Rather Than The Son, I’ll Take The Father
Rather Than The Son, I’ll Take The Father - Chapter 90

Aedis heard Maevia, who was about to follow him, pay attention to Regen again.

“Oh, don’t kick your blanket.”

It was rather fortunate.

He had no idea what kind of expression he was making now.

If he had to meet Maevia, who had woken up in this state, it seemed that he would not be able to maintain his composure.

-Kiss me please.

Her bright and pure voice.

The hand that tapped her cheek as if asking him to do it there.

It was still clear to him what had happened at the bell tower.

It was the first time in his life that he was so embarrassed.

It’s a terrifying story for Maevia to hear, but he never thought she’d ask for something like that.

Aedis was a human until the age of thirteen. It was common for him to lie on the sickbed.

He received and ate the water, food, and medicine his brother offered him without a doubt.

And by the time time passed and he no longer considered himself human, he tried not to get close to anyone.

When even his revenge against his brother failed, this tendency became even stronger.

At that time, he spent his free time in the northern part of the uninhabitable, pure white wilderness.

One day 500 years ago, he was in the North.

At that time, the first Grand Duke Kalakis came and asked for help, saying that he wanted to make this place his own territory, and Aedis accepted the condition that they should not completely destroy the place where the beasts were staying.

The northern part will also become the land of humans someday, so he thought it would be better to leave it to someone who has the least amount of mercy even if it was a fool. Although the first Grand Duke insisted that he was called a hero and that he was absolutely not a fool, he was worried that Aedis’s terms had no time limit.

After driving the beasts to the northernmost point, he built a gateway and divided the northern part into four zones so that no one in the future would break the promise he made with Aedis.

By that time, Aedis had already left his side.

He drew the line himself.

However, he had a more intimate relationship with Andrei, the predecessor Grand Duke Kalakis. It wasn’t intended.

Andrei was not a hero to fight against the beasts like the first Grand Duke, he was an ordinary human with no outstanding points.

Rather than fearing Aedis, who had become a non-ordinary existence, he felt sorry for him.

-Man, don’t be confined to such a barren place, and come with me. Wouldn’t it make you feel better if you drink wine in front of the fireplace?

Andrei committed himself to building an outbuilding in front of the Crystal Gate when he had no special powers.

He brought Aedis, who had been locked up in the land of the beasts, and placed him in the Grand Duke’s house.

一Do you know how you look like? No, not those old, curly looks. Even old Morris, who is ninety years old this year, doesn’t wear anything like that.

Even in Aedis’s eyes, Andrei was not like a noble Lord.

His memory was poor, and he ate any food that fell on the floor without dusting it off. He was needlessly reckless, and he aroused his anger too much.

-What? You said you helped the hero, the First Grand Duke, and laid the foundations of the North? Ah, see that over there? It’s a dog I raised. Her name is Sasha. You should be able to communicate very well with it, ack! Why are you hitting me?!

He was born later and left early.

Although human, he was a friend and a teacher.

Although he was embarrassed at times to claim that he was like a guardian, no one had been with him for as long as Andrei.

He thought that such a relationship would never appear again.

-Aedis, is this your original personality? Thoughtful, kind. Where are you going to sleep?

It was really unexpected that he would get so close to Maevia.

But, as if it was natural, they shared a bedroom, and the days when she was held in his arms increased.

……What if she was offended by any chance?

He covered his mouth with one hand.

Even the kiss he left on Maevia’s palm took him a lot of time and courage.

Even the touch of the soft skin on his lips was sinfully soft.

Soft.

Warm and

“……”

Aedis regained his composure after a while.

Then, he turned his gaze to the scorpion in his hand.

When the magical power in Regen’s body was twisted, when Maevia entered the barrier, the spirit circulated around.

The eyes, which had just shown many emotions clearly before, sank darkly.

“My wife is really blameless. She noticed even this sleight of hand.”

When a spirit dies, it returns to nature. But Aedis was forcibly blocking the process.

“If you don’t return what you received by double, you won’t be full.”

He was bound by many restrictions.

Like the restriction on his name.

To the point where he can’t break into the desert, the stronghold of his brother.

But there was a way to warn him.

Aedis changed the nature of the spirit’s body by rubbing it a couple of times.

Then, he returned it to the contractor.

***

Even after quite a while, Regen slept hard.

It didn’t look like he would wake up anytime soon.

