I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 140

“This child coming to us is a miracle.”

Ben spoke in a low but gentle voice.

“Isn’t this a precious baby with a mother who is like my own daughter and a father who is like my own son? I have to give it my all in any way I can. Isabella’s doing all the loud, showy, and costly things to make a fuss, so I’ll do this.”

“…Thank you, Father.”

Judith bowed her head and sincerely thanked him.

“Then just tell me where Ekian’s personal study is. Just give me the direction. Go rest now.”

Ben, thinking only of Judith’s condition, spoke as if it were nothing.

But she couldn’t guide him to Ekian’s personal study right away. Judith shook her head and said, “But the materials haven’t even been organized yet. Just sorting them will take forever. I’ll arrange them later and send the documents to the capital.”

Ben shrugged.”It’s not like I have anything to do here. I can do it myself.”

“Pardon? You, Father? Personally? No, you can just have a servant do it.”

“If it were my own matter, I would. But since it concerns my grandchild, I want to do it myself.”

But truthfully, it wasn’t something worth Ben’s time. He was already busy with duties in the Mayus duchy. He wasn’t someone who needed to handle these tedious tasks.

“Honestly, I probably won’t be able to sleep tonight unless I finish sorting the lineage.”

“Pardon? But you’ve already done so much today. And you must still be recovering from the journey.”

“I’m the type who has to get things done quickly once I’ve made up my mind.”

That was true. Judith knew well how he worked.

He wasn’t called the ‘Iron-Blooded Duke’ for nothing. Once he started something, he had to finish it as quickly as possible.

Usually, that meant the people under him suffered along with him.

But this time, he was volunteering to do the work alone. Simply because it involved his grandchild and had to be handled with his own hands.

It was a truly grateful gesture, though not exactly efficient. Ben muttered offhandedly, “Of course, if I knew the gender, I’d only have to check people of that gender, so it would cut the work in half…”

Judith sighed inwardly.

Ben was not the kind of person who could be stopped once he set his mind on something.

He would undoubtedly go through all the lineage records about the Last Priestess in Ekian’s study tonight, organize all the names into a list, and only then go to sleep.

And starting tomorrow, he would begin investigating each of their lives one by one. That’s how he worked.

After thoroughly learning the life of every person, he would choose the name he most wanted to give the child—so there wouldn’t be a case where a name that ‘seemed nice’ turned out to belong to someone who lived a tragic life.

“Um… Father.”

And so Judith reluctantly opened her mouth.

“It’s a boy.”

“Hm?”

“This child, it’s a boy. I only found out right before the wedding……”

“What? A boy?”

Ben broke into a wide smile.

“Congratulations, Judith! A boy, you say? Then he’ll grow up like a brother to Karl. If he’s even half as good as Karl was to his brother, raising this child will be a breeze!”

“Yes… The Young Duke said something similar.”

“Hahaha, Karl must’ve been thrilled! I’m glad I brought all of Ekian’s old toys!”

Overjoyed, Ben even patted Judith on the shoulder.

‘I couldn’t help it.’

‘I couldn’t help it.’

Judith smiled back, thinking to herself,

‘I really had no choice with Father. There’s no need for him to waste time making a list of unnecessary female figures.

Anyone would’ve done the same in this situation.’

Ekian would just have to understand. It was only a matter of a few hours, anyway.

***

At that time, Ekian was having a conversation with Alteion.

“You have to stay at your post. That’s only proper.”

Alteion said while sipping wine elegantly.

“Do you know how difficult pregnancy is? The Grand Duchess naturally has to turn in early and rest.”

Melanie, too, was heavily pregnant and had already gone to rest long ago. Though there was still some time until her due date, it wouldn’t be surprising if the baby came at any moment.

“You have to be completely attentive. Besides, you weren’t even there during the early stages of her pregnancy. Imagine how much the mother of your child must have missed you and struggled.”

“That’s my intention. I must do my best.”

Ekian nodded slowly as he replied.

Alteion noticed a trace of unease on Ekian’s face and laughed aloud.

“Don’t tell me—you’re already missing your wife?”

“Well, a little.”

But many people were hovering nearby, hoping to greet Ekian. With the Emperor at his side, no one dared to approach, but there were plenty who wished to get acquainted with the new Grand Duke.

All of them had traveled from afar to celebrate their marriage, so it was only proper and courteous for Ekian to remain at the event until the end.

“The Grand Duchess will understand. She’s kind and thoughtful.”

Alteion tried to comfort him that way. But those words only darkened Ekian’s expression further.

“It’s not that she’s kind and understanding. She just accepts everything.”

“Hm?”

“Your Majesty, to be honest, I’m sometimes afraid. No, in truth, I’m always anxious.”

“About what?”

“That Judith didn’t accept me, but merely accepted the situation.”

Alteion grew a bit somber. He could more or less guess what Ekian meant.

In many ways, Judith had little choice but to return to Ekian, even if she had reservations.

He was, after all, the father of her child, and everyone who cherished her was connected to Ekian. Above all, even in the new Grand Duchy, her talents were in demand.

Surely Judith had concluded that standing beside Ekian—more out of reason than emotion—was the best choice for everyone.

“Maybe she married me again just to avoid putting my parents, Karl, and Your Majesties in a difficult position.”

That, too, was a fair point. After all, at this wedding, everyone appeared happy.

“If she showed even a hint of resentment or mistrust, I’d actually be more reassured. But Judith is always so calm.”

Ekian continued in a low voice, “No matter how I think about it, it should be difficult for her to just move on—but she acts as if her emotions don’t matter at all… At this rate, if something goes wrong again, I feel like she’ll just discard me and leave without hesitation.”

At that, Alteion jumped and denied it. “That’s an excessively pessimistic thought. Feeling anxious because your wife seems calm—what kind of reasoning is that? Of course, you’ve earned a bit of mistrust, I’ll admit.”

Ekian’s expression, which had started to brighten slightly, darkened again at Alteion’s final remark. Realizing he had added fuel to the fire, Alteion quickly offered advice.

“Married life isn’t that simple. If the Grand Duchess appears comfortable, it means she really is. Otherwise, there would be friction somewhere. If something’s wrong, it always shows in some way. Don’t torment yourself with vague, unprovable doubts. Understand?”

Then, with a chuckle, he added as if joking, “And really, do you think she married you because of someone else? Even if that were so, you’re the husband. In the end, the one who’s always by her side and hears what’s truly on her mind first—is you, Ekian. That’s what it means to be a husband.”

Just then—

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!”

Someone suddenly called out urgently for Alteion. When they turned around, it was one of Melanie’s maids.

“Her Majesty the Empress, huff, huff, she’s… huff!”

She was so out of breath from running that she couldn’t even speak properly.

“She’s, she’s having labor pains, huff, huff… right now!”