Chapter 66: Family
Volume 2 — The Honeymoon of the Northern Nobleman and the Raptor Wife
While learning how to act like a noble, or helping father-in-law’s ranch, or relaxing with Sieg, the first winter at the foreign country passed quickly.
It’s already about five months since I came here. Sieg’s belly was heavy with a child as well. According to the doctor, she’s about seven months pregnant. At the beginning of summer, a new life will be born.
Sieg wanted to return to my country since she was now in her stable phase, but because people around us fiercely objected we decided to stay here until childbirth.
I am happy that she loves the remote lands. However, there are no doctors in the village. In contrast, here there is mother-in-law who is experienced in giving birth along with servants, so it was reassuring. Thus, I decided to stay until summer.
◇◇◇
Today, I strolled the lush spring forest with the two little princesses and Sieg.
Edelgard and Adeltraud walked with baskets to put flowers into.
Without delay, the energetic princess looked over here and asked me a question.
“Dearest Uncle Ritzhard, what’s that violet flower?”
“That’s blue mallow. It’s used for tea.”
“Really!?”
“The tea is blue like the flower, but with lemon it turns a pretty light pink.”
“Hehh, amazing, I want to see it.”
“Then, why don’t we try it back home. Though it will be a few days later because we have to dry it.”
Blue mallow is good for sore throats. It also protects mucous membranes, so it’s good for stomachaches as well.
As I told them, the sisters picked only the flowers into the baskets.
“It is a little hard to drink though.”
Blue mallow doesn’t have a particular taste or smell, so it isn’t really tasty. When I was little, I remember drinking it with honey when I became sick.
The flower tea doesn’t taste good. I refrained from saying such a dreamless thing to the two who were joyfully picking flowers. Well, they might still be able to enjoy it from seeing the colour change, or so I thought and gave up about talking about the taste.
With slow steps, Sieg followed by. The servant holding up a parasol behind her was sweating profusely, so I held out a handkerchief.
“Sieg, are you alright?”
“Aa, I’m fine.”
I took off my coat and laid it out on the floor to offer her a seat.
“Sorry about that.”
“No need.”
The two of us sat down on the grass and narrowed our eyes from the sunlight.
In the forest, many birds were chirping about as if they were whispering. From above the trees, the squirrels occasionally peeked out. The breeze brushing the leaves carried fresh air here.
As I enjoyed the genial forest, I heard an energetic voice approach.
“Dearest Uncle, is this enough?”
“You’ve collected a lot.”
Their baskets were filled with violet flowers.
“Shall we go back soon?”
“Alright.”
In this country, the tree branches intertwine greatly, that the lush colours turn dark deeper in the forests. There are not many places where one can stroll in the light.
Moreover, it was not good to make Sieg walk for too long so I decided to return home.
After drying the blue mallow that was collected from the forest for few days, a beautifully coloured tea is made by extracting the substances of the flower with warm water.
“Pretty~~!!”
Seeing the freshly brewed tea, Edelgard and Adeltraud gleamed their eyes.
Then, when I dropped in some lemon juice with a teaspoon, the blue liquid turned pink.
“Waa!!”
“Amazing!!”
Even Edelgard was exclaiming in surprise.
“Blue mallow is also called the herb of dawn……”
“Dearest Uncle Ritzhard, this is magic, right!?”
“Pardon?”
Even though we lived together for many months, it seems that my image as a fairy had not changed. I ended up smiling wryly. Because I did not want to disappoint the two princesses, I boasted my trivial knowledge about herbs. Then, Adeltraud said, “That’s the fairy for you!! You know everything about the forest!”
This old fairy is moved to tears.
◇◇◇
The season quickly changed, and it was now summer.
When the sun peeked out from below the horizon, a new life was born.
The red-faced newborn was declaring its birth.
When I gave words of encouragement to Sieg, who became completely haggard, she vigorously responded, this is nothing.
The baby was washed by the women and wrapped in a soft cloth before handing it over to mother-in-law.
The hair colour was white. The eyelids were chubby as though they were bloated, that it seems like it will take some time for the eyes to open.
Even from marriage with foreigners, the babies born from the village have white hair. It’s a mystery of the village.
“We don’t yet know who’s more alike.”
“But it’s so cute.”
Mother-in-law said as she looked at the baby’s face.
“Hey, Ritzhard-san, are you alright?”
“Yes.”
