55 Sibling
After the all customers got back, Meliodas handed me half of the earnings we made today and made me question it.
"Why half? Because we wouldn't make this much if not for your food." Meliodas said making me understand.
The next morning, I told Meliodas and Elizabeth that Irene and I will be shopping for daily needs but in fact we are going home.
Meliodas nodded and told me to make it fast since the holy knight would catch up to us by afternoon. He also told us our next destination, the Forest of White Dreams.
Irene and I wore our cloaks and went away from Boar Hat and when I made sure that no one's watching us, I opened the portal with the system's help and soon we were back at the same white space again. I then noticed that the door to the FT world is the largest of the door there is, signifying it as the main door.
I opened the biggest door and lead Irene back to where we first opened the portal. I then had a question to the system.
'If 1 day in here is 1 year back at Nanatsu no Taizai, if we do return there, wouldn't it be years ahead?' I said.
[Since the world is an alternate world made by the system. The world's timeflow is stopped and would only continue moving after host returned so host need not worry about it.] The system said making me understand it.
When we came out of the portal, I still saw the horses we used before teleporting. The sun is also starting to set when we got back.
After we came out of the portal, I stopped Irene for a second. Because there are people around us back at the bar, I haven't been able to talk to her in private.
"Is there a problem Irene? Talk to me, let's fix this. I don't want the kids to see us like this." I said to Irene as she hesitated slightly.
"Noct? Do you not trust me as your lover?" she asked.
"What do you mean? Of course I do trust you." I said.
"Noct, is there something you are hiding to me? Is there something I should know?" She asked me again.
Hearing her words, I got tongue tied.
'Does she realize that I'm not the original Noctis? No.... That's not it. Then what is it?' I thought.
"Noct, ever since you opened a portal to that white space, I already found it strange. Noct, a big space like that costs a lot of energy to maintain, and you are still healing. Not to mention the energy you would use in creating that space, even if you are fully healed it doesn't make sense that you can maintain that space for long. After that, when we went to that new world, I can see and feel you acting strange. Why does it seem like you know Meliodas and Elizabeth, personally? Why does it seem like you know what kind of world it is when its our first time arriving there? Is there something that you know that I don't?" Irene dropped the bomb to me and it made me uncomfortable. Usually, I am the one dropping bomb out of nowhere and now I'm the one receiving it.
I can't answer her. I don't have the words to say. I got tongue tied. I want to explain to her but my mind got blank.
Seeing me not answering, Irene felt hurt.
"Noct, I agreed to marry you because I love and trusted you. Your mother taught me that the basis of a healthy relationship is trust and I waited all this time for you to at least tell me that something that I don't know or at least let me know what's happening. Do you really trust me Noct...?" Irene trailed as she started getting teary eyed, ran towards the horse before riding it. I tried stopping her but it was too late.
"I..." It was all I could say as the horse started running away leaving me behind. I felt hurt seeing Irene cry like that, and its because of me. I taught Somnus how to stop being indecisive and here I am, who can't even explain to her as I kept on hesitating about so many things.
I rode my horse and took my time as I rode back to Lucis slowly as I kept on gathering my thoughts.
When I arrived back at Lucis it was already in the middle of the night. I took the horse back to the stable and hitched it there.
I entered through the front gate and the guard stood up and was about to ask me, but when he saw my face, he immediately bowed down as I walked past him. I felt like I don't have the energy to deal with things.
I went to the kitchen to have a quick meal as the chefs tried to cook for me but I waved them off.
After eating, I opened the door to our room and saw Irene lying down with her back against me. I sighed as I closed the door and went to the balcony to take a fresh air to cool my mind.
I was absent mindedly staring at the stars in the sky when my father walked to me and sat down.
"Originally. I came out to take a leak. Who would've thought I would see you here?" He said but I didn't answer.
"Is there something you want to talk about? I saw my daughter-in-law earlier and she's a mess. Did something happen between the two of you?" He asked me but I still didn't answer.
"Let me guess. You've been hiding something from Irene didn't you?" He said and finally, I reacted.
"Finally got your attention?" He said with a smile as I looked at him with a questioning gaze in my eyes.
"Its been your bad habit. Ever since you were a child, you always have a bad habit of not telling anyone a big secret. Do you think, I don't know you learning about Instant Full Heal?" He said as I opened my eyes wide.
"H-how did you know?" I asked.
"You may not be able to fool me son, I am your father. You are the little devil that I and your mother personally raised. How could I not know of your bad habits?" He said.
I kept silent after hearing my father's explanation. I never knew that he knows about it. I'm sure he knows more but decided to keep quiet about it.
"I thought after meeting your partner in life, you would stop this bad habit of yours. Who knew that you did it again." He said with a sigh.
"But what if that secret is big enough?" I asked.
"Son, be it small or big, a secret is a secret. You still kept it hidden from your partner." He said as I kept silent once more making Regis sigh.
"Son, it might not be in my place to say this but... Irene is your partner. Trust your wife, son. Like how she trusted you as she chose to be with you for the rest of her life. Love and Trust is what keeps a marriage strong, son. Remember that." Father said before walking away leaving me to my own thoughts.
After gathering my thoughts and making up my mind, I went back to our room and I was about to enter but my body stood frozen in front of the door. Gathering my last bit of courage, I opened the door to see Irene sitting on a chair and admiring the beautiful night sky.
Irene then turned towards me as we stared at each other as I walked slowly towards her. Irene is just staring at me as I walked closer to her and kneeled in front of her and took her hand. I took a deep breath to calm myself down.
"Irene... I apologize. I'm sorry for keeping it a secret to you, because I'm afraid." I said to Irene.
"Afraid of what?" She asked.
