Chapter: 820
My ninth child and sixth daughter, Yulia.
She is the second child born to Mar and me.
‘How many years have we been married now?’
Marking the point of marriage, it’s already the fifth year. Yet, in just five years, we have nine kids. Plus, there are two more snuggled up in their mommy’s embrace, expected to be born this year, meaning I’ve accomplished an incredible feat: ensuring the minimum roster of FC Krasius.
Thinking about it, I feel so proud and awed. Each wife by herself would seem like a standard number, but when you add them up, the figures go wild.
‘What about the Gold Duke?’
I couldn’t help but wonder, back when the Gold Duke was newlywed, how many kids were born in just one year? How busy must the servants and attendants of the Osiden duchy have been preparing gifts and taking care of the little ones?
Even by simple calculations, that would be double my number. If six kids were born each year, that means a baby every two months on average. Just coming up with names would be a task itself!
“Pedi, it’s time to go to your room and sleep.”
After quietly paying homage to the great senior’s legacy, I coaxed Pedi, who was lingering by Yulia’s cradle.
“I want to see just a little bit more.”
Pedi, rare as hen’s teeth, stubbornly refused my request.
From morning till evening, Pedi plays energetically, burning off all that energy while the sun’s up, then crashing out quickly at night for a recharge. Yet, here Pedi was, sacrificing sleep to stay by Yulia’s side.
‘Maybe it’s because she’s a full sibling?’
Pedi already has seven younger siblings. Including the prince, that makes a whopping eight. So, Yulia was just the ninth sibling for her.
Yet seeing this kind of interest and affection, perhaps it’s a natural instinct for her to feel drawn to her full sibling rather than a half-sibling. Every sibling is precious, but there’s something about one that comes from the same womb.
‘Is this a good thing?’
It’s a bit ambiguous. Pedi is our firstborn and, following me, the commander of the Krasius family—and by extension, his siblings’ family too. It’s slightly troublesome to show favoritism toward one sibling among all the others.
However, as parents, when you have multiple kids, it’s inevitable to pay more attention to one of them. If it’s challenging for us, it’s even harsher to expect young Pedi to give equal affection. Honestly, I also tend to keep a closer eye on her as the eldest.
‘It should be fine.’
I couldn’t help but chuckle as I watched Pedi gaze intently at Yulia.
Yeah, it’ll be fine. Pedi simply likes her biological sister more, not shunning her half-siblings. Given time, she’ll likely strive to play the role of an elder sibling to all her younger siblings fairly.
“Pedi.”
“Yup?”
“It’s good to have so many siblings, right?”
But since I was a bit uneasy just letting it slide, I subtly expanded Pedi’s affection from Yulia to all her siblings.
I wanted to ensure she sees her feelings for Yulia not just as love for a sister but for all her siblings.
“Yup!”
With my little wish, Pedi beamed brighter than ever.
“Right! Our Pedi is going to be a good big brother and a wonderful brother!”
“I want to be a good little sibling too!”
It made me laugh again, feeling as though she was considering the Crown Princess in her words.
Pedi is already a good son and uncle, a great grandson and a good big brother. And now, adding the role of a good little brother, how busy will she become?
If I’m a busy noble in my public duties, then Pedi must be a busy noble in her personal life. After all, she has many tangled connections. She’s gathered many people to grow up with.
“Waaaah…”
“Oh dear.”
While I was affectionately patting Pedi on the head, Yulia suddenly stirred awake, possibly irritated by our conversation.
But right when she woke up was the best time to fall back to sleep. As I stretched out my hand to gently soothe Yulia,
“Lullaby, lullaby.”
‘Huh?’
Pedi tiptoed and gently patted Yulia’s hand.
“Our little sister, lullaby.”
It was as if he was passing on the comforting touches from mothers to siblings, mirroring his own experience.
