PHYSIENTS WILL ALWAYS OFFER BEST STORIES AND LIVE STREAMING ALL TIME
< — Ducal couple — > (12)
TN: And we now have an update schedule! Kinda. Also my translations are being stolen…welp.
Jerome prepared a cup of afternoon tea as he did every day and went into the Duke’s office.
To avoid disturbing his master who was currently engrossed in his work, Jerome tried to leave the tea and leave but the desk was covered in documents and the person supposed to be there could not be seen.
As this was more or less a regular thing these days, Jerome shifted his gaze in the direction he expected his master to go and as expected, the balcony window was slightly open.
He went closer to take a look and he could see the back of a tall man, leaning against the handrail.
These days the duke would start work in the afternoon and then lazy around; something he had never done before.
He would spend a long time standing there and looking down the balcony.
And below was the beautiful picture of her Grace who had recently taken to diligently growing colorful flowers in the garden.
Her Grace frequently went out to personally examine the flowers in the garden and his master would watch her.
Jerome had initially thought that his master’s honeymoon phase would be briefly interesting but now he knew it wasn’t.
If there was a case where the prodigal son marries and starts to change and become a reliable person, then that was practically his master.
This was why one had to live long in this world. Jerome wondered if his master knew that when he was with her, it was as though nothing else was visible, as his gaze was locked onto her.
Surprisingly, her Grace did not seem conscious of his master’s intense and straight-forward gaze. It would seem that her Grace was unexpectedly insensitive.
There was something delicate between the two of them. Obviously, their relationship was good. Her Grace would give his master a pure smile, and his frigid master would warm up when her Grace was around.
Nonetheless, undeniably there was somewhat of an invisible thin wall between them. It was too ambiguous to criticize and he couldn’t speak out hastily on something vague.
It was a new routine to put a brief report on what her Grace did or who she met on his master’s desk so Jerome couldn’t postpone his report anymore. Even more so because it was related to the health of her Grace.
Jerome hesitated a little then approached the balcony.
“Your Grace.”
“Mmm.”
“I have something to tell you about her Grace.”
At those words, Hugo turned his head. He stared at Jerome then walked past him and went inside. But even after waiting a while, he didn’t hear Jerome speaking. Hugo could tell that Jerome was being hesitant.
“What’s so difficult? Talk.”
“…Her Grace has never had her monthly guest.” (1).
Lucia had a promise with Jerome that she would tell the Duke about her body condition together with Jerome.
But as time passed, Lucia was still the same, keeping her mouth shut. Jerome considered that she had forgotten so he reminded her but her Grace had only said that she understood and went back to being silent.
Jerome knew that interfering in this could be exceeding his authority but it was also the task of the steward to take care of his master’s health.
Jerome worried several times if he should urge her Grace even if it was forcibly, to personally tell his master but eventually he decided to tell his master personally.
“Monthly guest?”
“The thing that women go through every month…”
“Ah. Continue.”
Hugo was familiar with the common knowledge of women’s physiological parts but the rest was sleeping at the bottom of his mind.
He had never been with a woman long enough for her to have her period. Moreover, he had never been worried about a woman getting pregnant so he really hadn’t thought about it.
“At first, a maid was concerned as to whether or not her Grace was pregnant but then she was looked at by the family doctor who said that she wasn’t pregnant. According to her Grace, she’s never had a monthly guest and she also refused to be looked at by the doctor for treatment. She said it was something that your Grace already knew about so there was no need for it.”
“She isn’t pregnant so is it something serious if she isn’t menstruating?”
“It is not normal, after all, it would be impossible for her Grace to get pregnant. Her Grace has to have a medical examination for us to know for sure.”
“What does she mean that I already knew…”
[I cannot have a child.]
Hugo furrowed his brows.
“Ha.”
He gave a forced laugh. She had definitely said that. Originally, it wasn’t something one could easily say but she had simply said that she couldn’t have a child as though it was trivial. She had also given a small laugh.
To her, her inability to be pregnant was not a big deal because she couldn’t have a baby anyways. She had spoken like she was telling a big secret but he had simply thought it was interesting.
“Right. I knew about it.”
