The Baby Isn’t Yours

He moved a little closer to Kalia, completely capturing her gaze.

His golden eyes were right in front of her.

With a lowered voice, almost restrained, Simon spoke while locking eyes with Kalia.

“You’re lying. You.”

Simon had contemplated many things overnight.

It was like a vast universe, an endless chain of thoughts that extended like the truth of magic.

When the links of his thoughts, previously obscured by jealousy and sorrow, connected, a fire ignited in his mind.

She had left about nine months ago.

And they had their relationship just the month before that.

It was the moment they embraced each other, and it became clear to them both.

After that, he didn’t think she could have fallen in love with anyone else. He could bet all his magical powers that Kalia hadn’t been with anyone else.

So, there was only one possibility left.

“…Is this child mine?”

The child she was holding…

He was implying that it was ‘theirs.’

‘It can’t be.’

Kalia blinked her eyes, feigning surprise like a child, but it was a subtle change that someone else might not have noticed.

However, Simon didn’t miss any of her subtle reactions. He could see her disconcertion.

‘Yeah, he’s sharp. He might have figured it out.’

Kalia’s arm, holding Sasha, felt a bit of strain.

While looking somewhat desperate, she remained silent for a moment with the baby in her arms.

The look in Simon’s eyes as he gazed at her was firm and determined.

Gulp.

‘What should I do now?’

Kalia swallowed hard and desperately tried to think.

The baby was already born, and the time when she could ask Simon to forget about the child had passed.

Moreover, the attitude Simon showed in front of her was even more favorable to the baby than she had expected.

But that didn’t mean the child had become a blessing to Simon, the Duke of Terroan.

Kalia knew Duke Terroan very well.

She may not have been born there, but she had grown up there since she was a child.

Kalia wasn’t part of their ‘family,’ but she had received a lot of support.

Being the girl who had excellently rescued the Duke’s precious son with extraordinary magical talent, she wasn’t treated with contempt or ignored. It wouldn’t suit the reputation of Duke Terroan.

So, Kalia lived in a small room in the mansion’s annex.

She wasn’t a servant or a noble; she was an ordinary person, someone in between.

Kalia never cared about the people who whispered behind her back, although there were many.

What she needed was not keen and astute perception but rather the very essence of existence: to eat without starving and to sleep comfortably without freezing.

Duke Terroan and his wife, Helena, were always elegant and graceful people.

The smile on their faces never faded, and they never rushed.

Perfect nobles. Perfect privileged class.

“We’re different from you.”

Especially Duchess Helena often said that with her pleasant and sweet voice.

Ironically, Kalia, who heard those words the most, wasn’t their servant.

Even if she didn’t try to get close to them, Helena was odd to her.

“Kalia, we’re different from you. Especially Simon. He’s different from you. We can’t be the same. But… you’re only by his side as a sign of gratitude for saving his life, nothing more.”

Especially when Simon wasn’t around, Helena would call her and offer her delicious desserts, repeating these words.

Tea time was boringly repetitive.

From the time Kalia and Simon began attending the same Academy, it had become their tea time tradition.

“Both of you get along so well. It’s a lovely sight. Kalia, I heard your swordsmanship is exceptional. The Duke will generously support you. It’s because you saved Simon. It’s only natural.”

The Duchess smiled elegantly and urged Kalia to eat more while hot steam billowed from the hot cup.

“Don’t forget your duty, Kalia.”

That was what she emphasized most.

Duty.

“Just like you shouldn’t forget the favor we’ve done for you by saving Simon’s life, don’t forget the favor we’re doing for you by supporting you to this extent. Under no circumstances should you become a hindrance to Simon. Be with him for a very long time, just like siblings or friends. Understand?”

“Not to do anything that would harm Simon.”

“…That’s your duty, Kalia.”

Kalia had no idea what Helena meant when she was too young to understand those words.

It wasn’t until she left the capital and settled here that she began to suspect that Helena had said such things because she didn’t want them to develop strange feelings for each other.

‘Even if there were no emotions involved, since such an event occurred, it…’

But Kalia firmly believed throughout her pregnancy.

That this child was not the child of anyone else but her own.

Kalia Takscate.

She herself had firmly grasped the lineage.

She gave strength to the hand holding Sasha.

“Kalia, tell me honestly. Am I the father of this child…”

“No.”

