Side Story 2

“Caron! Caron!”

Aness burst into the Duke’s bedroom, where the curtains were drawn dark.

“Are you alright? Oh my, you really are sick!”

She knelt by the bed and placed her hand on the Duke’s shoulder, who was lying with his back turned. His body trembled faintly, as if with fever.

But in truth, he wasn’t trembling from illness. He had just been working in his office and, at Volteman’s urging, had hurriedly rushed to his bedroom and was now trying to catch his breath.

Volteman, unable to watch him being so dejected and lonely, had come up with a scheme to help.

“Did you overwork yourself? Why are you being so foolish…”

When Aness placed her warm hand on his forehead and truly worried for him, the Duke couldn’t help but turn his head and stare intently at her.

“Is your fever… really high?”

Startled by his intense gaze, his face flushed and blankly staring at her, Aness cautiously asked. Somehow, he didn’t look like a sick person. Would someone ill have such a piercing look in their eyes?

“Mm, I’m very sick. So… give me a kiss.”

Caron, in a feverish voice, deliberately spoke pitifully. Now he understood. Volteman was truly a master. He finally realized that, in front of a woman, acting weak worked far better than acting strong. The look Aness gave him now felt more affectionate than ever.

“Ah, Caron. Don’t scare me like that. I really thought you were sick.”

Only then did Aness realize he had been faking, and she let out a laugh. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and pressed her lips firmly to his.

As Caron received her kiss, he felt as if he could fly from happiness. He hugged her waist tightly, unable to hold back, kissing her again and again, whispering softly,

“Aness. Stay with me tonight. I can’t wait until the wedding.”

Previously, when he had called Aness to bed, it was as a Duke—an authoritative stance toward a mere maid. But now, it was different. He had to wait until they were formally married and she became his true bride.

He needed to treat her as a real bride. But he found it harder and harder to endure. Now he knew. He loved this woman, Aness, so much. That was why he was so explosively jealous of their young son.

“Our Duke, you have as little patience as Ian. The wedding is only three days away.”

Aness laughed, kissing Caron’s forehead and then his rough chin in succession. She, too, loved Caron deeply.

Ian was her son to care for, but this man was the one she loved most in the world. Her first night, and forever—her beloved companion.

“So just wait a little longer. Instead, I’ll kiss you so much you’ll get sick of it.”

And so, Aness and Caron held each other tight, kissing and kissing until their lips almost wore out.

***

“…Your Grace?”

“Mm, it’s time to go inspect the estate. Hurry and come along.”

Today, Volteman was about to head out alone on horseback to handle business.

Suddenly, the Duke appeared, looking very lively, and mounted his horse.

“That’s… good news.”

Volteman looked at the Duke with a meaningful smile. He had already figured out that Caron was a very simple man.

While he was second to none in politics or business, when it came to romance or personal relationships, he was quite inexperienced.

Just look at his relationship with baby Ian. He treated his own flesh and blood more like a rival, and even the maids gossiped about it.

“The weather is wonderful. The breeze is refreshing.”

Duke Caron hummed as he rode. Previously, he was someone who never said unnecessary words, but now he looked up at the sky with a very happy expression.

“…?”

Volteman, riding beside him, watched the Duke closely. Something seemed off, like a screw had come loose.

“Even the flowers… are needlessly beautiful.”

Amazingly, he even smiled as he admired the scenery, which was quite unusual. Volteman held his breath and continued to observe.

The Duke swept his still-tingling lower lip with the back of his hand and leisurely enjoyed the peaceful surroundings. This was a relaxation he’d never shown before.

He whistled pleasantly, recalling the passionate kiss from earlier, and Volteman, following behind, realized something and bit his lip to stifle a laugh.

***

When Aness returned, Ian immediately burst into tears as if he had been waiting for her. As expected, a baby’s true weapon was crying.

“Ian, what’s wrong? Are you hurt somewhere?”

As usual, Aness held Ian close, gently soothing and comforting him. Finding peace in his mother’s warm arms, Ian clung even more.

“Mama, mama!”

Don’t leave me behind anymore. Love me more than Father!

