* * *
As soon as I entered the sanctuary, a cold, disdainful gaze pierced through me, and I quickly knelt.
“Get up. You’re chilled; there’s no need to go that far,” Hernan said, hastily helping me to my feet.
The dragon scoffed.
[So, enjoying life while dumping all the troublesome work on this old man, are you?]
Enjoying life?
If only.
My memories were filled with nothing but struggles and hardship.
“I haven’t enjoyed anything. Besides, didn’t you already know everything? You warned me not to feel reassured about not being an omega…”
Feeling wronged, I started to argue, but the dragon raised its staff, only to hesitate, seemingly unwilling to hit me.
Instead, it struck Hernan’s head with a sharp thwack.
“Ow!”
[Didn’t I warn you? You ignored me, and now look at this mess.]
“You could’ve explained in more detail!”
[Would you have listened?]
When put that way, I had no rebuttal.
Still, I wanted to understand how and why this happened.
“So, what’s going on exactly?”
The dragon sighed and pointed at my stomach.
[What’s inside is an egg.]
“…What?”
[An egg, I said.]
“…?”
Even hearing it, I couldn’t comprehend.
I stared at the dragon blankly, and it let out a long sigh before explaining.
[Humans typically reproduce through physical or magical means. But in your case, your body adapted to accept a foreign core from the outside. This allowed it to transform into a vessel, despite not having reproductive organs like a female human or omega. The child is now growing as a magical egg inside you.]
I still couldn’t wrap my head around it.
“So… you’re saying I’m going to lay an egg instead of giving birth like a human?”
[Exactly. Judging by the size, it’ll be slightly larger than a chicken egg.]
“…!?”
My confusion only deepened.
An egg? Me?
As the reality sank in, my legs gave out.
Hernan, noticing my distress, asked in my stead.
“When will it… hatch? It seems to be taking a toll on him.”
[In about two months. Compared to carrying a human child, it’s quicker, so the physical strain should be less. But the real work begins after it’s laid. Both parents need to take turns caring for the egg for about 100 days until it hatches into a baby the size of a human child.]
In other words, we had less than two months to prepare for both the birth and a wedding.
The emperor had personally declared his intent to attend the ceremony, making it impossible to skip or downplay.
Panicked, I mentally calculated the schedule and exclaimed, “Considering Velon’s grand opening, there’s no time left!”
If I worked nonstop, it might barely be possible.
Seeing my determination to push myself, Hernan quickly pulled me into an embrace and muttered, “You can’t.”
I chuckled in disbelief.
“You know what I’m thinking, don’t you?”
Without hesitation, Hernan replied, “You’re planning to overwork yourself again. Delegate, even if you don’t like it. Let others handle it.”
“Good grief…”
I couldn’t lie further when my intentions were already exposed, so I raised my hands in surrender, as if admitting defeat.
“Yes, yes, I understand.”
That must have been particularly irksome because the ancient dragon swung its staff dismissively, telling me to leave if I had no further questions.
But I couldn’t leave like this—I had something really important to ask.
Desperately, I shouted from the entrance, pretending it would be my last question.
“By the way, if the incubation period for an egg is a hundred days, and it takes another hundred days to hatch, is it possible to conceive during the incubation period?”
Yudenette answered, looking at me as if I were the first person in history to ask such an absurd question.
[It’s not impossible. But why are you asking that?]
Why?
If I’m going to have a downtime where I can’t work properly because of child-rearing, wouldn’t it be better to have multiple at once and get it over with quickly?
Though expressing pregnancy and childbirth as “getting it over with” might sound strange, since I’m the one doing it, I didn’t care.
“We need at least three children: one as Velon’s heir, one for Nirvan’s legacy, and one extra, just in case Duchess Velesa wants a godchild, whether a boy or a girl.”
Considering how much help they’ve given us, I couldn’t just sever ties.
Not that I intended to give the child up for adoption—being a godparent is like becoming a second family.
If that connection strengthened, they could even help the child ascend to the Elder Council someday.
In theory, this could all be completed within a year, couldn’t it?
While I was busy calculating miracles, the ancient dragon, looking exasperated, asked:
[Do you realize you’re treating your own body like that of a mere egg-laying hen?]
A hen?!
But you said it was theoretically possible!
Feeling wronged, I protested without hiding my frustration.
“Can it be done or not? Just answer me.”
[Of course not!]
“….”
As expected, it’s impossible.
Seeing my dissatisfied expression, the dragon sighed deeply.
I pondered for a moment and proposed an alternative.
“Then, what about twins?”
The dragon shook its head firmly and turned to Hernan, speaking with disdain.
[That one is truly relentless. Are you sure it has to be him? Think it over again.]
At the dragon’s cynical question, Hernan smiled helplessly and hugged me tightly.
“I already decided to take responsibility. It’s fine.”
[Fine, get out of my sight, both of you. I can’t stand the sight of either of you.]
I didn’t mind the commotion as we noisily left the temple.
Hernan wanted me despite knowing how relentless I was.
When I heard stories about how others had tried to approach Berta to win me over, I couldn’t help but ask:
“Why did you think Hernan would be okay? Didn’t you reject everyone else?”
Berta answered matter-of-factly, not even sparing a glance at Hernan sitting beside her.
“Those people said you would make them happy, but the Duke said he’d make you happy.”
As I mulled over her words, Hernan suddenly spoke, his expression thoughtful.
“If you want children quickly, I could take on that role instead…”
I wondered what he’d been thinking on the way here, only to realize he’d been mulling over that.
I let out a soft laugh.
“No. Who’s going to stay put when you’re constantly traveling to Haftis on my behalf?”
Since I had to remain cooped up in the castle to avoid overexerting myself, Hernan had to be the one tirelessly managing things in the field.
Especially considering the bastards who dared to frame Haftis and Velon, he needed to be ready to lead forces at any moment.
“Enough. Let’s head back to the castle.”
The leash I thought Hernan had placed around my neck had, at some point, wrapped tightly around his own.
I once believed I was irrevocably bound to him, but in truth, it was I who had tamed and ensnared him.
Considering everything I’d endured, I deserved to act this mischievous.
Scooping up a handful of snow, I flung it at Hernan before dashing toward the castle.
Hernan caught up from behind, wrapping his arms tightly around me and tumbling us onto the soft snow.
“Hey, not from behind—!”
“You struck first, Jurgen.”
“Still, if I say I yield, just let me win gracefully!”
Ernan chuckled at my unreasonable demand.
I retaliated by shoving another snowball into his smiling face. It was ridiculous and childish, but undeniably enjoyable.
We laughed and bickered until our faces were red and frozen from the cold.
Without saying who started first, we trudged together across the snowy field, leaving footprints behind.
As the dazzling sunlight spilled over the pristine white snow, I thought to myself: if push comes to shove, there’s always the dragon.
Somehow, it’ll work out.
From the fledgling princess learning the ropes of politics to the seasoned elder councilors, even the most renowned scholars of the empire—plenty of people were willing to support us.
On this rare, clear day, all my worries melted away, leaving behind nothing but light steps as weightless as the snowflakes.
* * *
Awwww ♡v♡
Thanks for this wonderful piece of work’s translation ^^
The sweetness of our cuties be like: ♡~>v</~♡
Is it really over? What about the side stories?
There must be side stories right? 🥹🥹🥹
Right, I wanted to read the description of their children at least 🥹.