Chapter 257. A Miracle

Chapter 257. A Miracle
Mira burst into delighted laughter, laughing so hard that tears slipped down her cheeks. She pushed herself upright, and William immediately supported her back as though afraid she might tire herself out.

In that moment, with only the two of them in the room, Mira reached for his hand on her own.

William thought she only wanted to hold it, but instead she slowly guided his hand and placed it on her stomach.

The movement was so gentle, yet it still made William’s hand tremble with tension. He looked almost afraid to touch her.

Her stomach was still flat. There was nothing visible yet. But the instant his hand touched her there, his whole body went rigid, as though struck by lightning.

Mira looked at him, her voice so soft it was almost a whisper.

“William, our child is here.”

William’s eyes reddened at once. He sat there motionless, his large hand resting on her stomach, his fingertips trembling ever so slightly.

A while later, William lowered his head and pressed his forehead against her stomach through the thin fabric of her dress. His shoulders shook in waves, and when the warm dampness seeped through against her skin, Mira realized he was crying again.

She lifted a hand and gently stroked his hair, her voice turning impossibly soft. “Why are you crying again?”

William let out a bitter little laugh. “Because this feels like a miracle. Mira, thank you.”

He was thanking fate for bringing her to him. Thanking her for keeping the living proof of their love. Thanking her that, after so much loss, they still had each other.

He raised his head, both eyes red-rimmed. Then, as if he could not hold back any longer, he cupped the back of her neck and bent down to kiss her for a long, long time. The kiss was not hurried in the slightest. It trembled and burned, as though he were pouring all of his gratitude, all of his fear, all of his love, and even the fragile joy he still scarcely dared believe in into that single kiss.

Mira closed her eyes and slowly kissed him back.

Then suddenly, the door to the room was shoved open.

William was on his feet almost by instinct, pulling Mira behind him.

At the door, Regulus stood motionless, staring at the young couple.

The air in the room turned cold at once.

William stepped in front of Mira, his voice rough. “Were you following me? How did you get in here without my permission?”

Regulus looked at him with an unreadably deep gaze. “I’m the one in power at Crimsonvein. Is there anywhere I can’t go? Besides, if I hadn’t been keeping an eye on you, I never would’ve known you were hiding something this big from me.”

William did not give an inch. He stood tall, shielding almost all of Mira’s body behind his back.

“Don’t even think about touching her.”

Regulus said nothing. Perhaps even he had never imagined that one day he would stand in front of his son and see him protecting a girl as if he were guarding his entire world.

Mira gently caught William’s sleeve and stepped halfway out from behind him.

“William.”

“Don’t come out here.”

“It’s alright.”

Mira’s voice was soft, yet it carried a strange, calming strength. She looked at Regulus without flinching.

“I believe he won’t hurt me.”

She kept her eyes on Regulus and continued slowly, “Because he loves you very much. Someone who loves you won’t hurt your child.”

Regulus looked at Mira for a long time. They had only met a few times, only exchanged a handful of words, and yet she seemed to understand him better than the son he had raised for so many years.

His gaze dropped to her stomach, then shifted to William. His voice sank lower. “Mira… are you really pregnant?”

William’s jaw tightened, but he said nothing. Mira, however, gave a small nod.

Regulus closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again, the coldness was still there, but it was no longer quite the same.

He spoke slowly. “From today on, I’ll hide the child’s existence from the council of elders.”

William froze in shock. He had thought the first thing Regulus would do after leaving this room was report the news to those elders. In William’s eyes, they were all the same kind of people. Every last one of them wanted to force him to produce the next heir.

Regulus went on, his voice still low. “No one in Crimsonvein is allowed to know about this except me. If anyone dares lay a hand on Mira or her child, I’ll deal with them myself.”

William stared at his father for a long time, his eyes full of both wariness and disbelief.

Regulus held his gaze.

“Don’t look at me like that. The child Mira is carrying is my grandchild too.”

William let out a cold scoff. “Who says that’s your grandchild? My child doesn’t need a freak of a grandfather.”

“Think whatever you want. If I say I’ll do it, I’ll do it. But you need to be more careful too.”

Regulus did not stay long.

Before leaving, he only turned to Mira and said, “Stay at Wulfhart. It’s safer there. Whenever you need a prenatal checkup, I’ll have someone arrange it for you.”

Mira answered softly, “Thank you.”

Regulus looked at her for a moment, then gave a small nod. After that, he turned and walked away.

The moment the door closed, William turned and pulled Mira tightly into his arms.

He held her hard, yet still remembered to leave space to protect her stomach.

Resting against his chest, Mira asked softly, “You still can’t make peace with him?”

William stayed silent. He buried his face against her chest like a child asking to be comforted.

She slipped a hand into his hair and gently stroked it. “I’m not you, so I won’t stand on the outside and tell you what you should do. I just want you to be happy.”

After a very long while, William finally gave a quiet hum of acknowledgment.