Ariana gazed quietly at Kenneth.

He was watching Bibi, who was marvelling at the three-storey doll’s house that had just been taken out of a large gift box.

“Wow, Daddy!”

“Do you like it?”

“Yeah! Kyaa! All the doors open!”

The child squealed with delight, clutching her father’s hand.

When Ariana had first decided to return to the Empire, a small but persistent fear had lingered at the back of her mind: what if Kenneth’s affection for Bibi didn’t last?

If they ever had a disagreement, she feared he would abandon them both again, just as he had once before.

So she had always quietly carried that knot of unease inside her.

That she would be the only one who could protect their child.

But Kenneth had turned out to be far more domestic than she had ever imagined.

Even when Bibi ran to him, he never showed a hint of annoyance. No matter how busy he became expanding their growing enterprises in the South, he always made time to eat with his wife and daughter.

‘Even just hearing them talk tells me all I need to know.’

He never brushed Bibi off with a tired sigh, nor did he ever speak to her in a commanding tone. Not once.

‘He really was someone capable of living as a good father.’
Perhaps, this was the life he was always meant to lead.

As a husband, his excessive stamina was rather overwhelming, particularly compared to his usual demeanour. But setting that aside…

Ariana instinctively cleared her throat, her mind slipping to a few too-vivid memories of their nights together.

Still—did that man truly have no thoughts about a second child?

‘Well… Bibi probably won’t stay hung up on the sibling thing for long.’
With this many gifts from her parents, she’d likely forget it soon enough. Once she opened each one and lost herself in play, the thought would pass.

“But I feel lonely.”

Bibi’s soft, downcast voice came to mind, and Ariana shook her head to push it away.

She was still just a child. Children’s curiosities were fleeting, like sandcastles before the tide—washed away the moment something new caught their attention.

***

But contrary to Ariana’s hopes, Bibi’s memory was surprisingly sharp.

Even with enough gifts to fill two rooms and then some, the one thing she had truly wanted had not been given.

So, after thoroughly enjoying all her new toys, that missing wish crept quietly back into her thoughts.

‘Who should I ask next?’

Her mother was gentle and sweet, but even Bibi could tell she could be unexpectedly firm.

‘If Mommy seemed even a little hesitant, it meant no second chances to bring it up again.’

So Bibi decided she’d try her luck with her Daddy instead.

Anyone else in the Empire might have been horrified at the idea, but to Bibi, the mighty Duke Clifford’s authority meant nothing at all.

Marching into Kenneth’s study with Corgi in tow, Bibi tilted her head, wearing a pouty expression.

“Daddy~ Are you busy right now?”

“What is it, Bibi?”

“…So… I was really good, right? Then why hasn’t the stork come yet?”

Bibi mumbled the question while hugging her teddy bear tightly.

“Was I not good enough? I even eat carrots now. And I don’t run in the halls anymore…”

“You are a good girl.”

Kenneth said, gently patting her head of golden hair, now drooping with disappointment.

He had noticed during their last meal that she left a few bits of carrot uneaten—but what mattered was that she tried. Even a single bite was enough.

Still, the smile on his lips began to falter.

“It’s because… when Mommy gave birth to you, she got really sick.”

“Huh? Mommy was sick?”

“….”

Kenneth didn’t answer. He simply kept stroking her hair in silence.

Ariana had a very difficult labour when she gave birth to Bibi. It was so severe that she almost died.

Fearing that she wouldn’t survive, she had even prepared her final offering for the cathedral.

Perhaps her weakened condition was exacerbated by how suddenly she had fled from him all those years ago.

Fortunately, she survived, but if fortune had not been on their side, she might not be alive today.

“You wouldn’t want Mommy to get sick again, would you, Bibi?”

“Nooo…”

“Then don’t keep asking her, okay?”

Ariana was visibly shaken when Bibi said that she felt lonely. She was the kind of woman who would panic if her only child ever seemed to be lacking anything.

Even now, she would crumble without Bibi, no matter how calm she tried to seem.

Kenneth couldn’t allow Bibi to pressure Ariana into making such a dangerous decision again.

As Bibi’s head drooped in disappointment, they heard soft footsteps approaching from beyond the door — light at the toes, steady at the heel.

Ariana peeked her head around the gently opened door, wearing a sheepish smile.

“Bibi, you shouldn’t be bothering your father while he’s working.”

“Mommy!”

“Come on now, let’s go. Don’t forget Penny.”

“Eh… okay…”

Bibi climbed down from her father’s lap and followed Emily, who was waiting outside the door.

But this time, Ariana didn’t follow her out.

Instead, she lingered in the room, pacing as if the windowsill held some oddly fascinating stain that demanded her attention.

