Dark Dad’s Rebirth - Chapter 14: Madness (7)

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Your Highness… The young lady said she wanted to go for a walk. It had been so long since her last one, and we thought it would be fine… we were careless.”

‘I hadn’t expected this. I thought it would be enough to remove sharp objects and keep dangerous things out of her hands. But who would have guessed she’d lower the servants’ guard by saying she wanted to take a walk—only to throw herself into the garden pond?’

‘Was being with me really so unbearable that she’d go to such lengths?’

Caelius couldn’t comprehend it. At the same time, a deep sense of wretchedness crept in.

For a fleeting moment, he had been foolishly excited, buying skewered chicken and ice cream, dreaming of her smile. Now, he felt like a fool.

How long had she waited for me to leave?

That thought left Caelius devastated and miserable. While he had been naïvely hoping for her happiness, she had been waiting for her chance to escape him. It felt unbearably cruel.

Caelius gripped Aria’s hand tightly and bowed his head before her. Swallowing his sobs, he silently let tears fall, one by one.

The figure that was always so proud now seemed small and pitiful.

How long did he stay that way? Amid the faint rustling of movement, a small presence made itself known.

“Dad.”

A faint, indifferent voice came from above his bowed head. Startled, Caelius snapped his head up to see Aria, her pale face watching him.

Though her complexion was still poor, she didn’t appear to be in any significant pain or showing signs of lingering harm, just as the physician had said. Seeing that she seemed relatively okay, Caelius exhaled a small sigh of relief.

Her expression was as calm as ever, almost as if nothing had happened—as if she hadn’t thrown herself into the pond. She looked like she had simply woken up from a long nap, a little more at ease.

But that peace didn’t last.

The moment their eyes met, Aria twisted one corner of her mouth into a smirk. She spoke with a mocking tone.

“Are you crying?”

Her voice, far from offering comfort or reassurance, was laden with ridicule.

“Dad, why are you crying? D-Don’t cry… sniff, Riri hates seeing Dad cry…”

For a brief moment, Caelius remembered a time when she had comforted him, her small hands gently brushing against the corners of his eyes. That memory remained vivid.

“Don’t cry.”

But the Aria before him now was different.

“I wasn’t trying to die.”

“Riri…”

“Because you hate me and our child, you tried to get rid of it, didn’t you?”

Those cold, cutting words pierced Caelius like a dagger. Not even the wounds he’d suffered on the battlefield had been this excruciating. Hearing Aria’s words felt like someone had momentarily clenched his lungs, making it difficult to breathe.

Yet despite the cruel meaning behind her words, Aria’s demeanor remained composed, even nonchalant. She didn’t bat an eye as she spoke and even let out a small chuckle.

For a fleeting moment, Caelius thought about the simple, peaceful life he had foolishly imagined they could share—like an ordinary couple. Now, that dream felt pathetic and utterly naive. Aria would never allow such a thing.

“…I’m sorry.”

“…”

“I’m sorry, Riri.”

His trembling voice carried the weight of suppressed tears. Droplets of anguish fell onto the white bed sheets. Yet Aria offered no words of comfort or solace. She simply watched him with a blank expression, showing neither pity nor anger.

“Please… I don’t care about anything else. Just don’t harm yourself.”

Gripping the white bed sheets tightly, Caelius spoke softly, his tone almost pleading. If she hated him, he wished she would strike him, push him away, or stab him. Anything would be better than this.

But contrary to his desperate feelings, Aria only let out a derisive laugh.

“Why?”

“…”

“Is it because of the child?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Liar.”

“…Riri.”

As she glanced at her frail, emaciated abdomen, Aria leaned back against the headboard, her face filled with weariness and disdain.

“Dad.”

“…”

“Do you hate seeing me like this?”

Caelius was puzzled by her sudden question, but he gave a small nod. Aria immediately followed up.

“Then can you make it so I’ll never have to be tied to you again?”

“…What?”

“Exactly what I said. No matter if you stage a rebellion or whatever else, can you make it so that the name ‘Caelius’ will never be a part of my life again?”

