Chapter 17
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: New Family - 2
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The family was in a festive mood upon hearing the news of Chloe's pregnancy.
"Sis, are you really pregnant?"
"Yeah, I told you."
"Have you had any morning sickness?"
"Nope. Lately, I've only been eating the meat that Mr. Sian prepared for me."
"Sian, how did you know?"
"It's a skill I learned from Father. By taking the pulse, you can check someone's health."
"Hunters learn that kind of thing too?"
I forced a smile as I answered Leon's question.
The pulse-taking technique wasn't something I learned from my adoptive father Ian in this life, but from my father, who was a Korean medicine doctor in my previous life.
Anyway, not everyone was thrilled about the pregnancy news.
My sense of responsibility as the head of the household had grown even stronger, Chloe brimmed with love, and Sylvia, Chloe's mother...
"P-Pregnancy?"
She grew more tense than the pregnant Chloe herself.
No, if my mother-in-law was like this...
"Chloe, are you feeling unwell or bloated?"
"Yes, I'm fine."
"What do we do?! It might all come at once later!"
"???"
Was she teasing?
That thought crossed my mind, but Sylvia was genuinely fidgeting. Unlike her usual self, she was extremely worried about the pregnancy.
"Sylvia, calm down. If you're anxious, your daughter will be too."
"Elsia..."
"You haven't changed a bit."
"But I'm the older sister..."
Sylvia pouted, but Elsia ignored her and approached Chloe.
"Dear, you need to take good care of your body from now on."
"Yes, y-yes?"
"Because you might miscarry."
At the word "miscarry," Chloe's face drained of color in an instant, her heart sinking.
I felt the same. Especially in this place without antibiotics, a miscarriage posed a huge risk to the mother too.
"Don't be too scared. That fear isn't good for the baby inside."
"Yes..."
"But don't worry. You have a wonderful husband."
Elsia spoke while glancing at me, and at her words, Chloe looked my way and regained her spirits.
Anyone would think she was Chloe's mother.
"Mr. Sian, as your concubine, allow me to suggest a few items necessary for your wife."
"Tell me, and I'll make them right away."
Elsia acted just like the lady of the house, but no one objected. It was originally Sylvia's role, but she wasn't in any condition for it right now.
I headed out to work with Leon, following her instructions.
"Mom had a miscarriage once before."
"What?"
I'd asked Leon about Sylvia's condition, only to hear a grim story from her past.
"Dad wanted a son. So she got pregnant after Clia, but that was when she miscarried for the first time. The shock was immense."
"I see..."
They say the trauma of a miscarriage can be devastating for the mother.
She already had three children, so a sudden miscarriage must have hit her hard. On top of that, she probably couldn't trust her own experience anymore, which explained why she hadn't offered any advice to her daughter Chloe earlier.
"After Dad passed away, plenty of men pressed her to remarry, but that's why she never did."
"With her looks, she definitely could have remarried. So there was another reason."
Sylvia's beauty was such that no one would bat an eye if she were mistaken for Chloe's sister instead of her mother.
She adored her children fiercely and endured without remarrying—was the miscarriage trauma the reason why?
"I should comfort her sometime later."
"Comfort her?"
"She doesn't need to stay that anxious forever."
A miscarriage is tragic.
But it's a loss to keep agonizing over something that's already in the past.
"Yeah, I should comfort her too."
Right, my son-in-law. You go ahead and comfort her real good.
"Oh, right. While I'm making the chair, I should build a beehive too."
"Beehive?"
"Sweet food is the best for lifting spirits."
Of course, someone would have to make a little sacrifice.
The Dark Forest is enormous.
They say even if Lugeron Village expanded tenfold, it still wouldn't cover half the forest.
Given its vastness, the forest's ecosystem was far beyond imagination.
White Giant Ants living quietly underground, War Bears beginning their winter hibernation.
Endless lakes you couldn't see the other side of, vast ridges blanketed in firewood, and even mad woodpeckers drilling holes into Blackwood trees to build their nests.
There were so many rare sights you couldn't find outside.
Especially the beehive crafted by a swarm of honeybee monsters called Giant Prings—it was the size of a small mountain and drew gasps of awe.
"The honey from here is incredible."
In this remote place where sugar was impossible to obtain, it was the only ingredient that delivered truly superb sweetness.
However, acquiring it was incredibly difficult.
As befitting honeybee monsters, Giant Prings swarmed in groups and ruthlessly drove out any intruders in their territory.
Just like now.
"Siaaaan!"
