The Grand Duke's Soulmate
Chapter 444: Buried Curiosity

Chapter 444: Buried Curiosity

The other knights watched the lovey-dovey scene like a stage play. As most of them were already married, they understood that Rafe was not only guiding his wife as a husband should but also protecting her pride, bringing gentle smiles to their lips.

"Oh, I’m going to cry over this! My Rafael has truly become a man," said Eric. "Well... not quite, since he hasn’t consummated his marriage yet, but really... he’s going to be a fine husband!"

Garin’s smile, on the other hand, was wistful, a melancholic memory filling his thoughts. After losing his wife and child, the path to marriage felt unachievable to him. Yet, a lovely face briefly emerged in his mind, making his heart yearn.

Suddenly, Rafe coughed upon finishing eating the chicken dish. Panicked, Callis patted his back and requested help. The second-in-command knight rushed toward them, handing over his waterskin, which always hung at his waist since he was frequently on the move.

"Mrs. Amares, please step aside and give us some space, will you?" he requested as he approached, sitting beside the healer on the bench.

"Right!"

Callis recalled getting choked at the plaza during the mid-autumn festival and how Rafe had saved her. She didn’t want her husband to suffer the same fate and quickly relented, standing up and taking a few steps back.

"Better?" Eric asked as Rafe finally calmed down after the drink, sitting beside him.

The healer nodded, taking a few deep breaths.

"That chicken... the taste is bad, isn’t it?" the second-in-command knight whispered.

Rafe leaned in and responded in a quiet tone, "The worst you can imagine."

Eric chuckled. "You masked your suffering quite well."

"I was prepared."

"You know she can’t cook?"

The healer nodded.

"I took Kiev’s hints very well. He had been dropping subtle inklings every time Callis came up with the topic of cooking. She’s excellent in almost everything else except for that. The kitchen can turn into a ruin because of her."

"Haa! No wonder His Highness suggested we cook outside the main building last night! He anticipated this would happen!" Eric said. "Come to think of it, he doesn’t even bother to appear. Usually, he would have come running for his beloved sister!"

"Yeah. So, help me out, will you? Do everything you can to stop her from having the next cooking lesson!"

The second-in-command knight bowed his head, nearly bursting into laughter but holding back since the Mederian Princess was still there. After a moment, he raised his head, his cheeks reddened.

"All right, I’ll help you this time, but you owe me, Rafael! Next time I ask for your help, you need to return the favour. Deal?" Eric said.

"Deal!"

"Now, hand me the coal... I mean the chicken," Eric said, stifling another laugh at his own joke.

Rafe shot him a glare, but despite his annoyance, he handed over the leftover anyway.

"Is he all right, Sir Navin?" Callis interjected, worry etched on her face.

"Ah... he’s all right, Mrs. Amares. You may approach," the second-in-command knight replied.

The Mederian Princess quickly approached, sat beside the healer on the other side, and took his hand in hers.

"Poor my husband! Don’t ever do that again! If you truly want to eat my cooking, let’s do it next time during my other cooking class," she said.

"I’m afraid that’s not possible for the moment," Eric replied.

"Why not?" Callis asked, surprised.

The second-in-command knight, with his sharp mind, quickly came up with a plausible excuse, anticipating the consequences based on the occurrence.

"Umm... Mr Foster would disagree. After the explosion today, he’d surely nag at us non-stop. Of course, he wouldn’t dare to do that to you. But if you have mercy on us, I hope you can postpone it so we can be spared from his wrath. Though he’s just a steward here, he’s served His Highness the Grand Duke for a long time and is well respected. I hope you can understand," he explained.

"But I just want—"

"Just what in the world happened here, Sir Navin!" Anryr’s high-pitched voice suddenly cut in, stopping the conversation.

The steward arrived just in time, followed by Damon and Eli.

"Ha... speak of the devil, and he doth appear. Perfect!" Eric muttered, standing up and composing himself as he hid the chicken leg behind his back. Callis followed suit, standing up as well.

As soon as Anryr saw the Mederian Princess, his angry demeanour softened, along with his tone.

"Mrs Amares, I didn’t know you were here..." He suddenly paused, his eyes scrutinising her unkempt appearance. "What happened to you?"

"Nothing, really! The dirt got on me when I tried to stop the explosion!" she replied.

Callis stole a glance at Eric, who offered a knowing smile.

The Mederian Princess thought to herself; she was now part of the duchy, being married to Rafe, their healer. So, she needed to make an effort to get along with everyone.

She nodded slightly, acknowledging Eric’s suggestion not to pursue the cooking class.

"My goodness! To think this affected her? How could you be so careless!" Anryr reprimanded the second-in-command knight.

