As My Husband Said, I Brought in a Lover

Although it was a different form of emotion than what she felt for Luize, Lensia understood what love was and realized that Allen’s love for her meant something unique. The softness and tenderness of his feelings made her blush without her even realizing it.

“Just because.”

It was then that she understood that, in a different way from Luize, Allen was also the most special person in the world to her.

“I think I love you too. I just realized it now.”

“…

.” Allen, momentarily stunned, quickly added, “Thank you.”

“Thank you, Lensia.”

For a while, Allen, with a dazed but sometimes overwhelmed face, kept repeating the same words. And as always, he ended with the words, “I love you.”

* * *

One day, as they were resting on the sofa after putting little Luize to bed, Allen spoke. “How does it feel to be a hero?”

“A hero?” Lensia thought for a moment before replying with a calm expression. “…Nothing special.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I wonder why I didn’t realize back then how meaningless that title was. The title was so grand that I thought it was worth risking my life for.”

Allen smiled gently as he looked at Luize, who was sleeping in her crib. “But thanks to that, we have Luize.”

“That’s true.”

They continued their conversation in soft voices and eventually, leaning on each other, fell asleep. When Lensia woke up the next day, she felt that knowing they would always be beside each other was more special than anything else in the world.

“This wasn’t part of my plan.”

She alternated her gaze between the sleeping Allen and Luize.

“It’s much better than I had planned.”

Family. The word that came to her mind made her feel ticklish inside.

* * *

Although they had made no preparations for raising a child, Lensia and Allen surprisingly managed well. Lensia had seen many babies grow up since she was young, and Allen had experience taking care of children as a healer.

A year passed in a blur as they raised Luize. During that time, Lensia secretly kept in touch with Edin once or twice a month.

“The Fioren Academy is complete. I think I should drop by to get the recommendation letter form.”

“It’s not too far, right? Go ahead. It might be nice to stay for about a week and take a look around slowly.”

“Okay.”

When Lensia arrived at the academy, she encountered a red-haired child being bullied by other children.

“…Nothing has changed here.”

However, it seemed that the flower bed where snails used to crawl had been removed during the building expansion.

“Hey, what are you doing over there!”

“

.”

“Run!”

When Lensia shouted, the children bullying the red-haired boy quickly ran away.

“Hey, Kid. What’s your name?”

“Peter.”

“Peter? That doesn’t suit you at all. You must be from the orphanage, judging by the lack of effort in naming you.”

“…Yes.”

Lensia laughed and extended her hand to the boy, who was about to get up. “Hold it.”

The boy hesitated, staring at her hand, then held it and stood up.

“

, what would be good? How about Carlo, which means freedom? From today, you’re ‘Carlo.’”

“Carlo? Can I really have such a cool name?” The boy’s face flushed as he quickly asked.

“Why not?”

“Excuse me, who are you, and why are you with Peter?”

Lensia turned her head toward the voice. There stood a girl with blue hair like winter sea, wearing slightly tilted old glasses.

“I just helped him a bit. What’s your name?”

“Rose.”

“You must be from the orphanage too.”

“…How did you know?”

“I can tell by the name. Do you want a new name too?”

“All of a sudden?”

“This one has been decided to be ‘Carlo’ from today.”

The girl glared at Carlo with sharp eyes, but he simply nodded with a smile.

“Isn’t it cool? I like it much better than Peter!”

“…What will you name me?”

“Let’s see. You’ve had a lifeless look since you were young. You need some vitality. How about Vivian? It means lively.”

“Vivian…” The girl chewed over the new name and nodded happily. “I like it.”

“You seem pretty smart for your age, judging by that expression. If you study hard, you’ll live comfortably.”

Lensia patted both children’s heads.

“I have a much younger daughter than you, so I need to go back quickly. But I’ll tell the teachers to take good care of you. Don’t chase after empty dreams like wanting to be a hero or a noble. Just live happily within your abilities.”

“But you’re a hero. To be happy, you need to live well, and for that, you need power and money.”

Vivian, who quickly recognized her, spoke, making Lensia laugh loudly. Allen might have thought the same while looking at her. He wouldn’t have easily said that power and money aren’t everything. If he had, he would have been treated as an ignorant noble.

“That’s right. Power and money are convenient. But they’re not everything. You can have the happiness that noble lords can’t buy with a thousand gold just by being together. That means you win.”

“I’m not happy being with him.”

“You’re smart, so you will figure out how to be happy. Life is simple. If you love, have fun, and are happy, that’s it.”

“…Old-fashioned.”

Lensia chuckled and stood up. The children’s eyes were glued to the shining silver sword at her waist.

