Chapter 22: A Friend’s Joyous Occasion
“Welcome. Thank you for your hard work.”
“…?”
Mona presented a cup of coffee, while Ivern tilted his head, alternating his gaze between Mona and me.
“What are you doing? You made it just for me, and now it’s going to get cold.”
“Huh? Oh, right. Thanks…”
Ivern said that and took a sip of the coffee.
“Wait! Who the hell are you!?”
As usual, he had come with supplies and was greeted by Mona, who then guided him straight to the living room table. After taking a sip of coffee, he exclaimed this.
“Man, you’re slow.”
“I was confused when an unfamiliar person suddenly appeared! Get it?”
“Then you should’ve said that when we first met. What was with that ‘aeh?’ I was desperately trying not to laugh.”
When the door to the house opened, it was Mona who greeted him, and Ivern’s first reaction was “aeh?”
I thought he was trying to kill me with laughter.
“Shut up!”
Embarrassed by the memory, Ivern shouted, his face turning bright red.
“So? Who is this person?”
Ivern knew well about me and Meileen.
Thus, he understood that the people coming to this house were significantly limited, which is why he asked about Mona’s identity.
“This is Mona.”
“I’m Mona.”
As I introduced her, Mona politely bowed.
By the way, Mona was currently wearing an apron dress.
Normally, a lady-in-waiting would wear a regular dress, but since Mona’s work in this house mainly involved housework, she wore an apron dress.
To put it simply, it was a classic maid outfit.
“Got it. So, you’re Mona.”
“Yeah.”
“Right.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“So?”
“Huh?”
I tilted my head as Ivern urged me to continue, and a vein popped up on his forehead.
“I’m asking where this Mona is from!! Don’t you understand how dangerous Meileen’s situation is?!”
Oh, right. I hadn’t mentioned Mona’s background.
“Mona is said to be a lady-in-waiting from Meileen’s royal days. It seems she was the one who helped Meileen escape the Royal Castle after she was ousted from the throne.”
Upon hearing that, Ivern finally calmed down.
“I see. So, that means Mona won’t betray or oppose Meileen.”
“Right?”
I turned to Mona, and she frowned as she replied.
“Of course. I have pledged eternal loyalty to Lady Meileen. Even if my body decays, I will protect her.”
“That’s what she said.”
Hearing Mona’s words, Ivern finally relaxed a bit.
“Good, then.”
“What’s with you? You seem really sensitive about Meileen’s safety.”
As I said that, Ivern glanced up at the second floor where Meileen and Yulia were.
Today, Meileen was suffering from severe morning sickness and was resting in bed.
“Well, yeah. Meileen is one of the few friends Yulia can truly trust. If anything were to happen to her, Yulia would undoubtedly be heartbroken.”
Hearing those words made me chuckle.
“…What’s so funny?”
“Nothing? I just thought you really dote on Yulia.”
When I said that, Ivern’s face turned red, which was unusual for him.
“…It’s normal, normal.”
“Oh really?”
“What?”
“Nothing?”
Just as we were having that conversation, a loud voice called for Mona from upstairs.
“Mona! Mona!! Come here right now!!”
“Lady Meileen!?”
Upon hearing that voice, Mona dashed towards the bedroom.
“Wow, she’s fast!”
Ivern was surprised, but that was the least of our concerns.
I followed Mona into the bedroom.
What I saw there was Yulia looking utterly exhausted, while Meileen was frantically tending to her.
“What happened, Yulia!!”
Ivern, who had entered the bedroom after me, rushed over to Yulia, noticing her state.
“Yulia!? Lady Meileen, what’s going on?”
“Well… Yulia suddenly said she felt sick and then threw up…”
“Yulia!? Yulia!!”
“Ugh… ugh…”
Ivern was rubbing Yulia’s back while calling out to her, but it seemed Yulia was in no condition to respond.
As I watched the scene, I felt like I had seen something similar before when Mona approached me.
“Kenta-sama.”
“What is it?”
“Could you please call the midwife who is looking after Lady Meileen?”
With those words from Mona, I became certain of what was happening.
“Ah, I knew it?”
“Most likely.”
So, I hurriedly used Teleportation Magic to head to Ivern’s town and brought Mr. Bennett back with me.
Upon seeing Yulia lying on the guest room bed, Mr. Bennett seemed to understand what had happened.
“Kenta-kun.”
“Yes?”
“Could you use Detection Magic on Yulia-chan for me?”
