The Baby Isn’t Yours

“…Crying, ah… I don’t want to look so pitiful with tears…”

With a face that didn’t know what to do, he shrugged his shoulders, then suddenly sank to the ground.

His shoulders, hunched under his head, were trembling.

‘Why is he doing this? I really said it’s fine.’

Kalia, who had been shaking her head in confusion, reached out to his shoulder with her hand, signaling that he was indeed fine.

Upon this light touch, Allen looked at her with troubled eyes. His eyes were still red.

Kalia sat down beside him, leaning on his back. She felt the wooden fence behind her.

Comfortably resting her back, she spoke.

“You still love your wife a lot, Allen.”

“Well… I don’t remember that emotion very well, but I still feel a bit heavy in one side of my heart when I think of her.”

“Does it make you sad?”

He, who was smiling bitterly, looked up at the starry sky.

“It’s not like that. I miss her, but the feeling of sadness seems to have drifted away.”

He, who had hesitated, let out another confession.

“I… I don’t want to remember Nadia as a presence of sadness.  I want her to be a person who gives me happiness even when she’s not around, not a person who gives me negative emotions.”

“It seems like you still love her a lot.”

“Even if she’s gone, the past of loving her doesn’t disappear.”

He hesitated as he spoke and then suddenly turned to Kalia.

“Is your child not the child of someone you love, Miss Kalia?”

Kalia thought for a moment before carefully answering, “It’s not someone I don’t love but at the same time, I can’t say I love you.”

“So…it was a friend,” Allen concluded.

Kalia was wide-eyed, wondering how he knew.

Allen read her eyes, then smiled gently.

“Miss Kalia, you are easier to read than I thought. I was just scared at first.”

“Am I scary?”

Seeing Kalia’s confused eyes, Allen stammered as he spoke.

“You have charisma! Oh, it’s still there, that charisma… But still, you seem more sincere than I thought. You seem very affectionate… I didn’t mean anything bad.”

“Yes, I know. Allen, don’t be scared. I’m sorry…”

“Ah.”

After scratching his head awkwardly for a moment, he smiled.

The two of them gazed at the sky like that for a while. The farther away they got from the capital, the closer the stars came.

“If you don’t mind me asking… Can I ask why you want to have the child alone?”

“It’s okay. You’re my personal doctor, Allen. You have the right to know.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

Kalia smiled briefly at Allen’s politeness.

“I actually knew I couldn’t have a child. But, although it was unintentional, I became pregnant, and I… I felt it as a blessing. This baby is a miracle to me. And I want to give birth to this miracle in happiness. I want to raise it with love.”

Allen listened quietly to Kalia’s story.

“But a blessing to me might be different for the other person. Each has a given position, a location, and different thoughts and environment… I don’t want to force someone to take responsibility for a mistake. I didn’t want other person to feel obligated because I had a child… I didn’t want to look at the other person’s eyes because I had his child…”

My child is just my child.

She had prepared to become a mother and had wanted to raise this child happily.

Kalia stroked her belly.

Although she couldn’t see it with her eyes yet, she gently caressed her belly as if she could feel the warmth of the tiny life inside.

“I just want this child to be born in happiness.”

Her voice was filled with conviction, determination, and affection.

The Empire’s greatest knight had become a mother.

She had given up all the honors, positions she had piled up for this tiny life that was about to be born and was on the path solely for the safety of the child.

Her eyes were filled with confidence, and Allen was captivated by it.

“…Miss Kalia, you will surely be a good mother.”

Kalia, who turned around to look at Allen, raised the corner of her lips with a somewhat crooked smile.

“Thank you.”

She had a happier face than ever before.

* * *

The next day, Kalia felt a little strange in her stomach as soon as she woke up.

Allen explained that this was the time when morning sickness began. Fortunately, she did feel a little nauseous as soon as she woke up, but it soon subsided.

The elderly couple had known that Kalia was pregnant and served her warm milk, soft spinach prata, and freshly baked multigrain bread that was easy to snack on.

The food was simple but seemed very nutritious.

“When I was young, I had severe morning sickness. My mother used to cook soft, warm food for me. Finishing with a nice, sweet yogurt always made my stomach feel comfortable.”

“Thank you.”

“Being pregnant and traveling on your own like this… Where is your husband? Are your siblings accompanying the young lady somewhere? If it’s early in your pregnancy, you’ll have a hard time.”

Kalia became slightly uncomfortable.

She had been so easy to reveal her identity that she worried that if Simon came chasing after her, he might find out that she was pregnant.

‘Now that I think about it, maybe the fairy children know everything… Did they tell him, maybe? No, they don’t even know who I am, so it should be fine since I was in disguise.’

