My Ex-Boyfriend Gave Birth to My Child? What Does That Mean? - Chapter 32
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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My Ex-Boyfriend’s Child — But I’m the One Who Gave Birth to Her? Episode 32
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There was something wrong with Lea’s mind.
In any other circumstance, Lea was simply Lea herself.
Arrogant, convinced that using me for her own life was only natural, and yet stubbornly believing herself the victim while making no effort to hide her characteristic deceptions.
But the moment the child’s biological father came up in conversation, Lea could say nothing except that he was beautiful. Then, if the subject changed, she would snap back to normal as though waking from a dream.
After Lea had spoken of and then fallen asleep beside the “beautiful man” several times over, a brief council of mages convened.
“This is unmistakably Mind Control Magic. It’s illegal.”
Herdi muttered the words while grudgingly coming to examine Lea at my request.
“It’s been illegal for ages! The records on this magic are locked away in the Royal Palace Archives, if anywhere.”
“You can’t undo it?”
“What do you think it means that the records are buried in the Royal Palace Archives? I can’t do it!”
“If we report this case—”
“That’ll cause a real problem. Who do you think will be suspected first?”
I fell silent.
Lea Oker was officially a missing lady of House Oker. If she were discovered to be under the influence of Mind Control Magic…
“You’d be the one suspected first.”
“You’d be suspected first!”
Our words tumbled out at exactly the same moment, and Herdi and I locked eyes. He grimaced.
“Why am I being dragged into this?”
“Where are you running to?”
Siril, who had been watching our pathetic display in silence, spoke up.
“Duke Voltain likely has a way to solve this.”
“Ah!”
Herdi leapt up and slapped his palm against his other hand.
“That’s right—Lion Voltain may be mad, but as a mage he’s beyond reproach! And as a blood relative of the royal house, he should have access to the Royal Palace Archives.”
“What did you say?”
“What did you call Lion Voltain back at the Mage Tower?”
I’d called him a madman.
“……There’s no need to dwell further on such an unimportant matter. In any case, we have a possible solution, don’t we?”
“Nothing’s certain, but it’s the most likely path forward. Now, off you go—hurry over to your boyfriend and ask him!”
I narrowed my eyes at Herdi, who was clapping his hands and urging me on with suspicion blooming in my chest.
“You’re being remarkably enthusiastic about this. Suspiciously so.”
“Bring Number Two back with you on the way.”
“So that was the real agenda all along!”
“Why else would I send you looking for Lion Voltain? So he can give you a kiss?”
“You’re actually insane!”
My ruthless kick caught Herdi square in the rump, and he tumbled down the basement stairs with an indignant yelp. While still fuming, I stopped by my office to write a brief letter before sending someone to the Duke’s estate.
My pale-faced employee knocked on the door just as I was handing the finished letter to Siril.
“Master. A troublesome guest has arrived, and they won’t leave even when asked to do so.”
A dull ache began creeping up my spine. This estate had only two officially designated categories of “troublesome guest.”
My family.
Or someone who nearly became my family.
“……I’ll go see for myself.”
As expected, Pascal Oker stood before the house.
* * *
Pascal was not alone.
He stood at our front door accompanied by the lawyer who had forced me to sign documents before, along with several large men.
House Otreha’s servants stood calmly in place, blocking his path to prevent him from entering unchecked.
It wasn’t exactly a grave standoff, but my mood darkened considerably.
‘How dare he come here to threaten me?’
I approached the doorway and raised my voice.
“What are you doing? How dare you storm into a Baron’s residence without so much as sending word.”
Pascal Oker did not look well. His eyes were bloodshot, and his usually immaculate hair was disheveled in places.
Even the suit he always maintained with such care—far more fastidiously than most nobles—lay rumpled now, making his agitation unmistakably plain.
When Pascal Oker caught sight of me, he lifted his head with coercive force. It was clear he had come knowing beforehand that Lion was not here.
“I’ve come with information that you are unlawfully detaining my wife on these grounds. Don’t think you can weasel out of this!”
“That’s absurd. Where’s your evidence?”
“Then why would this residence need a midwife?”
My chest stung, but I pressed on with denial.
“A midwife?”
“I know you hired one a few months ago. Hand over my wife at once!”
“I’ve never hired a midwife. Even if some of my employees happened to work as midwives elsewhere, that’s entirely separate from any business conducted in this house. Stop making false accusations and leave.”
“We’ll find out soon enough once we search the estate.”
“How dare you?”
Just then, the lawyer standing behind Pascal stepped forward cautiously.
“Young Lady of House Otreha, this is merely a routine inspection. If you would cooperate, we could draw up a settlement agreeing not to press charges for the previous incident.”
“Previous incident?”
“Regarding the use of Coercive Magic against a person—I’m confident that Baron Otreha would be willing to testify to that in court.”
Bluster and threats. A textbook approach, but one that wouldn’t work on me now.
I met Pascal Oker’s gaze head-on, my voice cutting and sharp, and lifted my chin defiantly.
“Go ahead and sue. Even if our House is only a small barony, we won’t tolerate such disrespect. I look forward to testifying in court—not only about your scheme to force me to sign a marriage agreement, but also about how you brought these thugs here to ransack the estate.”
“This is pointless!”
My assessment that Pascal was not in a rational state had proven correct.
“Don’t waste time talking. Search the house!”
The laborers behind Pascal exchanged uneasy glances, but one by one they began to move forward, clearly intent on breaking through the entrance. They must have been promised substantial payment.
The moment a man’s large hand came within reach of me, wind whistled through the air.
The House Otreha servants stationed near the entrance moved into action.
The young maid with freckles, the elderly maid with her broom—both suddenly surged forward with lethal intent.
They began to subdue men who appeared twice their size.
There was no hesitation in their wrist snaps, no restraint—their footwork was sharper than any knight’s.
They moved with the fluid precision of those who had been waiting for this moment, dispatching the men with practiced efficiency.
“Aaaagh, uuugh……!”
“You crazy bastards……!”
“Get out of this house!”
The maids kicked the men’s posteriors clean over the garden wall, their movements smooth, swift, and utterly delightful to watch.
Pascal, the lawyer, and I—we all stood with our jaws hanging open.
‘……I thought only Siril was this skilled?’
The young maid with freckles shouted at Pascal.
“How dare you harass our master! Don’t you value your life?”
Her strident cry filled me with satisfaction.
Siril, who had followed me out into the entrance hall, spoke a single word.
“Enough.”
I would have let her go on.
Clearing my throat, I turned to Pascal and spoke.
“Most of my household staff are originally from the Voltain Duchy. I trust you understand what that means?”
Pascal’s complexion darkened further. Realization had finally dawned on him—just who it was that had been protecting me.
I added softly, almost sympathetically.
“Your wife has disappeared—that must be deeply troubling. But how does a woman with a child vanish from the heavily guarded Oker Estate?”
“Grrgh, you……!”
“Before you accuse me, perhaps you should reflect on the wrongs you’ve committed. You’ve made enemies in more than one place.”
With that, I straightened my posture and gave my next order to the servants who had their eyes fixed on me.
“It seems the guests from House Oker are departing. See them out.”
As if they had been waiting for nothing else, the servants rushed out, grabbed the red-faced Pascal Oker, the lawyer, and the scattered, groaning thugs, and hurled them all out the door.
The sound of Pascal Oker gnashing his teeth from inside the carriage carried all the way into the house, and I felt immensely satisfied.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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