His head ached like it had been hit with a blunt weapon. There was an uncomfortable twisting in his stomach and he felt an anger within him that he didn’t know what for, couldn’t explain it or even give a reason for it.
“What is the doctor doing?”
“It isn’t an external disease so if her Grace doesn’t speak about it, the doctor cannot diagnose it.”
“Call her now.”
“…Yes, your Grace.”
Jerome could see that his master’s mood had soured so he immediately went away without saying a word.
While standing still, Hugo suppressed his anger and clenched his fists tightly. He then tried to calmly think of where his displeasure was coming from.
She was very much the ideal wife he wanted. She controlled the servants moderately well and did not give him any issues. He had nothing to complain about nor was he uncomfortable.
Recently, she’d had a lot of requests but it was different from the bothersome requests he was expecting.
“Ha, dammit.”
He gave a heavy sigh, cupped his head in his hands and sat on the sofa. This wasn’t normal.
He realized he still had no idea about what she was thinking. All he knew about his wife was what was written in the few reports Fabian gave him.
Their relationship was good. As least he thought so. Their conversations were fun and in the bedroom, they were passionate. But they had never really talked.
Had she ever exposed herself to him? He seemed to have misunderstood that she’d exposed all of her heart to him since she smiled so purely.
Something suddenly came to mind so he called for Jerome and ordered him to bring the details of her spending.
Jerome soon returned with the documents.
“What of the doctor?”
“I sent someone to call her.”
“I’ll be coming along for the examination.”
“Yes, your Grace.”
As he flipped through the documents and checked the details, his eyes grew cold. Apart from the cost of decorating the garden and the cost of throwing a tea party a few times, there was no other history of personal use.
“Has she ever called for a tailor or a jeweler?”
“She hasn’t.”
“Even though she has thrown a few tea parties and gone outdoors several times?”
“There are dresses that were used by former Duchesses of the family and the ornaments that are passed down in the Taran family. The dresses were chosen, mended then worn while the ornaments were returned to the storage room after use.”
He knit his brow tightly. It was a feeling he couldn’t explain. He was angry but he couldn’t explain exactly why he was angry.
‘Wasn’t this what you wanted?’
Those words echoed in his head.
It was.
He married what he had hoped for. A doll-like wife that would only keep her seat as the Duchess.
He needed a partner and for that he needed to marry but husbandly duties were troublesome so, he made a deal. It was a contract.
A contract beneficial to both of them. She had said from that start that what she needed was the title of the Duchess.
Of course, he had thought that she wanted the wealth and power that came with being a Duchess.
It was not very long since they had been married but he knew now. From the beginning, she was not interested in it.
So what exactly was making him so unhappy? Why should it matter if she didn’t want power or wealth? There was nothing for him to lose.
Rather, he should have a toast to this overwhelmingly favorable contract. But he continued to agonize about it.
He wanted to know exactly why he was in such a foul mood. He was feeling as though the ground supporting his feet had collapsed. He felt desperate, he felt anxious. But he didn’t know why he was desperate or anxious.
When he was about to descend into his thoughts again, he heard Jerome’s voice.
“The doctor is waiting.”
< — Ducal couple — > (12)
TN: Just trying out new formatting instead of writing “part”. The new way looks cleaner imo.
The garden was full of floral scents. Lucia walked in the space in the garden then would stand still and close her eyes, the scent seemingly intoxicating.
These days, her biggest job was gardening but she did not personally do any labor. The gardener took care of everything.
Lucia simply made the choice on what flowers to plant, checked if they were doing well and wandered around.
However, even though they did all the work, people would flatter her. It was a bit funny at times.
Looking at the sky, the sun had already gone down and was making shadows. She turned her gaze towards his office.
‘Ah…he isn’t there.’
He was definitely standing there a while ago. His intense gaze on her neck was embarrassing but when it disappeared, she felt disappointed.
It was a complicated feeling.
He often took a break from work to rest in the balcony and Lucia often went into the garden because she wanted to see him.
Her ‘examining the flowers’ was a pretty good excuse. Majority of the time that she saw him was limited to the evenings. It was only around this time that she could see him for an extra moment.
Although they lived in the same place, he was usually far from her reach as he was really busy. Jerome had informed her that he was buried in a pile of paperwork.
