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Chapter 52
It had already been several days since two members of the imperial family began staying at the Anaxis annex.
Time passed more peacefully than expected.
Humans truly are creatures of adaptation.
At first, even sharing a bed with Theophanes had felt awkward, but she had gradually grown used to it.
Still, there was one thing she could not get used to.
Waking up in his arms every morning.
The moment she opened her eyes, she was met with the sight of his absurdly broad chest. That, she simply could not adapt to.
“Theo.”
At Daphne’s quiet call, Theophanes twitched his brows and moved his lips.
It was a voice squeezed out while still half-asleep.
“Mmm… wife.”
“If you keep holding me like this again, what am I supposed to do? We agreed to just hold hands.”
“But… you’re too warm….”
As he spoke, she felt his arms tighten slightly around her.
Not enough to hurt, of course.
There were a few things she had learned while spending more time with him.
One of them was that Theophanes was far more sensitive to the cold than she had expected.
Yet whenever he held onto Daphne, it seemed he became fine.
‘How on earth did you survive in Himonas?’
His answer had been simple.
He used Dante as a heater.
Daphne remembered Dante grumbling indignantly at the idea of being used as a human furnace. Who in the world uses a mage as a heater?
Ironically, Daphne herself was less sensitive to the cold.
As someone from Himonas, the chill here was nothing to her.
And after awakening the power of a transcendent being, cold was no longer much of an issue at all.
Still, whenever Theophanes felt cold, he sought her out—especially in bed.
Perhaps it was because he was most vulnerable when asleep.
There was, however, one advantage to sleeping like this.
With more contact than merely holding hands, Daphne’s body recovered far faster than she had expected.
And it seemed to have a good effect on him as well.
The Kalear cigars he used to carry were no longer in sight, and his complexion looked better than when she had first met him.
And there was one more thing she had learned.
Theophanes loved sleeping in.
“Theo, wake up. Hurry. You have to go to the site again today.”
“Five more minutes….”
“You said that yesterday too and got up thirty minutes later. No.”
This little struggle had become routine.
It wasn’t irritating—if anything, seeing that side of him made him feel more human.
Like a child, so different from his usual self.
“Theo.”
“…Mm.”
Rather than shaking him loudly, another method worked better.
Daphne slowly patted his broad back, brushed his hair once, and then gently stroked his cheek.
“Theo.”
“Yes. I’m awake.”
His voice sounded more alert than before.
“Then will you let me go now?”
At her words, Theophanes let out a small laugh.
His lower-than-usual voice was seductive enough to sway any woman.
“Alright.”
He loosened the arms wrapped around her.
Now able to move, Daphne slipped from his embrace and stretched.
“When will you be back today?”
“The restoration work is progressing faster than expected, so I think I’ll return early.”
“Alright.”
Sometimes she was surprised by how natural these trivial conversations had become.
“What are you doing today?” he asked.
“Oh, today I think I’ll go visit His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“The Crown Prince?”
“Yes. Since visits are allowed now, the children said they wanted to see him.”
“…I see.”
Theophanes remained lying down, turning only his head to look at Daphne.
A beautiful man remained overwhelmingly handsome even right after waking up.
The scene was more dangerous than she had expected, and Daphne snapped herself out of her daze.
“Don’t use your looks on me.”
Ever since they had talked about her ideal type, he had started shamelessly using his beauty against her.
When someone handsome beyond reason deliberately tried to charm you, it could awaken feelings that weren’t even there.
Leaving everything else aside, wanting to keep looking at something beautiful was simply human nature.
Like a crow drawn to shiny things, Daphne couldn’t quite push away Theophanes when he intentionally used his looks.
It was especially difficult to tell with him.
Was he merely teasing her?
Or was he sincerely trying to seduce her?
“I just want you to think of me even while you’re visiting the Crown Prince.”
“…What?”
Speaking smoothly, Theophanes rose leisurely from the bed.
“They call this jealousy, you know.”
Daphne stared at him blankly as he smiled lightly and walked into the bathroom.
For the first time in her life, she realized just how much her face could burn.
* * *
“Michael, how about this?”
“It’s nice. Don’t you think this one’s pretty too?”
The children were seriously debating as they looked at the flowers blooming in the garden.
Helio, who had been in a coma, had finally regained consciousness, and they were preparing to visit him.
‘What kind of gift is good when visiting someone in the hospital?’
‘Usually people bring flowers.’
‘Michael! A bouquet!’
It had started from Jaquet’s question and Daphne’s answer.
Fortunately, Helio’s recovery had progressed quickly, and he was already able to move around.
Holding a parasol while standing with the children, Daphne watched them pick flowers before speaking.
“Children, I’m allowing it because you have a purpose today. But you mustn’t pick flowers just because you’re bored.”
“Yes.”
“Okay—”
“Mom, you’ve said that five times already.”
“R-really…?”
At Jaquet’s remark, Daphne awkwardly twisted a strand of her hair around her finger.
She then turned to the gardener.
“I’m sorry for making you spend time on this when you have work to do.”
“Oh no, this is part of our job.”
“I’ll make sure the children are properly taught not to disturb you by tearing up the garden out of boredom.”
“Children grow up causing trouble. It’s alright. And after all, everything here belongs to you and the young lady.”
Technically, it belonged to the Duke, but Daphne decided to let that pass.
“We’ve chosen!”
At Jaquet’s voice, Daphne looked at the flowers the children had selected.
“Please prepare them as they wish.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The gardeners carefully cut the flowers and gathered them into a bouquet before handing it over.
“This should be enough.”
Holding the small bouquet, Michael smiled in satisfaction.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Michael had occasionally seemed down after the incident, but thanks to Jaquet staying by his side constantly, he wasn’t in too bad a state.
Theophanes, however, had ground his teeth at the sight of his daughter holding another boy’s hand.
In truth, Daphne couldn’t help but worry either.
After all, wasn’t he the original male lead?
What if Jaquet were hurt in the future?
Of course, that was a distant concern.
Raising a child well didn’t mean trying to control them unconditionally.
She would respect Jaquet’s choices.
Watching them naturally hold hands and chat together, Daphne let out a sigh.
Still… marriage was far too early.
