Spring in My Grasp - Chapter 61

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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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(61) The Price of Transgression

Rowan’s breath caught at his sudden words.
“Why are you saying such things all of a sudden?”
When Rowan asked, Alexis answered.
“If you’re going to leave, I’ll leave with you.”
“….”
“If you want to go, you can go.”
“….”
“But I’m coming with you.”
Alexis rose slowly from his chair and stood before Rowan. She looked up at him. Drenched in shadow, he emanated an overwhelming presence.
“I’ll be wherever you are.”
With those words, he reached out and grasped her shoulders, then drew her into his embrace—with the careful tenderness one shows to something small and fragile.
***
Afterward, Alexis went directly to the King and declared that he would raise his son himself. The King made no particular objection regarding the Temple’s wishes, though the existence of a child with such formidable magical power as Alexis possessed was a thorny matter for him as well.
Alexis’s magical strength was sufficient to rival the High Priest. He argued that if the child required oversight, it was only proper that he, as the father, provide it directly.
The King, having taken no particular stance with the Temple, granted his request. Moreover, the Grand Cathedral itself, having witnessed Leonius’s miracle firsthand, was reluctant to forcibly take him again.
The High Priest, having directly witnessed the miracle, practically pleaded with Alexis—requesting permission for the Temple to visit Leonius occasionally. Those who had once sought to take him by force now found their positions reversed.
Alexis scoffed and said he would allow it if he felt inclined. Now, to see Leonius, one needed Alexis’s permission.
But before that, Alexis himself required Rowan’s approval. Once she understood the situation had changed, Rowan, greatly relieved, began spending considerable time with Leonius in the Glass Garden. Of course, Lea and Eloze remained with them as well.
The Glass Garden was always suffused with gentle sunlight. Light filtering through the glass ceiling descended softened, as if strained, and beneath it, the plants breathed quietly. Each time the pale green leaves trembled faintly, the scent of earth and grass drifted delicately through the air.
In the center of it all, Rowan sat in a low chair, cradling a small, warm presence in her arms.
“Leonius, isn’t the sunlight lovely?”
Rowan whispered softly. The infant’s eyes, not yet able to focus properly, moved faintly. His tiny hands groped through the air before grasping the hem of Rowan’s garment firmly. At that delicate grip, her lips curved into a gentle smile.
“Look at that. He’s grabbed hold again.”
Lea, watching from beside them, burst into laughter.
“Young Master already has tremendous strength, doesn’t he?”
“Right? I think he’ll end up stronger than Alexis later on.”
Rowan spoke playfully, gently loosening the child’s grip. But when the small hand immediately clenched again, she couldn’t help but laugh. Some distance away, Eloze observed the scene. Though her posture remained impeccably composed, her hands folded neatly before her, her eyes flickered with subtle emotion.
‘Is it all right to hold him like that?’
It was entirely different from how the Royal Court cared for children. Normally, one would tend to an infant according to set times, prescribed positions, and established routines. Yet Rowan naturally adapted to the child’s rhythm, caring for him without hesitation.
When Eloze took charge of Leonius, she certainly cared for him as she had been trained, but when his mother Rowan handled him differently, she simply observed without comment.
“Lea, could you bring that over?”
Rowan gestured with her chin toward one side. A small basket held freshly picked herbs.
“This one?”
“Yes. Let him smell it.”
Lea brought the basket over. Rowan selected one and brought it gently near the infant’s nose.
“This is mint.”
Of course the child couldn’t understand her words, but Rowan spoke to him without hesitation.
“Can you smell how refreshing it is?”
Eloze’s eyebrows twitched ever so slightly as she observed the scene.
‘An herb… for a baby?’
Yet her surprise was short-lived. Leonius did not cry. Instead, his tiny fingers moved delicately, as though savoring the fragrance. And then the air around him trembled ever so faintly.
“…!”
