I Became The Male Lead’s Female Friend Chapter 210 - Side Story 10 - Friends or Lovers END

The mother, who was instantly caught between the father and daughter, shook her head in bewilderment.

 

“Huh?”

 

“We, we’re not there yet, I don’t think we’re ready, we’re too, uh, shy to bring it up… huh, right, Rudrick?”

 

“Uh, yeah…”

 

Rudrick was already stunned.

 

“Really, ho ho, it looks like you’re both still shy, but you still have to tell me if you ever need to?”

 

“Haha, sure, definitely. I will, if I need to…”

 

For a moment, I could feel Rudrick glaring at me, so I quickly snapped my mouth shut.

 

Instead, I grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet.

 

“…Oh, my goodness, it’s getting late already, and you two need to get some rest, so we’re going to head out!”

 

“Oh, already?”

 

My mother looked disappointed, but she didn’t let on. Neither Rudrick nor Dad could lift their faces from their cushions.

 

In the end, it was only my mother who saw me off. I helped Rudrick, who staggered after me, half exhausted, into the carriage, looked back at my mother, and then, in a low voice, asked her, 

 

“But… is it for real?”

 

Mother laughed.

 

“No.”

 

Luckily, I was spared from having my hand in marriage to Rudrick.

 

The opposition from the Bouser vassals was fortunately quelled when the former Duchess of Bouser stepped in.

 

Before the Duke’s affairs, she had been a well-respected lady of the house in the north. 

 

As the mother of the current Duke, she would not have to worry about factions.

 

Before she left for the North, the Duchess took my hand and said.

 

“Don’t worry about it while I’m alive.”

 

“Mother.”

 

“You must… be happy.”

 

I beamed.

 

“I will.”

 

The few remaining voices of dissent were silenced once they saw the percentage of profit in the magic supply agreement.

 

The reason was that I had quoted a high percentage.

 

“You’re going to give us 30% of the net revenue?”

 

Bouser asked in disbelief at the meeting where the two families adjusted their share.

 

Of course, it took a lot of twists and turns for me to say this. When I said I’d give them 30% of the net profits, the Averine vassals barked back.

 

“No way! We do all the manufacturing, distribution, and promotion, and it’s not fair to give them that much!”

 

“It’s reasonable. We can’t get a steady supply of magic without Bouser anyway, and how long do you think they’ll hide the fact that the raw material for the magic is demons?”

 

“It’s…”

 

“I don’t know the exact recipe, but I’m sure there will be attempts to fake it, and if Bouser announces that they’re contracting with another family, we’ll be the only ones in trouble.”

 

‘Hmm…’

 

For several days I spent meetings with the vassals, trying to convince them, and they were both agreeable and unhappy with my ideas, but in the end, we compromised on the right lines.

 

Well, with a few more conditions.

 

“In exchange, we’ll make the contract longer, and…”

 

“What?”

 

“We want the Northern Development Zone to keep us top of mind because we’re planning to do a lot of things soon.”

 

The words were meant to make us think, but they were practically saying we’d be the first to take it. Bouser’s vassal stared at me blankly, then smiled roguishly.

 

“Very well. I wish you well in the future.”

 

The deal was quickly finalized, as I had already spoken with Rudrick.

 

From that point on, the Bouser’s objections were silenced, and we exchanged engagement rings with the blessings of our respective families, each satisfied in one way or another.

 

The wedding was to take place after I graduated from the Academy. 

 

In truth, I had hoped to have it sooner, but…

 

“I don’t have the confidence to let you go once we’re married.”

 

Rudrick’s words caught me off guard.

 

‘You’re awful, when did you learn to speak like that?’

 

I blushed and nodded coldly, embarrassed by my own words. 

 

“Then when the hell are we going to sleep?” I said, secretly wondering.

 

But we did it!

 

Even after the engagement, I didn’t give up seducing Rudrick, and after doing it a few times, I became more bold and less sheepish.

 

Although I did occasionally push the boundaries and knock him out…

 

Me, Dahlia Averine.

 

A woman of determination.

 

Chirp, chirp, chirp!

 

The chirping of birds awakened me in the morning.

 

I smirked at the sight of Rudrick’s angelic face sleeping soundly beneath our sheets, with his naked body and the comforting presence of his arm pillow.

 

After all that, my reaction was this.

 

“Awesome.”

 

💫

 

The next few years passed.

 

I had successfully graduated from the Academy and returned to the Empire shortly thereafter.

 

In the meantime, my love affair with Rudrick remained unchanged.

 

I was surprised to find that it had gotten better with time.

 

‘Hehe, we’re so compatible!’

 

To this day, I still remember that day.

 

That day, when Rudrick sat me down and emphasized ‘just once’ because he felt sorry for my tearful efforts.

 

The ignorant virgins had promised to do it ‘just once’ and thought they could keep it. 

 

Who knew that ‘just once‘ would become ‘just one more time’ and ‘one last time’.

 

For the first time, I realized that Rudrick was ruthless.

 

Who knew he was so strong, or why he was pushing me to get fit…

 

‘It’s all about real exercise now.’

 

It’s no surprise that I started working out consistently after a real fitness crisis.

 

And after all those eventful days, here we are.

 

“I’m going to get this done.”