Caelius’s expression crumpled at once. Aria, as if expecting this reaction, maintained a composed and indifferent demeanor.

“Then I’ll stop. I’ll stop making things difficult for you like this. I’ll stop causing trouble for the child. As long as you guarantee my freedom and my life.”

The mention of her life made Caelius look at her with alarm, as though afraid she thought he might harm her.

‘I could never lay a hand on you…’

In the past, he might have ignored her wishes and acted on his impulses, forcing himself on her. But now, such actions were impossible. He couldn’t even touch her for fear of deepening her hatred for him.

Caelius gave a bitter smile, his gaze falling to the floor.

“…Riri.”

“Yes, Dad?”

“I can’t even lay a finger on you.”

His voice, filled with defeat, barely escaped his lips. It stung his pride, but Caelius knew he couldn’t win against Aria.

He couldn’t decipher what she was truly thinking. She had long since seen through all the cards he held, but her own hand remained a complete mystery to him.

“Someone like me… wouldn’t dare touch you. Even if you don’t want it, your safety is…”

“I don’t believe you.”

“…What?”

“I don’t believe what you’re saying, Dad.”

Caelius couldn’t understand what had pushed her to this extreme. Why? Why did she speak as though she had already been burned by him once before?

Sighing in resignation, he bit his lip. It was the only way he could express the storm of emotions swirling within him.

“You’ve always been that kind of person.”

Her blunt statement made Caelius look at her in a daze. The words didn’t suit her usual demeanor, but Aria was merciless.

“Someone filled with lies, who even whispers love deceitfully.”

Her voice carried a bitter laugh as she added, “I won’t go through it a second time.”

Through her cryptic statement, Caelius wanted to ask, What do you mean? But his voice wouldn’t come out, as if his throat had sealed itself shut.

“Being used by you once was enough,” she said in a whisper, her golden eyes cold and grim.

Caelius tried to voice his confusion, tried to ask what she meant, but his lips wouldn’t move. All he could do was stare at her helplessly, his face blank with disbelief.

“So please… just let me go,” Aria murmured weakly. Her frail hands gripped the blanket tightly, trembling.

“Riri, I don’t understand what you’re saying right now…”

“It was because of rebellion,” she said, cutting him off. “Because of rebellion and the legitimacy of the imperial family.”

Aria interrupted Caelius, speaking in her usual indifferent tone.

“That’s why you brought me here, isn’t it?”

Caelius frowned slightly, narrowing his eyes. Yes, Aria was right. At least, she was right about when he had first met her.

“Now imagine failing in your rebellion because of me.”

“……”

“Even then, would you still whisper sweet words to me with that same face?”

Of course.

Caelius’s lips parted slightly as his expression twisted further. What mattered to him now wasn’t the throne or rebellion. It wasn’t even close.

He felt a pang of resentment that Aria didn’t understand that. But no matter how frustrated he was, all he could feel for her was love, which made reproaching her impossible.

“If… if you really did love me….”

Before he could dwell on how she spoke in the past tense, Aria finished her sentence.

“You wouldn’t have forgotten everything.”

Forgotten?

The unexpected word made Caelius freeze. His pitch-black eyes, now filled with confusion, locked on her. Aria, in turn, gazed back at him with a wary look, like a hedgehog bristling with sharp quills.

“Dad.”

“……”

“If you promise to let me go…”

Trailing off, Aria reached out and gently touched his cheek. Then, unexpectedly, she kissed him. The soft sound of their lips meeting echoed briefly before she pulled away.

“I’ll listen to you while I’m here.”

Her next words made Caelius freeze.

“I’ll pretend I only care about you again, just like before. I’ll smile sweetly and ask you to hold me.”

Her slender fingers, which had been gently caressing his cheek, trailed downward, slowly brushing across his thinly hollowed cheeks before coming to rest on his firm thigh.

“I’ll eat properly. I won’t upset you.”

Her small hand glided suggestively up his leg, moving deliberately toward its center.

