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Chapter 110
Let’s Have a Baby
As soon as I returned to the Blanchet Ducal Estate, I asked Patricia to investigate the Empress.
‘What secret could there possibly be between the Duke of Libertan and the Imperial Seal?’
Judging by how furious the Empress had been with the Crown Prince, it must be something significant. As I went up to the art studio, the trees around me chattered softly.
— Are you going straight to the studio?
“Yes. Rune’s asleep right now.”
— You always go there after returning from the palace. You must really like it.
— Well, her husband gave it to her. Of course she’d love it.
— Ah, such happy times, such happy times.
Even the trees, who always complained whenever it had anything to do with Johann, only had good things to say about the studio.
“It’s not exactly that. I’m going there to talk with Isidore about the power of fairies.”
I did like the atmosphere of the studio Johann had made for me. When I sat alone and gazed outside, it felt as though I could just sit there forever, doing nothing but rest.
But that wasn’t its only use.
‘It’s a space only Johann and I can enter.’
There couldn’t have been a better place to train my fairy powers.
“Well then, I’ll go see Isidore. If anything happens, you’d better make a ruckus and wake me up, no matter what.”
I grabbed the tapestry hanging decoratively in the room and tore it — a familiar motion by now. As soon as the light from the tapestry wrapped around me, a familiar scenery appeared.
Blue rose petals swayed gently in the spring breeze.
‘Eden Roses?’
The field that had once been covered in green grass was now overflowing with blooming Eden Roses.
“You’ve come.”
Isidore approached me briskly, arms crossed.
“Did you finish the task I gave you last time?”
“Yes! It wasn’t as easy as it was during practice here, but I managed to distinguish between objects seen with fairy sight!”
“Good. My efforts weren’t in vain, then.”
“But… what’s with all the Eden Roses here? Weren’t there different flowers before?”
Isidore glanced over the blue roses and replied,
“All of these Eden Roses bloomed from your power.”
“…From my power? But I didn’t even use any magic here.”
“It seems that your frequent visits have influenced this place with your energy. Which means—”
He stopped mid-sentence and placed his hand on a nearby tree. The tree, usually more talkative than Isidore himself, was strangely silent.
“Is the tree asleep?”
“No. It’s gone.”
“What?”
“Unlike me, that one didn’t exist here through its own power.”
Isidore’s face looked calm, but there was a quiet sorrow in his eyes.
“So you’ve been here alone all this time?”
“It’s been… pleasantly quiet without that noisy thing.”
He shrugged and turned back to me, his gaze falling upon me standing among the Eden Roses.
“Do you know what kind of power Eden Roses possess?”
“…Aren’t they just rare flowers?”
“They are now. But originally, they were said to have bloomed from the tears of God — sacred flowers with mysterious power.”
“What kind of power?”
“The power to grant wishes. Very rarely, if a heartfelt wish was poured into the flower, it was said to make the impossible come true.”
Listening intently, I couldn’t help but sigh.
“Come on, that’s just a legend. And besides, you said the Eden Roses today don’t have such power anymore.”
“The ones you bloomed are the same as the Eden Roses of the past.”
I blinked, suddenly seeing the flowers around me as something extraordinary.
‘Then maybe there was a reason I made the Eden Roses bloom in the garden too.’
“Of course, pouring all your fairy power and wishing desperately doesn’t always work. Usually, it just amplifies fairy energy… but still—”
Isidore looked directly into my eyes.
“Somehow, I felt you might need to know this.”
His long hair swayed in the breeze. Sometimes, Isidore gave strange pieces of advice — as if he’d glimpsed my future.
“Okay, I’ll remember that.”
I nodded readily, and Isidore smiled in satisfaction.
“By the way, isn’t there a way to see someone’s hidden truth more directly than through objects?”
“More directly? How so?”
“Up until now, I’ve only been able to deduce things by looking at objects that show their weaknesses. But instead of clues, wouldn’t it be better if I could see the situation itself?”
Isidore frowned slightly.
“If your power grows a bit more, it might be possible. But for now, your body wouldn’t withstand—”
Then suddenly, a strange energy rippled through the air. My body tensed instinctively.
“…Huh?”
From afar, I heard a familiar baby’s voice.
‘Can anyone else even come in here?’
I turned, and saw a baby floating toward me — a familiar one. Rune was wiggling his tiny arms and legs as he crawled through the air.
The moment he spotted me, his frown melted into a bright smile.
“Stewwy!”
“…Rune?”
“Stewwy! Woon came!”
He dashed — well, floated — into my arms and hugged me tightly.
“Rune, since when can you talk?”
“Jus’ bit?”
He tilted his head, mumbling cutely.
“Then why haven’t you been talking before?”
“I talk’d! But Stewwy didn’t heaw me!”
“That child…”
I turned to see Isidore narrowing his eyes, staring at Rune intently.
“Oh, this is Rune, the baby spirit. He’s from the Undine’s Tear—”
“I know. Since he’s a spirit connected to you, he must have been able to enter this space.”
Rune hugged my neck tightly, wary of the strange man. Watching this, Isidore asked quietly,
“May I hold him for a moment?”
“Rune?”
“There’s something I need to confirm.”
Rune’s eyes widened as he quickly shook his head.
“Don’t like dat man.”
