I Married the Mad Duke Who Killed My Husband - Chapter 102 - Side Story 2

“I’ll do a medical examination after we finish eating.”

“Asil?!”

We returned from a long, enjoyable real honeymoon. Far from suffering or getting hurt, I’ve been enjoying daily life with even smoother skin for about two weeks. It’s about time for my suspicions to solidify into certainty.

“Where, where does it hurt? Don’t tell me you’ve been hiding it again. I should have noticed earlier……”

“Stop it, it’s not that.”

“Asilia.”

Cassion, who rushed over like he was about to fly instead of sitting down at the dining table, was cute as he inspected my body all over. But I’m a bit embarrassed as he can’t seem to calm down and just keeps examining my complexion with furrowed brows.

“Really, I’m fine, so don’t make that face. Nothing’s hurt. Nothing’s painful either.”

“Then why are you getting an examination? Moreover, for you to bring it up first, it must be something serious.”

“No, I really……”

“Asilia. Please.”

Cassion’s face turned pale as if he had fallen from the peak of happiness to the depths of despair in an instant. I knew this was trouble. Moreover, the servants who were setting the table also sensed the seriousness and looked at me with tearful eyes, ignoring their surroundings as the Duke pleaded. It’s not like that.

“No…… no, I’m.”

Damn. I should have waited until after we finished eating.

“I’m not sick, I think I might be pregnant.”

Isn’t that too direct to say so soon after returning from our honeymoon? Right?

“……Huh?”

“Pregnant.”

“……Uh……”

“Sigh. We’ll hear the examination results together. Cassion.”

His pale face instantly turns into a dumb expression.

I deliberately ignored the sight of the Duke’s household members, who all turned their heads sideways in unison, pretending not to notice, and buried my face in my dishes.

I definitely meant to say it somewhere quiet.

***

“It is indeed a pregnancy.”

“As I thought.”

“Yes. Congratulations.”

It was the confirmation of pregnancy exchanged in the most unenthusiastic voices in the world.

“You noticed early, Madam; it’s not even been a month yet. Did you have any symptoms?”

“No, not really……”

“……You don’t need to say more.”

I scratched my cheek while leaving Cassion staring at me blankly even after hearing the answer. Well, both Cassion and I are healthy, and after the honeymoon was what it was, there were no signs of my period coming. And, well, there’s a sort of intuition.

“Then I should explain the precautions for Madam and Your Grace from now on…… but it seems His Grace isn’t hearing anything right now. May I come back in the afternoon?”

“Do that.”

“Thank you, Madam.”

The physician, who had been desperately trying to avoid looking at her dazed master’s face and focusing only on me, quickly backed out of the room.

I lowered my sleeve that I had rolled up for the examination, leaned back on the sofa, and pressed Cassion’s cheek firmly. There was no reaction.

“Cassion.”

“……”

“Hey, husband. Snap out of it.”

I even pressed his nose firmly, but there was no reaction. How can someone still look handsome even when their nose is being pressed?

“A dream……”

I might as well bite him. As I was wondering when he would open his mouth, enjoying the view of every corner of Cassion’s face without getting bored, his well-shaped lips parted. Surprisingly, his voice was slightly trembling.

“I…… had a dream.”

Oh, a prophetic dream?! If you had one, you should have said so earlier!

“What kind of dream?”

“A very small pink……”

Pink? Pink color? That’s the color of my hair. Was it like a rabbit? Without realizing it, I shook Cassion, whose eyes were still dazed as if lost in a dream. Tell me quickly!

“Very small? A sparrow? A rabbit? Ah, what was it! Did you hold it in your arms or something?”

“I did. It came rushing very quickly and powerfully.”

……Powerfully? Something seems off.

“A wild boar is still a wild boar, even if it’s small.”

“What?”

“It was a spirited baby wild boar with pink fuzz like dandelion seeds. I thought it was… not trying to snuggle into my arms but trying to attack me.”

What is this, really a prophetic dream? A pink wild boar charging at him?

“But it didn’t have tusks yet, and something cotton candy-like reminded me of you, so when I held it…”

“Did you think I was a pig?”

“No, no, that’s not what I meant. Asilia. You’re not a pig, but the wild boar resembled you and was very cute.”

……I guess he hasn’t come to his senses yet.

