The Softest And Cutest Of The Dukes - Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

It was a conversation that could never have happened, a conversation that no one else would have heard because only her younger self and Seraphina were in the garden. Erica’s eyes filled with tears as she watched young Rafi recite the conversation verbatim.

“If that’s true, I don’t know how to explain it. I wonder if She’s a reincarnation of your mother after she died.”

It was the most credible thing he could think of at the moment. 

Seeing that Jerome was on board with the Seraphina reincarnation theory, Erica wiped away her tears and ran into his arms. 

“If she really is my stepmother’s reincarnation, I’ll protect her no matter what.”

“That’s the same for me. And even if she’s not your mother’s reincarnation, I want to protect her, because she’s so cute, and you wouldn’t know it.”

He said, grabbing her cheeks and stretching them.

Jerome could still feel Rafi’s cheeks in his fingertips as he grabbed them and stretched them out. Colin’s skin was still baby soft at four years old, but it had a different texture. Jerome flexed and unfolded his hands and smiled awkwardly at the way Erica looked at him. 

“I thought her cheeks looked a little red earlier, did you stretch and squeeze them with those hands?”

Even though Jerome was in charge of the Duke of Aquila’s care, he was a knight by trade. At the mention of touching the baby’s delicate skin with the hand that held the sword, Erica glanced away. 

“Well, I couldn’t help myself…… it was so squishy and clingy, and the way she was so still in my arms made me want to have a girl.”

Even before having Collin, Jerome knew he wanted a daughter, but it was never going to be easy. Despite praying to the moon every day that Colin would be a girl, Jerome’s moon betrayed him by laughing at him. 

Even though everyone who had ever given birth had said it was a girl, it was a boy, and a boy who looked just like him, so Jerome insisted on having a second child. 

Less than a month after the birth, he demanded to have another one and was slapped on the back by Erica, who nagged him to death.

Jerome shook his head at the memory. 

The hand that gripped Erica’s shoulder slid down, and the hand that slid across her back stopped short of slipping into her blouse. Erica glared at Jerome’s hand as it crawled into her clothes.

“I made it clear, didn’t I? We’re only going to have one child, and whether it’s a girl or a boy, it will carry on the Aquila name.”

“But we’re still young, so why can’t we have one more? If you give me a child, someone else will raise it.”

Dozens of people would raise it if they had a child. But Erica pushed Jerome away.

“You’ll have to settle for one which is Colin.”

“Then maybe adoption…….”

“Jerome, don’t keep provoking me, and I’m fertile today, so we’ll just sleep holding hands.”

Erica, who was calculating her menstrual cycle, cut in. She didn’t want to get pregnant, even accidentally.

“But…….”

“Jerome, this is my home, and there are a lot of eyes watching you here, just like you’ve been watching me, so you’re going to have to suck it up while you’re here. Birth control won’t help.”

* * *

Upon waking up in the morning, I rubbed my tingling cheeks and did some grimy eye exercises, and saw something in my hand. What is this, I thought, where have I seen this before? 

As I fumbled with my clothes, Jenny came into the room and smiled broadly. 

“My goodness, my dear, you’re up early.”

“Yes, good morning.”

I slept a lot. I must have been so hungry for sleep that I skipped dinner last night. To fall asleep in the arms of Duke Panteur, even without the use of magic. I had a long life ahead of me.

“Do you know what happened yesterday? A young lady grabbed hold of the robe and wouldn’t let go, and I had a hard time pulling it off.”

It was simply a struggle to keep from falling, for every time Duke Panteur embraced me, I felt uneasy and naturally clutched at his clothes and pressed my face as close as possible to his chest. It was a desperate struggle to stay alive. 

“What did I do with the robe?”

“You took it off.”

“Huh?”

I looked at her like I was asking her what I had taken off, and only smiled awkwardly when her gaze fell on my hand. I gripped it so tightly and didn’t let go that it looked like Duke Panteur had taken off his robe.

“My dear, you must be the first person in this world to undress my lord.”

I withdrew my hands from the clothes after realizing that it wasn’t a very good idea. Then I quickly stood up and looked around.

“I didn’t make a mess today!”

“Yes, that’s excellent. If you continue to do so in the future, it will be great. We have a crib here for the baby, so if you feel tired while sleeping, you can attend to your matters here.”

It’s not necessary to go to such lengths to take care of me.

I knew that having a crib was for the convenience of the child when they receive the signal to go to the bathroom while sleeping. 

I have used it a few times before, but I didn’t think it was necessary to set up the crib from the morning. As I saw the ceramic crib, my head shook. 

Jenny, who embraced me tightly, entered the bathroom.

“Today you’re going to eat after you wash up, but you’re going to the dining room, not here.”

“Huh?”

“Lady Erica and the Duke of Aquila were here, so you’ll be eating with them.”

The man who was smiling and gently scratching Duke Panteur’s insides was a duke? 

Hearing this unexpected information, I only nodded as I washed up. I didn’t have a say in what happened here anyway; I was just being fed and housed for free, and I should be grateful. 

“If I make a mistake while eating, is it still okay?”

