Chapter 60
Thus the third trial ended with Mikhail’s victory.
After more than half a year of waiting, when Mikhail finally returned to the place of exile, Hyun was startled by how much higher Mikhail’s stature had become.
When they had first met, the boy had been about half a hand shorter than himself, but at some point, he had already surpassed Hyun’s height.
“Boys really do grow fast.”
Hyun let slip a quiet word of amazement, and Misha smiled as he replied.
“I just grew quickly.”
“Either way, it’s not wrong.”
Though Misha’s time in the place of exile was not long, in that short span Hyun grew used to leaning on Misha’s arm for support during walks.
They strolled along the lakeside, only as much as Hyun’s body could bear, and Misha told him about Count Macron. Not about the details of the trial itself, but about the heart of a father who had to leave behind a six-year-old child.
“I heard my mother also died soon after giving birth to me. I kept thinking how sorry and worried Count Macron must have felt, fearing his youngest daughter might be harmed by her older brothers and sisters. I wondered if my mother felt the same about me when she died.”
“……”
Hyun found it difficult to speak. His own birth parents had tried to kill him, and his adoptive parents, once they reclaimed their biological son, had sought to cast him aside like refuse.
“……”
After long thought, Hyun forced out the words with difficulty.
“To raise a child with love until they can stand on their own is a parent’s duty… So she must have felt sorry for not being able to raise you.”
Of course, Hyun’s own parents had not. Thankfully, the memories had long since blurred, though some words still clung in fragments: We never should have had you. Because of you, this happened. And the vivid memory of being shoved into the water with senseless resentment still remained.
Mikhail sat with Hyun’s words for a while, then absentmindedly spoke what came to mind.
“If you had married, I think you would’ve made a good father. Because you’re kind.”
At that, Hyun burst into laughter, forgetting even the fatigue in his body. Me? If anyone who had known Lee Hyun back then heard this, they would doubt their ears. Those who had relations with Lee Hyun might have admitted he was attractive as an alpha, but not one would ever have said he’d make a good father.
Even in rut, when simply smelling an omega could send him mad with arousal, Hyun had taken meticulous care to prevent conception. It was as though he dreaded the idea of some omega using a child to bind or ransom him. Not one person had realized that this came from a deep, self-loathing hatred for himself.
“Meaningless conjecture. No one would want to marry a traitor who might be dead in two years anyway.”
It was natural that Mikhail screamed inside at Hyun’s cynical laugh.
“I really meant it as just a what if, truly just if!”
“I’ve never done anything that would lead to such, and it shouldn’t happen either. If a child of mine remained in this world, I could never meet death with a clear heart.”
After that, the Duke swiftly changed the subject. But his expression looked unusually sorrowful, like someone who longed all the more for what he knew he could never have. In those lonely eyes, Mikhail could say nothing.
If there were a child who resembled him perfectly, could that loneliness be eased? But Mikhail could not find the answer to that question. Instead, with quiet tact, he let the moment pass without forcing the Duke to repeat himself.
That night, lying down in the guest room of the exile manor with Marcel, Mikhail spoke as if talking in his sleep.
“Marcel…”
What now…? Marcel asked inwardly, trembling in dread.
“Yes?”
And sure enough, the prince spewed nonsense.
“How lovely a child would be, if they looked like the Duke.”
Discussion
1 Commentts