A Saint Who Was Adopted by the Grand Duke
chapter-ex14

“You said you heard about it. You don’t like that?”

“Yes. I don’t want the child to be put on a leash from birth.”

With darkened eyes, Esther moved closer to the statue.

“You know. What I went through because of the power I never wanted.”

Noah cradled Esther’s shoulders as she stared at the statue with her arms crossed.

“Well, in the end, I got the happiness I have now because of this power.”

“Wrong.”

“What?”

Noah leaned his head against Esther’s and embraced her tightly.

“It wasn’t because of that power that you became happy. It’s all yours. Even if you didn’t have power, you would definitely be happy. Because I would have made it that way.”

“…Thank you.”

Esther, whose thoughts were complicated, found comfort in Noah’s words.

“With or without strength, the child will be very strong. Because they will resemble you.”

“Are you sure they will be happy?”

“That’s right. But if you don’t want the power to continue, pray about it.”

“What do you think?”

“I’m fine. As long as our child is born.”

The corner of Noah’s mouth went up, he smiled so brightly that it blinded Esther’s eyes.

“Just imagining it makes me cry. A child between you and me.”

“Same here.”

Esther leaned her face against Noah’s chest.

Lowering his head, Noah kissed her forehead.

“I’ll have to think about it some more.”

“Then shall we go to the bedroom first?”

“Huh?”

Esther, who was about to ask where the bedroom was, was lifted.

Again, a light sigh flowed between Esther’s lips as she was carried like a princess.

“Do you find this funny?”

“How did you know? I like to see you stuck with me.”

“Put me down. It’s embarrassing.”

“No one is watching.”

Noah never put Esther down. In his arms, she arrived at their bedroom in the villa.

The spacious bedroom on the top floor boasted an outstanding view, overlooking the sea as it was.

“How is it?”

There was also a small but private terrace, so when she opened the door and went out, the salty scent permeated her nose.

“It’s very beautiful. I like it.”

“It’s prettier at night.”

Noah pulled Esther and closed the door to the terrace.

And without giving her a chance to speak, he laid her down on the bed and started kissing her.

“……!!”

Esther’s eyes widened in surprise, but they soon closed. The tips of her eyelashes fluttered and swayed lightly.

The kiss that started softly turned rough, little by little, and Noah’s touch became unstoppable.

Feeling shy, Esther tried to stop Noah several times, but was unable to do anything because her hands were entirely clasped.

“Open your eyes. Look at me.”

Esther mustered up the courage to open her eyes again. Her body trembled as her eyes met Noah, who was looking down on her from right in front of her nose.

And with that, the clothes she was wearing fell off one by one, landing on the ground.

★★★

A few days after that.

The two of them seldom came out of the bedroom except during meal times.

They watched the reddish sunset as the sun went down and the star-studded sky at night from the bed.

The seemingly endless movements that kept the candles lit to light the darkened room finally stopped.

“…Noah.”

Esther, who was tightly held in Noah’s arms, spoke in a weak voice.

“Water, please. My throat is so dry.”

“Your voice is hoarse.”

“It’s because of you!”

Embarrassed, Esther glanced at Noah, who was smiling down on her.

Directly looking into his black eyes, her face flushed as she remembered what had happened earlier.

In particular, when she saw Noah’s upper body exposed… She didn’t know where to look.

“Put… Put on your clothes first.”

“It isn’t over yet?”

Regardless, Noah smiled and picked up a cup of water, handing it to Esther. But, in a flash, there was not a single drop of water left in it.

Eventually, Esther drank all the water from not only the cup but also a rather large bottle.

“Wait a moment. I’ll bring more.”

As soon as Noah left, Esther raised her upper body up. When she looked down, she pulled the blanket in surprise.

Reaching out, she picked up her slip, barely putting it on under the blanket.

And when she tried to get out of bed, she stumbled.

“Oh my god.”

She had no strength in her legs. She couldn’t walk and was just breathing blankly when the door opened.

Noah had returned with more water, and his eyes twinkled when he saw Esther’s silhouette softly reflected in the light.

He put the water bottle and cup on the bedside table. After a few sips of water, he grabbed Esther’s chin.

“What are you doing… eup!”

Then he parted Esther’s lips slightly and pushed the water he had been holding in his mouth into hers.

Gulp.

Esther, who drank the water without realizing it, tried to say something to Noah, but she didn’t have the strength to do so, so she only held out her hand.

She took the cup that Noah passed to her and drank everything in one shot.

“Ah. My voice is not coming out well.”

“Of course, since you screamed like that…”

“Will you stop that?”

