Chapter 357 Past Regrets
“What’s wrong?” Ethan asked. “Is something on your mind?”
Ethan asked the young lady who was sitting on his lap and resting her head on his shoulder.
Right after their classes ended, Chloe asked to talk to him in private, so Ethan took her to the Secret Tree House behind the Library.
The young man had his arms wrapped around her body as he waited for the young lady to talk to him.
A few minutes passed in silence as the two remained in that position. Ethan’s eyes were closed as he rested his body. Truth be told, classes had become a bit more intense right after the new year.
All the Professors seemed to be extra motivated to teach their classes, which wasn’t a bad thing.
Unfortunately, even though Ethan had a strong body, he would still become exhausted physically and mentally due to the tasks that their Professors asked of them.
“Ethan, do you really love me?” Chloe asked.
“I do,” Ethan replied.
“Then, I’ll ask you a hypothetical question, okay?”
“Go ahead.”
The young lady took a deep breath before asking her question.
“I know you have a lot of secrets, and I’m fine with that,” Chloe replied. “You are an orphan and have been raised by Grandma Agnes and Grandpa Benjamin. The only ones who knew about your background were Emma and Lilith.
“I have already talked to Emma a bit about your background, but she said that she is unable to tell me anything. However, she stated that once you turn eighteen, you will undergo your Coming of Age Ceremony in your hometown, allowing you to discover who you really are.”
The young lady paused for a bit before she raised her head to look Ethan in the eyes.
“So, my question is this,” Chloe said. “Who are you planning to recognize as your main wife?”
Ethan blinked once then twice because he thought that he had misheard the young lady, who was looking at him with a solemn expression on her face.
“M-Main wife?”
“Yes. Who do you plan to make your Main Wife? This is important.”
“Um…” Ethan was at a loss for words because he never thought that Chloe would ask him this question.
Meanwhile, Sebastian and his Other Half were laughing inside his head and praising Chloe for taking the initiative to ask this question.
“Hohoho! Looks like Chloe is gunning for the position of First Wife,” Sebastian stated. “It seems that she wants to hold the second highest position in the household.”
“This girl never fails to surprise me,” Ethan’s Other Half commented. “At first glance, people might think that she is the most ordinary among the ladies who hang around with him. But among all of Ethan’s secret lovers, she should be the most formidable of them all.”
“Indeed. That straightforwardness can be scary at times.”
“I know, right?”
The two were like commentators in a boxing match, busy giving blow-by-blow details as the match progressed.
Perhaps seeing his confusion, Chloe cupped his face and smiled, waiting for his answer.
Although she wasn’t doing anything else, her smile was giving Ethan quite a bit of pressure.
“Can I not have a Main Wife?” Ethan replied after a few minutes of silence. “After all, I am planning to marry all of you at the same time.”
“Ethan, do you know why most people only marry one person in their life?” Chloe asked. “It is because it takes extraordinary effort, understanding, and coordination for all parties to maintain a harmonious relationship in a polygamous relationship.
“I will not say that everyone who lives monogamous lives is happy with their marriage, but since both parties only have to deal with one partner, things can be worked out. Luna and I get along very well, which was why I proposed that both of us marry you together back then.
“If it’s her, I am certain that the three of us will be able to live happy lives together. Unfortunately, this wish of mine will not come true in this lifetime. Right now, aside from me and Luna, you have Lily, Emma, and soon, Lilian as well.
“You mentioned that you intended to have five wives and a mistress. I have to be honest with you. I am not confident that I will be able to take it well, sharing you with four other women aside from Luna.”
After Chloe stopped talking, silence descended in the room.
Even Sebastian and Ethan’s Other Half stopped talking inside Ethan’s Sea of Consciousness, allowing the young man to organize his thoughts.
Suddenly, Chloe’s eyes widened in shock as she looked at the young man in front of her.
“A-Are you crying?” Chloe asked and hurriedly took out her handkerchief to wipe the tears that were falling from Ethan’s face.
The young man blinked as he raised his hand to touch his cheek, feeling that it was wet.
Looking at the tear stains on his finger, Ethan realized that he had been too naive in his way of thinking.
As someone who also grew up in a monogamous family, Ethan understood the hardships of being married.
Life wasn’t always peaceful, and there were times when his Grandma and Grandpa would argue over things.
Whenever this happened, he would leave the house and wander around the farm. Oftentimes, he would go to the river to fish so that when he returned, he would have several fish that his grandma could cook for lunch or dinner.
If arguments were normal between two married people, then it would be much worse with five.
Also, he didn’t know what his other lovers thought of each other.
Just like Chloe had said, she got along with Luna very well. However, Lily wasn’t Luna.
The one who had been his first woman was like a wolf. Wild and had a strong personality.
Chloe shared similar traits. But unlike Lily, Chloe was more straightforward and stubborn. She was also the type who wouldn’t hesitate to throw punches if she got annoyed.
Ethan’s friends had first-hand experience of that because they would get punched by her whenever they teased her, calling her Ethan’s Summer Girlfriend.
Currently, Ethan had four lovers.
Chloe, Luna, Lily, and Emma.
Although Emma was fine being his mistress and seemed to be fine with being in the lower standing in their relationship, he believed that if given the choice, she would want to monopolize him as well.
“I’m sorry, Chloe,” Ethan said after he regained his composure. “It seems that I have failed you.”
Ethan’s words were filled with bitterness because he knew that the current him might not be able to make all of his lovers happy.
Seeing his sad expression, Chloe wanted to comfort him. However, she steeled her heart. If she didn’t do this, then who would?
Luna was born a noble, so she was used to this setup. Her father had two wives, and all of them were living happy lives.
All of her brothers loved her, and her two mothers treated her as their princess. She grew up being protected by these people, and because of this, she didn’t mind Ethan having more than one wife.
As for Lily, she was in the same boat as Luna.
Her father had five wives, which was the reason why she told Ethan that she was fine with him having five wives.
Chloe didn’t know anything about Lilian, but based on what little information she gathered from her best friend, Luna, there was a high chance that Lilian was also a noble.
This meant that the concept of polygamy might be fine with her as well.
This brought the loop back to Chloe, who was raised by a conservative family and had a conservative mindset.
“Ethan, know that I love you,” Chloe said softly. “I really do. I feel very sad that I wasn’t able to be your first and only lover. You are not at fault, I understand this. Since I understand, I just feel more hurt than usual because someone very important to me had been taken away by someone else.”
The young man then raised his hand and cupped her face.
He also just realized that Chloe didn’t really want to talk about who the Main Wife of their family would be.
It was just an excuse so that she would be able to open up to Ethan about what she was feeling, allowing him to know how she had been impacted by everything that had happened so far.
“I’m sorry,” Ethan said. “But I can't return to the past. I can't return to the time before we took that mission. To the time when the only people in my heart were you and Luna. I’m really sorry, Chloe. If I had only been more courageous and didn’t act passively, perhaps things might have been different.
“But I can no longer turn back. This is the path I have chosen, and I will have to see it through. I don’t want to sacrifice anyone. I don’t want to break up with anyone. I don’t want to leave anyone behind. I am a very greedy person, but if you really think that you won't be happy being with me… then I will set you free.”
Chloe looked at the young man, whose tears had once again started to fall from his eyes.
She lowered her gaze and bit her lip, knowing that she had forced him to make a very hard choice.
None of them were at fault.
It was just a simple miscalculation on both of their parts.
They didn’t know that Fate had other things planned for them, and before they knew it, the perfect ending that they had envisioned, had already slipped out of their hands.
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