Chapter 11 (Part 6)

Philip and Frey decided to prepare the wedding for the busy Anthus and pregnant Yuliana. Of course, Matthias helped too.

The merchants trembled in fear. It was not long ago that they were scolded for not charging more at the engagement ceremony! Yet, they couldn’t easily refuse the Rockbellion family’s summons.

“Keep it moderate.”

“We plan to keep the wedding simple. But aren’t the baby product merchants here?”

“Ferrell!”

“Yes!”

“Call all the baby product merchants!”

“Understood.”

“With the money we’re pouring into the wedding, we should buy one more toy for our grandchild.”

“Right, right.”

“Whether it’s a son or a daughter, we should buy everything.”

“Haha. Whether it’s a daughter or a son, I just hope our Lia gives birth healthily.”

“Earl Loengrin, we feel the same way.”

Grandchild? Baby product merchants? 

The merchants were convinced of Yuliana’s pregnancy from their conversation. And if they could find special baby products from now on… they calculated it would be a profitable business, and their eyes began to sparkle like rare stars.

“Should we set the floor with diamonds? If not, magic stones?”

“Honestly, I wasn’t entirely satisfied last time, but I understood because time was tight. Now we have a week more than last time… They’ll do better, right?”

“Right?”

“Anyway, we’re planning to keep it simple, so show us something moderately expensive.”

The merchants’ faces began to crack slightly.

There is no such thing as ‘moderate’ in the Rockbellion family. If the preparation period was three days before, now they were given a week, should they consider themselves lucky? Watching the smiling Phillip and Frey, the merchants clenched their fists.

The long-awaited wedding day arrived.

“Is this really a simple wedding?”

From the entrance to the pathway, diamonds were laid out like grass.

“The Rockbellion Ducal family must be the only ones who use diamonds as disposable decorations.”

“How can they be so extravagant? It’s enviable wealth.”

People envied Yuliana, who was having the wedding.

“The bride’s wedding dress is made from the feathers of the Silnoraf, which are said to be hard to obtain.”

The feathers of the Silnoraf, which look like they’re not worn, emit a mysterious and wondrous light in the sunlight. They not only protect the wearer from fire but also shield against heat and cold and have the power to reflect all magical attacks below the second circle.

‘A wedding dress made from Silnoraf wings…’

The Silnoraf, which inhabits only high cliffs, resembles a dragon. As a monster that’s hard to see or catch, obtaining its wings is naturally difficult. Naturally, the price is whatever one asks.

Cloud attended Anthus’s wedding with the young Crown Prince and Monica.

“Moca, where’s Seria? I don’t see Seria.”

“She’s coming with Maxwell Marquis Fedeurus.”

“Really?”

Monica and Cloud continued their conversation as they sat down. The bride was beautiful, and the groom was handsome.

Especially the wedding dress made from the Silnoraf wings was more splendid than imagined. Philip and Frey showed people the pinnacle of the splendor they desired. The flower decorations in the venue were not real flowers but jewels carved into flowers.

“For such expensive jewels to be lying around the wedding venue… You wouldn’t notice if someone picked up a jewel.”

“It looks like the ceremony is starting now.”

Everyone took their seats.

Holding Matthias’s hand, Yuliana appeared on the wedding aisle, looking dazzlingly beautiful.

Anthus gazed at her in awe.

Holding Yuliana’s hand and walking down the wedding aisle, Matthias’s heart was restless. He felt something welling up, sadness, and a tinge of bitterness.

“Lia, if you ever dislike Rockbellion, come running back home.”

“The Duke never does anything I dislike. He’s a kind and good person.”

“Even if a couple gets along well, fights can happen suddenly. It was the same with Rosaline and me. Louis never said anything, but he sometimes fights with Selenia.”

Yuliana listened attentively to Matthias’s words.

“After a couple fights, they need time alone. We’ll never clear out your room… You can come even if you don’t fight… just come.”

“Okay, Father. Thank you… and I love you… Thank you for raising me well. Since we have teleportation, I’ll come and go often.”

Matthias slowly walked down the wedding aisle with Yuliana, holding back tears. The pace was akin to that of a snail.

Anthus felt frustrated watching Matthias walk in so slowly. As Matthias slowly passed the middle of the wedding aisle, Anthus strode over to him.

“Father-in-law.”

Anthus smiled and extended his hand. Matthias glared at him with dagger-like eyes.

“If you ever make my daughter cry, I will have you divorced immediately.”

“Father-in-law, I’ll be the only one crying, so you don’t need to worry.”