After that, Cassion kept telling crazy stories about holding the wild boar’s front legs and showing it flower fields, so I just half-listened while admiring his handsome face that never gets old no matter how many times I look at it.

I notice his red eyes, seemingly more intense with a hint of moisture, slowly looking at my belly once, then my face once.

“Pregnant….. a baby.”

“Your baby and mine. You can touch it, it’s fine. Though there aren’t any signs yet.”

Does he want to touch my belly? Or hold me? I smiled while grabbing his hand that was hovering uncertainly in the air.

“No, we can’t. We need to be careful, Asilia.”

But he, rarely, no, perhaps for the first time since we met pulled his hand away from mine. Then, he tightly clenched his fists and placed them properly on his knees, as if determined not to touch me.

“No……”

Are you already putting the baby first? I almost let out a slight disappointment unconsciously, but I was speechless when I saw Cassion pulling nearby blankets and covering me as gently as a feather with trembling hands.

“I’m not sure, but shouldn’t we be careful in early pregnancy? You rode horses during our honeymoon. Are you really not hurting anywhere? Even slightly tired?”

“No, we just had the examination earlier.”

“That was just to check if there’s a baby. I’m worried about your condition. I think we should have another examination. If I had known you were struggling yesterday…”

“Stop it. I’m fine.”

I barely managed to stop his words that were about to slip into inappropriate territory, moved by how Cassion’s initial surprise and interest in the baby quickly turned into worry about me.

I want to hold onto this touching moment a bit longer. They say maternal instinct comes first when you become a mother, but I guess I still prioritize myself and Cassion the most.

“Baby, I’m sorry.”

“Asilia.”

While I was unconsciously rubbing my belly, mentally telling our baby to cover its eyes and ears if it could hear my thoughts, Cassion kneels before me with a solemn face. What now?

“I should have said this first. I… I showed an embarrassing side of myself because it was too sudden.”

“It’s okay, you were cute getting flustered over our baby.”

“Asilia. Though a baby resembling you would be incredibly lovely…”

What, has that pink baby wild boar already become our child?

“Still, you will always be my top priority. I’m sorry if this sounds disappointing, but I want to always take care of you before the baby. Please.”

“No, what did I do……. I value my body too, you know. I’ll take good care of both the baby and myself.”

“Promise me you’ll put yourself first, Asil. The baby is a blessing, but you are my miracle and everything. Eat what you want to eat, do what you want to do. I don’t want to see you suppressing yourself for the baby’s sake.”

Really, to that extent? Still, when pregnant, one should be careful about food choices and avoid excessive activities…

“I can see exactly what you’re thinking, Asil.”

“No, that’s not…”

“You’ve always been like this. You say you put yourself first, but when something happens, you worry about others.”

“When did I ever? That’s not true.”

“It’s scarier that you’re not aware of it, Asilia.”

“No, really, I…”

“What would you do if I died?”

What nonsense is that?! The moment I heard it, an inexplicable emotion rushed to my head, making me jump up from my seat, but Cassion just sat there silently looking at me.

“Don’t say such things. Don’t even imagine it.”

“See? You think of me before yourself.”

“That’s different! How does loving you mean I don’t care about myself!”

I slipped into informal speech in my excitement, but I don’t care. Loving Cassion doesn’t mean I’m fine with anything happening to me!

“But at crucial moments, if you had to weigh my life against yours, you’d remove yours from the scale. You’re the one who rushed to the battlefield with nothing, after all.”

“That’s all in the past! Besides, wasn’t it more of a one-sided battle than a war, given how superior our side was? I understand what you’re trying to say, but you’ve gone too far, Cassion.”

“No. I’m….. afraid of what if you prioritize the baby over yourself like you do with me. Even now, seeing you angry makes me scared it might strain your body.”

Are you treating pregnancy like it’s some incurable disease? You seemed so happy earlier talking about pink wild boars!

“I can’t imagine a world without you. If I can’t put you as the top priority, think of it as me dying the moment something happens to you. That’s the truth.”

“Ah, I told you not to imagine such things!”

I turned around and sat down, letting out a shout along with a huff. I understand what he means but! Still! Our mood was so good. Coming back from a lovely honeymoon and tada, we’re having a baby! Couldn’t we just be happy about it?

“……Asil……”

“Ah, enough! Since I need to be so very careful, I’ll sleep separately today! Rest well or whatever!”

It was our first marital fight.