"Afraid that there would be a change in our relationship. I like it the way as it is and i'm afraid if I told you about it, something would change." I said.
"Change?" She asked.
"Its better to just show it to you rather than tell about it." I said as I asked the system if I could show it to Irene.
[I can show myself to your Irene. But are you sure you want to do it? Are you sure you'll accept the changes that will occur to someone who will see me?] The system said.
'Sure. I will accept the changes it would have on Irene. I trust her as my wife and mother of my daughters.' I said with a slight smile.
A ball of light then appeared in my hand lighting up the room.
"Touch the orb." I said to Irene as she touched it after a slight hesitation. She know that her husband wouldn't do anything to harm her.
Irene got sucked back into the white space that they previously came in. Irene seemed to question why I brought her here.
"System, Come out." I said as the ball of light appeared in front of us. I still held Irene's hand assuring her that its nothing harmful.
"Hello host." The sound resounded in the white space and Irene was surprised to hear a voice of both a woman and a man.
"This ball of light is my biggest secret. You could say it was the insane old man's last gift to me." I said. I could tell her about the system but not my transmigration as it would fundamentally destroy our relationship and I don't want that. I have personally come to grow and love Irene as a person, not just because she's my daughter's mother.
"Old man? You mean the one who healed you?" She asked.
"Yes. When I found the house where he once lived in WoD, it was already in a tattered state but the land around it is really suitable for planting.
When I checked the house inside, I only found a bed and a study table with a few diaries about his exploits towards the land. I also found a chest underneath the study table. What I found inside it was the ball of light you saw earlier.
When it merged with me, I heard a voice stating my wish. At that time, my wish is to provide my daughters good food, a home to grow up to, and to be a father they could be proud when they grew up.
And the ball of light granted it to me. The ball of light became my guide to become a Bar/Tavern Master and a Cool Father in front of my kids." This is the best explanation I could think of to explain the existence of the system.
Irene was shocked to hear something out of this world. The old man's existence, is he a God who came down and experienced mortal life? That's impossible, simply impossible.
But only Gods could provide something like this. To be able to heal her husband's wrecked magic circuits, to be able to make an arable land in WoD, to be able to give something that could help you travel worlds, its simply mind-boggling. To think that her husband was able to encounter one, is simply lucky.
But she now understood as to why her husband kept it secret to her.
She also knew that being acompanied by a mind-boggling treasure, is the danger that lurks with it. If someone has managed to discover that her husband owns a treasure that could help you travel plethora of worlds and grants you your wish, he would be deemed to be the target of the whole world and be chased. His family would be held as hostages to lure him out.
She also now knew why her husband didn't tell her at first. It hasn't been long since they've reunited, her husband still isn't sure whether she could be trusted because of her affiliation with Alvares Empire.
This thought put up a dissatisfied reaction within Irene but understood that she too would do the same to protect her loved ones.
.
.
.
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Seeing Irene silent I also told her about the knowledge of other worlds.
"The system would tell me what kind of world it is and explain who are the fated ones who will change the world." Obviously those are the MC's of those worlds and I already knew about some of them but if I just straight up told her that I know about it, then it was suspicious as hell.
Seeing her still silent made me anxious.
"It could also help me in reno-" I was about to tell her about the renovation function of the system but Irene put up a finger in my mouth before smiling tenderly.
"Its enough. I believe you." She said as she gave me a light kiss on my lips as she removed the finger from my mouth.
I was stunned after what happened. I thought that a change within Irene is inevitable but when I saw that it is still the usual, and loving Irene, I sighed a breath of relief. Seeing me sigh, Irene can't help but pout.
"What? You thought that when I learned about this, I would get greedy? Noct, please. I'm a mother and a wife before Alvares' Spriggan. Also I have kept a secret as well to you..." She trailed as I waited for her to speak what is the secret she hid from me.
"Erza, Kagura, and Pitou is going to have a sibling." She said while clutching her stomach.
My eyes opened wide as I stared at her dumbfoundedly. Irene looked at my face and started giggling.
"Who would've thought that my formidable husband has a side like this as well?" She teased me while giggling but I don't care. Irene's... pregnant. Tears of joy started streaming my eyes after hearing her pregnancy.
Seeing me not holding my emotions back anymore, Irene approached and hugged me as tears of joy kept on falling my eyes and hugged back. The child inside Irene is a child that I personally made. Not my predecessor's... but my own. Although that is the case, that doesn't mean that my love for the chipmunks will decrease.
"Lets... go back and tell them the news." I said excitedly as Irene nodded happily and wiprd my tears as the system sent us back to our room.
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Before y'all tell that this is unnecessary drama, let me tell you guys something about women. Many will likely believe me and there will be some people who will disagree, but this comes from my experience. As for those single guys who has never been in a relationship, you could take this as a tip and a warning as well.
Women are emotional creatures who have terrifying levels of intuition and they act according to their emotions.
Irene is not an idiot. She is a knowledgeable person. She is a general of Alvares Kingdom. She has her own pride. She's the partner of Noctis. Seeing her husband hiding something from her, wounded her pride as a wife. Trust and love is the foundation of a strong relationship and seeing her husband not trusting her made her feel like a failure as a wife, hence the conflict.
Irene is not a slave that would just nod just because the MC said so. She is the wife of the MC, not just a side character.
Also, MC doesn't have a single experience about love. He only knew how to sweet talk and a little of romance because he is from a modern world. Dealing with relationship problems is a first for him, hence the passive attitude. Same with Irene who doesn't know how to handle such kind of conflicts.
Also there are no such thing as perfect relationship, sooner or later they will encounter problems and it depends whether they'll grow alongside each other or grow apart from each other.
