Sword Demon Love Story:
The Other Side of The Honeymoon

“Over here, Carol, come on.”

“Lady Theresia, you’ll hurt yourself if you run off like that.”

With that, the girl frowned and chased after the young girl rushing ahead. Despite the slight commotion they were causing, no one raised an eyebrow at them. After all, when it was a pair of great beauties producing such a ruckus—as the two girls were—it was considered less of a disturbance, and more of a spectacle, as though they were watching a scene in a play.

Theresia and Carol, unaware of their surroundings, walked through the streets of the merchant city of Picoutatte—marking the interlude of the honeymoon. Though the two stood on good terms, they were not newlyweds. Theresia was linked to her beloved husband, Wilhelm, and Carol was their attendant on the trip. However, Wilhelm was currently unable to enjoy his honeymoon. Because...

“He’s a fortunate man to survive a wound of that magnitude,” sighed Carol after catching up with Theresia and linking arms with her. Her gaze moved towards the clinic on the other side of the street. Two of their companions were hospitalized at said clinic, one of them being Wilhelm.

Wilhelm was on a trip, but for reasons unknown had been forced to a duel with a powerful enemy, and in exchange for reaching his goal, he had been seriously wounded and was charged with bedrest.

So, Theresia and Carol found themselves strolling through the commercial district...

“Yeah, he’s caused me a lot of grief,” began Theresia, “but he has such bad luck… That’s dad for you.”

“That’s not what I…!” cried Carol, the color draining from her complexion. “Lady Theresia, I wasn’t referring to Lord Veltol…”

“I know. I was just kidding,” Theresia said, flashing Carol a mischievous grin.

Along with Wilhelm, the other person who was also hospitalized was Theresia’s father, Veltol. In truth, his condition was at one point critical and the fact that they were now able to laugh was by virtue of a string of miracles. One being Wilhelm’s efforts, and the other being…

“Oh?” Something caught Theresia’s attention, causing her to stare in wide-eyed wonder.

She has the most exquisite sky blue eyes, thought Carol. No matter how long I stare into them, I never grow tired of them.

Following Theresia’s gaze stood a man buying sherbert from a street vendor. He was a lanky fellow dressed in a white surgical gown. His eyes narrowed in displeasure due to what seemed like nervousness, but as Carol watched him devour the frozen treat her impression of him completely changed. Maybe that’s how he always looks. There’s only one person who scowls like that.

“Oh, it’s you two.” The familiar face also seemed to have noticed Carol and her friend standing on the street.

Carol and Theresia returned the bow of the man holding a bowl of sherbert. “Are you taking a break now, Dr. Galić?” asked Theresia.

“Yup,” replied the man in the gown with a spoon in his mouth. “I can finally take a breather after dealing with all those people who fell into the river.”

He was refreshingly ill-mannered, but strangely enough, she couldn’t bring herself to complain. It was no wonder then, that Veltol’s miraculous recovery was in no small part a consequence of the doctor’s efforts. Without Wilhelm’s brave fighting or Galić’s efforts, Veltol wouldn’t be alive today. For this reason, Theresia lowered her head in respect. “I’m sorry to have created more work for you, Doctor,” she apologized. “We completely destroyed that bridge, and it looks like a lot of people got caught in the middle of the commotion…”

“What? They were just onlookers at the duel,” said the doctor. “They were prepared to get a little roughed up. I’m sure you were too. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt, though some of them might catch a cold.”

Theresia’s apology referred to the duel that resulted in Wilhelm’s hospitalization. The duel, which took place on the city’s main bridge, ended with the adversary escaping. In doing so, they collapsed the bridge, resulting in many of the onlookers falling into the river. If one were to believe in Galić’s recounting of the events, it sounded like no one was injured, but Theresia felt strongly remorseful all the same.

“Lady Theresia, please don’t feel too upset by it,” said Carol. “The responsibility lies with the miscreant who collapsed the bridge. It wasn’t your fault.”

“But…”

“In that case, your father will pay for the bridge repairs, as well as the treatment of any onlookers,” Galić assured her. “No one will complain then.”

Carol wanted to ease Theresia’s guilt as much as possible and was grateful to receive support from Galić. Although the doctor in question didn’t seem to have such intentions, on the contrary, he had said the exact right thing to Theresia. This was perhaps due to an overlap in his inconsiderate manner and her honest character.