"Ah, this isn't working."
We'd entered the Giant Prings' hive to harvest honey, but we were shot down in seconds.
"Pollen can't fool the Giant Prings' senses. Good experience."
"Is this the time to appreciate it?!"
Leon, whom I'd brought along as an assistant, lashed out at me.
Well, she'd trusted me and followed, only to get suddenly surrounded by a monster swarm—I could understand her frustration.
"Don't worry. If we run about the distance of one lap around the village, they'll give up and head home."
"O-One lap around the village?"
It was just a stroll for me, but it seemed different for Leon—she was already tiring out.
"It's too much."
"Leon, you need to work on your stamina."
"Hah! Heok! Even in the village..."
Panting like that, Leon was in danger of getting stung.
"No choice."
"Heok?!"
"Ah, stay still for a sec."
Kaboom!
In the end, I hoisted Leon onto my back and sprinted at full speed.
"Haa haa... Sian, are you really human?"
"That's the personal attack I hear a lot these days."
"It's weird. How can anyone be this fast?"
"The mercenary I fought was about this level."
"That guy's the leader of the Black Wolf Mercenary Group."
"You know him?"
"Not well, but I heard his name during the war."
"Yeah?"
"I've never heard of a mercenary using aura like the knights do."
"Aura."
Aura.
The blue energy that Wolf had wrapped around his body and sword during our fight.
It seemed like an ability that boosted physical prowess and sword power.
'And I beat an aura user with pure physical strength.'
In a world where knights were seen as special for wielding such power, it made sense why people questioned if I was even human after defeating one with raw body alone.
What if I could wield aura too?
"Anyway, that's for later. Leon."
"Yeah?"
"Let's try again. Honey and bee harvest. We'll succeed this time."
"C-Can't we just go home?"
"Haha, no way."
Unfortunately, we couldn't secure any honey or bees. It was a shame about the beehive we'd made, but we could use it next time.
'I want to domesticate them before spring.'
Leon turned out to lack persistence more than I'd expected, dooming the attempt.
Damn, that's why you can't count on pretty-boy types.
"Sian, you just thought something weird, didn't you?"
"Your imagination."
As evening fell, night began to settle in.
With Chloe pregnant, I'd decided to stay by her side from evening onward whenever possible.
"Darling, what are you making?"
"A toy."
Still, sitting idle was boring, so I was whittling away at various wooden crafts.
"Is it a bear?"
"No, a War Bear."
I didn't know if the baby would be a boy or girl yet, but I hoped they'd like these little hobby projects.
"What about this cat?"
"Black Tiger. The one that scarred my face."
"Aren't they a bit too cute for such vicious beasts?"
"You think?"
Chloe smiled at me, and her smile made me grin back.
For some reason, just being together like this filled us with happiness.
"Kyaa! Elin! Are you okay?!"
A scream rang out from the living room.
"I'll be right back."
I hurried to the living room. There was Elin bleeding and Clia fidgeting in panic.
"Clia, what happened?"
"We were doing laundry together, and..."
Clia spoke in a frantic voice, but Elin—who took after her mother Elsia not just in looks—responded calmly, as if that composure ran deeper than her appearance.
"I'm fine. I just tripped over the threshold."
"Elin, there's blood on your head!"
"Clia, go grab the first aid kit."
"First aid kit? The red box brother made before? Got it!"
Clia dashed off to fetch it, just as I'd asked.
I checked Elin's condition.
"How'd you get hurt?"
"I slipped while working."
"Working?"
The household chores were usually handled by Sylvia and Chloe.
But with Chloe pregnant, we couldn't burden her, so she'd shared the load with her little sister Clia. It seemed perceptive Elin had noticed and tried to help, only to get injured.
"Brother, I got it!"
"Thanks, Clia."
Clia brought the first aid kit as requested.
The wound wasn't bad enough for a potion, so I cleaned it with distilled water and applied herbs and bandages for first aid.
"There. That should do it."
"Thank you."
Elin bowed her head in blank-faced thanks. Her personality was the total opposite of Clia's, which felt a little strange.
'She's still just a kid.'
Her hands trembled slightly. Outwardly quiet and steady, but in the end, she was a child who cared what others thought.
"Elin, don't get too down about it."
"Yes?"
I stroked her head as I spoke.
"Everyone makes mistakes while working."
"Yes..."
I wasn't sure if my words got through to her, but I hoped she wouldn't feel too crushed.
Then, glancing at the wooden toys, a sudden thought struck me.