“Congratulations. The baby will surely take after its mother and be pretty, kind, and good-natured.”

“…Thanks.”

Kais, who would have retorted to Worklan’s words at any other time, now just nodded perfunctorily.

He soon moved with heavy steps and entered the bedroom.

On the bed illuminated by several lamps lay Lariella, weakly reclining with a face as pale as the white blanket covering her.

Kais walked to the bedside and knelt down as if collapsing to the floor. He placed both arms on the bed and buried his head in them. Lariella took her hand out from under the blanket and gently stroked Kais’s hair as he curled up like a child.

“Were you very surprised?”

“……Yes, terribly.”

The sound of soft laughter tickled Kais’s ears. Though he didn’t feel like smiling at all, hearing that laughter made his chest feel ticklish too, and a smile formed naturally.

“Aren’t you happy enough to die? We’re having a baby.”

“I am happy. But……”

Kais couldn’t exactly explain what he was feeling right now.

He had always known that as the head of the family, he would need an heir someday. He hadn’t been unprepared for this moment to arrive. But now that it had become reality, he felt utterly confused. He was happy but not happy, pleased but not pleased.

This wasn’t simply a bright feeling, but something much darker and heavier.

“……I’m scared.”

Kais whispered softly with his head still buried in his arms. The slender fingers stroking his hair paused briefly before calmly resuming.

“Lariella, I think I’m a bit…… scared right now.”

That seemed to be the right name for what he was feeling.

Fear, dread, and anxiety.

“I never thought about being happy in my life before. But being with you feels like I’m enjoying all the happiness I couldn’t have before, all at once. Thanks to your love, I’m finally happy, finally living like a human being, and I’m afraid that if we have a child, I’ll have to share that love. I’m afraid I won’t be satisfied with half your love anymore, that I’ll be jealous and resentful of my child for taking that half away. I’m scared I’ll become someone who doesn’t know how to love my child, like my father. That I’ll be that kind of person. And that you’ll stop loving me because of it. I can’t bear that fear, Lariella.”

Lariella’s heart tightened at the sight of this large, strong man looking so small and wounded.

She held back the tears shimmering before her eyes and spoke slowly.

“My love is infinite, Kais. So even without halving the love I give to you, I already have enough love for our child. Us having a child doesn’t mean me dividing my love in half, but adding one more person who will love you. You’ll now receive love not only from me but from our child too, so the love you’ll receive isn’t half but double, Kais. So please love our child too.”

The shoulders of the man lying face down trembled slightly. Clear tears flowed from the corners of Lariella’s eyes as well.

“If our child is a son, teach him how to hold a wooden sword when he turns four. When he grows a bit more, teach him how to ride a horse, and take him hunting with you. I’d like you to personally teach him the dignity and virtues a noble should have. If our child is a daughter, don’t get angry when she ties your hair in ridiculous ways. When she wants to play tea party with you sitting on a tiny chair, you must join her. When she’s about to attend her first ball and asks you to be her dance partner, you must willingly offer your hand. That’s how you love our child. How does that sound? Not difficult, right?”

Now Kais’s shoulders were heaving too much to hide.

“…Yes, not difficult. I’ll do that. ……I promise, I absolutely will.”

Lariella sat up and gently embraced Kais’s heaving shoulders.

Lariella, who would continue to love Kais completely, and their child who would come to love him just as much, embraced him tightly with one heart.

* * *

The painter was certain that if he were to recall the most glorious moment of his life, he would forever count this very moment as the first.

This moment, right now, as he was painting the family portrait of the Duke of Elmano’s family.

Even for him, hailed as the most skilled painter of the current era, capturing the family before him perfectly on canvas was truly no easy task.

The cold yet passionate Duke of Elmano, the gentle yet strong Duchess of Elmano, the young duke who had just turned four this year with his father’s looks and his mother’s eyes, and the little lady who had just turned one year old with golden hair.

The saying “a feast for the eyes” must have been coined precisely for moments like this.

The Duke of Elmano stood with one arm resting on the back of the chair where the Duchess sat, his other hand on his waist. Right in front of him stood the young duke, dressed in identical clothes to his father and standing just as straight, in the exact same pose. Though due to his small stature, he rested his arm on the chair’s armrest instead of its back.

The Duchess, seated in the chair, wore a simple dress with only a crimson flower necklace as her sole ornament, which actually enhanced her brilliant golden hair and beautiful features all the more.

The little lady sitting on the Duchess’s lap had inherited her mother’s golden hair completely, and her constant bright smiles were so adorable that anyone would automatically think of the word “angel” upon seeing her.

Where in the world could one find such a perfect and beautiful family?

Even the painter felt intoxicated by their beauty and the scent of happiness they exuded while he moved his brush.

“Father, will you practice wooden sword with me today too?”

The young duke, who had been standing quite well, seemed to be getting restless as he tilted his head back to look up at the Duke of Elmano standing behind him.

“Of course, Ripenser. But first, shouldn’t we be considerate of the painter’s time?”

“Yes, Father.”

The young duke’s expression, pouting his lips slightly while turning back to face forward, was so cute and clever that the painter couldn’t help but smile.

“Ah……”

Just then, the Duchess, who had been sitting properly in her chair, let out a small moan and slightly furrowed her brow.

The Duke, who had briefly glanced at his wife, immediately raised his hand to stop the painter’s brushwork.

“That will be enough for today. Please arrange the next session with the head butler.”

After briefly thanking the painter for his work today, the Duke soon left the room with his family. While leaving, the Duke leaned close to his wife’s ear and whispered something.

What kind of conversation would such a picture-perfect couple have?

Surely it must be refined and elegant. Yes, of course.

Having answered his own question, the painter nodded to himself and began tidying up his brushes and paints.

* * *

Lariella rubbed her palm over her br*ast, which had become taut and swollen with milk.

Kais, who had already sent the children to their nurse, had bolted the bedroom door and quickly climbed onto the bed.

“Why do you always start salivating whenever my milk comes in, Kais?”

Earlier, her n*pples had been tingling because her milk was coming in, and Kais, who had somehow noticed it with uncanny accuracy, had quickly pulled Lariella outside.

While muttering, ‘I’m going crazy wanting to suck it all up right now, Lariella.’

“It’s mine, so of course. Isn’t it?”

Kais had already undone the top of Lariella’s dress and was pulling out her milk-filled br*asts. They were so full they filled his large hands completely and were quite heavy.

The reason Lariella’s br*asts were still in this state even though their second child, Lirie, was being fed by a wet nurse was none other than Kais.

“My milk never has a chance to dry up because you keep sucking on them. I need to stop the sucking and bind them tightly for the milk to dry up.”

“Why dry up something so good? Let’s keep it a little longer.”

Kais, who had been responding casually, now had the plump n*pple fully in his mouth. His skill at sliding his tongue around the ar*ola while sucking all the way down his throat showed this wasn’t his first time.

“Ah, aah! Suck more gently, Kais.”

“Mmm, ah, delicious, Lariella. You really taste so good.”

The picture-perfect couple was exchanging neither refined nor elegant conversation as they indulged in sticky, intense love once again today.

And the news that a third princess had been born to the Duke of Elmano’s family came the following year.

<The Duchess Wants To, But… / The End.>