“Thank you, Dr. Galić,” Theresia said. “That makes me feel a little better.”

“That’s great… In that case, while you’re thanking me, I’d like to ask you something.”

“Me?” questioned Theresia, tilting her head in puzzlement. “What can I do?”

Galić, happily tucking into his frozen treat, frowned and said, “The thing is, your father refused to listen to me when he recommended me for a position in the royal capital. I wonder if you could somehow get him to reconsider.”

“My father?” Theresia looked back with wide eyes at the sour-faced Galić’s request. Then she glanced at Carol, who was standing next to her. “Is it a bad thing to be recommended for such a position…?”

Carol thought for a moment and shook her head. “No, it is a great honor. Lord Veltol’s recovery is partly because he is now free of the ring’s curse, but also in a large part due to Dr. Galić’s efforts. I’m sure Lord Veltol appreciates your work, which is why he recommended you.”

“But I’m saying that I don’t want to go…”

Galić appeared reluctant to further discuss the topic.

Perhaps he didn’t aspire to push his career in medicine any further.

In fact, despite his overbearing personality, Veltol, the head of the Astrea family, held a high degree of influence. With his recommendation, it would be as good as guaranteed that Galić would prosper in the royal capital.

“Does that mean you’ve put roots down here?”

“It’s not that I don’t want to go to the royal capital. It’s more to do because…the mother of my son lives there,” muttered Galić bitterly.

“Huh?” Question marks hovered over the confused Theresia and Carol.

That’s a funny way of putting it. So that means she’s…

“Your wife?”

“No, she is just the mother of my son. He’s mine by blood, but I’m not married to his mother. A contractual relationship would be a more accurate way to describe our connection.”

“Um… What do you mean by contractual relationship?”

“To put it simply, I was asked to give her my seed,” replied Galić matter-of-factly.

“!!!” Theresia and Carol both blushed at the unexpectedly radical confession.

Registering their shocked reactions, Galić put his hand to his head and said, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to shock you two. But that’s my current situation.”

“W-We should be the ones who should be apologizing for asking about such personal matters… I guess that means you don’t want to meet the mother of your child?” asked Theresia.

“I think it would be better for everyone involved if we didn’t see each other. I can’t say I’ve been a good father and it’s hard to imagine she’s doing a good job as a mother. So…”

“I think this is up to your son to decide.” Theresia, shaking off her embarrassment, shot Galić a serious look. “Happiness is ultimately a choice and one that we can only make for ourselves. It’s up to you, Doctor, if you don’t want to see your son, but…please don’t jump to conclusions as to what your son will feel. “

“────”

“I’ve been through a lot too, but I can proudly say that I’m happy now. Even if you think that you haven’t been a good father, maybe things will be different from now on.”

Clearly, Theresia had given the delicate situation a great deal of thought.

Standing next to her, Carol couldn’t help but feel proud and loved her all the more. Look at her, she thought. I want to stand at the top of the world and exclaim, “Take a look at this fine young woman.”

“Well, this is amusing. Your companion holds herself in a more dignified manner than you.” Looking at Theresia and Carol, the sickly-looking Galić laughed.

The scrawny healer laughed, tilted the bowl of now melted sherbet, and poured it down his throat. He exhaled a chilled breath. “You’re right,” he said. “Happiness is up to the individual. I pretended it was for my son, but I was just making excuses. I should be ashamed of myself.”

“Doctor, that’s not what I…”

“Well, I’ve made up my mind. I won’t go to the royal capital because I don’t want to see him.”

“Huh?”

Theresia’s eyes widened in disbelief. Her attempts at persuading the doctor resulted in the opposite of what she was expecting. Galić flashed a toothy grin.

“If my happiness is up to me to decide, then I choose to not go to the royal capital. It’s not as simple as whether my son wants to see me or not… But now is not the right time.”

“Oh, well I can’t argue with that… Carol…” replied Theresia.

“It’s unfortunate,” began Carol, “but you have managed to make Lady Theresia’s honest intentions work in your favor… “

In truth, Carol had never conspired against others before, and the same was true for Theresia, who couldn’t wrap her head around the doctor’s train of thought. As they metaphorically raised a white flag, Galić puffed his nose in a good mood and said, “I’ve made up my mind and I have you to thank, my lady. Now, all we have to do is to convince your father to throw in the towel.”

