As My Husband Said, I Brought in a Lover Chapter 230

[Side Story 2: Vacation – Part 7]

 

Luize looked at Edward with an expectant expression. “How about we invite Vivian, Carlo, Sir Edvin, and Quirrel for a party in the cabin’s yard?”

 

Edward didn’t respond immediately; instead, he gazed quietly at her flushed face. Although he had wanted to spend this vacation alone with her, seeing how happy the idea made her, he decided it might be better to let her have her way this time.

 

After watching her for a moment, Edward finally let go of his remaining desire for solitude and raised his hands in surrender. “But after the party, I’d like us to have some time alone.”

 

“Of course.”

 

The conversation he wanted to have could wait until tomorrow.

 

* * *

The guests weren’t limited to just those they had initially invited. Edward visited Matthias’s lodgings, and Luize went to Vivian and Carlo’s inn to deliver hastily made invitations. Since Vivian had given them her address directly, it was easy to find them. As for the paladins, they had been staying in the village for quite a while, so it wasn’t hard to locate their lodging.

 

“Sir Edvin will be attending with High Priestess Raphaela.”

 

“I didn’t expect High Priestess Raphaela to be here.”

 

“We asked the temple for a priest to bless the festival’s opening, and Raphaela herself took on the task. Since she’s a busy person, I thought she’d return right away, but it seems she plans to stay for at least a day.”

 

“My goodness. Is she attending the festival for my birthday?”

 

“It’s not just your birthday celebration; it’s also an event marking the peace of Perils and celebrating the birth of a member of the imperial family, so it seems they took it quite seriously. It’s also a good official event to introduce the next pope.”

 

For Luize, it might have just seemed like her birthday festival, but it was the first festival celebrating the empress’s birthday. With the added symbolism, it appeared the temple decided it was better to send a distinguished figure, even if it seemed excessive.

 

“I see. The party is getting bigger than I expected, and I’m excited. I’d better get inside and start washing the vegetables…”

 

Just as Luize cheerfully opened the cabin door, a commotion erupted. Thud! A magic circle appeared in the air above the cabin’s living room, and people began to tumble out of it along with a black sphere.

 

“Ppiiiiiik!” [Everyone move!] Ren, who was buried under a pile of people on one side of the living room, yelled as it got pounded on the floor.

 

Maxion, who was right on top of Ren, spoke up. “Who’s on top? Move aside, one by one.”

 

“Hahaha, I’m on top!” Hendrik laughed heartily as he moved, allowing Aiven, who had been underneath him, to let out a deep sigh and get up.

 

“…I’m next.”

 

“Phew, no wonder it felt heavy.” Robin wiped his sweat as he stood up, and finally, Maxion, holding Ren, was the last to rise.

 

Robin looked around. “But where are we… huh?” His gaze met Edward’s, who was standing at the cabin’s entrance, holding baskets filled with meat, fruit, and vegetables.

 

“Ppik ppippik ppik!” [How dare you come to Perils without me!] Ren flailed in Maxion’s arms, yelling furiously.

 

“What happened here?” Edward asked.

 

Maxion patted Ren’s head, trying to calm it down, and replied, “Ren sensed Your Majesty’s presence in Perils and realized you had come here without it, so it got angry. While we were trying to stop Ren, it insisted on coming and teleported us all here.”

 

“Hahaha! And we must have been caught in the teleportation while trying to soothe Ren for the sake of Your Majesty’s peaceful vacation!”

 

“Ppik ppiik ppippi ppik!” [I want to have fun in Perils with everyone too!]

 

Edward let out a small sigh. Their vacation had become even more chaotic than in the palace. Fortunately, Luize seemed even more excited, though it was clear that the alone time Edward had hoped for was now completely out of reach.

 

“I was planning a small party in the yard anyway. Since you’re all here, why not join us?”

 

“Haha, sounds great!”

 

“…Sure.”

 

“Sounds fun. Are there any other guests besides us?” Robin asked.

 

Luize smiled and responded, “High Priestess Raphaela and Sir Edvin from the paladins will be joining us.”

 

“What? Raphaela is here?”

 

“Yes, it was a coincidence.”

 

“…It’ll be nice to see her again.”

 

Robin smiled warmly, and Hendrik playfully nudged his shoulder.

 

“Feeling shy? I heard you got a love letter from the temple recently. Is this the beginning of a forbidden romance?”

 

Robin, flustered by Hendrik’s teasing question, shouted, “It wasn’t that kind of letter!”

 

“Then what kind of letter was it?”

 

“Just catching up. Raphaela seems to be gradually changing the temple as she gains more power. I gave her some advice.”

 

“… That’s how it always starts, you know.”

 

“Oh, come on! Don’t twist it!” Robin reacted sensitively to Aiven’s quiet comment, making everyone burst into laughter.

 

* * *

Bright magical lights floated around the yard. The barbecue party was a success. With more guests than expected, Maxion had to go back to the village for more supplies, and the knights set up chairs, tables, and magical lights that Edward had teleported in while also lighting a bonfire. The long-awaited reunion was filled with lively conversations as everyone caught up on each other’s lives.

 

As the party reached its peak, Edward quietly got up and walked toward the back of the cabin. “At this rate, it’ll be hard to have that conversation during this vacation.”