He was very diligent lord that would hold a half-a-day meetings with his vassals every three to four days and did not forget to inspect his fief.
Count Matin only knew how to show his face at various parties in the capital and wasn’t concerned about the situation of his fief. She had only found out later but Count Matin’s fief was one of the worst.
Because of the excessive taxes, people would either escape or were caught while trying to escape and were killed. Perhaps the miserable ending of Count Matin was his karma.
Almost every night, Hugo and Lucia would have dinner together, talk, then Hugo would find her in the bedroom. She knew that she should not be greedy for more but she sometimes couldn’t bear the loneliness.
Lucia sometimes felt like she was standing dangerously on the thin ice of a deep lake and would rather have the ice break so she could sink to the bottom.
“Your Grace, I’ve been asked to escort you inside.”
“…By who?” The only person who could ask someone to bring her inside was her husband, the Taran Duke but she still asked the maid.
“His Grace asked me to escort you inside.”
‘Why at this time…?”
Lucia followed the maid inside with an uneasy heart. There wasn’t only one person waiting for her in the receiving room on the second floor.
In addition to Jerome, there was the family doctor, Anna. The moment Lucia saw Anna, she had an inkling of what was happening.
Afterall, not too long ago, she’d been acting like she didn’t know what Jerome was talking about. She knew that Jerome would one day tell Hugo. However, she didn’t think that Hugo would go to the extent of summoning the doctor and coming along with her.
Although, truthfully, it would have been a bit disappointing if he hadn’t shown any interest.
Looking at Lucia who stood at the door like an uninvited guest, Hugo’s expression hardened and he took big strides, approaching her. As his tall and large frame suddenly appeared in front of her, Lucia was momentarily shocked.
“Why…” He started speaking with repressed expression but stopped and grabbed her hand. He dragged her to the sofa and then sat beside her.
Anna slightly turned her head to peek at the ducal couple. It was her first time seeing the couple together up close, side by side.
She had had her doubts about whether the rumoredly terrifying knight-born Duke and the quiet and fragile-natured Duchess would look good together but seeing them together this way did not paint an awkward picture.
‘To be attacked by someone that big, her Grace must have it hard.’
From Anna’s perspective as Lucia’s doctor, she inwardly criticized the Duke that was ignorant of his own strength.
“Your Grace, I heard you have not had your monthly guest the entire time you’ve been here.”
“…That’s correct.”
Lucia was uncomfortable with this situation. She had personally made the choice to be infertile and had never bothered to look for treatment as she knew she could treat it by herself at any time but this situation made it seem like she was a patient with a deadly disease.
“You never had your first menstruation?”
“…I had my first menstruation.”
“Then when did you stop menstruating? Were you hurt or ill before it stopped? Does anything feel wrong inside?”
“…”
“Wife, explain it properly to the doctor.”
Lucia was surprised at his voice which sounded firmer than usual. Turning her head to look at him, she saw his cold red eyes, watching her. For some reason, he didn’t give off a good feeling.
“…I took the wrong medication when I had my first period.”
“What medicine did you take? Did you feel poisoned?”
“I don’t really know what medicine I took and I don’t know about being poisoned. It didn’t hurt and till now, I haven’t been able to see anything strange with my body.”
Even when Lucia was looking for doctors in her dreams, those doctors could not properly figure out her symptoms. Even if she explained everything to Anna, it didn’t seem like Anna would figure it out but Lucia still hid her symptoms as much as possible.
This female disease was a delicate one. If the patient did not explain it properly, the doctor could not find an answer. Even more so if it was a disease the doctor had never heard about before.
No matter how many times Anna dug through her memories, she had never heard of symptoms where someone’s menstruation stopped after they took medicine.
“Your Grace, can you retrace your memories a bit more? What did the medicine taste like? For what reason did you take it? How much of it did you take? And what was the color and shape of this medicine?”
“…I don’t know. It happened when I was young and had no knowledge of medicine so I don’t remember anything.”
Hugo who had been sitting still, listening to the conversation, suddenly turned his body and stared at Lucia.
“Talk with me for a bit.”
He then made a gesture to the people standing around.
“Everyone get out.”
Translator’s Corner:
*Cuteness overdose in this first half. SOS.