 

The wedding day arrived.

 

Actually, the wedding wasn’t a problem, because it was always planned to happen after I graduated from the academy.

 

The timing was the only thing that didn’t go according to plan. 

 

Originally, I had planned to take my time and have a perfect ceremony on the right date, but instead, I had to rush into it upon my return.

 

“What, you had an accident before the wedding?”

 

That’s because I became pregnant.

 

“Hehe, it happened.”

 

After that amazing first night with Rudrick, I became an even more unleashed colt, and the days that followed were filled with me being swept away by him, much to his frustration and my inability to push him away.

 

But I’m pretty sure I was on birth control…

 

‘Did I?’

 

Truth be told, I wasn’t sure, because once I started with Rudrick, I lost track of most of it.

 

But I do know that at one point, I felt sick to my stomach and unusually unwell, and then I collapsed while working late and was told the unexpected news by the doctor who had rushed to see me.

 

“Congratulations, Miss!”

 

At first, I felt a bit overwhelmed.

 

Having been my parents’ daughter all my life, I was about to become a mother, with Rudrick and our child inside me.

 

‘This is weird.’

 

And I remember rubbing my flat stomach for a long time, and then I remember writing a letter to Rudrick, gasping for breath.

 

When Rudrick heard the news, he came straight to the Duchy.

 

Expecting him to write back, I was surprised once to see him in person, and twice to see him burst into tears as he calmly listened to my explanation.

 

My eyes welled up with tears, even though I tried to calm him down by saying, “It’s a good thing, why are you crying?” 

 

I ended up hugging Rudrick and sobbing myself to sleep.

 

And so, back to now. I was smiling happily, even though I was interrupted by Jeron yelling at me.

 

“…Are you listening to me, huh?”

 

“A kid that looks like Rudrick would be so pretty, wouldn’t it? Will you ever see Rudrick as a child again?”

 

“…”

 

“Jeron, you know you can’t overcome the age difference, right?”

 

“Oh, who says!”

 

I giggled at the sight of him pouting in frustration. 

 

Jeron was fuming and ready to launch into another tirade, but he didn’t. My parents walked in on a visit.

 

“Dahlia, are you all set to go?”

 

“Oh, yes!”

 

My parents were dressed to perfection, as was I in my white wedding dress.

 

They were both looking uncharacteristically nervous, especially my father, whose fingertips were trembling as he held out his hand to escort me down the aisle, and I let out a small laugh.

 

“To be honest, I thought you two were getting married. What’s all the fuss about?”

 

“You’re going to have a baby. One minute she’s barely up to my knees, the next she’s this big…”

 

“Ugh, Adelio. You cried like that yesterday, are you going to cry again?”

 

“Oh, honey!”

 

“Uh, were you crying?”

 

My father’s face instantly turned sour, and the mother and daughter laughed out loud. 

 

After teasing him a bit more, I suddenly stroked my belly and muttered, “I guess I’ll know soon enough.”

 

At the same time, I felt my mother and father’s eyes on me. They stared at me for a moment, and then they smiled fondly.

 

“Congratulations again,” they said, and I smiled back.

 

I responded with a beaming smile.

 

The wedding was to take place in the capital’s central Great Hall. I was escorted down the aisle by my father in a carriage. 

 

Thousands of people were watching us, colorful petals fluttering before our eyes.

 

But I saw only one person.

 

The door to the temple opened and I saw him. My precious companion from childhood to now, looking straight at me.

 

And so I took a step toward him.

 

He was smiling, as dazzling as ever.

 

And now, again.

 

“Uh, it moved.”

 

“Moved? Where?”

 

“Wait, just… now!”

 

Both Rudrick and I had serious looks on our faces as we stared at my stomach.

 

For days, I’d been feeling a rumbling sensation in my stomach and wondered if I was sick, but then suddenly, with a pop, I felt something move. I realized it was the baby, and I quickly called for Rudrick.

 

But he wasn’t big enough yet, so no matter how long I waited, I couldn’t feel him again. Then I put my hand on him, and he responded.

 

“Oh, it’s funny, she recognizes you, too.”

 

“…Does she?”

 

“Yes. No matter how many times I called out to her, she didn’t answer. Is it a daughter?”

 

“I don’t know.”

 

Rudrick couldn’t take his hand off my stomach. He stroked my belly for a while, and then he smiled weakly.

 

“I hope you’re born healthy.”

 

To which I blinked and smiled back.

 

“I know.”

 

And so time passed.

 

By now, my belly was quite full. I patted my full belly as if to say to the little creature that was now actively wriggling in my belly, instead of just faintly.

 

“You need to be quiet, because Mommy is going to work.”

 

In truth, I’d been taking a break from work as my last month approached, but there was one thing I was sneaking away to do.

 

Writing. Putting together a book about what had happened.

 

From the moment I felt the baby in my belly, I knew I wanted to tell this child the story of what we had been through.

 

The days we traveled far and wide, the times we laughed and cried, and the times we were sad, but in the end, we collected all our sparkling memories with happy endings and turned them into a book.

 

Clumsily, I wrote them down, one by one, until they became a story. 

 

And only today did I decide on a title for the book.

 

The title of the book is…

 

《 I Became the Male Lead’s Female Friend, Complete.》