“Actually… my symptoms aren’t really an illness.”

“Not… an illness? Then what is it?”

“The timing got delayed because you misunderstood, but to be honest, this isn’t a disease and medicine won’t cure it.”

What is he talking about now?

Throughout hearing the full story, Evelyn’s lips gathered tightly, then parted in dismay, then trembled and bit down, repeatedly changing shape.

She was dumbfounded. So it had all been lies?

She’d gone through all that unnecessary hardship because of it.

“So there was no illness at all.”

“…My symptoms. They’re not like an illness.”

Elkas answered readily with an apologetic air.

At this statement that made all her past efforts seem pointless, Evelyn was so deflated she forgot to even think about getting angry.

What was true and what wasn’t? Furious, she tried to stand up quickly, but his next words stopped her.

“Evelyn, it’s because of you.”

“…What do you mean?”

“Even if it’s not a typical illness, it’s hard to say it’s completely not one. I don’t show these symptoms just any time. The symptoms only appear when you, Evelyn, are before my eyes.”

“Why only in front of me?”

Her disbelieving voice rose sharply. Despite Evelyn’s unfriendly gaze, Elkas steadied his breathing like someone who’d been waiting for this moment and continued.

“Because I love you.”

Evelyn’s large eyes flinched and shot up.

“My symptoms only appear before the woman I love. My illness is stupidly going into heat just from seeing you.”

“…!”

Elkas belatedly brought out words he’d never properly said before.

She didn’t know that he stupidly went into heat just from seeing her.

Because he’d thoroughly hidden it.

Thinking that Evelyn had misunderstood and suffered because of it made him resent himself.

On the other hand, the fact that she’d thought of him enough to be jealous of her beloved sister made his heart tremble greatly.

“I’ve never once been interested in Lady Douglas. From the beginning, the one I proposed marriage to was you, Evelyn.”

“…Why? We first met at the ball.”

“You still don’t understand? Evelyn.”

When her jealous expression cleared, Elkas suppressed the urge to kiss her again and spoke.

A gentle hand removed her hand from the teacup and clasped it preciously.

“Don’t you recognize my face?”

He’d quietly waited, curious when Evelyn would recognize him. He hadn’t spoken first because he’d believed without doubt that someday, while conversing with him, Evelyn would remember that day.

Just then, Popo jumped up and licked Elkas’s other hand. Because of harsh experiences with people, Popo didn’t follow people, wary even of Nora. For Popo to start following Elkas first, enough to come to his table…

She’d once guessed that Popo followed Evelyn because she’d saved its life. Evelyn’s eyes, deep in thought, slowly widened.

Another person who’d saved a life.

“Oh… that… the mean brother.”

“You finally recognize me.”

Though it wasn’t a welcome answer, Elkas smiled handsomely at his wife who’d finally recognized him.

For a while, Evelyn couldn’t continue speaking. Watching her eyes trace through the past, Elkas worried whether being shocked so much today might strain her body.

As he thought, Evelyn’s head was a jumbled mess from all the stories that suddenly rushed in. 

In noble society where political marriages were common, she’d thought his choosing her was similar to picking a cookie from a plate.

Perhaps he’d felt sorry to seat a proper lady.

But she’d been completely mistaken.

From the beginning, the woman Elkas wanted to marry was her, and the start of their connection that even she didn’t know about was quite long ago.

“Do you understand now?”

The hand that interlaced fingers brought their matching rings from the wedding together.

“The woman I love is you.”

In that moment, dormant emotions came alive and her nose tingled.

“You’re my first love. Evelyn.”

Learning that she was none other than Elkas’s first love, Evelyn just blinked. 

Strangely, tears welled up at those words. Though she’d thought all her life that love wasn’t a big deal, when he told her she was pretty, she’d felt something called fluttering.

Life as his wife had been enjoyable, and from the moment she learned what it meant to be loved abundantly, every single day had been nothing but happy.

So when she thought Elkas liked her sister, she’d endlessly resented him.

But now, because of those words, feelings like hurt melted away and in their place, happiness that made her heart swell took root.

Evelyn silently looked at the ring. Then she looked up at Elkas with fresh eyes and opened her mouth.

“It’s not… a lie, right? You really only love me, right?”

“I can swear it.”

“You can’t take a mistress later.”

“That will absolutely never happen.”

“Don’t even look at other women.”

“I don’t even see other women.”

To each question, Elkas answered with a gentle smile and moved to sit beside her.

“And also…”

Her questioning voice naturally diminished. 