I was still a bit agitated, and the fact that a baby was born didn’t feel real. I was hugging it in my arms, yet it felt like a dream.
I took the baby to Sieg who had now recovered.
“Sieg, look, it’s our baby.”
“Aa, what a relief.”
After seeing the baby, Sieg looked very relieved.
“Sieg, thank you. I am glad that you are both healthy.
No words of thanks were enough.
“Protect the family, dad.”
“!”
I cam to my senses from mother-in-law’s words of encouragement.
Then I really felt it. That I finally had a new family that I had been yearning for.
◇◇◇
The baby is a boy, and the name is Arno.
Grandfather named him. “Become strong like an eagle,” it meant.
Grandfather was fawning over his great-grandson.
“It’s a son fitting of the name of a raptor. Look at his sharp gaze.”
Arno had white hair and blue eyes like me, but his face was more like Sieg’s. He had all the traits of a creature living in the village of fairies in the remote lands, but he was more like a brave eagle chick than a baby fairy. Grandfather must have been thinking the same thing, since when we looked at each other we ended up laughing.
“If it’s this child, he will live well in those remote lands as well.”
“I hope he does.”
“Of course he will.”
“Thank you, grandfather.”
Arno, whom grandfather was holding, suddenly started crying. Since he was just drinking milk, it might be the diaper.
“By the way, can you change the diapers in the ship.”
“We can.”
The servant brought a new diaper over, so I continued chatting while swiftly changing it.
Tomorrow, I am finally returning to my hometown after nine months.
Father-in-law wished for me to stay here, but I was worried about the state of the village, and Sieg too wish for the life of the village so I respectfully declined even as I felt sorry.
In addition, I was worried about how father was doing as the lord. I received letters a few times a month. “Everything’s alright~,” that sort of loose reports were being sent, but worryingly no letters came from the villagers. I felt anxious because something bad might have happened to the village.
“About that, are you really fine with it.”
“Well, for now.”
Almost as if we were swapping places, it was decided that father and mother will come to this country to live. There was a request to father to present his research or something. If it’s only the two of them, I would be worried, but there’s grandfather so it will be alright.
The next day.
It was the day to return home. Before we left, we bid goodbye to grandfather.
“Ritzhard, a parting gift.”
“?”
Grandfather pointed to a square black bag on a small table. The marquess’s butler held up a document to sign.
“Eh, what’s this?”
“Chocolate.”
“Pardon?”
“It’s special chocolate, so there is a special procedure for this. Stop yapping about and just sign it!”
“Y-Yes.”
It didn’t exactly know what it was, but I wrote my name where the butler was pointing towards. To the carriage, a servant carried the bag.
“Why chocolate?”
“It’s the parvenu style that’s trending recently.”
“Ah~ that.”
I recalled that I heard about it a few days ago from brother-in-law. It seemed that recently nobles are stacking chocolate shaped like gold bars on tables like parvenus to enjoy their drinks.
“I already had these. I don’t need them, so take them without complaining.”
“U-Understood.”
The butler opened the bag slightly and showed the chocolate inside. The dazzling wrappings looked like the real thing.
“Huh? These look real”
I flinched from grandfather clearing his throat, and was reminded that it was time to go.
“Grandfather, thank you for so many things. I will be back again.”
“Alright, so go already.”
I bowed my head down to and ran over to my family who were already waiting in the carriage.
While watching the scenery move as the carriage started moving, I bid farewell to Sieg’s homeland.
◇◇◇
During the two-day-long boat trip, when I grabbed the bag grandfather gave me to have some chocolate, it was suspiciously heavy. It was almost as heavy a kid in their early teens. Since the servant from the Marquisate carried it to the cabin, it was the first time I was touching it too.
“Eh, what the, this, it’s sort of, heavy.”
To me who was not moving from in front of the bag, Sieg came while hugging our son.
“What’s in this bag?”
“Chocolate, from, Grandfather?”
The weight wasn’t that of confectionery for sure.
When I carefully opened the bag, there definitely were gold bars inside.
“Th-This is!?”
“It indeed is real gold.”
“……”
Believe it or not, grandfather’s parting gift wasn’t chocolate, but thirty gold bars. Other than the gold bars, there were many documents and a letter from grandfather, which could be summarised as, “Non-returnable.”
“I was tricked……”
“No, didn’t you realise it when you were told to sign a document?”
“No, but, he was rushing me!”
“……”
A son and gold bars, I returned home with great gains.
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