 

“What conversation?”

 

“…Miss Luize.” Edward turned around to see Luize approaching him.

 

“I was wondering where you went, and here you are.”

 

Her gaze shifted to a large rock in the backyard. A little further from them were the graves of Lensia and Allen.

 

“Edward, you’re feeling a bit disappointed, aren’t you? You probably wanted to spend this first vacation alone together.”

 

“Yes. For our next vacation, I’ll make sure we go somewhere they can’t follow.”

 

Luize laughed at his candid response. “The truth is, I might not get another chance like this, so I was a bit selfish. I knew you wanted to spend time alone, but I couldn’t pass this up. This bustling cabin is what I always dreamed this place would be like.”

 

Laughter echoed from the party. Luize glanced back at the gathering, where everyone was smiling and enjoying the party.

 

“…I’m okay now.”

 

“It sounds like you weren’t okay before.”

 

“I was disappointed, as you said. I wanted this vacation to be just the two of us.”

 

“Let’s make sure the next vacation is just the two of us. I realized today during our date that we didn’t have enough time to talk about each other in the palace. Just as you’re curious about me, I’m curious about the parts of you that even Maxion doesn’t know.” Luize took Edward’s hand, intertwining their fingers.

 

“And there’s something I wanted to ask Edward during this vacation.”

 

Luize blushed slightly and hesitated. Edward looked at her curiously, and she shyly continued.

 

“I really liked it when you sometimes called me by my name without any honorifics in bed. Could you start calling me just Luize when we’re alone from now on?”

 

Edward hadn’t expected that she had been thinking the same thing. Smiling gently, he replied. “Luize.” This was also something he had wanted to ask her during this vacation. “…I would love that.”

 

The fact that they had both been thinking the same thing brought him even more satisfaction.

 

“Right, you mentioned you had something you wanted to talk about during this vacation. Now that it’s just the two of us, why don’t we talk about it?”

 

“Yes. I did, but now it’s gone.”

 

“…Huh?”

 

“It’s nothing. Shall we head back to the party? It’s fun being with everyone.”

 

“Isn’t it?”

 

“Yes. They’re probably waiting for us, so we should go back.”

 

Just as Edward, feeling content, was about to head back to the party, Luize quickly added. “Oh, and there’s one more thing I want to say.”

 

“What is it?”

 

She fidgeted with the hand she was holding, feeling a bit embarrassed. “You know, you looked really happy carrying that boy earlier.” Luize looked up at Edward. Their eyes met, and she blushed again.

 

“I’m really curious about what you’re about to say since you’re blushing so much.” Edward teased with a playful smile, making Luize cough nervously.

 

“How about we try to have a child after we finish up our work when we get back?”

 

Edward’s expression froze for a moment. “Did someone pressure you into this?”

 

“No, it’s not that. It’s not because of any obligation to have an heir… I just really want to have our child. Preferably one who looks like you.”

 

Edward rubbed his face with his free hand, a blush spreading across his cheeks. “Luize, it’s your birthday soon, but I feel like I’m the one receiving a gift. I’ve been eager to meet our child as well. In fact, I’ve even started picking out names for our children.”

 

“I know. I saw the document with the 67th name candidates that your aide accidentally brought to me recently. I loved all the names, which helped me make my decision.”

 

“That ended up there? No wonder I couldn’t find the 67th document when I tried to write the 68th before our vacation.”

 

“You didn’t do it on purpose, did you?”

 

“If I had, I would’ve sent it when I finished the 100th. Along with detailed suggestions for raising a child, including how to handle disputes among them, whether they’re wizards, knights, or ordinary kids.”

 

“My goodness. You’ve been planning all that?”

 

“I’m actually behind schedule. I’ve been preparing for our retirement since before we got married.” He smiled beautifully and lifted Luize’s hand to kiss her palm. “It’s an exciting proposal. We’d better finish our work quickly. Honestly, I want to start right now, but there are so many steps we need to go through first.”

 

“I’m glad you’re so enthusiastic; it puts my mind at ease. Let’s head back to the party now.”

 

The two walked together back to their friends.

 

“…Luize.” Edward squeezed her hand. “Sometimes I wonder what would’ve happened if we hadn’t met that day on the outskirts of the capital.”

 

“What do you think would have happened?”

 

“Even if we hadn’t met there, we would have ended up together. I would have fallen in love with you eventually.”

 

“In that case, we probably would’ve gone through countless passionate fights and ended up in an even more dramatic relationship than we have now, right?”

 

“That seems likely.”

 

“We should be grateful that it didn’t get more dramatic than this.”

 

They both laughed, holding hands.

 

“Pipi, ppippi! Pipi ppipik, ppikppik?” [Luize, I thought of a fun question! Who do you like better, Maxion or Edward?]

 

“Ren, you’re not supposed to ask that.” Maxion scolded Ren.

 

“Your Majesty! The meat is perfectly grilled. Please come and join us!” Hendrik called out, holding a mug of non-alcoholic dark beer.

 

Robin was deep in conversation with Raphaela, whom he hadn’t seen in a while. Matthias and Hendrik were chatting happily, despite their opposite personalities, while Vivian and Carlo clinked their mugs together. It was a noisy but peaceful and perfect day.

 

[The end of Side Story 2: Vacation]