Sickly? Husband's Contractual Wife

Chapter 98

He seemed both relieved and disappointed.

“Disappointed?”

It was a baffling situation.

Why would he be disappointed?

He had openly stated that it wouldn’t be good for me to have a child.

Yet, what was that inscrutable expression on his face?

“Well, I guess that settles it.”

Amoide was the first to stand up.

He then looked at Camilla, who was still seated and catching her breath.

“Let’s leave now.”

“This time… this time for sure…”

Camilla muttered, still seemingly in shock.

Everyone in the room, except for Amoide, was watching Camilla warily.

“Yes, it’s come to this.”

Camilla’s eyes were filled with defiance.

What words would come from those lips?

A chill ran down my spine from a primal fear.

“Let’s quickly prepare for the next ritual.”

As soon as Camilla spoke, Amoide and I looked at each other simultaneously.

“Greta, call the astrologer.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Greta responded quickly and left.

“Let’s see who wins, the stars or me.”

* * *

“You said the stars of fertility and inheritance shone brightly, didn’t you, Latus?”

“Yes, that’s correct. My readings have never been wrong. A new life is definitely supposed to be born in this mansion…”

Latus’s expression was hard to see as he had pulled his hood low over his face, but he clearly looked flustered.

He hadn’t been able to say a word in response to Camilla’s barrage of questions and kept muttering about the stars of fertility.

I sat in front of the astrologer, just waiting for this time to pass quickly.

I must have thought a hundred times about going to see the kittens Noir had given birth to once I left here.

“Hmm…”

Latus closed his eyes and placed his hands on the crystal ball.

After a moment, a faint light began to emit from the crystal ball.

How does he do that?

“The stars of fertility… definitely shone. It’s strange. You were supposed to have at least five children…”

Wait, five?

“Five?” I looked up and asked.

“Yes, they definitely shone. That’s why I predicted you would have an heir this time.”

“Charlatan,” Camilla said with a face as cold as ice.

“Wait, did you say five?”

“Yes.”

“…That’s referring to the kittens.”

“Excuse me?”

“Five kittens were born, Latus. Were you perhaps seeing the stars of the kittens?” I said, imitating his hand movements over the crystal ball.

“Kittens were born?”

I nodded silently.

“Then I was not wrong, Madam Camilla.”

“What?”

“I said that new life would be born in this mansion; I never specifically said it would be the Duke’s.”

For a moment, the face of the ever-confident Camilla faltered.

“But…”

“I did see the stars of fertility. You have indeed been blessed with five new lives.”

He was now sitting more upright and looking quite self-assured.

“So, what should we do?”

“We must wait until the next time the stars of fertility appear.”

“And when is that?”

Finally losing her patience, Camilla shouted. Latus placed his hands over the crystal ball again.

“Hmm… It will be… in two weeks. When the next full moon rises.”

I listened intently, not missing a word of his nonsense.

“The Duchess is blessed by the moon’s destiny. Just as the moon shines by reflecting the sunlight, you will shine beautifully like the moon.”

“…”

“So, during the time when the moon’s power is strong, your chances of conception will be higher.”

“Ah, I see.”

Whenever the astrologer said such things, I always had the same thought.

…He sounds like a fraud.

Every single word sounded like a scam.

“The next full moon… got it. If you’re not certain by then, I’ll make you one of those stars up there.”

With that, Camilla gestured to Greta, who dropped a heavy pouch of money onto the table with a thud.

“I’m going to rest now.”

Camilla looked at me with a piercing gaze as she spoke.

“Keep yourself clean. Don’t disturb Amoide and disrupt the precious energy of the stars.”

“Yes, Mother.”

I managed to smile as I replied.

After Camilla and Greta left the dimly lit room, I was left alone with Latus.

As I stood up, his murmuring caught my attention.

“Hmm… When the light that reaches the moon from the sun is blocked, the moon will lose that light.”

“What… do you mean?”

I wished he would speak more clearly.

The moon, the sun, and all these stars.

“Duchess, your fate depends on how much you can make the sun shine. If the sun loses its light, the moon will also disappear.”

“…”

He’s saying something about me being the moon and someone else being the sun, or something like that.

“So make sure the sun doesn’t go out. Right now, it’s very precarious.”

The rings on his fingers sparkled in the sunlight.

Red, blue, and purple jewels were set in them, and as he moved his fingers, they reflected light in a rainbow of colors.

Mesmerized by the light, I blinked and then snapped back to reality.

“The sun is going out?”

“The sun never loses its light.”

What kind of nonsense is this?

Even though I thought he was a fraud, I found myself asking more questions.

“Then who is trying to extinguish it? If the sun goes out, is there no way to relight it?”

“I only read the stars as they pass by, but I can’t provide solutions.”

