Choosing the Baby’s Father From the Following – Chapter 112

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟏𝟐

“Would you like to…… have some wine with me in my room? You know, my face gets quite red when I drink, so it’s not a pretty sight, but if Cal is okay with that……”

Perhaps because I was so excited by then, I don’t remember all the details clearly.

However, Louise drank a couple of glasses of wine in a hurry and seemed to get drunk quickly.

So she grabbed him as he was about to leave, saying he should get some rest. She cried, telling him not to go, that there was no more time to be together, and that she was scared and wanted to be held.

How could he refuse?

He had desired her for half his life.

Callisto still dreams of that night.

Of her, who was as soft as magic and as sweet as a lie.

Because of the gazes of others, he only left her room at dawn the next day.

Once he was alone, no longer tickled by Louise’s sweet scent, he was jolted awake as if he had been doused with cold water.

He had dared to spend a night with the Imperial Princess.

Without even a marriage promise, let alone marriage itself.

He should have endured as long as he had cherished and held her in his heart, he could have endured much longer.

He had been captivated by her tears, her touch, and her scent, and lost his mind.

What was even worse was that Louise seemed to regret the mistake she had made while drunk and wouldn’t see him again.

However, Callisto did not regret it.

He comforted himself, thinking there was plenty of time to make things right.

He waited for a whole day and night and could only see Louise again the morning after the next.

She, whom he had longed for so desperately for two days, no longer looked at him properly.

“I’m sorry. I made a mistake that day, didn’t I? I was drunk and…… I don’t remember well.”

He should have told her that it might have been a mistake for her, but not for him, that even if she didn’t remember, he did.

He should have promised her firmly that he would fix the distorted order of things immediately.

Callisto hesitated for a brief moment, fearing that Louise’s true desire was to make that night a mistake, a secret between the two of them, and that his words might tarnish her honor.

In that moment, he saw the small flame in Louise’s eyes die out without a trace.

“……Lou.”

He immediately reached for Louise, but the flame, once extinguished, would never rekindle.

“I still have a headache, so I’d like to rest. Will you leave now?”

Louise said so and closed the door, and the next day, her loyal maid returned.

He couldn’t even mention that night in front of the maid.

Callisto thought Louise was angry.

It was only right and natural, as he had dared to take advantage of her while she was drunk.

So he sent a letter to the then Crown Prince, Hart, pretending to inquire about his well-being.

He was impatient.

He had only intended to gauge the Imperial Family’s attitude towards Babenberg to use as a reference for his proposal, but in the end, it led to absurd and disastrous consequences.

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

A few weeks later, Callisto received a shocking letter from his informant planted in the Imperial Palace.

Your Excellency, there was a rumor circulating among the nobles of the Imperial Palace that you would propose to the Third Princess.

The reason is unclear, but immediately after the rumor spread, the Second Princess visited the Crown Prince and caused a scene, crying loudly.

After that, several mages from the Magic Tower visited the Imperial Palace in secret, so would it be wise for you to return to the Grand Duchy and ensure your safety?

Please be careful.

How could the Crown Prince be so loose-lipped?

Whether Callisto married the Second Princess or the Third Princess, the benefits of returning to the Empire remained the same.

Moreover, Callisto had already politely rejected the Second Princess’s affections several times.

‘He had only refrained from doing so more decisively for fear of causing a diplomatic incident.’

How could he possibly have feelings for the Second Princess?

The Second Princess had frequently put Louise in difficult situations in front of Callisto and constantly persecuted and tormented her.

The biggest reason why he, in his younger days, dared to dream of marrying Louise was because he wanted to save her from her wicked older sisters.

‘She treated her powerless youngest sister so cruelly, and now she wants me to pity her feelings?’

Callisto couldn’t understand why he should, and he didn’t feel sorry for the Second Princess.

He believed that if she truly cared for him, she should have respected the one he cherished as well.

Of course, the informants he had planted in the Imperial Palace were all trustworthy, so the contents of the letter were likely to be mostly true.

‘It seems the Second Princess is up to something.’

He was worried, but it was also difficult to leave the Academy and return to the Duchy immediately.

The grace period for graduates to stay in the Academy dormitory was still in effect.

Louise would not want to return to the Imperial Palace as usual, so she would definitely stay in the dormitory until the grace period was over.

Callisto had to somehow appease Louise and restore their relationship within that time.

So he sent more people to the Imperial Palace to keep an eye on the Second Princess and forbade the Academy attendants from coming near him.

Moreover, he did not use the dining hall at all.

He was wary that the Second Princess might try to poison him or use hallucinogens to do something terrible, as the letter mentioned mages visiting the Imperial Palace.

One evening, he suddenly worried, what if the Second Princess’s target was not him, but Louise?

He wondered if she would go that far against her own flesh and blood, but considering how she had persecuted Louise all her life, he couldn’t be sure.

Callisto hurriedly went to Louise’s room and ran into her, who seemed to have just returned from an outing.

“……Lou?”

Louise was startled as if she had done something wrong when she saw him.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not feeling well, so I need to go to bed early. See you later, Cal.”

After she slipped into her room without waiting for his reply, Phoebe Nillo made an awkward excuse on her behalf.

“It’s been a strange day. We just came back from visiting His Highness the Crown Prince, and he had me wait outside as if you two were going to have a secret conversation. But Her Highness came out quickly, saying that His Highness was too sleepy and would talk next time. Her Highness seemed very disappointed. It’s not like him to do that.”

Yes, it didn’t seem like him.

It was certainly strange that Ernst had refused to spend time alone with Louise.

As far as Callisto could see, Ernst’s fondness for monopolizing Louise under the guise of friendship was nothing new.

“It seems Her Highness has also caught the sleepiness. I’ll see you next time, Your Excellency.”

The maid, as if hoping that this wouldn’t upset Callisto, went on and on with excuses and disappeared.

Callisto, with a hunch, went to the Crown Prince’s room.

The royal attendant who always stayed by his side was also nowhere to be seen today, and the Crown Prince’s room was very quiet.

There was no response even when he knocked.

He gently pushed the door, and it opened.

Looking inside, Crown Prince Ernst was indeed asleep.

‘Falling asleep at this hour and not even hearing the knock?’

He looked at the table with suspicion and found two wine glasses.

One was almost empty, and the other was full as if it hadn’t been touched.

Even more suspiciously, the wine bottle was nowhere to be seen, as if someone had taken it away.

Callisto remembered the letter from the Imperial Palace.

After that, several mages from the Magic Tower visited the Imperial Palace in secret……

He took everything and gave it to his personal attendant, just in case.

He needed someone to attend to him now that he couldn’t trust the Academy attendants, but this seemed more urgent.

“Check if there’s anything in this.”

“Aren’t you going to ask the Tower Master?”

Callisto shook his head at the attendant’s question.

“Not the Tower Master.”

He wouldn’t have been involved in drugging Louise.

However, there was no sign that she had touched the glass.

If the Tower Master had given Louise a different excuse not to drink the wine, then all these circumstances made sense.

‘The Tower Master is the Emperor’s man.’

Callisto believed that Ren, the Tower Master, could not be on his side in matters related to the Imperial Family.

Naturally, he wouldn’t be on Crown Prince Ernst’s side either.

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