Seeing this, Kenneth narrowed one eye slightly.

“You heard everything, didn’t you?”

“…Some of it?”

Ariana hovered awkwardly beside him before finally breaking the silence.

“I didn’t realise you were still thinking about that day.”

“Hm?”

“When I gave birth to Bibi. I barely remember it myself.”

“You know, you’re awfully stingy when it comes to giving me any credit.”

Now that her feelings had been laid bare, Ariana was flustered and quickly looked away.

She wanted to explain that it wasn’t the childbirth itself she remembered most vividly, but the fear that came after—when he came storming back into her life. That was what had left the deepest mark.

But she said nothing.

Kenneth watched her in silence, his gaze unreadable.

“It’s not just because of what happened back then.”

“What do you mean?”

“Back then… when you were pregnant, you said it hurt to be with me.”

“Huh? I—I said that… oh.”

Confusion flickered in Ariana’s eyes, then froze as she had a sudden realisation.

Kenneth had never told her just how much he remembered from that life.

The final humiliating collapse as she clung to the illusion of a dream.

The days that spiralled endlessly downwards until she took her own life.

“From beginning to end, being with you always hurt. I can’t remember a time when it didn’t.”

Of all the agonising days, the moment he saw Ariana again, pregnant, was one of his greatest regrets.

At the time, he hated her with all his heart. Yet beneath that, he still longed for her.

However, in his drug-clouded state, he felt that this longing was too pathetic and shameful to acknowledge. So he turned away from the truth.

She was carrying his child, but he refused to accept it.

When he finally returned to the ducal estate years later, the sight that greeted him was devastating.

“If you were in pain, you should’ve said something.”

Her face, neck and shoulders had grown gaunt and her hands had grown thin. Yet her belly had swollen beneath the weight of the child she was carrying.

Despite suffering from severe morning sickness, she hadn’t complained. Instead, she would hide in corners, remaining silent and enduring.

And still he blamed her.

“If you’re not going to die, then prove it. Eat. I don’t want to hear that you’ve skipped a single meal.”

If he was determined not to love her, he should have let her go.

But he couldn’t. Instead, he locked her away in the mansion.

The result was the deaths of both the child and his wife.

Although it was now broad daylight, dazzling and warm, the shadows of that time, steeped in quiet despair, still lingered with biting clarity.

Kenneth reached for Ariana’s left hand.

The wedding band she had finally accepted shimmered a faint coral hue under the dying light.

He brought her pale hand to his lips, kissing it as he always did, then murmured, almost to himself—

“Let’s make sure it doesn’t hurt this time.”

“….”

“You came to get me today, didn’t you? I suppose I should step out, then.”

Ariana said nothing at first, simply holding his gaze for a long moment—then gave him a quiet nod.

***

There were moments she thought she would never forget; moments etched into her soul on the day she returned from the dead.

Like the warmth of a child who had been alive the previous night and was now lying still and motionless.

Or the cruel words that had pierced her heart like a blade: “That child was a mistake. If anyone heard you talk like that, they’d think you actually loved the child.”

In the soft glow of a crimson lamp and the quiet of the bedroom, Ariana sat blankly, trying to recall the ache that had once consumed her.

As she lingered in that slow, painful reverie, the damp towel slipped from her skin.

Kenneth gently brushed her cheek.

“Are you tired?”

“……”

“You can sleep just like this.”

Ariana cracked open her eyes and cast a faint, half-hearted glare in his direction.

Although it was kind of him to bath her with a warm cloth, his grin made it all the more irritating.

He clearly enjoyed teasing her, knowing exactly why she was lying there, completely exhausted.

Yet, instead of scolding him, Ariana simply watched him, her gaze soft and dazed.

Kenneth gently pulled the blanket higher over her shoulders and lowered the lamp so that the light wouldn’t bother her eyes.

This tenderness no longer felt unfamiliar.

He had once been the man who hurt her more than anyone else.

And yet, every time she saw this quieter, gentler side of him, it was like wading into the sea before sunrise: cool and steady, yet tinged with something quietly warm.

When Kenneth lay down beside her, Ariana tried once more to dredge up the pain of her old wounds.
But her whole body hummed with a languid heat, and the memories slipped away.

Was it just the pleasant exhaustion of their lovemaking? Or could a sorrow that once felt lethal truly grow dull over time?

Smiling faintly, she reached out and touched him.

“Kenneth.”

“Mm?”

“You know… back then I said it hurt to be with you, but…”

Ariana wrapped her arms around him and whispered, soft as breath,

“It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“……”

“Truly. Because of you, I’m… very happy now.”