Became Pregnant With the Demon King’s Child

“What are you talking about? That guy was clearly interested in you, Your Grace.”
At Lowell’s protest, Felix hesitated and retraced the other man’s behavior.
“No matter how I look at it, he seemed like he fell for you at first sight.”

Then, rather than changing his mind, he replied with a sour expression. Lowell wanted to pound his chest and demand an explanation for how anyone could possibly see it that way. He couldn’t believe Felix had missed the lovestruck expression Pierre had aimed directly at him.
He’s so sharp about everything else—so why does he turn into this when it’s about me? No—what if he’s just never noticed all the people who’ve openly flirted with me till now?
Lowell wasn’t sure whether to feel happy or annoyed.

“He blushed every time he looked at you! He couldn’t even meet your eyes!”
“And yet he couldn’t stop staring at you for a second. Didn’t you hear him? He told you you were beautiful the moment you met. He’s obviously bewitched.”
“No, come on—be realistic. He’s an omega! If he’s into anyone, it would obviously be you, wouldn’t it?”

Neither of them noticed that people were still watching them. They were too absorbed in their own argument.
“He was an omega?”
Felix muttered with genuine surprise. It meant he hadn’t even noticed the faint pheromones Pierre had accidentally let slip.

“Yes. So now you see I was right, don’t you?”
Lowell said, smug and triumphant—but Felix still didn’t back down.
“But what difference does that make?”

“What?”
“You’re someone who defies common sense. Why would gender matter? It wouldn’t be strange if an alpha, omega, or even a beta fell for you.”
It was so excessive that Lowell’s face burned red.

“In any case, regardless of that, I’m telling you—he definitely likes you, Felix.”
“Then why were you staring at him like that?”
“Obviously because he liked you, and that bothered me!”
Lowell answered in a low, hushed tone—but with intense conviction.

“Then that’s all that matters.”
Felix turned forward again, satisfied. It seemed like he didn’t care at all whether Pierre liked him.
“Wait—that’s it?”

Lowell finally couldn’t stand it and spoke up again at Felix’s utterly bland response.
“What more do you want?”
“I mean, he did say he was interested in you…”

“I think he has unusual tastes, but it’s nothing I need to care about. You’re not expecting me to react, are you?”
It was such a cold reply it might as well have frozen the air. It was the kind of attitude one might hope for from a committed lover—but combined with Felix’s naturally frosty expression, it made him seem impossible to approach.
“No.”

“And if someone falls for you, you shouldn’t react either. If you have a /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ partner, that’s how it should be.”
Felix said it with the strict, solemn tone of someone laying down divine law. Lowell could only nod in agreement.
While the two of them went back and forth about something so trivial, the banquet itself grew livelier. Even those who had been sneaking glances at Felix—fascinated by how smitten he was with Lowell—began to enjoy themselves again.

Finally feels like I can breathe.
Even if he tried not to tense up, it wasn’t easy. Being surrounded by good food was nice, sure, but to be honest, Lowell never really understood what was so enjoyable about banquets.
I’m just happy and thankful that Felix threw this for me.

He glanced around quietly. The atmosphere suggested no one would care if the host of the castle slipped away.
Looks like I can step out for a bit.
Using the excuse of going to see the greenhouse—where many guests had headed—Lowell stood up. Felix instinctively stood with him and held out his arm. Lowell linked arms naturally, holding back a smile.

“Where to?”
“The greenhouse. Looks like a lot of people are there, so I thought we should stop by.”
“Alright.”

Felix followed without a word, leaving the main hall behind.
“There are so many stars.”
“So there are.”

By now, the sky had darkened, and the Milky Way stretched above them. The banquet hall and greenhouse were both bustling with guests. On top of that, several guards followed discreetly at a distance.
Even so, Lowell felt as if he and Felix were the only ones left in the universe. As if they were tucked into a fold in time, completely cut off from the world. And yet, he wasn’t lonely—not when Felix was with him.
Maybe it’s the contrast. After all the noise, stepping into this quiet makes it feel so surreal.