“If you want, I’ll even spread my legs for you.”

“What are you saying…?”

“So hurry up, Dad.”

Aria smiled at him like she used to, the soft, sweet smile that Caelius had missed so desperately. In that fleeting moment, his heart dropped to the floor with a resounding thud.

“Hurry up and promise to let me go. Okay?”

Her sweet, soft voice was a cruel whisper. She smiled so calmly, using the face Caelius had once longed to see, to ask him to let her go. It was nothing short of brutal.

Caelius, already battered and torn by her barbed words, clenched his fists tightly and stood up. Without saying a word, he strode toward the door, as if fleeing.

As he rose, Aria quickly got up from the bed. She took a few hurried steps after him, as though trying to stop him from leaving. But perhaps due to her poor health, her vision suddenly blurred, and dizziness overtook her.

“Ah…”

Her field of vision tilted as her body swayed precariously. A faint, strained moan escaped her lips as her body began to collapse.

“Riri!”

Caelius rushed to her side and caught her around the waist. He hadn’t even been looking in her direction, but his reflexes were so sharp that he acted in an instant.

With Aria now cradled in his arms, Caelius looked down at her. The soft scent of her body, long missed, filled his senses, stirring something deep within him. Her supple form, so delicate and warm compared to his hardened physique, felt overwhelmingly fragile and precious.

Unconsciously, Caelius tightened his grip, pulling her closer. Aria, still dazed from the sudden dizziness, looked up at him with a foolishly startled expression.

“Are you okay?”

“……”

“You need to be more careful, alright?”

“You need to be careful. What would you do if you ended up bleeding, hmm?”

At the sound of his low, worried tone, Aria was suddenly reminded of something Caelius had once said in the past while holding her in his arms.

‘As I thought… you’re the worst.’

Unable to suppress the cold, sinking feeling that overwhelmed her, she shoved him away, barely holding back the tears that threatened to spill. Caelius stepped back without resistance.

“You’re still malnourished, and your body is weak from being confined to the bed for so long—”

“Dad.”

His worried words poured out in a torrent, but Aria abruptly cut him off, her tone sharp and dismissive.

“Please.”

“……”

“Promise me.”

Caelius let out a sigh tinged with frustration. He knew exactly what she wanted, but it was the one thing he could never promise her.

“Promise to let me go. Please…”

“……”

“Acting like this now—it doesn’t suit you, Dad. Right?”

Her voice grew increasingly desperate. But Caelius found himself resentful, not of her desperation, but of the fact that she was the one begging, her face so fragile and precarious.

Her golden eyes, the very ones that so closely resembled his younger self’s, sparkled brightly, betraying her weakening resolve. Though her body was thin and frail, those eyes remained like brilliant jewels.

“Riri.”

Lowering himself slightly to meet her gaze, Caelius reached out with his large hand to cup her soft cheek, gently caressing it with affection. Yet even under his tender touch, Aria continued to yearn for freedom.

She had always been within his reach, just like this, always close enough to touch. Even now, she was here, and yet the warmth that had once filled her gaze was gone. That absence unsettled him, filling him with unease and anxiety.

“I can’t promise that.”

“……”

“If you’re angry, if you’re upset, then take it out on me—hit me if you want.”

The refusal to let her go made Aria scowl involuntarily. He was resolute, leaving no room for negotiation. His unyielding stance made her abandon the last shred of hope she had clung to.

He was pleading for her to stay by his side—something her past self would have longed for. And yet, why did his words now sound so lifeless and dry? Aria clenched her fists so tightly that her fingers turned white. Her nails dug into her palms, sending a dull pain coursing through her hands, but even that small pain couldn’t quiet the tumultuous emotions inside her.

The Caelius bowing his head to her now felt unfamiliar. It was all so unreal. Maybe that’s why she could feel so detached, so indifferent about it all. Everything about it annoyed her.

Caelius, who would do anything for her, even die if she asked, annoyed her.

And the child growing inside her, placed there without her consent, annoyed her even more.

She hated them both.

* * *