Aness hugged her young son tightly and sang a gentle song, just like always. But something about her was different.

She recalled the passionate kiss from earlier and a soft smile appeared. Being held by him after so long felt comfortable and affectionate. He might be the best kisser in the world.

At first, she had initiated, but after that, he took the lead and they exchanged passionate kisses. Her body grew so hot she could barely control herself.

She nearly lost control and tried to undress him first. But she held back. She decided to wait until after the grand wedding, when she would be his official bride.

But having tasted that heat even a little, Aness’s mind was now filled with uncontrollable passion. Half-dazed, she absentmindedly stroked Ian’s plump bottom, thinking it was his head, her cheeks flushed as she recalled Caron’s tender caresses.

Ian, deep asleep, was now sprawled on the floor, and Aness didn’t even realize her baby had slipped from her arms.

She just held onto his outerwear, one hand stroking his plump bottom, thinking it was his head, her cheeks blushing as she remembered his warm touch.

***

As the wedding approached and she checked the official invitation list, she finally remembered her mother and sisters.

“How foolish of me. I’ve been so absorbed in my own life, I completely forgot about Mother and my sisters.”

Aness couldn’t help but feel guilty. She had been so focused on caring for Ian that she hadn’t thought of anything else.

She summoned the butlers the Duke had assigned to her.

“I’d like to send invitations to my family, the House of Klein.”

“Madam, we’ve already sent them.”

Aness was surprised and asked again.

“What? When?”

“His Grace sent the invitations first. To the Baroness and her two daughters, personally.”

Aness quietly corrected the butler’s words.

“Ah, actually… it’s not a baron’s house anymore.”

She lowered her head with a bitter expression. In truth, the House of Klein had long since been stripped of its noble title after that disgraceful incident.

“No, it is indeed the House of Baron Klein.”

“What?”

The butler, as if surprised she didn’t know, explained further.

“His Grace visited His Majesty long ago, made a request, and restored the title. The House of Baron Klein has been reinstated, and the Baron has been released from prison.”

The butler explained politely, and Aness was so stunned she almost collapsed.

“What did you say?”

She was so shocked she nearly fell backwards. The Duke hadn’t told her any of this. So she had no way of knowing.

She thought of her family as distant, and didn’t want to trouble them by relying on the Duke’s family, so she planned to greet them later—but the Duke had already done so much on his own.

“When…?”

Hearing that her father had been released, Aness’s eyes filled with tears. He had been imprisoned for so long, but there was nothing she could do.

Even after becoming the Duchess, she never intended to shamelessly ask for help.

But he had already taken care of everything for her.

“His Grace plans to bring your family here the day before the wedding for a special meeting, so please wait just a little longer.”

At the butler’s final words, she was even more moved.

“Huu, Caron…”

Deeply touched, Aness ran straight to Caron’s office. Just then, Ian was waddling around on his short legs, looking for his mother.

“Mama!”

Spotting Aness from afar, Ian jumped up and eagerly called out, trying to get her attention, but Aness didn’t notice and ran straight to where the Duke was.

“Huh?”

Ian was in shock. Normally, his mother would spot her beloved son from afar with hawk-like eyes, run to him with a huge smile, and scoop him up in happiness. But now, she barely acknowledged him and hurried off somewhere else.

“Emmy! Emmy!”

Panicked, Ian looked around with his short neck and spotted the maid Emmy.

“Hurry! Hold me! Take me quickly!”

Ian stomped his short legs and bounced up and down. Emmy, who had been cleaning the stair railing nearby, was startled and quickly came over.

“Young Master, should I hold you?”

“Hurry and hold me!”

Ian flopped again like a fish. When Emmy quickly picked up Ian, the baby pointed somewhere with his short fingers.

“Hurry, chase after! Hurry, chase after!”

Only then did Emmy realize that the soon-to-be Duchess, Aness, was running somewhere in a hurry.

“Yes, understood. Young Master, hold on tight.”

Emmy nodded and, holding precious baby Ian tightly in her arms, started running. That way, she barely managed to catch up at the last moment.