His voice was more serious than ever before.

“Just know that things are very precarious right now.”

Was it my imagination, or did the inside of his hood momentarily flash with light?

Leaving only these cryptic words behind, Latus carefully cradled the crystal ball and disappeared.

* * *

Meow.

The kittens nestled in the basket whimpered, as if they could smell the warm milk.

“Where’s Noir gone off to again?”

Noir had been leaving frequently, knowing that there were plenty of people to take care of the kittens in her absence. Whenever I went to find her, she was usually basking in the warm sunlight in the garden or lazily wandering around.

“It’s amazing to watch them grow like this.”

I reached into the basket filled with kittens. The soft fur brushing against my fingertips brought a smile to my face.

As I fed the kittens milk one by one, Rona watched them in fascination.

“They were so tiny when they were born.”

“Babies grow up fast.”

I answered while feeding another kitten.

“Have you raised any before?”

“I’ve seen them grow up. There are five of them, after all.”

“Do you miss them a lot?”

“Yes.”

Seeing them even once a month is better than nothing, but it doesn’t completely fill the void.

“Every time I see them, they’ve grown a lot. Especially Austin.”

The kitten’s fur reminded me of my youngest sibling’s hair.

“You’re going to see them tomorrow, right?”

“Yes.”

Time had already flown by so quickly.

“Does the master know?”

“No.”

There wasn’t really any need to tell him. Visiting my siblings was entirely my own affair.

“Ask Jean to pack some snacks.”

“Yes, I’ll have her prepare a variety.”

* * *

“Is everything ready?”

“Yes.”

Rona nodded, lifting the basket filled with snacks.

“Then go ahead. They’ll be waiting.”

“Hold on a moment.”

I stopped Rona, who was about to leave.

“Wait in the carriage. I’ll meet with Amoide first.”

Rona nodded and left with the basket. I hurried to Amoide’s quarters.

Standing outside his room, I took a deep breath. Since finding out I wasn’t pregnant, I hadn’t met with him alone. Why was I so nervous?

Creak.

I opened the door just enough to see Amoide completely engrossed in something he was holding.

‘What is that?’

As I looked closer, I realized he was holding a small sword.

“Amoide.”

He looked up at me in surprise.

Oh, he really didn’t notice me?

“What are you looking at so intently?”

“Nothing.”

He quickly tried to sheathe the small sword he was holding.

“If it’s nothing, let me see.”

I reached out to grab the sheath, and he hesitated, trying to take it from me. But then he stopped, realizing I was holding the blade rather than the handle.

The soft leather and cloth around the blade could still be easily cut by the sharp edge.

“You could get hurt.”

He warned lightly.

“Then let go.”

Why was he hiding it so carefully? I felt a strange determination and an overwhelming curiosity.

“So, show me, okay?”

Why was he hiding it so tightly? Finally, after a brief struggle, Amoide gave in.

I pulled out the contents of the sheath.

“A sword… It’s quite small, isn’t it?”

The finely crafted blade, inlaid with jewels, looked exquisite but also somewhat strange.

“It’s so small, it’s like a toy.”

I turned the sword over in my hands. The more I looked at it, the more it seemed like a toy sword children would play with. But the difference was that both the hilt and blade were real.

The sword emitted a striking glow. The finely honed blade looked sharp enough to cut at the slightest touch.

“But it seems small for you to wield.”

Even though it was a real sword, it seemed too small for him. It was not a dagger but also not nearly as large as a longsword.

“This was the first sword my father gave me when I started learning to use a sword.”

“Ah…”

So that’s why it was so small.

“Usually, training starts before one becomes a squire. I’ve used it since then.”

I imagined him as a young child. What must Amoide have been like when he first held this sword? Ten years old? Twelve? Perhaps even younger. Thinking about how he had been living with a sword as part of him since such a young age made my chest ache a little.

“It’s a very fine sword. I don’t know much about these things, but… I can tell it’s a good one.”

A wave of guilt washed over me for having handled such a precious item so carelessly.

“It’s probably a treasured… possession. I’m sorry for handling it without permission.”

I pushed the sword back towards him. Watching my actions, Amoide sighed lightly and spoke.

“You don’t have to be.”

He picked up the sword and put it back into its sheath. I watched him, wondering, ‘So why did he take it out all of a sudden?’ If it wasn’t for playing around with it…

‘A sword from his father?’

The reason for suddenly taking out the sword from his childhood was obvious. He had been hoping for a child.

A sudden thought crossed my mind, and I asked him, “Amoide, were you hoping to give this to the baby?”

“What are you talking about?”

He responded with a frown, avoiding my gaze and fiddling with the sword.

“I was just looking at it.”

“Oh, really?”