CHAPTER 8 – Dependence, Salvation (Part 2)

In the end, Cedric obtained the position of a duke and was sent back to the duchy.

The Edelgard family’s mansion was located in the duchy.

One of those who had left was Viscount Pearson. Viscount Pearson managed the ducal territory under the pretext of administering the ducal decree, enjoying everything on behalf of the absent owner. 

This arrangement was tolerated by the former dukes who had been court nobles for generations and the ducal authority stationed in the capital. After all, it was true that the duchy needed an administrator.

However, since Cedric and Lillian had decided to settle in the duchy, it was only natural for the Pearson family to leave.

In the process, they caused a lot of commotion.

The argument of Viscount Pearson was that the Duke of Edelgard had to live in the capital.

He also brought up the fact that Lillian and Cedric were not formally married.

“Return to the capital, my lord! You dare not bring an unmarried woman here!”

It was a heated argument, with even the long-standing servants in the Duchy raising voices of concern.

However, to everyone’s surprise, peace returned to the duchy within a few days. Everything seemed to have been magically cleaned up as if it had never been chaotic.

It was as the countless words heard in the elite army had foretold. 

Cedric Edelgard was the only man who could bring peace to an unpeaceful place.

* * *

The lord’s newly refurbished bedroom was on the highest floor of the castle.

“I didn’t know you could make such a big decision and act on it.” 

“I wouldn’t have started if I didn’t think I could do this much for you.”

The two of them stood together, looking down while feeling the wind. Cedric embraced her from behind.

Beneath their feet stretched a vast garden with no end in sight.

“I want to tell you something here.”

“What is it?”

“This is my estate. And I am the lord.”

“As you wish, my lord.”

With a playful spin, Cedric turned her around and gently kissed her forehead.

“We are husband and wife, Lillian.”

Finally, he could declare it. He could openly acknowledge their relationship before the eyes of the Lord.

“You are my wife.”

For the world to witness. It was a peace achieved for this moment alone.

“No one dares to call my woman a mistress on my land.”

Cedric wielded his power to ensure that no one would ever refer to his woman as a mistress.

To ensure that their future child would carry the full family name, he had to become the master of the house.

It was a long and arduous journey. It was rugged and relentless.

The days piled up passed by like a flickering torch. Like the surface of sedimentary rock, some days were bright, while others were dark.

“I hope I can fulfill my role as the lady of the manor here…”

Though uncertain, Lillian had already found her answer within herself.

There had been a time when she had been afraid to even attend a ball as a guest to which she had been formally invited, but now she had to take control of Edelgard’s social circle.

“…… I can do it.”

She had to succeed.

Even if it meant dirtying her hands for Cedric’s sake, Lillian had to summon up courage.

“Well, quickly having our child could be a solution.”

“It’s not as easy as you think.”

“It means we just have to try harder.”

Since her divine power had blossomed, Lillian had been infertile. This, too, added to the obstacles blocking their future, leaving Lillian feeling despondent.

“Why do we only have hardships ahead of us?”

She looked up at Cedric, her gaze desperate. Cedric kissed her forehead, nose, and cheeks, one by one.

“Forget what I just said.”

“…….”

“Suffering is proof that God is blessing your life. Lillian.”

Cedric didn’t want a child. Pregnancy was merely an excuse for passionate nights.

At one point, he’d thought about having a daughter who looked like Lillian, but not anymore.

Unlike anyone else, he didn’t need a replacement.

She was a woman who had captured his heart not through a single portrait resembling her. Even if it was a tiny, cute baby inheriting both of their bloodlines…

Lillian’s love might completely shift towards the baby and he couldn’t afford to deliberately risk in uncertain circumstances.

“You’re right. Looking back, I’ve been living a blessed life for a long time.”

Lillian blurted out, unaware of the wicked thoughts running through her husband’s mind.

“Even being abandoned under the city walls right after birth was actually part of God’s grand plan.”

“A grand plan?”

“Because I met you in the orphanage, Cedric. You probably don’t remember, but…….”

It was an old memory she kept to herself as a cherished reminiscence.

It was a little embarrassing, no matter how brazen she was, to tell someone about something that was only important to her.

“You gave me a black pie once when I was very young.”

Lillian said she would never forget the day she first saw him.

“The friar at the orphanage was a good man, and he took special care of me. He was the one who told me the name of the person who gave me that pie was ‘Cedric Edelgard.'”

“…….”

He didn’t say anything, just stared down, and she felt so embarrassed. Lillian buried her face in his broad chest and whispered, adding.

“Of course, it’s probably something only I remember!”

As she reminisced about her long-standing unrequited love, she clung tightly to him and nuzzled his face. 

At that moment, Cedric recalled the intense and sticky sweetness that made his tongue tingle.

At the same time, he recalled some sweet moments he had never forgotten.

The day when the fierce first love unexpectedly entered his life.

The day he tried desperately to lure her out of her shell.

The day he sneaked up on her with a trap and dangled it in front of her, and she rolled her glassy eyes and stared in confusion…….

“…Was it a chocolate pie?”