Kolabe Perroto, free from overtime, happily went home, leaving behind the small regret of not being able to burn Annecy’s face.
Annecy looked coldly at the spot where Kolabe had disappeared, but soon regained his usual smile at Goyo’s call.
The bedroom was on the top floor of the mansion, the 4th floor, and was connected by a carpet and portal from the central staircase on the 1st floor.
Annecy said only a few registered people could use it, and newly registered Goyo in the portal.
No matter how big the mansion was, having a portal inside the mansion seemed unusual.
‘Marrying a wizard isn’t so bad,’ Goyo thought.
At the end of the 4th-floor hallway, there were two similar-looking doors facing each other. As with everything in the mansion, the doors were intricately decorated, but by now, Goyo was not surprised.
“This is the bedroom.”
“Oh, my bedroom. Is Annecy’s bedroom the one opposite?”
“What?”
“Huh?”
The two people tilted their heads and looked at each other in confusion.
“I thought I knew enough since I stayed in Lunaburn for a year, but do couples use separate bedrooms in the capital?”
“Oh, not really.”
“Then, is my wife expressing her wish to use separate rooms?”
“Um, not exactly…”
A short silence fell, and Goyo’s lips trembled slightly. Her neck felt warmly hot, and she was grateful for her long hair.
Having been accustomed to using separate rooms when married to Terio, Goyo thought she would do the same with Annecy.
Seeing his confused expression, she realized that wasn’t his intention, but feeling a bit embarrassed, her fingertips twitched for no reason.
Annecy’s gaze briefly glanced at Goyo’s now reddish neck. Pretending not to notice, he soon smiled and said,
“Then, you may use the same bedroom.”
“Oh, yes, sure.”
“It’s an honor, my lady.”
Goyo thought it was a very strange conversation.
Annecy personally opened the door, wondering where all the many employees were placed.
Come to think of it, she only received greetings from the mansion staff, and all the guidance was done by Annecy Bethelgius.
It couldn’t be that he was idle, and it certainly wasn’t that he suddenly wanted to tour his mansion, so he must be acting as his mask dictates.
It was a meticulously kind mask, bitter enough to taste.
“There’s only one bed.”
“It’s the couple’s bedroom. Are you shy?”
“Huh?”
“It seems my lady is quite shy.”
So that’s why the separate room talk came up. Annecy leaned against the wall beside the door and smiled slyly. It was an intentionally obvious smile.
Why would someone so innocent in this area try to tease me with that topic? Unfortunately, Goyo Bethelgius wasn’t an innocent person.
“It seems more burdensome for you than me.”
“Me? No matter how fancy the bed is, I’ve always seen such things…”
“No. Not the bed. Sharing the bed. And more than that?”
It was meant as a tease, but it worked far better than expected.
Annecy tried to act nonchalant, but he failed as he choked and had a dry cough, looking quite embarrassed.
‘I won.’
Goyo decided to bring up a difficult topic now that they had touched on the subject. Since the wedding was over, it was something that couldn’t be delayed any longer.
After all, their marriage was one of convenience, and even before coming back from the past, Annecy and Melissy did not have children, so she didn’t think he would want any.
However, Annecy didn’t know that Goyo was aware of this. Asking seemed natural, so Goyo spoke directly.
“Do you need children?”
“…Pardon?”
“Since we’re married, it’s a natural question, but I’m not against having a conjugal relationship. However, I think we should be careful about planning children, so I’d like to know your thoughts.”
Annecy was at a loss for words. Even in a marriage of convenience, a marriage was still a marriage, so he had thought about the bed.
To be honest, he still remembered casually dismissing it as something everyone did, nothing special.
It wasn’t that he took the relationship lightly.
Growing up, he’d seen people who easily engaged in relationships several times, but Annecy didn’t want to be like them.
He wasn’t trying to belittle their sexual values. However, Annecy Bethelgius believed there should be more responsibility in the act.
In fact, to put it bluntly, it was more of a fear than responsibility.
He was convinced he was born out of a mistake.
The former emperor loved Annecy’s mother, but probably didn’t want a bastard. Yet Annecy was born, and so.
Annecy Bethelgius married Goyo Rubiette. Based on Annecy’s title, Goyo moved from Rubiette to Bethelgius and changed her surname.
To anyone looking, it wasn’t strange for them to have a relationship. He lost the excuse to avoid a responsible act.
He didn’t intend to have children. He had avoided relationships and, more than that, loving someone due to vague fear and reluctance.
However, he had near-perfect contraception through magic.
Using magic for contraception was rare, but he felt it was necessary and planned to do so.
Their marriage wouldn’t last long anyway. Saying they would have children later would be understandable. Even if Goyo said she wanted children, it was easy to ensure they didn’t conceive.