“Wuuu…”
Whether it was having the comforting presence of her big brother or just the gentle touch, Yulia’s furrowed brow softened back into an angelic expression.
She then held onto Pedi’s hand tightly with her tiny fingers, as if not wanting to let go of that warm, soothing touch.
‘Is this heaven?’
I gazed blankly at the sight, almost entranced.
Even though Yulia fell back asleep, she didn’t release Pedi’s hand. Meanwhile, Pedi silently extended his hand without a hint of complaint.
I was so moved that I felt tears welling up.
Those who step into heaven don’t usually leave on their own. If they walk out themselves, it’s not heaven but rather just a reminiscent shadow of paradise.
“…Carl?”
“Oh, Mar, you’re awake?”
Thanks to that, Yulia hadn’t let go of Pedi’s hand. Now, both Pedi and Yulia were nestled on the same bed, surrounded by my watchful gaze.
Just in case Pedi rolled over and squashed Yulia in his sleep, or Yulia might feel a bit weird sleeping next to someone else.
“Sorry, was it because of me you couldn’t sleep?”
But even if it was a paradise for me, it likely wasn’t for Mar. Imagine how shocked she would be to see her husband standing there, looking down at the kids.
I could picture Mar worrying that Yulia had cried like crazy while I was watching over her, or was I losing sleep trying to calm her down.
“Carl, you should get on the bed now─”
“Shhh.”
After signaling Mar softly as she hurried over, I quietly pointed at the kids.
“Oh my!”
Mar’s expression transformed into a pacified smile as she followed my finger.
“I didn’t even realize I was up all night watching this.”
“Right? I would have done the same.”
Mar chuckled lightly and cautiously reached out, caressing Pedi and Yulia’s cheeks.
One son and one daughter, both precious children that she nurtured for ten months before bringing into the world.
“I’ve seen Pedi play and sleep with his siblings numerous times, but this feels brand new. It’s a feeling that’s hard to express…”
Understanding her sentiment, I wrapped my arms around Mar’s waist.
Including Mar, our wives consider every other child as their own. As a husband and patriarch, it’s a heartwarming thing to witness.
But the precious sight of two real children lying side by side could only be seen by Mar, aside from Trixie, who is the mother of triplets in our mansion. Now Mar was enjoying that happiness for the second time.
“But you aren’t satisfied with just two, right? Now that two black-haired ones are born, you should expect a red-haired child that looks like Valenti.”
When I teasingly threw that line, Mar’s smile widened further.
“What if the third one is black-haired too?”
“Then I’d be three times as happy!”
What colors our kids sport really doesn’t matter. All I care about is that they’re born healthy.
But we now have Pedi with black hair and brown-eyed Yulia just born. Following the pattern, the next one could be red-haired with green eyes. If a child looks exactly like Mar, my father-in-law would likely go bonkers.
“Gwaaaah!”
Just when I was imagining that mini-Mar with red hair and green eyes, I heard a loud, familiar shout coming from beyond.
“Hehe, sounds like our little one is bursting with energy today. I guess she heard about Yulia’s birth.”
“Indeed. Today we must be a bit more cautious.”
As the sound of galloping footsteps approached, Mar and I couldn’t help but smile at each other even more brightly.
Perhaps because the Emperor is both a dad and a husband, Mar gave time to straighten herself up before sending the Crown Princess.
He’s still got some faint sense of conscience, at least, I suppose.
‘She’s still not waking up even after that.’
Yet Yulia remained undisturbed by the Crown Princess’ loud call or the stampede. Staggeringly, she didn’t react at all despite having stirred at the sound of Pedi and me talking the day before.
Maybe it’s because her brother’s hand holding hers kept her calm and safe, securing her slumber.
“Pedi, your sister is here.”
“Sis… me?”
“Yes, that’s right, sis.”
Still, it’s about time for Pedi to wake up. If they saw Pedi cozied up next to Yulia, the Crown Princess would undoubtedly want to join as well.
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