*Second half, I was overcome with awkwardness. I know this is set in like the feudal times and what not but I would be AWKWARD AF if I had to talk about my period with people around. *shivers*
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< — Ducal couple — > (12)
TN: I love love love this chapter. Going back to old formatting just cuz.
As the words left the Duke’s mouth and he looked at them, the people around quickly flooded out of the receiving room, leaving Hugo and Lucia alone.
There was a brief silence between them as they sat side by side on the sofa. He suddenly realized that this was the first time they had ever been together at this time and in this way.
“Why did you lie?”
“…I did not lie.”
“You are hiding the truth from the doctor, aren’t you? Not saying it is the same thing as lying. Why are you trying so hard to lie when you can’t lie properly?”
‘How did he know?’ It was as though he was reading her mind when he looked at her.
He wrapped one arm around Lucia’s waist and pulled her into his arms then spoke like he could see inside of her.
“Your expression says ‘how did he know?’. You can’t lie, it’s too obvious.”
Lucia simply wanted to escape from this situation. She twisted her body as she pushed away from him and stood up from the sofa.
“…It’s a busy time for you at work yet you were interrupted. I’m sorry to have bothered you.”
He watched the standing Lucia silently for a moment as he remained on the sofa then spoke fiercely.
“Do you blame me for being here?”
“You don’t need to be worried.”
“What?”
“I won’t get better anyways.”
He caught her wrist, pulling strongly and Lucia couldn’t help but fall into his arms.
She tried to struggle and get up but one of his hands held her arm in one place while the other hand held her chin, forcing their eyes to meet.
“What do you mean by that? Why should I be relieved if you won’t get better?”
“Didn’t I tell you from the start? That I cannot have children.”
Watching her wavering amber eyes, his red eyes also wavered.
Lucia twisted her chin and shook off his hand. His hand which awkwardly hung in the air for a bit, fell down.
She also moved and pulled out her arm which was held in his. Hugo felt bewildered in the face of her rejecting reactions.
“You weren’t interested nor did you ask why.” (Lucia)
“…”
“Why are you suddenly curious?”
He had only asked if she could prove it.
After that, he never asked if she truly could not have a child or if somewhere in her body was ill. Lucia thought that he had completely forgotten about it.
That his interest in her was only to that extent.
Therefore, it was pitiful that as the days went on, she could only continue to hope that her heart that was running to him would harden.
“Suddenly, huh. Is it bad for me to be curious?” (Hugo)
“Then I’m grateful.”
“…Don’t say it like that.”
“I apologize.”
Looking at her appearance as she gave short and icy answers then shut her mouth like she wouldn’t say anymore, his red eyes enlarged and flared up.
She was doing things she’d never done before and it was poking his nerves. He did not want to raise his voice as it was not a big deal anyways so he spoke in an even calmer voice.
“Vivian, do you want to quibble over something of the past?”
Lucia’s chest sank in disappointment.
‘If you call it something of the past then I can’t say anything.’
For him, it was just something of the past. Lucia just quietly shook her head.
“Right now, I am concerned about your body so, explain the exact symptoms to the doctor and get treated.”
His tone was even more affectionate than usual.
Even though she knew that he didn’t really have things like kindness or tender affection, every time she heard his affectionate voice, she would be entranced as though she had heard a love song then would wake up like she had been doused with cold water.
“I don’t want to do that.”
“Why?”
“If I do that, you would be troubled.”
“Why would I be troubled?”
“Because you don’t want me to have children!”
Her voice suddenly grew loud.
“…”
For a moment, Hugo could not say anything. It was not that he didn’t want her to have a child but that he did not want to continue his bloodline itself.
And as to whether she could have a child or not, pregnancy was impossible.
But to make her understand that, he would have to tell her about many things that were hidden.
However, he did not want to dig into his memory and talk about those things again. To him, those things weren’t just past events but a chilling nightmare.
Staring at Hugo who went silent, Lucia took his silence as confirmation and tried not to let her emotions get out of control.
“I misspoke. Accurately speaking, you’ve never had any interest.”
It was her intuition as a woman. He never wanted a child from her.
Despite that, his actions were contradictory as he never used any contraception. Lucia was rather bitter in that regard.
