Forget My Husband, I’ll Go Make Money – Side Story 10.2

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Side Story 10.2

* * *

Aristine spent her time at the winter palace at a leisure pace with her husband.

The hot springs were great for relieving fatigue.

“Why is my exhaustion piling up even though I’m resting?”

The court ladies giggled at that. Today, they had decided to go to the black market in disguise.

Hamill had offered to guide her but Aristine had refused.

“No, if the leader of the underworld accompanies us, we’ll stand out very much.”

“My wife enjoys blending in with the crowd,” Tarkan said, and it was true.

Thanks to their disguises, Aristine was able to blend into the black market relatively well. The court ladies who accompanied her eagerly explored every corner of the market.

“Can we buy this?”

“I’d like to buy this too.”

Aristine nodded whenever they asked.

The royal treasury aside, Aristine was wealthy. She was the head of a business that revolutionized the medical field, and her husband owned the largest merchant group in the empire.

“Don’t ask; just buy everything you want.”

After saying this, Aristine felt a thrill of excitement.

‘I never thought I’d be saying something like that.

When she was confined, she used to wish she could visit a store, even if it was a small one. There was even a time when her goal was to earn a lot of money and buy whatever she wanted.

She thought it would be even better if she had a friend to shop with, arm in arm.

But now, here she was, saying something so extravagant to her entourage! It was a huge step forward.

“But what are you going to use that for?”

“Ah… for serving the both of you.”

“Yes, indeed. It is essential for serving well.”

“Well, since this is a rare outing and all, why don’t you buy something for yourselves instead of for me?”

“Making you two happy is our happiness!” the court ladies replied, laughing mischievously.

“Oh! Let’s go over there! That area has a lot of what we’re looking for.”

“Alright, feel free to shop as you like,” Aristine nodded.

This was likely the first time the court ladies were in such a place, so they probably wanted to explore comfortably. Once given permission, they joined hands and hummed as they walked away, snickering all the while.

Aristine turned her head, and her eyes met Durante’s, who had been following them from a distance. Reading the look in her eyes, Durante started following the court ladies.

‘Good. With Durante, they’ll be safe,’

After all, this was the black market—anything could happen.

Just as she was thinking that, a breath touched her ear.

“We’re alone now.”

Aristine chuckled and leaned into the arms that were wrapped around her waist.

“Technically speaking, we are not alone.”

There were warriors watching from afar, ready to step in if anything happened.

“I can make them leave.”

“General Mukali will cry if you do that.”

Aristine grabbed Tarkan’s hand and led him forward.

“They sell some interesting stuff here. Let’s take a look.”

Tarkan smiled at the excitement in his wife. Anyone could tell she was a curious woman, and she was bubbling with anticipation.

‘I wonder what she plans to buy.’

Rare ores from the demonic beast plains? The long-lost treasures of a fallen kingdom that hadn’t surfaced in centuries? Or maybe mermaid tears? Those would go very well with Aristine’s complexion.

Mermaid Tears weren’t actual tears, but pearls produced by mermaids.

You could wear them without anything else. They were strung together, and you just needed to wrap the strung pearls around your body and…

Right at that moment, Aristine came to a stop. Her eyes were focused on one thing.

“Do you want it?”

It was precisely what he had thought: Mermaid Tears.

“No, I just thought it would suit you very well.”

“You…”

Tarkan’s cheeks flushed red.

And later that night.

Tarkan demonstrated just how well the Mermaid Tears suited him.

The items the court ladies bought also significantly contributed to the couple’s happiness.

Aristine was utterly satisfied.

***

“Ahem, I’m glad to see that you two are getting along very well.”

Nephther began, sipping his tea.

“Isn’t it about time we heard news of a second child? I’m not trying to rush you, but seeing how tight knit you are, I was wondering.”

“A second child?”

“I’d love a granddaughter who resembles my dear daughter-in-law. Of course, a grandson would be wonderful too. Either way, if they’re just like my daughter-in-law, they’ll be absolutely adorable.”

For a moment, Aristine doubted Nephther’s eyesight.

“Hmm, isn’t Sion the spitting image of Tarkan?” Aristine interjected.

“What are you talking about? Sion looks exactly like you.”

“Yeah, he takes after you completely,” Tarkan and Nephther said in turn, leaving Aristine speechless.

How could they say Tarkan’s mini resembled her?

But both of them wore such sincere expressions.

‘A second child…’

Launelian’s presence had been an immense comfort and joy to Aristine.

So she would be happy if Actsion had a sibling too.

‘And…if they resemble Khan, oh, that would be even lovelier.’

They would be so adorable.

She had been too busy with work to seriously consider it until now.

“It sounds like a good idea. Let’s plan for a second child when we return to the palace. What do you think, Khan?”

“I like that idea too. Thank you.”

Tarkan kissed his wife’s forehead.

The first pregnancy had been unexpected and unplanned. Who could have guessed that the aftermath of destroying a tent on the demonic beast plains would lead to that?

“Let’s take a trip to the sea first, and then we can plan things out more carefully this time,” Aristine said.

“Agreed. I don’t want to come back and find you gone again. One experience was enough.”

“I don’t think that will happen even if I suddenly get pregnant again.”

That being said, Aristine didn’t think that sudden pregnancy was going to repeat itself. After all, they had been intimate countless times over the past three years, and nothing had happened.

Of course, their frequency had increased recently thanks to their vacation.

‘But still—’

Right at that moment, she felt a strange ripple within her body.

‘Huh? No way.’

Aristine stifled a hollow laugh and shook her head.

Impossible. There was no way that right after they decided to plan for a second child, she would…

At that moment.

She felt another unmistakable ripple, one she couldn’t ignore.

‘…No way?’

It was a ripple of authority.

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