“Sure.”
I casually accepted Mr. Bennett’s request, and Ivern, looking confused, asked.
“D-Detection Magic? Why would we use something like that?”
“Just be quiet and watch.”
“…Okay.”
Ivern’s pointless question was silenced by Mr. Bennett’s sharp reply.
Ignoring their exchange, I directed Detection Magic primarily at Yulia’s abdomen.
“…Ah, yeah, there’s definitely something there.”
“I see.”
When I relayed the results of the Detection Magic to Mr. Bennett, he smiled warmly.
“Congratulations, Yulia-chan. We can finally take care of you.”
With those words, Yulia began to shed tears.
“Huh? Huh? What does this mean?”
In the midst of this emergency, Ivern seemed to be struggling to comprehend.
“Get a grip, old man.”
I said, giving him a light pat on the back.
“Who’s the old man…?”
But it seemed he finally understood the meaning behind those words, as he looked at Yulia with a face of disbelief.
Yulia, feeling embarrassed, peeked out from under the bed sheets to look at Ivern.
“Y-Yulia…”
“Hehe… I’m going to have a baby.”
As Yulia said that, Ivern lunged toward her on the bed.
“Ugh!”
I grabbed him by the collar to stop him.
“You idiot!! What are you thinking, trying to jump on a pregnant woman in her first trimester!?”
“The first trimester is the most delicate time, you know?”
“Oh dear, that won’t do, Ivern.”
Ivern received a collective scolding from the women, looking momentarily dejected, but then he slowly took Yulia’s hand.
“Yulia, I… I don’t know what to say…”
Holding Yulia’s hand, Ivern began to cry.
“Hehe. Hey, Ivern.”
“What?”
“Let’s take good care of this child together.”
“Yeah. Yeah! Of course!”
It was a bit of a peculiar way to say it, but with that, Yulia, Meileen’s closest friend, had also become a mom friend.
It seemed they would continue to build a good friendship even after childbirth, which was a relief.
“Well then, Kenta-kun, I’m sorry to ask this right away, but could you take Yulia-chan home?”
“Me?”
“Yeah. The maid just mentioned it, right? The first trimester is delicate. It’s quite a distance from here to town. Just in case, I’d like you to use that magic to get her home quickly.”
I see, that makes sense.
But…
“I’m sorry, Mr. Bennett. I can’t recommend that.”
When I said that, Mr. Bennett’s expression turned serious.
“What do you mean by that? Aren’t you worried about your friend’s wife?”
“I’m worried, which is why I’m saying this.”
Mr. Bennett looked puzzled at my response.
“What do you mean?”
“Teleportation Magic literally transfers the body. There’s no documentation on what effects, if any, it might have on the fetus during the transition.”
“…I see.”
“We can’t exactly experiment on Meileen’s best friend, can we? So, I wouldn’t recommend moving her via teleportation.”
“Hmm…”
Mr. Bennett seemed to understand my explanation and began to ponder.
“Alright then, Kenta-kun. I’m sorry, but could you keep Yulia-chan here for a while?”
“Huh!?”
“Yeah, of course, that’s fine.”
“Eh!?”
Ivern exclaimed in surprise, but I readily accepted Mr. Bennett’s offer.
“Wait, does that mean I’ll be living here too?”
“No, you should go home.”
“Why not!?”
Ivern suggested he would stay too, so I told him to go home already.
“Why? What about your work as an explorer?”
“Ugh…”
“You have to deliver supplies to my place too, right?”
“U-uh…”
Ivern struggled with the decision but ultimately agreed to go home alone.
“Yulia, I’ll come check on you regularly!”
“There’s no need to push yourself too hard. Ah, but…”
“W-What is it?”
“If you cheat on me, I’ll cut it off, okay?”
“!?”
At Yulia’s terrifying declaration, Ivern desperately nodded, his legs trembling.
“Hahaha! Don’t worry, Yulia! I’ll keep a close eye on him.”
“Please do, Mr. Bennett!”
After that exchange, Ivern and Mr. Bennett headed back to town.
“Mona! From now on, I’ll be counting on you!”
“Yes. I am honored to serve the esteemed Meileen. I will do my utmost to assist you.”
It seemed like I would get along well with Mona, which was a relief.
“Hehe, things are about to get lively around here.”
Meileen said this with a joyful smile, but soon after, she started feeling nauseous from morning sickness, leading to another commotion.