Kalia quickly cut off Simon from continuing his sentence and said decisively.

And she repeated it.

“No, Simon. No.”

“…What?”

“No. It’s not your child.”

“…It’s not my child?”

Kalia immediately nodded towards Simon who asked again.

She said it again and again.

“Yes, not yours. Definitely not yours, Simon.”

This child could never inherit the Terroan family name.

Kalia didn’t want that to happen.

Sasha had Kalia’s family name, Takscate.

“This child is not yours.”

‘This child is not yours.’

With that single statement, Simon’s gaze turned cold in an instant.

“Huh.”

Simon let out a dry laugh, and he turned his gaze away from Kalia, looking into the air. His gaze soon returned to Kalia.

His eyes, filled with chilling coldness, stared intently at Kalia.

“…Ah, is that so?”

‘Really? She’s saying that.’

It was a low, husky voice hidden beneath a veneer of kindness.

“Fine, then tell me, Kalia.”

His voice was so cold and ruthless, filled with anger, that it froze the surroundings.

“What kind of person’s child is this anyway?”

He was angry.

Kalia, who had known him for a long time, could tell. This was a voice that came out when he could no longer contain his anger.

Feeling the chill in the air, Kalia was puzzled.

‘…No, but wait, is Simon getting angry about this?’

She had said it’s not his child, he should be relieved.

And what will he do if he finds out?

She was more bewildered than anything.

“What do you care about?”

“Especially when it’s a guy who can’t even properly act as a father…”

“…And?”

“He shouldn’t be allowed to live.”

I’ll… I’ll definitely make him suffer the most, Kalia.

Kalia looked at Simon, her eyes wide, as he whispered coldly into her ear.

Simon’s voice was so harsh and cruel that it chilled her to her core.

“So, come on. Tell me the name of the person who’s not me, Kalia.”

Come on.

Simon urged her mockingly.

This was bad.

Looking into his sparkling blue eyes, it was difficult to say that he is the biological father.

“Well, that… it’s…”

Flustered, Kalia stammered for the first time in her life.

Simon lifted his chin slightly, as if telling her to continue.

“Why don’t you tell me? Oh, maybe it’s someone I know?”

“What?”

Simon’s lips curved upward, laughing, before he asked sarcastically:

“Ah… Could it be Crown Prince Louismond?”

“What?”

‘That idiot mentioned it? Seriously, how can such a crazy person make such a ridiculous statement?’

Kalia’s eyes widened and she blurted out angrily:

“That’s nonsense!”

“Yeah. If it’s not Louismond… So, is it Brik, the adjutant?”

“Brik is a married man!”

Kalia was shocked at the crazy talk.

“Hmm, well, who else could it be? But no matter how much I think about it…”

Either way, Simon continued to look at her without loosening his twisted smile.

His eyes, like sharp swords, stared at Kalia, as if to bring out the truth he wanted to ask.

“It can’t be anyone but me.”

Isn’t that right, Kalia?

In his eyes, there was certainty.

No matter how much Kalia denied it, he must have already known the truth.

He was wary of her harsh expression. Her look, which neither denies nor affirms, meant that she didn’t recognize him…

Whether it was true or not, Kalia refused to recognize Simon as Sasha’s father. And Simon was smart enough to notice it.

Feeling his heart sink, he clenched his fists for a moment and then unclenched them again.

He felt numb as the pain subsided in his heart.

However, at this moment Simon could tell.

Why did Kalia run away somewhere far away, hiding the fact that she had a child from him?

Kalia didn’t trust Simon.

When she learned she was pregnant, she wasn’t convinced that Simon would genuinely celebrate with her and plan a future together. Perhaps he thought that Kalia might have imagined that he would do something cruel to her and their child.

And he knew she had definitely thought that way.

It was a painful realization.

Facing reality was painful, but he had to accept it.

That way, he could move forward.

Yes, this level of pain was nothing compared to when she disappeared from his world.

Simon reached out and took Kalia’s hand.

His gaze had softened by now and was fixed on her.

“Just… say it’s me, Kalia.”

He understood that she didn’t trust him.

He had been too confident that they had infinite time and that they could always be together.

Simon’s lips gently touched Kalia’s hand. His hot breath, filled with desire, seeped through her fingers, like pouring out his true feelings.

“Please… just say it’s me.”

Desperately.