Feeling that her jealousy toward other women was alive and well, Elkas couldn’t hold back anymore and tilted his head to make his lovely wife look at his face.

“Also… there’s more…”

She moved her lips to find more questions to ask when large hands wrapped around her waist. 

Warm lips pressed against and separated from her eyes that had grown fresh with resentful feelings. Tucked into his embrace, his chest filled her view instead of his face.

His characteristic scent grew stronger. As she buried her forehead in his chest, firm hands gently stroked down her back.

“You are my person. My beloved wife.”

A clear yet tender tone flowed into her ear.

“And the woman who will become the mother of my child.”

His voice had grown even warmer. A ticklish title he’d never called her before. 

Elkas had called her that. Her heart pounded loudly. Only then did Evelyn smile with the relief that washed over her.

* * *

Once the relationship between the couple who’d been in a cold war for a while returned to normal, the estate returned to its previous bright appearance. 

After clearing up the misunderstanding, the two became much closer.

It was similar to before, where mainly Evelyn chattered and Elkas listened, but they didn’t stop at sharing their daily lives—they began sharing honest opinions. 

It was different from before when they’d only exchanged brief conversations in the evening.

Evelyn was shocked to belatedly learn that the reason Elkas had been busy was the possibility that remnants expelled from the territory might threaten her. 

She also apologized for her mistake, since her childish behavior over a trivial misunderstanding had instead caused Elkas great worry.

Of course, she didn’t forget to tattle, asking him to punish the fraudulent inn couple. His expression upon hearing about her hardships was extremely dark. 

At least to Elkas’s eyes, meeting his wife with a shabby appearance and haggard face seemed quite shocking. 

After hearing everything about how Evelyn nearly experienced terrible things, Elkas immediately ran outside.

Though he didn’t explode in anger, she later heard from Penny that he’d demolished that inn.

Not only that, Elkas severely protested the Council of Elders’ official answer that cats were the cause of the great plague, and after the conclusion came that there was no evidence, he completely overturned the previous official announcement. 

Even so, saying there was a need to change people’s perceptions, he proposed something called a Pet Cruelty Prevention Act and informed her he planned to create a park where people and pets could use together.

When she heard there would never again be people carelessly catching and killing weak animals, Evelyn was so happy she threw herself into his arms. 

Evelyn, who hadn’t known he was thoughtful to that extent, was even moved by his humble attitude.

Elkas, who granted everything she wanted, also faithfully helped with revenge. Caroline wasn’t excluded from those targets, and he’d apparently cut off the family’s funds so she couldn’t even buy a single dress for a while. 

Even her secret gossiping was revealed, and she couldn’t even get near high society anymore. 

After that, she would fall on her own—Elkas informed her of this rather brutal statement with a gentle smile.

To Evelyn, whose heart softened wondering if he needed to go that far, he answered that Caroline’s crime of touching the Duchess of Berenberg, who received everyone’s affection, deserved hanging right now, and she closed her mouth.

In conclusion, Caroline was punished and a beautiful park was created on the empty lot where the fraudulent inn had been.

Recognizing that the root of the trivial misunderstanding was lack of communication, the two had frequent conversations with no room for resentment to form.

Thus the time the couple spent together increased greatly, but no one found it tedious. Of course, Elkas’s heart still melted due to Evelyn’s actions that preceded words.

“Kids!”

“Evelyn, please be careful…”

Elkas watched with anxious eyes as she rolled on the grass embracing tangled cats, then smiled with a face that said there was nothing to be done.

Because the woman he loved was smiling brightly.

Sometimes forgetting she was pregnant and running around, when her activity level suddenly increased, his heart would drop, but seeing her lively appearance would make him smile again. 

He only wished for her to always smile without worry.

Elkas stayed close by his wife’s side like before, but no longer needed to use previous excuses. He’d honestly told her that just watching Evelyn smile quietly made uncontrollable l*st rise.

He’d thought she might get angry, but Evelyn surprisingly chose to let it pass lightly.

<From now on, don’t act—tell me honestly.>

<Even in broad daylight, should I say I get aroused just seeing Evelyn?>

<…What?>

<Next time I’ll honestly say I want to bite and s*ck your n*ked white body as much as I can.>

He couldn’t forget her eyes that rounded in surprise when he said that. Though her small hand did tap his chest. Evelyn shyly nodded.

Consequently, it was nothing less than a happy gift for him.

Elkas beckoned with his index finger to call the butler and was giving instructions to level that grass more evenly when suddenly Evelyn screamed.

Startled, Elkas rushed over to find Evelyn clutching something thin tightly in both hands, yelling at some cat.