A week later, Lensia left the academy as suddenly as she had come. Watching her retreating figure, the two children imagined their futures for the first time.

* * *

Luize grew up healthy and bright, receiving lots of love. She naturally went back and forth between Perils and the cabin, seeming to communicate with the forest’s beasts. Watching her, Lensia and Allen were reminded that Luize belonged to the dragon’s realm. Yet, as a human, Luize felt increasingly lonely as she grew.

“Do you think she needs a friend?”

“Should we take her to the village?”

“It’s not good if her existence is known. She’s still young and might accidentally reveal things. Let’s wait a bit longer.”

“Okay.”

“By the way, how’s your research going? Any progress?”

Allen had started researching the curse in the cabin. It was to find a way to break the dragon’s curse on Lensia, himself, and Luize.

“With the knowledge I have, it seems difficult to break the curse. For now, I’m experimenting on myself to find a way to monitor its progress.”

“…Don’t overdo it.”

“I’m controlling it to avoid endangering my life.”

“Don’t get sick.”

Lensia added firmly, making Allen smile gently.

“Okay.”

Despite his words, Allen was often sick. He frequently experimented on himself, trying to break the curse, which led to other ailments and curses.

Then one day, it happened. Luize brought a friend from the forest.

“I’ll be your mount.”

The boy, who was the same age as Luize, was named Maxion. Lensia decided to take him in without hesitation. Luize needed a friend her age, and she wanted another family member besides Allen and herself, who would be leaving soon.

Luckily, Luize understood what love was. So, her daughter would live much happier than Lensia, who only realized it after losing so much.

“Luize, do you love me?”

“Yes! When I grow up, I want to be a great hero who saves people just like Mom!”

“Then you’re already a hero. You’ve already saved someone.”

“Me?” Luize blinked her big eyes in surprise.

“Yes. You saved me.”

“I never did.”

“Yes, you did.”

The child tilted her head, not understanding.

Lensia spoke with a calm face, unlike usual. “Luize.”

“Yes?”

“In the distant future, there will be someone else you need to save.”

“Who?”

“Yourself.”

“Me?”

“Yes. Sometimes, there will be moments when it feels like no one can pull you out of the deep darkness. In those times, Luize…” Lensia took the small hand and placed it on Luize’s chest. “You must save yourself. You are your own hero.”

“How?”

“Eat a warm meal, take a hot bath, get a good night’s sleep, and then encourage and cheer on yourself on. No matter what kind of life you lead or who you become, love yourself as much as we love you.”

“…It’s hard.”

“You said you love me, right?”

“Yes!”

“Love yourself like that.”

“Like I love you, Mom?”

“Yes, like that.”

Though she still seemed confused, Luize slowly nodded.

* * *

The children were already ten years old.

As Lensia pondered, Allen spoke softly beside her. “We should take them to the festival at least once.”

“Right. How are you feeling? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I’ve made some progress in my research. Now, I can tell how far the curse has progressed. If you keep drinking the potion I made, you’ll be able to feel it too.”

“…How much time do you have left?”

“Still a lot.”

Relieved, Lensia took the children to the festival in Kavan. The outing was relatively successful. Although Luize disappeared briefly, they found her before sunset.

“I went to help someone.”

“Who?”

“A stranger. He was being dragged away by some strange people, so I helped him. I even got this as a reward. Isn’t it pretty?”

Luize held out a cufflink.

“You must have inherited my nosiness.” Lensia sighed, exasperated, and examined the cufflink Luize handed over. Her face hardened instantly.

“His eyes sparkled. They were so beautiful I thought they were jewels at first. When the light hit them, they shone like the sun rising on the horizon.”

“…How can a person’s eyes be like that? Let’s go to the inn. I feel like I’ve aged 20 years. I need to rest.”

“Maxion, Maxion. It’s true. They were really beautiful!”

Without a reply, Lensia headed straight for the inn.

Late that night, when everyone was asleep, Lensia examined the golden cufflink engraved with the dragon’s image and murmured, “It’s certain. This cufflink is from the imperial family’s clothing.”

When she first saw Luize stepping into Perils, Lensia was horrified. But after the child adapted to the forest without any issues, she accepted it as part of fate.

“This can’t be allowed.”

Luize was the only heir of the Servenia family and Lensia’s daughter. Moreover, she couldn’t survive outside without the blood of a dragon or the imperial family. If her identity was revealed, she would undoubtedly be exploited. She might even enter the capital, chasing hollow honors, repeating Lensia’s mistakes.

“…They said they had a prince. Now, they called him the crown prince.”

Lensia looked at the cufflink in her hand with a grim face.