Matthias and Anthus’s gazes clashed sharply in the air.

“Please take care of her. She’s more precious than my life.”

“Yes.”

The wedding proceeded in a solemn atmosphere.

Watching Yuliana move forward holding Anthus’s hand, Matthias and Louis’s eyes welled with tears. Sitting beside them, Selenia smiled and took care of Louis and Matthias.

The wedding of Duke Anthus Rockbellion and Lady Yuliana Loengrin ended simply as planned.

Does that mean anything was missing? No, it doesn’t. It’s just that everything ended too quickly. And Anthus said boldly,

“We enjoyed the after-party thoroughly at the engagement ceremony, so on the wedding day, we’re going to focus on the first night.”

People blushed at Anthus’s brazen remark. Watching Anthus, Cloud smirked mischievously and said,

“Duke Anthus, if you have a daughter, how about marrying her to our Ian?”

“What are you saying, Your Majesty?”

Watching Cloud covet a cute daughter resembling Yuliana, Anthus momentarily forgot he was the Emperor and almost drew his sword to slice his neck.

“If you have a child, they’ll be four years apart from our Ian. Isn’t that great?”

To Anthus, the Crown Prince’s age didn’t matter. What mattered was that the snake-like Emperor Cloud was already coveting a Rockbellion daughter!

“It’s a joyous wedding day, Your Majesty. Please refrain from comments that might make me throw a white glove.”

“It’s a happy day, so let’s talk about happy things. Do you know how cute and smart our three-year-old Ian is?”

“Your joke is too much, Your Majesty. You shouldn’t covet my daughter when we don’t even know if it’s a daughter or a son.”

“Is it wrong to covet?”

“Yes, it is. We don’t know yet if the child in the womb is a daughter or a son.”

“Where else would you find a better groom than the next Emperor… If your daughter wants it, won’t you marry her off, like Earl Loengrin?”

“I don’t want to worry about marrying off a daughter who isn’t even born yet.”

“You want the child to be a daughter, right? No, my intuition assures me it’s a daughter.”

Anthus glared at Cloud fiercely.

“The look in your eyes towards the Emperor is impure, Duke Anthus.”

“It’s just your imagination.”

“Our relationship is quite tense.”

“What relationship do we have, Your Majesty?”

“In-laws?”

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

Cloud grinned slyly. Anthus turned his head sharply away from Cloud with a displeased face.

A month after the wedding, news began to spread that Yuliana was pregnant with the Rockbellion heir. Those who had already expected it just accepted it and congratulated Yuliana on her pregnancy.

* * *

Yuliana slowly opened her eyes. She was wrapped in a cozy blanket on a soft bed. The soft texture of the blanket against her bare skin seemed to tell her to stay lying down a little longer.

“Are you awake, Lia?”

A white, firm chest was right in front of her eyes.

“Yes…”

“Sleep some more. They say you tend to sleep a lot more when you’re pregnant.”

Anthus lightly kissed Yuliana’s cheek, listening to her slightly husky voice, still not fully awake. As soon as their eyes met, Yuliana’s cheeks turned red.

“What’s the matter, Lia?”

“It’s nothing.”

It felt new. The fact that she had married Anthus…

They slept in the same room every day, fell asleep together, and woke up together. Just the fact of starting and ending the day with him made her heart swell strangely.

Yuliana pulled the blanket covering her body up to her nose.

Anthus’s blonde hair was tousled from waking up. Running his hand through his hair and kissing her cheek, his kind gaze made her heart pound.

Anthus smiled and gave Yuliana’s eyes, temples, and forehead a series of light kisses.

“Is there anything you want to eat today?”

Anthus whispered softly in Yuliana’s ear with a gentle voice.

“Mango…”

Mumbling softly for mango under the blanket, Yuliana brought a smile to Anthus’s face.

“Understood. I’ll have it prepared.”

Anthus and Yuliana enjoyed a cozy breakfast together. On the clean marble table were various fruits, including mango, which Yuliana had been enjoying lately, and a variety of mango-related dishes and juices meticulously prepared by the chefs.

Yuliana usually had a small appetite. But since becoming pregnant, her small appetite disappeared.

Fortunately, she had no morning sickness and ate well, no matter the food. Especially the sight of her cheeks puffing up and chewing while eating was so adorable it made his heart swell.

Yuliana picked up a spoon and took a bite of the steaming soup.

“Lia, how does it taste?”

“It’s delicious.”

Yuliana placed her hand on her belly and gently caressed it.

“Cora, Mommy will eat diligently, so you need to grow strong.”