Chapter 1

In the silent room, the man paced restlessly.

He walked back and forth, stopping to sigh, then resumed his pacing.

The young sisters sitting side by side on the chairs followed the man's movements with their heads, turning left and right.

"Please calm down, Sir Shiro."

The young maid sighed with an exasperated expression.

Her lustrous long black hair swayed gently.

The man who had been pacing around the room—Shiro—stopped and turned to face the maid.

Though he had a well-composed appearance, his face was now filled with helpless anxiety.

"No, no, no! Ren, you say that, but..."

"The young ladies will become worried."

"Ugh..."

Shiro was momentarily speechless at the cold tone of the maid called Ren.

"Father, what's wrong?"

The younger sister asked with concern, and Ren turned a cold gaze toward Shiro.

Shiro's shoulders drooped.

Ren knelt down to be at eye level with the sisters and gently stroked their heads as if to comfort them.

"There's nothing to worry about. Men are usually unreliable in such situations."

Her words were blunt.

But they were exactly right.

In another room, his wife was about to give birth.

His beloved was enduring pain he knew nothing about.

Could any man not be concerned?

Shiro's shoulders trembled at the distant sound of his wife's pained groans.

This was his third time waiting for a birth, but Shiro could never get used to it—he started pacing again.

"Father..."

The older sister also protested, and the maid finally sighed deeply.

"Shiro, enough already..."

"But..."

Shiro was about to complain.

At that moment, the faint cry of a healthy baby echoed.

Shiro and Ren exchanged a glance, and Shiro darted out of the room as if propelled.

The maid, who had just opened the door, noticed Shiro and smiled.

"Sir Shiro! It's a healthy boy!"

"Oh!"

Shiro rushed in, followed by the sisters and Ren entering the room.

"Ha, Ren, look!"

Shiro held up his newborn, wrapped in a clean cloth, with a joyful expression.

Ren's face softened slightly.

"Congratulations. Sir Shiro, Lady Cecilia."

The woman lying in bed smiled, her cheeks still flushed.

Her sweat-dampened emerald hair shimmered faintly in the light.

"The child's name is Wilbur. What do you think?"

Shiro laid the baby next to Cecilia and leaned in to look at her.

"Is that all right?"

Cecilia asked hesitantly.

"We could also give him a name from your homeland, Sir Shiro."

"This child... Wilbur is a child of this country."

Shiro smiled and gently smoothed Cecilia's disheveled hair.

Cecilia smiled and turned her face to her newborn, resting in her side.

"...Wilbur. Nice to meet you, Wilbur..."

She lovingly repeated her child's name several times.