However, now she couldn’t turn back. All she could hope for was that they hadn’t been seen…

It seemed like she needed to be more cautious. Kalia was determined to hide her true identity more thoroughly.

“Well, actually, I…”

She slightly lowered her head and tried to make a bitter expression, as if she were someone struggling to say something difficult.

The elderly couple’s gaze turned to Kalia. She began to act somewhat clumsily.

“I ran away from my husband. He rarely came home because of drinking and gambling, and he had many other women… Then one day, he got drunk and became violent. I couldn’t take it anymore… So, I ran away and found myself in this situation.”

“What? Oh my! That husband of yours is truly trash!”

“No, it’s not his fault. I didn’t know he was like that and married him.”

The performance was somewhat awkward, but this awkwardness made Kalia seem more like a woman with a real story. There was a naturalness to it.

The farming couple were furious with the imaginary trash of a husband, and Kalia looked down with sad eyes, nibbling on the bread.

Seeing Kalia’s acting and sudden change in attitude, Hemmie and Allen almost spewed out the milk they were drinking.

Allen stared blankly at Kalia with a bewildered, somewhat foolish look. Hemmie, who was quick-witted and had already figured out the situation, suddenly burst into tears.

“…Uhhuh. If you think of the hardship my sister has gone through…”

Hemmie, who was spreading blueberry jam on the bread and eating, suddenly turned her bread into a tear-soaked piece and burst into loud sobs.

‘What’s… what’s happening all of a sudden?’

When both women started acting at the same time, Allen, completely clueless, just sat there, not knowing what to do.

‘This is sudden…’

When Hemmie pinched him in the side, Allen, who was taken by surprise, looked down quietly and smiled somewhat awkwardly with a faint touch of sadness.

Kalia gazed at Hemmie, who acted shrewdly, even without coordination. She felt a momentary respect for her and politely asked the farmer’s wife.

“…So, no matter who comes, please don’t tell them that we were here. I’m afraid my husband might come after me.”

“Don’t worry! Don’t worry, young lady! We’ll keep our mouth shut and pretend we don’t know anything, I promise!”

“Thank you. …By the way, the bread is really delicious.”

“I’ll pack some for you to take with you!”

“Oh, it’s not necessary… but thank you for giving it to me. I’ll eat it with gratitude.”

Kalia smiled warmly and sipped her warm milk.

It was her first time trying this kind of disguise… and she thought she was doing pretty well.

* * *

Simon returned to the capital with no gains.

Upon his return, he headed straight to Kalia’s mansion.

On the first day, he had destroyed the place, looking for Kalia. However, now, Kalia’s mansion had been perfectly restored to its original state, as if nothing had been damagiciand.

Restoration magic was a spell that reversed the flow of time, and it was actually a very complicated spell.

It wasn’t something that could be done with a snap of the fingers, and it consumed an enormous amount of magical power, depending on the range and details.

Even for Simon, it wasn’t an easy spell.

He also poured a considerable amount of mana into restoring Kalia’s mansion. It was only 20-30% compared to the other magicians. However, it didn’t matter if it took more than 90% of his mana to restore her mansion. To him, this was nothing short of a waste.

To him, anything related to Kalia was never a waste.

His magical power would recover eventually, and the physical pain he felt was nothing compared to the loss of Kalia’s fragrance.

Simon took weary steps and hesitated beside her bed.

Sitting by her bedside with his head resting on the soft mattress, Simon spoke in a voice that was weak, as if he was squeezing out his last strength.

“Where did you go, Kalia?”

His heart was pounding and his head was throbbing as if it would burst.

It had only been three days.

Simon had to endure countless sleepless nights until he found her again.

Why did she leave? Although they might not love each other with the same intensity, didn’t they share at least some brotherly affection or friendship?

Then why did she suddenly disappear without saying anything to him while he was away?

The pain of being abandoned, rather than the sense of betrayal, was suffocating his chest.

Was he really so little to Kalia?

At times, he was angry, and at other times, he was sad. Sometimes his head and chest boiled as if they would explode, but then they would cool down as if ice water had been poured over them.

Was the issue that night? If only they hadn’t spent the night together, if he hadn’t willingly fallen into the sweetness and ecstasy of that night, would Kalia have left him like this?

…If he could turn back time, could he undo that night?

No, it was impossible.

Simon couldn’t have refused her kiss. He would have been unable to resist the sweetness of that kiss.

Above all, he didn’t regret that night. But, did Kalia regret that night?

“At this rate, I might go crazy.”

Only three days.

Simon dared not crawl onto her bed. He only reached a hand out to touch the tip of her quit, swallowing a sigh. Pulling on the soft blanket, he turned and carefully leaned his forehead into the ledge of the bed. The familiar scent that reminded him of her set Simon’s heart alight again.

There was a fever throbbing in his head.