He wasn’t even that concerned about it.
She wondered what kind of attitude he would have if she had gotten pregnant by chance.
Whether he would take the child away, have no interest in the child or perhaps turn around and never look for her again.
Whatever choice it was, they were all terrible.
“About having no interest…” (Hugo)
‘Isn’t that you?’ Hugo mumbled inwardly. She had not even once, asked him about Damian. But, no matter how brazen he was, he knew he did not have the right to question her about that. He was married to her because he needed a mate not to take care of his son, they didn’t have a contract for that.
“I didn’t know you hoped for me to be interested.”
Lucia’s heart sank down heavily in her chest. Somehow, looking at him, he seemed tired.
‘No!’
Already, from the moment he said that he could see through her lies, she had been full of anxiety.
Her nerves were on edge, thinking that her heart could also be read.
If he were to have an inkling of it and say something cruel like what he had said to Sofia Lawrence at the victory party that day…
‘My heart will burst. It would hurt so much that I’d rather die.’
He was a man that was tender to a woman as long as she kept a reasonable distance.
Just like he’d done for her, how many lovers in the past had he smiled with and given presents to?
It was because of this tenderness that those women, when they were notified of their break up, could not throw away their lingering attachment and clung to him.
‘I don’t want to become one of his past women.’
It would be good to live like this forever. Just like this. A fully materialistic life. A husband that gave her tender smiles and held her passionately every night.
She would not be greedy for more. Her sweaty fists were clenched tightly.
“I…don’t hope for anything. I have not forgotten my contract with you.”
< — Ducal couple — > (12)
TN: Last one for the week. This one is finished anyways so here you go~
Lucia hoped to look natural as she avoided his gaze and drew back a little from his arms but he was watching her sharply.
“Ha. Right. The contract.”
He gave a fake laugh and frustratedly swept through his hair.
It seemed to be only him that thought of forgetting about the contract and pushing it to a corner. She was obviously still strongly bound to its tenacious ropes.
“I can enjoy freedom in my private life and you would keep the door to your heart locked. That was our contract, right?”
He once again narrowed the distance that she tried to make as he grabbed her waist and pulled her in.
In this way, Lucia’s efforts were very easily undone. She was once again positioned in his embrace.
“But did you know? We didn’t decide on what would happen when someone does not keep to the contract.”
“Are you worried that I won’t keep to the contract?”
“Really, why are you like this? Why do you exaggerate my words like that?”
“…I’m sorry. I guess I twisted it a little.”
For a while, Hugo looked at his wife who seemed unfamiliar. It was not his usual wife that listened obediently.
Moreover, she kept avoiding his eyes showing rejection and separation.
‘The first time I met her…I didn’t say any word of support but she just went ahead and spoke.’
Perhaps, this was also her.
There was no way he could have seen sides of her that she never showed to him.
He originally didn’t like the fact that their conversation was being prolonged but he was rather pleased to see a new side of her.
It felt like he could see the real her for a moment other than the sight of her gently smiling and laughing.
“If I…give up on my freedom in my private life… will you also release the lock on your door?”
“…Huh?”
Lucia’s eyes grew round as she looked at him.
She couldn’t understand what he intended to do by saying that. Was this a trick of a playboy? He—
“I mean…”
He had an awkward expression as the slurred the ends of his words.
“Get treated.”
Lucia was disappointed at the change of topic.
“I don’t want to.”
“Vivian!”
“I cannot have a child so it’s okay for me to be unable to get one. But if I get treated, is it okay for me to have a child? Will you allow it?”
“…”
He sighed and massaged his temples with his fingers.
Even if her body got better, she couldn’t get pregnant. His Taran bloodline made it impossible for him to get just any woman pregnant.
Without fulfilling the conditions, the bloodline of Taran would not grow in any woman.
That was why he enjoyed himself with several women and never worried about the dangers of impregnating them.
Only a normal woman, one that did not possess the blood of Taran, could meet the conditions to conceive the blood of Taran but as to what those conditions were, only the old man knew.
He drove the old man to live outside the castle walls and looked through the documents he had but there was nothing related to that.
Maybe it was just in the old man’s memories or maybe there was another document about it, hidden somewhere nobody knew about. And so, to find out, he had simply and easily caught the old man and beat him up.