Lea and Eloze’s eyes widened in an instant. Neither spoke, but they both felt it unmistakably—a faint aura radiating from the child like a gentle breath. It was holy power, still formless and directionless, crude and unrefined. Yet undeniably alive.
Rowan seemed entirely unbothered by this revelation, tapping the baby’s cheek with her finger.
“Why, does that feel nice?”
As if answering her, Leonius’s mouth opened ever so slightly. Not a cry, not quite a laugh. But it was enough.
“Oh my.”
Lea covered her mouth.
“Did he just smile?”
“He did smile, didn’t he?”
Rowan’s eyes sparkled.
“Look, look—he’s doing it again.”
All three pairs of eyes fixed upon the child at once. The Glass Garden remained peaceful. The sunlight was warm, and the plants breathed quietly in the stillness.
“Now that I think about it—”
Rowan murmured.
“Why has Layla been so quiet lately?”
At those words, Lea swallowed hard and stifled a silent laugh. Rowan didn’t yet know, but Lea had already heard the news from the Butler.
That Alexis had severed ties not only with his own family but also with his wife’s family home was already common knowledge in High Society. Only Rowan, who did not participate in social activities, remained vaguely speculative.
The Hartwood Marquis Family, who had married their daughter to the Glister House in hopes of forging a connection, had subsequently fallen into ruin. After Alexis made his declaration of severance and turned away, the Marquis Estate erupted into chaos.
The Marquis Hartwood berated Layla severely, and in his fury, he struck her across the face. Seeing this, the Marchioness Hartwood rushed to shield her stepdaughter, while the Marquis railed against his regret at remarrying her.
Raikey, arriving home late and drunk, soon grasped the situation and pressed his sister relentlessly about what they would do now. As her entire family turned against her with accusations and curses, Layla could bear it no longer and fled hastily back to the Baron’s Estate.
But Cedric was beyond reasoning. He approached his father, the Baron, and declared his intention to divorce his wife. It was because of Alexis’s words about spouses being one body—if Layla were not his wife, why would that great Holy Knight bother to show them such open hostility?
The Baron agreed with this logic, yet a sacred marriage sworn before God could not be broken without cause. Father and son agreed to cast her out the moment she showed the slightest flaw. But with no way to return to her family home, Layla had no choice but to cling to her position in the Baron’s Estate.
Her life became desperately impoverished after that. Her monthly allowance was reduced far below what even the Maids earned, leaving her unable to afford new clothes. Her appearance and circumstances now fell below even the servants of the Baron’s Estate.
Moreover, the servants, sensing with uncanny precision that she had lost the favor of the Baron and his son, began to treat her with contempt. And since Layla had not treated them kindly in the past, some seized this opportunity for revenge.
The Marquis Hartwood could no longer set foot in High Society, and the Baron and his son deliberately excluded Layla from their social outings. Recognizing her plight, the Noblewomen of society severed all contact with her.
Thus Layla lived in a corner of the Baron’s Estate, reading the room and barely breathing. It was a life worse than death itself.
And Lucien….
‘Hmm.’
Lea always felt suffocated when thinking of this matter. Lucien had vanished without a trace.
‘Surely not….’
Lea closed and opened her eyes.
‘He didn’t have him killed, did he?’
No, surely not. Even as she tried to convince herself, having witnessed Alexis’s feelings toward Rowan firsthand, Lea trembled with dread.
-No. At most, he probably sent him away to some foreign land. Surely Alexis wouldn’t go that far….
Even the Butler couldn’t speak with certainty on that matter, his words trailing off. In any case, the fate of those two who had pressured Rowan that day was decidedly unfortunate.
“What are you thinking so hard about?”
Lost in thought, Rowan asked. Lea quickly snapped back to attention and offered a bright smile.
“Nothing at all.”
Then she continued hastily.
“Your sister isn’t a good person anyway, is she? So it’s all the better if she doesn’t reach out. Why trouble yourself over it? You could live your whole life never seeing each other again, and that would be perfectly fine.”

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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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