"Didn’t Sir Henderson and Sir McQuinn fill you in on what happened?" Eric asked, glancing at the two knights.

"We did, Sir Navin. But Mr Foster didn’t believe us and wanted to assess the situation himself," Damon reported.

"Forgive us, Mr Foster. We made a mistake and caused a small incident," Eric said, addressing Anryr.

"Small? The building shook because of it! If anything happened to the mansion, I would be deemed responsible!" the steward exclaimed.

"I truly apologise, Mr Foster. There won’t be a repeat of this," Eric said, guilt washing over his expression.

The steward huffed and turned to the sitting healer, who had remained silent—uncharacteristically so. Anryr’s eyes hovered over Rafe, and he noticed a slight change in his expression as if he had swallowed something bitter.

’Perhaps he’s angry that his wife nearly got caught in the explosion,’ the steward deduced inwardly.

He said carefully, "Mr Amares, you look pale. You must be in shock from this incident. On behalf of the mansion, I apologise for what happened to your wife, and I’ll ensure her safety will not be jeopardised again."

Rafe raised a brow, confused. It seemed that Eric was now bearing the blame instead of Callis.

"I already spoke to him and pleaded for his apology. We’re all good now," the second-in-command knight reassured Anryr.

"Thank goodness for that!" the steward said, visibly relieved. "Now, since this happened because of the knights’ actions, you all should clean up the mess! Settle this quickly! I’ll give you an hour!" he directed the Knights of Gerhard, who were astonished by the sudden accusation.

"What?? Why us? We didn’t do this!" Eli exclaimed.

"Hush, kid!" Eric barked at him. "We did it, so we should be responsible."

The young knight, as usual, looked confused and didn’t grasp the message, unlike the others.

The second-in-command knight left him wondering and ordered them all, "You heard what Mr Foster said. Clean up everything within an hour!"

"Yes, Sir Navin!" they all responded in unison.

Anryr then noticed the black, damaged pot at Rafe’s feet. Feeling guilty, he said, "Let me take that pot and throw it away. It doesn’t seem fit for use anymore."

"Don’t!" The healer stopped him, surprising the steward.

"I’ll take it with me. It’s mine now," Rafe replied.

Anryr gave in. As long as Rafe didn’t get angry, a black, damaged pot could be his possession. He excused himself to return to his duties, hurling a warning glance at the knights before leaving.

"You should go back to your chamber and freshen up. Your attire needs a change as well," Rafe said to his wife. "I’ll walk you."

Callis agreed, and the couple left the messy scene for the knights to clean up. All didn’t complain except for young Eli, who grumbled in dissatisfaction.

As they walked down the hallway, the healer posed a question.

"Callis, Jessy’s speciality is in life’s magic, isn’t it?"

The Mederian Princess shot a surprised look at her husband. The nanny’s abilities had never caught Rafe’s attention before, so why suddenly he became interested?

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering. I remember she said she could detect life by casting a spell. What about concealing it?" he asked again.

"What??"

"What I mean is, does she have the ability to hide the traces of life, like a living unborn baby in its mother’s womb?" Rafe probed further.

Callis swallowed hard, alarm coursing through her.

’Oh no! Has he noticed Anna’s pregnancy?’

"What are you saying? Why would she do that?" she replied, avoiding his gaze to mask her unease.

Guilt gnawed at her, but for the safety of the last remaining direct Ro’an descendant, the secret must remain hidden.

"You’re right. She has no valid reason for it... After all, it’s not possible," Rafe said, dismissing the thought that had crossed his mind.

How could he entertain such an idea when he knew well that Kyren could not have a child with Anna because of his soulmate bond?

Was it because of Mary’s insistence?

Or perhaps the glimpse of light he saw when Jessy held the princess’s hand?

He wasn’t sure what he had seen as it was too brief anyway.

"What is not possible?" Callis asked, her curiosity piqued at those words, finding it peculiar.

This time, it was the healer’s turn to be alarmed.

"Ah, nothing! It just slipped out of my mouth," Rafe replied quickly.

The Mederian Princess nodded, and they continued their walk.

The healer sent her to her chamber, and after parting ways, he headed to his office. He changed his attire for a spare set from the cupboard as he was too lazy to make the trip back to his quarters. Besides, he needed to check on Anna’s blood sample results in his lab.

The small laboratory was adjacent to his office, connected by a door. Once he entered, he approached the specimen storage where the samples had been kept. The thorough tests had been completed, and he examined the results.

"Just as I expected. No pregnancy and no other issues," he muttered.

Relief washed over him on the outcome, but an unsettling feeling lingered about Anna’s health.

If it wasn’t pregnancy, then what was causing her condition?

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