Annecy could take responsibility for Goyo Rubiette’s life but not for Goyo Bethelgius’s life. Therefore, not having children was the best option.
He thought so without considering Goyo’s opinion. Logically speaking, Annecy still believed he wasn’t wrong.
One couldn’t reach his current position by considering others. He climbed by cutting off countless heads and using their corpses as stepping stones.
If he had any altruism, he would have given up long ago or been buried under a pile of decapitated bodies.
From a pragmatic perspective, it was better for Goyo as well. Raising a child without someone to share the responsibility would be extremely difficult.
Especially since there were no emotions between the two of them.
The odds of Goyo Bethelgius wanting a child were extremely low. Even if she did say so, it would likely be out of a sense of duty.
So why did it bother him? Having never been disturbed by emotions in his life, that small irritation was intensely bothersome to Annecy.
The irritation was named Goyo Bethelgius. Her name rolling on his tongue suddenly felt unfamiliar.
After a slightly prolonged silence, he spoke. Neither he nor the pensive Goyo noticed how awkward his smiling face appeared.
“No, I think it’s… too early.”
“Then I’ll take contraceptives. Should I tell Lucullui for the medicine I want?”
“No, no, Goyo. I think there was a misunderstanding. I meant to include that part as well. So.”
“Relationship?”
“…Yes, that.”
If they didn’t have a relationship, there would be no need to discuss children. Thinking that their time together wouldn’t be long anyway, Annecy still felt like he was making excuses.
“Even if it’s a marriage of convenience, I think it would be difficult for both you and me at this early stage.”
“Yes, there’s no rush.”
Seeing Goyo agree so readily, Annecy felt relieved. After hesitating a bit, he added,
“It’s better not to take contraceptives if possible. They’re not good for your health.”
Annecy added an unnecessary comment.
* * *
Despite sharing the same bed, the two slept with their backs turned to each other, feeling strange and unfamiliar.
Although they were far enough apart not to touch, Goyo was unknowingly tense until she fell asleep from exhaustion.
Much later, in the deep of night, Annecy’s eyelids quietly opened.
Annecy glanced at the sleeping Goyo and carefully got out of bed. Soon, the bedroom door closed behind him.
* * *
“This way.”
After finishing his guidance, Exer opened the iron door. The heavy, twisting sound echoed as Annecy walked through the open door.
He entered what seemed to be a warehouse. It looked like it hadn’t been touched by human hands for a long time; rust was visible everywhere, and the small windows were covered with metal plates, preventing any view outside.
As the door opened, moonlight crept in, casting a dim light inside. Following him, a few human shadows stretched long.
Bang, as Exer closed the iron door, Annecy snapped his fingers.
In the pitch-darkness, a soft light gathered in the center, illuminating the faces of those present.
Standing upright were three or four men, with Exer and Annecy who had just entered. All eyes were focused on a middle-aged man bound and kneeling.
“It’s been a while.”
“Who… who are you…”
The man, squinting against the newfound light, finally opened his eyes and gasped in shock.
“Count Eliom, right? Judging by your reaction, you seem to recognize my face.”
“Annecy… Prince Annecy…?”
“Oh dear, calling a bastard ‘Prince’ is problematic. You must not know my name. Allow me to introduce myself, Annecy Bethelgius.”
Annecy, kneeling to lower himself, still looked down at the count, who was lower than him. He wore a gentle smile, but no one would say it was a friendly one, seeing his cold eyes.
Count Eliom’s eyes widened. You’re that marquis!?
“Yes, I’m that marquis. The commoner who became a marquis by achieving great merit in one go, the Bethelgius Marquis. Quite a novel-worthy setting, isn’t it? I didn’t think you wouldn’t know, you must have been hiding very well, Count Eliom of high authority…”
“Stop talking nonsense…! You’re trying to mock me! I sold you to a slave merchant, how…”
“Unfortunately, it was Valverde who bought me.”
How a slave is used depends on the buyer, doesn’t it?
Although not fully understanding, Count Eliom roughly grasped the situation, his eyes darting around.
With a trembling voice, he barely managed to speak.
“Why… why did you kidnap me? I don’t know anything. It was all Rubiette… It was Rubiette’s doing!”
“Of course, you wouldn’t know. It was all Rubiette’s doing.”
Trying to complicate matters, whispering about the bastard to the empress, that too was all the work of Duke Rubiette.
As Count Eliom opened his mouth to protest, his face was kicked.
Guh! The count, thrown to the floor, spat blood. Unable to endure the pain in his face, he writhed on the ground.
Annecy took a step forward and looked down at him coldly.
“My patience is short. Let’s not resist, shall we?”
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