The other person was the daughter of the family who didn’t seem to like me from the moment she saw me and then burst into tears. Her husband is also a duke. I wondered if I would feel overwhelmed and throw up while eating with her.

“It’s okay, you’re a child, and no one will blame you if you make a mistake while eating.”

Does being a kid give you a free pass on everything? 

She wrapped a towel around my shaking body and dried my hair. Then she dressed me in a little outfit that Erica had once worn. 

“What about this headband?”

A sunny-looking headband with sunflowers was put on me against my will. I shook my head and tugged at it, feeling awkward since I’d never worn braids before. 

“I know it’s frustrating, but it looks best on you, and I’ll get you something else next time, so just bear with me for today. You have to look good for Miss Erica.”

As it turned out, it was Erica who had the final say on whether or not to accept me into the family, regardless of my wishes. That’s why Jenny worked so hard on my appearance. 

I don’t want Erica to get jealous because I look so pretty, so please be moderate!

I said to myself and smiled widely on the outside. Jenny smiled back, thinking I was smiling because I liked the way I was dressed. 

With an uncharacteristic amount of strength, I followed Jenny down to the dining room. 

The adults were already seated. Duke Panteur, looking quite unhappy, tore his gaze away from Jerome and landed on me. 

“Come here.”

There was a child’s chair next to him. I realized that was where I would be eating today, so I scurried over to it.

“Brother, did you sleep well?”

Seeing Duke Panteur, the funniest man in the place, I put my hands on my belly and bowed my head in greeting. The Duke’s stern expression softened slightly and he nodded.

“Good morning, and did you sleep well, and did you not draw a map of the world?”

“Of course, I didn’t!”

Why would he choose to talk about that? 

As I quickly turned to the side, I saw Erica, who was looking at me intently, and Jerome, who was standing tall beside her. If he’s a duke, he should carry himself with dignity, as one would expect.

As I stared at Jerome, I felt my heart sink. Duke Panteur picked me up and placed me in a child’s chair.

“Well then, let’s proceed with the meal. Except for you!” 

Duke Panteur, who seemed to still harbor considerable resentment, glared at Jerome. 

“You’re going too far, Father.”

“Get rid of the ‘Father’ talk.”

“But considering that I live with Erica and have even fathered a child, shouldn’t you forgive me at this point?”

Yes, they already had a child, so why doesn’t he just forgive him? 

In morning dramas, even if they oppose the daughter-in-law, they usually allow her into the family once she becomes pregnant. The Duke of Panteur showed no sign of warming up to his son-in-law. 

In contrast, Erica kept staring at me intensely.

“It’s just this. I promise. I’ll try my best to be well-behaved. Please don’t worry. I won’t cause any trouble.”

I quickly apologized for the fact that I was wearing something she had worn as a child. Erica’s brow creased slightly.

“I don’t mind. You can just wear it.”

“Really? Wow! That’s all? Thank you so much. I’ll behave well.”

I gave her a navel salute from where I was sitting, and she looked away. Being in her father’s presence had stuck the ugly hairs on her back. 

“Rice cake, no, Rafi, hello. You should say hello to me too.”

“Ah, hello uncle.”

It was a polite greeting, but Jerome shook his head as if he didn’t like it. 

“Rafi, look at me. I’m younger than him, so why do you call me uncle when you call him brother?”

Jerome had been throwing a tantrum since morning because he didn’t like the way he was being called. I looked at him and scratched my head. Since I couldn’t call him by his first name, I wondered what I should call him, but then I remembered something and nodded.

“What are you, uncle?”

“Haah!”

At that moment, I turned my head slightly at the sound of a deflated sigh. The usually expressionless face of Duke Panteur seemed to twitch with tension.

“Rafi, it’s brother. Repeat after me. ‘Brother!'”

“Uncle.”

“No, not like that! Come on! Repeat after me. ‘Brother!'”

“Uncle?”

I didn’t repeat after him, and before Jerome could say something, the food came out. 

Gulp.

The air rumbled in my empty stomach at the sight of the food. I stared at the soup, waiting for Duke Panteur to eat. 

“Can you eat alone?”

“Yes, I can.”

Sure. I and Jenny have been practicing eating without spilling as much as possible lately.

At my reassuring glance, Duke Panteur nods and picks up his plate first, but before I can reverently pick up my child’s spoon to scoop up the soup, a napkin is wrapped around my neck. 

Thanking my lucky stars it wasn’t a bib, I smiled at Oscar as he wrapped the napkin around me.

“Thank you.”

“Well, my dear, you’re quite the greeter. Go ahead and eat. Before it gets cold.”

“Yes.”

Now there’s a napkin. I scooped up the soup with confidence. However, I spilled some of the soup because I wasn’t skilled enough yet. Erica frowned when she saw it. 

It’s normal for a child to spill a little while eating, but when she openly expressed her dislike for it, I felt so sick that I couldn’t eat anymore.

I hung my head with my lips parted, knowing that one day of starvation would not kill me. I wanted to get out of here, but as I held on, my chair was pulled to the side. 

Drrrr-

Startled, I looked up and saw Erica right next to me. I blinked and looked at Erica, and she grabbed my spoon full of soup and lifted it to my mouth.

“You have to eat a lot to get big. Come on, do it!”