Esther’s face turned red as she hurriedly shut Noah’s mouth.

Noah sat down on the bed, gazing at Esther with affection and love.

“It’s so nice to be together all the time. Looking at this and that.”

“…I agree.”

‘It’s the first time we’ve been together for such a long time, and my feelings for Noah have grown as much as we’ve been together.’

Esther was just amazed that it could increase further.

“Esther, are you having a hard time?”

She tried to push away Noah, whose eyes were shining dangerously, but ended up resting her hand on his muscular chest.

She was not used to touching his bare skin, so she hurriedly took her hand away, but he didn’t let escape and continued kissing her.

They stayed in bed for a while longer. A very long night followed.

Eventually, after exhausting all their strength, the two fell asleep as though they had fainted.

Noah, who didn’t want to be separated from Esther, hugged her from behind, giving her an arm pillow.

Soft golden powder scattered around the two people who were deeply asleep.

At the same time, the statue of Espitos in the villa grinned.

(TL/N: SIKE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!)

★★★

Time passed very quickly. It’s already been a week.

“I can’t believe it’s the day we have to go back.”

Esther, dressed in a slip, opened the door and went out onto the terrace, looking down at the sea and muttering sadly.

“You’ll catch a cold.”

Noah hurriedly took a blanket and put it over Esther’s shoulders. Then he hugged her from behind, as he often did this past week.

“I don’t think I saw anything properly. I was always in the bedroom.”

“You saw something.”

“What?”

“Me.”

“…….”

“You can see as much as you want.”

Noah smiled as he pretended to take off the robe he was wearing.

“I won’t see it. Hurry and cover up.”

Esther blushed, covering her eyes with her hand.

She couldn’t adapt to his body, which was much stronger and firmer than she thought.

To keep Esther from avoiding him, Noah hugged and showered her in kisses.

Honestly, Esther didn’t hate it either, so she spent a little more time with Noah before preparing to leave.

Before getting into the carriage, they took one last walk along the beach.

A gust of wind blew through their hair. Noah asked, twirling a lock of Esther’s hair.

“Are you done thinking?”

“…Yes.”

Realizing that the question was about children, Esther opened her heavy mouth.

“I’d say the child doesn’t need power.”

“If that is your decision.”

“But I won’t know where the saint will appear. The power of the temple might be stronger again, and the imperial authority might be weaker than now.”

If a saint emerged from Noah, who would become the emperor, the imperial family would be able to achieve stronger power and governance than ever before.

“Are you okay though?”

“Of course. Your choice will be right. As always.”

“Thank you. For trusting me.”

Esther held the hand of Noah, who constantly gave her unwavering support.

Then, she tilted her head when she saw a tiny bit of golden powder on Noah’s hair.

“What is this?”

“What is it?”

“Huh. I don’t know where you got it from, but it has a special energy.”

“You have it too.”

Noah also spotted golden powder attached to Esther’s body.

As soon as Esther touched them, they scattered and disappeared without a trace.

At that moment, Esther had the feeling that Espitos was very close.

“It could be trouble. Anyway, shall we stop by the temple on the way?”

“No. I don’t think I need to tell her separately. Because she is always watching.”

“Huh?”

Realizing that the golden powder was the work of Espitos, Esther glanced up at the sky and smiled.

★★★

Two months had passed since Esther started living in the imperial palace.

She was worried at first, but under the care of many people, she was able to adapt smoothly into the life of a crown princess.

Noah was very busy with work, so today, she ate with the princess and the empress.

Esther let out a long yawn as she returned to her room after afternoon tea.

“I’m getting really sleepy these days.”

She stretched herself in a rocking chair, trying to chase away sleep, but she couldn’t stop her eyelids from closing.

Hissing, Shur sneaked up next to Esther, who started an unwanted nap.

Shur had followed Esther into the imperial palace and was living with her.

Climbing onto Esther’s lap as she slept in a chair, Shur tilted his head before leaning it against her stomach.

Ame: oh my gosh, the statue smiling is like, out of a horror movie HAHAHAH and it was so awkward translating the spicy parts cause I just kept giggling and thinking ‘oh how the kids have grown’ *blushes*

To be honest, I’m on the fence on whether the child should or should not be the next saint. With great power comes with great responsibility, and whether the child is a saint or not, being a princess is still a leash of some sorts. And… what if the child actually likes the idea of being a saint? Plus this time, her parents have power and the temple is reformed. But anyway, the story isn’t going to reach the stage where we will get another civil war of sorts so… I shall just stop my thoughts here and go to sleep haha