The old geezer that had claimed he wouldn’t divulge the secrets of his family and held on without speaking, opened his mouth once he was imprisoned and realized that he would never see the sun again.
[The male of the Taran bloodline who will become the father of the child has to administer his blood for over a year to the woman and then deflower her.]*
It really was a sickening condition. That condition also had to be completed before the woman was deflowered.
His wife was already on the wrong path. Even if it was possible to get pregnant regardless of such conditions, he never intended to leave a successor behind.
Just imagining an existence left in the world with his blood made him feel like he had steeped in shit.
Even though he was not at risk of impregnating anyone, it was his habit to ejaculate outside as he hated the idea of descendants that resembled himself.
But he unexpectedly met her. She was different from the start. Why was she an exception?
She was the first to make him hug, release into her and enjoy the after play. He had felt the satisfaction at planting his seeds inside of her.
He acknowledged that his indifference had hurt her. Under normal circumstances, she was very likely to be pregnant.
He had forgotten that she couldn’t have a child and did not show any concern as to whether or not she was pregnant.
Her words asking why he was suddenly curious was full of resentment and bitterness.
It was fragmented information but being able to see her wounds sent a tingling sensation around his heart.
“If I get treated, I want to have a child. Even so, is it okay?”
She cannot get pregnant anyways. He could tell her that she was allowed to have any amount of kids she wanted.
That any amount she wanted was good. If he said that then she couldn’t blame him afterwards if they didn’t have any children.
However, he didn’t want to deceive her that way. Even if he couldn’t say the truth, he didn’t want to lie to her.
“…I don’t need a child.”
“If it is because of the succession issue, then I can write a memorandum. I don’t care if I have to sign a contract that excludes my rights to succession.”
“It is not because of that. I…I don’t want to leave my mark.”
“You already have a son.”
“That one—!”
There was too much to explain for that. The only one left who knew that he wasn’t Damian’s biological father was the old man.
There was no end to it once the dam was opened. He did not want to share the secrets of Taran with anyone.
He was not going to tell Damian either. He would embrace that knowledge alone and bury it with himself.
“He is…He’s a little different. You…I didn’t know you wanted a child that much.”
He realized that he really had only been looking at her exterior. He didn’t know what was inside her heart at all.
“I’m sorry. I know the wife you want should not be such a woman.”
“Vivian.”
He sighed heavily.
“I don’t mean to criticize you. I just didn’t know so I am surprised.”
“When we first talked about marriage, you said you don’t care if I bear a child.”
“That’s…”
It wasn’t that he didn’t care but he knew that she couldn’t get pregnant anyways and he didn’t feel like explaining it, after all at the time, he only needed a mate. A wife was just a freebie.
“You said you wouldn’t divorce me.”
Instantly, he became alert, his eyes flared and he snarled.
“Divorce? That’s impossible.”
Hearing the word ‘divorce’ come out of her mouth, his insides gradually began to boil.
“I told you from the start. No divorce.
I definitely said that even if I die, you won’t be able to escape.”
“I know. The tradition of the Taran family. Of course I remember. But there is no tradition of not having children.”
“A child or a divorce. As you asking me to make a choice?”
Her amber eyes trembled intensely.
Lucia turned her head away from him as her eyes stung as if tears would fall. To her, his words seemed to be asking her instead to choose one of the two.
“I…didn’t mean it like that.”
“Vivian, why can’t we keep being like this?”
“It is just my greed. I wish to have someone with me when I am alone.”
“Why would you be alone?”
“Surely, you aren’t saying that you will be with me forever?”
“…What?”
Looking at his expression akin to someone hearing a foreign language, something lit up from deep within Lucia’s heart.
His manner of speaking too, as if to pacify her, was irritating.
‘Even though he had no interest in what I think! Even though all he wants is an adequate and comfortable wife to push to the side!’
She wanted to see him wounded and hurting.
Even if she couldn’t make him hurt no matter what she did, then at the very least she wanted to make it awkward and difficult for him.
Such wicked thoughts uncontrollably rose in her heart.
“You don’t love me and I will never love you. So, what is there between us? How long do you think this type of relationship will last?”
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