“Um, about that…”

“Yeah?”

Theresia covered her mouth as Galić cleared his throat. She then looked over at Carol, who nodded in agreement. They may have lost this battle, but they still had Veltol to win the war. He was known to be childish and absolutely relentless.

“Who would’ve thought there would come the day I’d hope to see Lord Veltol act in a less than graceful manner…” Carol admitted.

“Let’s see which of them can turn the tables in their favor,” giggled Theresia.

“What a pair of sinister grins…” said Galić, looking at the two girls.

Carol had known Veltol for a long time, so she and Theresia were confident in their victory. But even so…

“What kind of person is she? The woman who um…isn’t your wife…” asked Theresia.

“I can’t speak for others, but she’s an eccentric woman. She has excellent abilities, but is difficult to handle,” replied Galić. “I’m not sure if her decision to bear my child was because she wanted to or…she desired the genius of a healer for her child.”

“That’s an unusual mindset for one to have. It’s not something one sees much in this day and age.”

Marriages were a way of introducing superior bloodlines and preserving them. It was much rarer nowadays, but it was much more common hundreds of years ago. There were select families such as House Astrea that were so strong that regardless of new blood introduced to the lineage, it could not dilute it, and so the concept of pedigree was lost.

“She had an old-fashioned mentality, but it didn’t feel that way to me,” explained Galić. “When push came to shove, I couldn’t keep up with her fiery passion…plus she was a real beauty.”

“Men are such simple creatures…” Theresia gave a look of disdain at Galić’s impertinent manner. Carol also shot a similar look of disgust and Galić roared with laughter.

He laughed in such a manner that could strike a nerve in others. “That’s why,” he said, “you may advise your father to not be concerned with an immoral man like me. And don’t worry about your husband straying away. I know a fastidious man when I see one.”

“It pains me to say it, but I agree with him on that one,” said Carol, reluctantly siding with Galić.

“Oh, Carol…” Theresia flushed at their affirmation, which Carol grudgingly had to admit was adorable.

Wilhelm thought the world of Theresia with his whole heart and soul. That was why he fought in that duel with no regard for his own life. He was met with fortune and successfully accomplished his goal. It was a feat that Carol herself could not have accomplished, to her shame.

“But that doesn’t prove that my feelings are worth any less than that man’s.”

“Um, Carol? Why are you suddenly so enthusiastic…”

“You have no idea how much I’ve been thinking about you, Lady Theresia. And my feelings are no less than his. You know that!” Carol was so stirred up that she clutched Theresia’s hands with her own.

Feeling overwhelmed by the momentum of their conversation, Theresia gawked back in astonishment. She looked away. Her pale cheeks blushed slightly, her lips quivering. “Oh, um Carol… I appreciate how you feel, but…”

“Yes!”

“It can get pretty packed here with people, so don’t get too excited… Ok?” cautioned Theresia with a gentle smile.

Carol quickly came to her senses and felt startled by what she saw around them. The eyes of the entire street were on her, who up to that point had been boldly expressing her feelings. Her cheeks turned into a shade of vermillion red, causing Galić to chuckle at the sight. “As a healer, I would advise you to get something cold for those hot cheeks. I highly recommend the frozen treats they have just over there.”

“Um, er… Well…” Carol bit her lip in frustration at the doctor’s teasing manner.

Theresia tugged her sleeve. “Don’t mind him,” she told her. “Alright then, we’ll go with your suggestion. I’ll treat you to a bowl of sherbert, Carol.”

Then, whether this was what Galić had in mind or not, Carol let out a pathetic cry. “L-Lady Theresia…” But in the end, Theresia’s allure was too much for her to resist and so she staggered along behind her.

“Hehehe! All the best, you two!” chortled Galić as he turned around with a smile.

Biting back the urge to lash back at the doctor, she held herself for a moment. At least, she hoped that her time with Theresia would make up for her humiliation and green-eyed jealousy of Wilhelm.

“Hey, Carol, what flavor do you want?”

However, such a feeble wish was nothing compared to the smile of the girl standing next to her, so Carol ran to join her mistress’s side.

END