Feeling the warmth beside him, Lowell suddenly felt overwhelmed with happiness. He should have been smiling—but instead, his chest tightened and he felt on the verge of tears.
Is it the hormones?
He tried to rationalize the sensation and suppress it—but failed.

“What’s wrong?”
Felix stopped and looked at Lowell. Standing there in the starlight, Felix seemed almost unreal—like a dream that might vanish at any second.
“Are you feeling unwell?”

But without waiting for an answer, Felix bent slightly and looked Lowell in the eye—as if to say there was nothing to worry about. Their eyes met, and for a moment, Lowell felt as though he’d fall into them.
“Felix.”
“Yes.”

“I’m not a particularly attractive person. I just seem that way in your eyes.”
At the sudden confession, Felix blinked, then recalled their earlier conversation about Pierre. He assumed this was a continuation of that topic.
“If that’s true, then I’m glad. You seem to have no idea what you’re worth.”

“Looks aren’t important. Once people get to know me, they always leave.”
Lowell knew he’d regret this self-pitying mood later—but he couldn’t stop the words from coming. Pierre had apparently been the last straw.
“Just as I suspected—you’ve only ever been involved with garbage.”

The bluntness of the reply was enough to kill any melancholy. Lowell’s tears instantly dried up. He was yanked straight back to reality.
“Really? Then doesn’t that mean I’m also garbage, for having only met garbage?”
“You’re barely a year younger than me, and you’ve already dated so many men?”

Felix suddenly sounded indignant again, but quickly remembered he shouldn’t get angry at a pregnant person, and took a deep breath.
“I haven’t dated so many men.”
“Then were there women, too?”

Lowell burst out laughing loud enough to rattle the night sky. He had no idea how Felix had reached that conclusion.
“Nothing like that. I just got dumped a lot, that’s all. It’s not like I dated a ton of people.”
Felix’s pupils visibly trembled at the word dumped. His expression said he couldn’t believe anyone with eyes could have done such a heinous thing.

“I really can’t understand it.”
The disbelief in his voice made it hard to take as comfort. Felix, who had been staring up at the sky, looked down at Lowell again and spoke.
“But if something precious gets mistreated, it’s the fault of those who couldn’t recognize its value—not the fault of the thing itself, right?”

At the sudden seriousness in his tone, Lowell blinked and looked up at him. Not even the cold night air could wedge itself between them.
“There’s no need to listen to people who don’t recognize your worth. I’ll be the one to recognize it, Lowell.”
It felt less like comfort and more like a jealous declaration: Only I need to recognize your worth.

“Yes. As long as you see it, that’s enough for me.”
Somewhere in the back of his mind, he imagined hearing the sound of a tightly locked door rattling open.
“If I hadn’t gone off to war… would I have met you sooner?”

Felix had never once said he didn’t want to go to war—or regretted it. For him, protecting others with sword and magic had always been a duty, and fulfilling that duty had always been a given.
“Maybe so.”
“If I had, then you wouldn’t have had to meet all those garbage men.”

There was something oddly adorable about how sure he sounded. Lowell thought that Felix might have forgotten how they even got entangled in the first place.
If I hadn’t warned him not to drink the drugged wine that night, none of this would’ve happened.
Still, he was grateful for Felix’s feelings.

“Yeah… It would’ve been nice if we’d met earlier.”
Lowell joined him in entertaining an impossible what-if.
He thought maybe it was their wounds that had drawn them together. And still, he wished Felix’s past had been just a little less painful. He knew it was contradictory—but he couldn’t help it.

“Even so… I’m glad we met, even now.”
If the lonely, painful paths they’d walked were what led them to each other, then maybe it was worth it. As the two stood beneath the starlit sky, it felt as though a bridge of starlight had been laid across the darkness of their once-isolated lives.