situation and asked to have the information passed onto Louismond. She also told him to take a look into recent trends in the Akan Kingdom.

“I don’t have to tell you but don’t tell him that you’ve been in touch with me, okay?”

-Ha, but if Simon uses some kind of mental type of magic on me…-

“He’s not that crazy, so don’t worry,” Kalia reassures him.

Yeah, probably…