It was the first time Rune had ever shown dislike toward anyone.
‘That’s strange. He’s never acted like this before.’
But when I looked closer, it didn’t feel hostile — more like a pouty, sulky refusal.
“All right, all right.”
I patted his back gently.
“He doesn’t want to, so I don’t think that’s possible.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Isidore ruffled his bangs and sighed.
“Then try wrapping him gently in your energy yourself.”
“With my energy?”
“Yes. Since he’s a spirit born from your essence, it might safely amplify your power.”
Rune looked into my eyes, and I sought his permission carefully.
“Rune, will you help me?”
“Otay!”
I playfully pinched his soft cheek, then summoned my fairy power.
‘It feels different today.’
Maybe because of the talk about Eden Roses, my power — usually intangible — now felt like countless petals swirling around me.
‘Very carefully…’
He was just a baby spirit. Even the smallest force could hurt him. I wrapped him in fairy energy as delicately as if I were covering his cheeks with rose petals.
“Uuuh…”
Rune puckered his lips like a baby bird and squeezed his eyes shut.
At that instant, a sensation burst through me — like thousands of roses blooming all at once. The scenery shifted.
A woman with red hair — Duchess Rosaria Libertan — stood before the Empress, smiling coolly.
[Your Majesty, here is the Imperial Seal.]
The Empress swallowed hard as she gazed at the seal before her.
[There won’t be any problems if I touch it, right? His Majesty won’t immediately know?]
Cowering like prey before a predator, the Empress glanced nervously at Rosaria, whose eyes turned sharp.
[Are you getting cold feet now? You were the one who begged me to give you leverage to protect your title as Empress.]
[…]
[If you wish to back out, do so. But know this — if we can no longer work together, I can’t guarantee your safety.]
[I only asked… just in case.]
With a tense face, the Empress took the seal in her hands.
[I know. There’s no turning back now.]
When nothing happened, she let out a sigh of relief. Looking down at the faded seal, she gave a faint, strange smile.
[How ridiculous… that this tiny seal is proof the royal family once made a deal with demons. And that the mighty Emperor trembles because he can’t destroy it…]
***
Stella sat calmly in her chamber within the Holy Temple.
“Your Holiness.”
“What is it, Simon?”
Wearing a pure white gown, Stella looked every bit the image of a noble saint. Even Cardinal Simon, who had witnessed countless incidents, was reminded why her position remained so unshakable within the Holy Nation.
She looked far too divine to suspect. When Simon remained silent, Stella furrowed her delicate brows in concern.
“Is something wrong?”
“It appears that all the sacred relics under the Temple’s protection have been stolen.”
“The relics?”
“Yes. We don’t yet know who did it, but whoever it was must possess considerable power. You should be cautious, Your Holiness.”
Stella wore a bracelet made from sacred relics on her wrist.
“My goodness. Who would do such a thing, and why?”
“We’re not sure. But never before have all relics capable of channeling Athea’s blessings been stolen. The clergy are doing everything they can to track the culprit.”
Her long lashes fluttered as she toyed with the bracelet on her wrist.
“Perhaps… this is an opportunity from Athea herself.”
“…Pardon?”
Simon blinked at her enigmatic words.
“What do you mean?”
“A test, given by the goddess to prove our faith. This hardship may be the very path to demonstrate our devotion.”
Simon studied her serene expression.
‘Is that really true?’
Her words sounded perfectly innocent. Yet something about the way her fingers lingered on the bracelet made him uneasy.
Then he remembered the secret letter sent by Erich, the Blanchet family’s aide — the one he’d almost burned, but hid instead, feeling strangely reluctant.
For some reason, he suddenly felt that he needed to read it.
The sun had already set.
When I came down from the studio, Johann was waiting in the bedroom. He looked up from a few open pages of Beautiful Monster.
“Have you finished reading this book?”
There was an unreadable emotion in his red eyes.
“I was taking my time, so I haven’t finished yet.”
“Not because you didn’t like it?”
He asked casually, voice low and silky. I shook my head quickly.
“No, I liked it. The illustrations were beautiful, and it gave me a lot to think about.”
“What part did you like most?”
“I…”
The part I’d stopped at flashed in my mind. There was nothing else I could think to say.
“I liked the part where it says there’s no real difference between monsters and humans on the surface.”
“That’s interesting. Why that part?”
“Because it’s different from how we usually imagine monsters. I don’t know why the author portrayed them as so beautiful — like humans with hidden secrets — but…”
My mouth felt dry.
“Maybe there are monsters among us even now.”
“Monsters this beautiful?”
“Yes. Those kinds of monsters.”
Johann traced the prince-like figure in the book with his finger — golden-haired, blue-eyed, dazzling. He tapped it lightly.
“Would it be fine with you if I were a monster?”
“I wouldn’t care.”
Johann leaned close, our faces almost touching. I clenched my fists and asked back,
“Would you be fine if I were one?”
“I’d hardly mind.”
He chuckled, then pulled me into his arms. I fell back onto the bed, and he looked down at me — slowly, almost admiringly.
His hand brushed my cheek softly.
Johann’s warmth sent a shiver of tension through me. Finally, as his thumb grazed my lips, he curved his mouth into a teasing smile and whispered—
“Estelle, shall we have a baby?”