While I was away from the castle, Raven, who seemed to have a good relationship with Regen, flew over and cried several times as if trying to wake Regen from his sleep.

He tried to cover Regen’s eyes with his feet, or peck his nose with his beak.

Well, anyway, it was clear that he wanted Regen to wake up.

Still, just in case, I cautioned Raven before switching places with Regen’s nanny.

“You can’t bully Regen, okay?”

“Kaak……”

“Regen will be fine. He’s just sleeping now.”

“Kooo, kaaak.”

……The sound of Raven’s cry seems to be getting farther away from a crow. Is it just my imagination?

Shaking my head, I returned to my private room.

Although the maids regularly clean the room, the owner rarely stayed for a long time, giving the room a desolate atmosphere.

I barely slept yesterday, but today I can’t sleep anymore.

I longed for Aedis’s bedroom and bed, which had been like a couple’s bedroom for a while.

It would be weird to say that we should use our own rooms and then reverse it in one day, right?

Of course, my anger was resolved.

However, I had an ominous feeling that if I gave in right away, I would not be able to receive anything other than a kiss on the palm from Aedis in the future.

I liked the palm kiss, but I also want to get a kiss on the cheek!

The forehead later! Lips too!

I lay flat on the bed, dreaming of a wish that was less likely to come true compared to an empty wish for Paimon.

The pink hair, which Aedis had not combed, hung helplessly on the blanket.

I rolled over and hugged the pillow.

I closed my eyes tightly to try to fall asleep somehow, counting the sheep in my head.

One sheep, two sheep, and the palms that touched Aedis’s lips should be washed anyway, right?

I wonder what Regen is dreaming of.

Seeing him sleep talk and keep asking for more, it seems like he was dreaming of eating a delicious dessert.

Could it be that Regen slept so well that my sleepiness was transferred to him?

I kept thinking about it, and eventually gave up on falling asleep.

Shall we go see Shaula?

Even if no one knew, waking up Shaula didn’t make me feel guilty at all.

I’m sure Shaula won’t mind.

I grabbed my lap blanket and tried to go outside.

As I opened the door to get out, I ran into someone who seemed to be contemplating whether to knock or not.

“Aedis?!”

Wow, that’s a surprise. I was about to scream

“What are you doing here?”

Aedis lowered his half-raised hand.

“Eve.”

“Yes.”

“That is.”

That, what?

I waited for the next word.

But Aedis suddenly shut his mouth.

“Aedis, since when have you been here?”

“Not long ago.”

“Um, five minutes?”

It was a number I said because I thought it was impossible, but Aedis denied it.

“A little more than that.”

……Not ‘less’ but ‘more’?

“10 minutes?”

“A little more……”

“One hour?”

“…”

“Have you been like this since I entered the room?”

“…”

I should be the one who was speechless, but Aedis lost his words.

I grabbed Aedis’s hand.

“Come in first.”

Aedis was quietly led in by me.

I put him on the chair, and I sat next to him.

Ugh, I should have thought of Shaula a little sooner.

Thinking of Aedis waiting outside, the time I spent lying around hugging the pillow felt like a huge waste of time.

At the very least, why didn’t he pretend there was a presence outside?

Aedis, who received my attention, opened his mouth.

“I have something to tell you regarding Regen’s status.”

Aedis explained quickly so I wouldn’t get nervous.

“When Wife entered the barrier created by Regen, I found a spirit that was wandering around. It was a spirit with a contractor. It must have been the identity of the gaze that followed the wife.”

There was a contractor.

Although my expectations were correct, I was not happy at all. That was really the worst assumption.

“I have taken immediate action. They won’t be able to repeat the same tricks over and over again.”

He clenched and extended his fist and asked in a low-pitched voice.

“That contractor.”

Aedis knew who I was thinking of.

“It is the person you think it is.”

“Is that what fueled Regen’s runaway?”

“I’m pretty sure it happened outside the castle.”

I remembered Regen’s face, who had been crying out to me not to come closer.

Regen was so scared and he was shaking so much that he pushed me away because he didn’t want to hurt me.

Understanding why Aedis couldn’t come to rescue him, he listened to what I was saying.

He was a child who always came to his stepmother who was clumsy in everything. He ate delicious things and was shown only good things, but it was not enough to raise him.

But that bastard biological father.

……It must have been me that the bastard was aiming for in the first place.