When I Took Back My Beloved Child Who Had Been Taken From Me, My Husband's Obsessive Love Began. Why? - Episode 6

Realizing that she had been dreaming of the past, Lucienne smiled at the irony through her hazy consciousness.

Lucienne is now taking refuge in the palace left behind by Aurelia.

To be precise, it’s for recuperation, but the public doesn’t see it that way.

Probably.

Surely, right about now, Bertrand might be laughing his head off.

Oh, that’s already impossible. The Emperor has passed away…

Bertrand passed away suddenly amidst the joy in the imperial palace upon learning of Lucienne’s pregnancy.

As a result, the entire country soon entered a period of mourning.

If there is an afterlife, Bertrand might indeed be laughing, Lucienne thought vaguely, when she heard the harsh voice of Rite in her ears.

“Lucienne-sama, pull yourself together! Is it alright if you never see your child again!? Is it alright if you never hold them even once!?”

At that powerful voice, I suddenly come to my senses.

I thought I was having a long dream, but it seems it was just a brief moment in reality.

Lucienne became aware of her surroundings and realized that she had just moved back to the detached palace.

“Is… the child… doing well…?”

“Yes. Just a moment ago, someone over there said that His Highness the Prince is very well. It seems he has taken a bath and is now sleeping.”

“Yeah… I’m glad…”

Relieved, Lucienne was incredibly sleepy, but she couldn’t fall asleep because Rite kept calling out to her.

After a while, Aman brings a bitter medicinal drink.

It seemed to be the same drink I had before leaving the palace, and I couldn’t help but grimace at the smell.

Then, Aman and Rite both smile happily.

Thinking what mean-spirited people they are, I somehow managed to drink the medicinal bath, and Aman gently called out to me.

“Your Highness, please rest well for a while. I will wake you up when it’s time for your medication.”

“Same thing?”

Yes

“I don’t like it…”

When Lucienne complained, Aman and Rite laughed happily again.

Even though I thought it wasn’t interesting at all, it seems I fell asleep without realizing it.

When I was called by Rite and reluctantly opened my eyes, I had to drink that medicinal bath again.

Each time, Lucienne would worry about whether the child was well, and upon hearing responses like “It seems the baby drank milk,” “It seems the baby is crying loudly,” “It seems the baby is sleeping soundly,” she would feel relieved and fall back asleep.

About a month after the birth—after Lucienne moved to the detached palace.

At last, Lucienne had recovered enough to maintain a clear consciousness.

Even so, my magical power was still far from being satisfied, and it was quite tough just lying in bed, unable to even sit up.

That’s because the only thing I can do is think about it.

Then, I couldn’t help but think about my child and Craig all the time.

The day after the audience with Bertrand, the wedding took place as scheduled, but there was no noticeable change in Craig.

There are no shouts of abuse, no glares, and no cold attitudes.

There was no conversation except for what was necessary, but since I knew Craig, who hadn’t talked much since childhood, it didn’t bother me.

Lucienne had noticed that Claude, who would come to the palace under various pretexts, would talk to her reasonably well, and occasionally even break into a faint smile, though not as much as before.

The nighttime activities were fairly frequent from the very first night.

However, Lucienne thinks this must also be a duty, as he visits the bedroom late at night, hardly engages in conversation, and quickly leaves afterward.

If there had been even one kind word, things might have been different.

By the time a year had passed since their marriage, it was clear that the vassals were growing impatient with Lucienne, who still showed no signs of pregnancy.

In the first place, those with strong magical power find it difficult to have children.

In that case, there were also voices suggesting that he should take a mistress, and his uncle and aunt were pressing him to recommend a mistress from Lucienne—insisting that he should acknowledge his relationship with Claudine.

However, Claudine was different.

“—That’s right. Starting the day after tomorrow, His Highness will be going on an inspection tour to the provinces. It must be quite a challenge for those who will be receiving him, especially with no prior notice.”

“……Huh?”

“Could it be that you don’t know? There’s no way that’s true, right? After all, Lucy is a princess. By the way, our Arment Marquisate has no issues whether you come for an inspection anytime, so you can relax. Thanks to Father, of course.”

“……Yeah.”

The marquisate is well-managed because the steward hired by the previous generation—Lucienne’s father—is diligent.

My uncle seems to have no interest in managing the estate except for the new trade he started, and he is busy with the power struggles within the imperial palace.

However, more than that, it was shocking that Lucienne, the Crown Prince’s wife, was not informed about the Crown Prince’s surprise visit to the local area, while Claudine was.

Claudine must have deliberately brought up that topic to hurt Lucienne.

“Well, just between us… it seems that His Majesty the Emperor wasn’t very interested in state affairs, so the local governments have been doing as they please… I think it will be tough from now on, but I believe that if it’s you, Your Highness, you will definitely achieve the reign you’ve always aimed for. Don’t you think so too, Lucienne?”

“Yeah…”

I don’t know what Craig was aiming for.

Not knowing anything is also because I haven’t had any real conversations—because I couldn’t.

Even so, at this time, Lucienne still had no intention of giving up.

No matter what, I was the one who got married, so I thought that eventually, even if the same feelings of “love” didn’t come back, he would at least have some affection for me over time.

However, with the next words from Claudine, that resolve was shattered.

“Still, we both had a rough time, didn’t we? Who would have thought the Empress would leave behind such a will?”

“…Did you know?”

“Oh, this was supposed to be a secret, wasn’t it? I slipped up. I promised not to tell anyone. But since Lucienne is involved, it’s fine, right?”

Lucienne no longer looked at Claudine, who was smiling cutely and giggling.

The love I had been holding onto for Craig shattered, and it felt like the fog that had been hanging over my mind was finally clearing.