650,

Everyone left, leaving only Cyclone and Elyse in the room.

They were so close, clutching each other’s hands as if either of them might fall apart at any moment.

Cyclone looked into Elyse’s eyes. He didn’t mean to deceive her, but he had to choose his words carefully.

Cyclone didn’t want Elyse to feel any guilt.

If someone had to take responsibility for Feng’er’s death, Cyclone was willing to bear it all himself.

“Feng’er… our son is dead…”

Elyse shook her head, her voice already trembling.

“N-no… That can’t be…”

“It’s… the truth.”

The tears welling in her eyes finally spilled over. One tear rolled down her cheek.

“W-why… Back then, back then… couldn’t you save him…?”

Elyse’s sudden lunge blocked the bullet meant for Cyclone, but it also led to Feng’er’s death.

Cyclone didn’t want Elyse to think that way. Without lying to her, he looked straight into her eyes.

“No, he could’ve been saved… It was me. My skills weren’t good enough…”

It was Cyclone’s fault. Elyse hadn’t done anything wrong.

“Was it because you were saving me? That’s why…”

“No! It was me. It was…”

It was only a wild guess, but Cyclone didn’t want Elyse to figure it out.

He could only grip Elyse’s shoulders with both hands and clearly point out what the real problem was.

But as the person who shared Cyclone’s bed, how could Elyse fail to see through his “words”?

Elyse understood the truth—and what had happened back then.

Helpless and grieving, Elyse hid in Cyclone’s arms and sobbed, striking his chest a few times as she cried.

But those little fists were nothing compared to the anguish in Cyclone’s heart.

Cyclone let Elyse stay in his arms. He could’ve offered a thousand words of comfort right then, but he couldn’t say a single one.

Rather than muddle Elyse’s thoughts with words, Cyclone hoped they could both slowly make it through this in silence.

Her heart-wrenching sobs continued until midnight.

It wasn’t that Elyse had cried enough. She’d sobbed so much in Cyclone’s arms that her voice had given out.

Cyclone didn’t mind letting Elyse cry as long as she needed. Even if she cried until there were no tears left, he wouldn’t let go.

As she kept crying, Elyse really did use up every last bit of her strength.

The sobs stopped, but her tears kept falling. At last, Elyse fell asleep.

After learning that her son was gone, Elyse returned to the world of dreams carrying that terrible truth with her.

There, it was the day Cyclone had taken her on a date.

That day, Elyse bought a lot of things.

“Honey~ How about this one?”

“Isn’t that outfit way too big? I’ve already got fourteen sets in my hands!”

“Honestly! Those are only enough for half a year. They’re for Feng’er, so we need to prepare plenty!”

“What?! I only get four outfits a year… Two for around the house, two for going out, one set for summer and one for winter…”

Cyclone broke out in a cold sweat.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. He needs at least four sets for each season! And seven outfits per season!”

Elyse declared, completely unabashed.

Seeing how happy Elyse was, Cyclone didn’t want to spoil her mood.

“All right, all right~ I brought plenty of gold today! Come on, honey! Pick whatever you like, and I’ll buy it!”

“Heh~”

With a little giggle, Elyse continued shopping, Feng’er still in her belly.

She didn’t stop until she spotted a certain item.

“Let’s get these too~ Feng’er will be born in winter, so one pair for him, one for me, and one for you. Three pairs of gloves~”

“But… this is just yarn, isn’t it? How are you going to get gloves out of it?”

Cyclone asked curiously.

“Honestly! I’m going to knit them!”

“What?!”

“What’s wrong?! I can knit too!”

Elyse put on an indignant expression and planted her hands on her hips.

“Besides… there’s nothing to do at home. I might as well knit the gloves while thinking about what comes next~”