Obviously, It's My Child - Chapter 216
Cornelia smiled.
“It’s alright, Duchess. It seems like this is the first time Lord Elliott’s seen a pregnant woman?”
“Well, yes…”
“Is the baby really there?!”
Claire looked awkward, but before she could respond, Elliott blurted out loudly, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
“Yes, it is.”
“Wow, wow! Wow!”
Elliott nearly jumped up with excitement.
Archduke Victoria, who had been sitting and drinking tea with Augusta, burst into laughter.
Even Marchioness Ludendorff couldn’t help but smile at Elliott.
Cornelia smiled warmly.
“Do you like babies?”
“I love babies, they’re so cute.”
Elliott said with an excited face.
“If you get a little sibling, Lord Elliott, I think you will be a very good big brother.”
“Sibling?”
Elliott looked up at Claire, his eyes wide with excitement.
Crash!
Suddenly, a sound of something breaking was heard.
Marchioness Ludendorff, who had dropped her teacup, turned bright red, clearly embarrassed.
She had just thought she had finally made up for the earlier awkwardness and had the chance to build rapport with the Duchess, only to ruin it again in this manner.
“Oh, no. I’m sorry, Duchess. I made a mistake…”
“The cup was hot. Are you alright?”
Claire kindly checked on her, but inwardly thought.
‘Is she the type to get nervous about Erich’s… reputation?’
If she had thought that, she would have realized how delicate a matter it was for Elliott to be talking about getting a sibling.
In truth, the Marchioness’s behavior wasn’t that important.
The host of the gathering was Archduke Victoria, who had invited them out of courtesy.
A servant hurried over to clean up the Marchioness’s skirt and clear away the broken teacup.
Worried that Elliott might get hurt, Archduke Victoria took hold of his shoulders and lifted him onto her lap.
“Oh, my clothes are stained. Excuse me for a moment.”
The flustered Marchioness bowed her head slightly and stepped back.
“Auntie Grandma, I want that.”
Once Elliott was at the right height for the table, he reached for the snacks. But instead of handing him the cookies, Archduke Victoria instructed that they be taken away.
She was concerned about the possibility of shards from the teacup getting into the food.
“Hng…”
“There will be more in the kitchen. The chef here is great at baking cookies, so I made sure to have a lot baked just for you.”
“Really?”
Elliott turned to look at Archduke Victoria and smiled widely. Claire said worriedly,
“You can’t just eat cookies and skip your meals.”
“I can eat what Auntie Grandma gives me.”
“When did that rule come about?”
“Hehe.”
With a face asking for support, Elliott clung to Archduke Victoria’s neck. She couldn’t help but smile but raised Claire’s point.
“You have to listen to your mom. If you eat well and grow strong, you’ll be able to take good care of your brother later.”
“Uung.”
Cookie or being a good brother? Unable to decide, Elliott wiggled his bottom.
Cornelia smiled.
“Would you like to feel it?”
“Really?!”
“Oh, you don’t have to go that far. My child is being a little rude.”
“No, it’s fine. I’m happy that you like it.”
Cornelia smiled warmly. Claire felt a bit guilty for no particular reason.
If Hermann inherits the title of Ludendorff, she would be pushed aside.
‘Such an innocent person.’
She didn’t seem to have the cleverness to use this opportunity to ask the eldest son of the Duchy to become her child’s older brother.
Elliott, who had been sitting on Archduke Victoria’s lap, quickly jumped off and came over.
And despite his bold approach, he hesitated and cautiously extended his hand.
Cornelia gently took Elliott’s small hand and placed it on her belly.
“Wow, wow!”
Elliott carefully moved his feet along the floor, trying not to push too hard on Cornelia’s belly.
Of course, despite his best efforts, he couldn’t keep his hands still.
Cornelia laughed, and Archduke Victoria smiled and glanced at Claire.
“You’ll have a big problem if you don’t give him a sibling.”
“Right? I didn’t expect him to be this excited.”
Claire spoke calmly, observing Augusta’s reaction.
Augusta maintained a poker face, but there was an interested expression on her face.
“It’s a good thing. There aren’t many direct heirs in Klausener. You’ll need to hurry with the successor issue. It could be difficult if the older child gets jealous of the younger one.”
Augusta’s gaze landed on Claire’s face. Claire noticed that she was also analyzing her.
‘Her tone is strange.’
If she thought of Elliott as Erich’s child, she wouldn’t have mentioned rushing the successor issue.
But Claire couldn’t be sure whether Augusta doubted Elliott’s birth.
It was common to think that having another child, just in case, was necessary, especially with the high infant mortality rate.
She never thought that making the birth ambiguous would fool even the Empress. Who gave birth wasn’t the important part.
The most important thing was to conceal the child’s biological father.
‘But after meeting Linus, I feel like he would have tried to get rid of Elliott, even if Erich was the real father.’
Linus wasn’t someone who could create authority on his own. Could he grab hold of the laurel wreath if given to him?
So, even if it was the Empress, any potential sources of insecurity would be eradicated.
Well, she had already anticipated the risks when she decided to form a relationship with Grand Prince Arren.
Claire lifted her teacup without raising an eyebrow.
“I don’t think there’s any rush. Both my husband and I are young and healthy, and we still have much to do.”
“Well, that’s true.”
Archduke Victoria spoke with a slightly disappointed voice.
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