Chapter 81: True Love
Translated by XianPiete
Alicia came stumbling into First Mage Diggory's lab sweating and looking haggard, with her hoarse voice she said quietly, "Diggory, I think something is wrong."
Diggory looked up from his work, he grabbed a black back and said, "Come here and lie on the table, " he turned his head and yelled, "Algernon, create hot water and bring clean towels. Ella, I need you and Doreen to keep everyone out of here."
A few hours later everyone was waiting in the main room at the table when Ella came down the stairs from Diggory's lab smiling, "They need some time to rest, but it was a boy, she said his name is Charles de Rouvroy. A big, healthy boy." Everyone let out a cheer and exchanged a round of hugs and handshakes. Algernon and Diggory descended the stairs a while later and Madeline went up to check on Alicia and the baby with Doreen and Ella.
Madeline saw her friend Alicia laying on a comfortable couch wrapped in warm blankets holding her baby to her breast, she hadn't seen Alicia's face look so warm since Claude's death. The sparkle was back in her eyes as if a long-dormant volcano had become active again. Her blue eyes seemed brighter, her skin looked as if the color had come back to it. Madeline squatted down next to them and asked, "Hello little Charles." She held out a finger which the baby grabbed instinctively, his hands looked so tiny. Madeline cooed at him and then looked into Alicia's eyes and asked, "And how is his mother feeling?"
Alicia softly spoke, "I'm so tired Maddy."
Madeline giggled and then said, "Well if you need to sleep, let us take care of the baby for you so you can rest."
Alicia smiled and nodded, "Everyone will want a chance to meet Charles."
Madeline nodded and then said, "We have a crib set up for him downstairs, you rest here, we'll come to check on you periodically, so just rest. When you are up again, we'll bring him back to see you."
Alicia nodded and handed Charles to Madeline, she kissed her fingers and touched his forehead, "Be brave my son, momma will see you soon. I love you." She beamed at her son.
*****
Madeline said to Guy, "I had no idea a baby was so much work, can we not do this?"
He laughed and then asked, "Since when are you of all people, afraid of work?"
Madeline frowned at him and asked, "Are you challenging me?"
He laughed again and then shook his head, pulling her close and whispering into her ear, "We don't have to have a baby, or we can have one every year, I will support whichever choice makes you happy. All I care about is that we are healthy and happy and can live the lives that will make us feel accomplished."
Madeline thought about it and then asked, "What would make you happiest?"
He thought and then replied, "Not losing to Claude."
Madeline laughed and then said, "Even in death you have to compete with him?"
*****
Gorou and Touma ran around a track together. Lately, they had been competing more and more at everything. It had taken quite a few months for Gorou to slim down and for his body to catch up to his personality. Ami and Yuuki were waiting for the two to finish as Ryuu walked over and frowned, "That guy Gorou looks completely different now. When we were in school he was just a fat otaku."
"You should go with them so you can stop being a fat otaku," Ami snorted, "Is it just me or is Gorou actually very handsome?"
Yuuki looked at him and then said, "Mhm, he really is. Once he slimmed down and got in shape, cut his hair and shaved he transformed."
Ryuu looked at Yuuki and asked, "Do you think I would.."
Ami and Yuuki both said, "No."
Ryuu frowned and asked, "Why him and not me?"
They both answered together, "You wouldn't put in that kind of effort."
"Harsh," He replied.
Gorou and Touma ran over to the three of them while laughing, "Still second place, Touma." Gorou grinned.
Touma shook his head, "I guess we aren't counting the last few months?"
Ami asked, "Touma, did you try looking at Noble School yet?"
He looked at Ami and shook his head, "I thought about it, but then it just made me homesick. I would rather try my best to live here in this world. Be the best Abe Touma I can be and not let myself be weighed down by the life I had to leave behind. You'll probably laugh at me, but I feel like, Guy showed me the way to do this right. He truly lived in that world, he made it his home. I want to do that too. I want to strive to bring what I can from our world here to make Abe Touma a better man."
Gorou nodded and said, "I feel the same Touma, I left our world with many regrets, but I can't let that hold me back here. Guy de Montfort wouldn't sit in front of a computer clicking through routes pining away for his lost life. I won't lose to him!" He laughed heartily.
Yuuki smiled warmly and said, "When I was little, I came home from school in tears once because of my score being bad. He looked at me and asked, 'well, why is it bad?' That's just how he always saw the world. If I cried because I failed, he would just ask, 'why did you fail?' If there was an area I was weak in or that I couldn't understand, he would work with me to find the answer. Any time he came up short or didn't succeed, he just looked at that as a place he should focus some attention. It was kind of annoying some times though. I just wanted someone to coddle me some of the time." She laughed.
Gorou nodded and said, "Yeah that sounds like him alright." Gorou looked up into the sky and said, "I bet right now that bastard is still thinking of ways to beat me!" He looked at them and seriously said, "You don't understand. That guy, he really had it in for me, I am not lying."
Touma chuckled and said, "I don't remember it like that..."
"Do you remember the day I went and served food to the orphanage by the Academy?" Gorou asked, "You know, the one with the cute nun that ran it."
Touma nodded, "Sister Amelia."
"Right, the next day, Guy went there and had his people build them a new kitchen and hired a permanent employee to always cook and serve for them." Gorou said, "I know it wasn't just to help them, he did it to one-up me."
They all laughed thinking it was an exaggeration.
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