Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Returning to the Main House - 4
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"My back still hurts."
"Sorry."
We'd made love in the hot springs, then returned to the old house and tangled with Clara again.
The bed was so worn out that we had to share it.
After just having sex, could we really sleep comfortably crammed together on that narrow bed?
Of course not. We ended up entwined until morning, our bodies soaked in each other's scents as we mated over and over.
"You were thinking something naughty again, weren't you?"
"No, I was just thinking about Clara's tight pussy."
"Eek... I told you not to say stuff like that."
Clara was surprisingly weak to dirty talk.
I'd thought she'd be used to it from hanging around men while disguised as one, but she had no resistance at all.
Of course, every time, her faintly flushed reaction hinted at a bit of masochism.
"Wanna go again?"
"When are we heading home? At this rate, we'll arrive at dinner."
Clara looked horrified at my words. Clutching her waist, she seemed genuinely worn out.
"Then let's save it for next time."
"Kyaa?!"
I scooped Clara up in a princess carry.
She was heavy with all her gear, of course, but I didn't mind.
"W-what are you doing?"
"What else? Carrying my beloved so she doesn't have to strain herself."
"Put me down! I-I can walk on my own."
"It's fine. You know how strong I am."
"Ugh... If you can do this, why'd you even bring me along? You could've handled everything alone."
"Because I wanted to be with Clara?"
At my words, Clara's face lit up like a girl confessing her love for the first time.
Adorable.
"Alright, let's head out."
"You're such a pervert."
And so, with Clara on my back, I dashed from the midpoint of the Dark Forest all the way home.
It wouldn't be true to say it wasn't tiring at all, but lately my body had been getting stronger, so it wasn't a burden.
⋯
"Welcome back. You must be exhausted."
Chloe greeted us when we arrived home. She hurried over and hugged me tight.
I gave her a brief kiss right there in front of everyone.
"Nothing happen while I was gone?"
"No. But lately, I've been feeling the baby moving inside me."
"Really?"
I was so thrilled I nearly jumped for joy—and wanted to lift her up—but she was pregnant, so I held back.
"It felt like kicking. Definitely a boy."
"Then he's gonna get a scolding when he comes out. Kicking his mom like that."
"Hehe, he's too young to know better, so I'll forgive him."
Chloe smiled warmly at my joke.
Bliss. This must be why Dad kept pushing me to get married. Thanks, Dad!
'Gotta pay a visit to the Village Chief later to thank him properly. He's the one who brought Chloe and me together.'
As that thought crossed my mind, Chloe whispered in my ear.
"Honey, you did it with Sis, didn't you?"
"W-well..."
Her sudden question caught me off guard.
Even if Chloe had urged me to take another woman, cheating was still cheating.
But her next words were utterly out of left field.
"Thank you. For treating her like a woman."
"Huh?"
"I've felt guilty about making Sis sacrifice so much for us, but thanks to you, that's eased up."
"..."
Seemed like there were still family secrets she hadn't shared with me.
I could piece together the gist, though.
"But I'm your wife."
"Of course."
"And... I want your love too."
Chloe's face flushed with desire.
Her reddened cheeks, her needy expression, her hot breath.
Seeing my wife so aroused reignited the lust I'd sated until morning.
I wanted to make love to her right then, but I couldn't.
She wasn't fully out of the early stages yet. For the baby's sake, both of us held back.
Instead, I kissed her deeply to ease her loneliness—hotter than before.
"I love you, Chloe."
"Me too."
"Um... could you two take it inside?"
Sylvia was watching our PDA from outside and giving us a hint. Doing this out here felt a bit off, right?
But her expression looked more envious than embarrassed.
Mother-in-law, it's only been a day.
'Before comforting Sylvia, I should check with Elsia first.'
I grabbed the land deed left by my adoptive father Ian and headed to Elsia.
⋯
"You did it, didn't you?"
"W-well..."
"I knew it!"
"Mooom!"
Leon—no, Clara's room.
Sylvia was interrogating her own daughter Clara.
About what?
About how things had escalated with Sian, of course!
Seeing Clara arrive clutching her waist like that had confirmed it for her.
Sylvia knew all too well—having experienced it herself, her back ached the day after her first time with Sian.
And the clincher?
The smell of Sian's semen on Clara!
"You mated! Now Clara's a full-fledged woman!"
"Kyaaah! Don't say 'mated' like that!"
"He came inside, right? Sian always finishes inside! That's mating!"
"Stooop!!"
Clara's head throbbed at her mother's blatant dirty talk.
She couldn't fathom how her once pure and dignified mom had changed so much.
But even if she couldn't understand it, she knew who was to blame.
"Hehe, so now we're pillar sisters—no, pillar mother and daughter?"
It was all because of that devilish man, Sian, of course.
"Mom..."
Pillar sisters were shocking enough, but pillar mother and daughter?
The word choice was beyond imagination; Clara didn't even have the energy to argue anymore.
"Still, I'm glad. That Clara's become a woman."
"You're saying this to encourage your daughter, but why does it feel so weird to me?"
"Hehe, just your imagination. And... sorry."
"Huh?"
Clara was thrown by the sudden apology.
She braced for whatever new way her mom would tease her this time.
But unlike what she'd expected, Sylvia was serious.
"I've worried for so long that I was burdening you."
"......"
"It's not easy for a girl to act like a boy."
Sylvia's husband Glock had agonized over which of his two daughters—Clara or Chloe—to raise as a son, and chosen Clara. Partly because she was the eldest, but mostly because her larger build made her male disguise believable.
But that didn't make it easy.
For her to act like a man, it took tremendous effort.
Forcing herself through hated workouts, choking down tasteless food to bulk up.
And what did she gain? The father who forced the disguise died of plague, and she nearly died conscripted into the war.
"Sorry. I couldn't do anything for you."
"Mom, I'm fine."
Thinking of what her daughter had endured kept Sylvia awake at nights. It was all because she couldn't bear a son. Yet here was Clara, forcing a bright smile. Sylvia was grateful.
"You don't have to push yourself anymore. You can live as a woman now."
Thank goodness Sian had accepted Clara as a woman and slept with her. It meant he cared, and she could become his concubine.
So there was no need for Clara to force herself into hated hunts or chores.
But Clara thought differently.
"No."
"Hm?"
"It's too late for me to learn housework now. I wouldn't be good at it."
Raised as a boy, Clara knew nothing about homemaking.
She'd learned farming under her father, fighting to survive the war, and lately hunting under Sian. Starting housework now would waste all that.
And...
"Sian needs me. So I want to do what I'm good at."
"You mean work with Sian?"
"Eek..."
To explain: Among the family, Clara had spent the most time alone with Sian—hunting and working together.
So if she wanted to be alone with him, tagging along like always made sense. The difference now? She'd do it as a woman, not a man.
"Makes me jealous. I hardly get alone time with Sian because of Elsia watching. Next time you go to the forest, take me along."
"Mom!"
Clara had overcome her trauma and could finally live as a woman—as a woman loved by the man she loved.
⋯
The Elsia I'd observed was calm and composed. She never acted rashly.
Ah, except when I confessed my love or stole a surprise kiss—she'd blush like a schoolgirl then.
That innocent side was part of her charm.
But when it came to commerce, she had sharper insight than anyone in the village. That's why we left most household finances to her.
And now, that very woman was visibly shaken by the land deed I showed her.
"Is it that big a deal?"
"This is beyond anything I could presume to judge."
"Huh?"
"It seems your adoptive father, Mr. Ian, was likely a noble's son. At least an earl's family or higher."
It was shocking news.
Dad? Why do the surprises never end?