Chapter 212: Mother and Child
It seemed the prime minister recognized Lian as Qiong Xing’s child, but naturally, he thought of him as the father.
Of course, he did not think that Qiong Xing who is a man had given birth to Lian by himself.
"In a general sense, I’m indeed the mother and she is my precious child."
"...What?"
"Lian! Are you alright?"
The moment the door opened, he called out.
Katarina and the others noticed and hurried over.
"Qiong Xing!?"
"Are you hurt?"
"W-why are you being carried!?"
"I’m glad you’re safe."
He told the worried group that he was fine, then took the still-crying Lian into his arms.
"I’m back. I’m sorry for leaving you alone."
As he hugged the child tightly, Lian, whose face was red from crying so much, finally calmed down and stopped crying.
He was truly relieved that the child was safe.
As long as Lian was alright, something like a twisted ankle did not matter at all.
"I’m hurt my leg a little. So I accepted the offer and was carried here."
The moment he said that, everyone’s gaze sharply turned toward the prime minister, but Qiong Xing quickly calmed them, saying it was not his fault.
He was gently set down on the sofa and Katarina wrapped a bandage around his injured leg.
"So? How are you going to take responsibility for this? Even if it was on that foolish princess’s orders, don’t you know the difference between what you can and cannot do?"
Looking at Qiong Xing’s swollen leg, Katarina’s face twisted as if she herself had been hurt.
She glared at the prime minister, clearly not willing to forgive this.
"I understand. It is my fault for leaving the princess alone, thinking she was just useless. I never thought it would go that far... I was actually happy that the prince has recently started to become more capable."
Little by little, it seemed that Brat’s existence was finally being acknowledged and that made Qiong Xing happy.
It seemed things were still difficult with his parents, but Brat himself did not mind much and had said he didn’t care.
"Brat... no, the Crown Prince, was also very happy. He said he was praised by the prime minister."
"...Recently, he has been taking both his studies and martial training seriously. It took him some time to get there, but if this continues, it won’t be long before he succeeds the king."
If the prime minister said this much, then there was nothing left to worry about.
Qiong Xing nodded to himself, feeling relieved.
...
"Thank you very much."
As the boy lowered his head while still in his arms, Sergei looked at him as if he were some kind of strange creature.
After everything that had happened why was he the one being thanked?
It wasn’t like Sergei himself had done anything.
Even so, since he was connected to that princess, he should have been the perfect target for anger.
He had been surprised when Qiong Xing used healing magic, of course, but what surprised him the most was that he used it on Sergei without any hesitation.
The hand that had touched his cheek for a few seconds had been very cold.
If anything, he should have complained or said something bitter, but instead, he worried about his red swollen cheek.
Even about his injured leg, he said nothing.
If Sergei hadn’t noticed, he likely would have stayed silent until the very end.
He said he had simply fallen, but there were clear footprints on his back.
It was obvious that he had either been kicked from behind or stepped on and being pinned down.
From what he had heard, he was already an adult, but because of his small appearance Sergei felt as if he were dealing with a child.
If someone like him had been captured and thrown into a cell for no clear reason, one would expect him to be more confused or panicked. Yet, even after speaking with him for a short time, it was clear that Qiong Xing was calm.
"In a general sense, that would make me the mother. She is my precious child."
"...What?"
Hearing the crying baby that wouldn’t stop, Sergei had thought that the worried expression on his face made him look more like a mother than a father.
But when he actually said it himself, Sergei couldn’t help but wonder what he was talking about.
Still, before he could ask, the people who had been waiting rushed over and surrounded them.
As expected, the guild master and the others began scolding him all at once while glaring at him.
But just as expected or perhaps exactly as he thought the boy at the center of it all did not get angry.
If anything, he seemed happy, saying he was glad the prince had been praised.
Was he really alright?
It wasn’t that he had no emotions.
He had even worried about Sergei’s cheek before worrying about himself, and the way he held his child was filled with genuine happiness.
And yet, he never showed anger.
There was no way he felt nothing, and yet he did not say anything to Sergei, nor did he take it out on him.
"...Is there nothing you want to say?"
Before he realized it, Sergei had asked that question.
"Nothing?"
The boy replied as if he truly did not understand, which made Sergei feel not just puzzled, but concerned.
"Why aren’t you angry? After everything that was done to you, you should at least complain a little. No—honestly, it would be strange if you didn’t."
In fact, the guild masters were furious, and she had been glaring at Sergei this whole time.
"I wasn’t harmed by the prime minister."
"That may be true, but..."
"I am human too, so it’s not like I feel no anger about what happened. I do. But even so, there is no point in saying it to you, is there? You didn’t do anything to me."