Lying on the ground as if he had lost all strength, Kofi gazed at the azure sky, the hushed yet still irritatingly noisy whispers buzzing in his ears.
He didn’t need to listen carefully to know exactly what they were discussing at that moment!
It was nothing more than the fact that he had lost!
Yes, he had lost!
He prided himself on being a Gene Fusionist, yet he had been defeated by Grace, whom he looked down upon as a “defective product.” How could that not invite discussion? If he were in their place, he too would loudly marvel at the sheer incredulity of it all.
He thought Grace must be overjoyed. He had won against him—against him, a Gene Fusionist. That was absolutely something worth boasting and praising.
Kofi felt his world had turned gray, and what awaited him would be endless mockery.
Yet Grace paid him no mind. After his victory, he walked up to Lu Xia and said, “I won.”
His tone was calm, and his expression seemed natural, yet Lu Xia inexplicably sensed that the person before her was seeking praise with the utmost composure.
“Mhm, very impressive!” After saying this, Lu Xia tilted her head to look at Kofi, who was still lying on the ground, and spoke up, “Sir, I hope you haven’t forgotten our earlier agreement.”
Her sudden interjection brought the murmuring to an abrupt halt. Soon, many began curiously discussing again—
“What agreement?”
“What don’t we know about?”
…
Just as the crowd was buzzing with speculation about the agreement, Colonel Kofi, who had been lying on the ground, struggled to his feet. Without turning around, he spoke in a voice tinged with sorrow: “Though I lost, I will not go back on my word, nor will I break our agreement!”
At this point, he suddenly took a deep breath in front of everyone and began: “I am a fool, I am a fool, I am a fool…”
The onlookers: “…”
Grace glanced at the commotion on the field but quickly turned his attention back to Lu Xia. “Did you come to see me for something today?”
Lu Xia, who had been eagerly watching the spectacle, looked up at Grace upon hearing this. “I went to the hospital today and thought I’d drop by to see you.”
As she spoke, the old butler stood quietly to the side, pretending not to exist.
But his sheep ears were perked up high.
Grace quickly grasped the key point in Lu Xia’s words. “Are you feeling unwell?”
Lu Xia looked at him meaningfully. “No, I’m fine. There are just some things I needed to confirm.”
“What things? Can I know?” Grace had a feeling that Lu Xia might have come precisely for this matter.
For some reason, he felt a sudden tension at that moment.
He hadn’t been nervous during his fight with Kofi.
Yet now, facing Lu Xia, he found himself growing tense.
Lu Xia, however, seemed oblivious to his emotional fluctuations and instead shifted her attention back to Kofi, who was still shouting “I am a fool.” But she asked a question: “Do you like children?”
The sudden question caught Grace off guard. Clearly, he had considered many possibilities, but he never expected Lu Xia to ask something like this.
“I don’t dislike it.” In fact, he had never considered this question, because throughout the entire Empire, reproduction was a difficult issue. Not to mention Gene Fusionists having trouble conceiving, as a ‘defective product,’ it was even more impossible for him to have offspring. So he had never thought about whether he liked it or not—even if he did, what could he do? He was destined in this lifetime never to have children of his own.
Thus, he couldn’t understand why Lu Xia would ask him such a question. Did Duke Lu Xia want a child?
Realizing this possibility, Grace couldn’t help but tremble inwardly.
This time, Lu Xia sensed the man’s tension and couldn’t help but curl the corners of her lips: “I’m pregnant, and the child is yours.”
She didn’t speak loudly, but her words were clear enough for Grace to hear.
As her voice fell, she clearly saw the man’s pupils suddenly contract, followed by an unmistakable look of shock on his usually indifferent face.
Lu Xia was quite satisfied with the shock he displayed and smiled as she looked at him, continuing: “The doctor has already examined me, and there’s no mistake.”
“I don’t doubt it, I just… just didn’t expect it.” Grace lowered his head but responded softly. He appeared flustered, yet forced himself to stay calm.
But this was somewhat difficult, because his mind kept repeating Lu Xia’s words: “I’m pregnant, and the child is yours.”
The child was his!
He was going to be a male father?
How was this possible?
“I came today just to tell you this news. That’s all, you can continue working, I’m heading back.” Having enjoyed Grace’s expression enough, Lu Xia prepared to leave, satisfied. She knew very well that this news would likely take Grace a long time to process.
Grace hadn’t yet calmed down when he suddenly heard Lu Xia was leaving, but he instinctively spoke up: “Let me escort you.”
“No need, you’re busy.” Lu Xia waved her hand and left with the old butler.
Left behind, Grace’s emotions remained unsettled for a long time. Even stimulated by the news, his eyes grew slightly red.
Seeing Lu Xia leave, the others couldn’t contain their curiosity and gathered around Grace: “Grace, I really underestimated you. You actually beat Kofi. Now Kofi should behave!”
“Colonel Grace, your female master has left. What did she come to see you about?”
Just as everyone couldn’t suppress their curiosity and kept asking questions, Grace pushed through the crowd and quickly walked away. He needed to find a place to calm down first.
Everyone watched him leave, somewhat puzzled, and exchanged confused glances: “What’s going on? Why do I feel like Grace isn’t happy even though he beat Kofi?”
“Just now, I saw his eyes were red. Could it be that Duke Lu Xia wasn’t satisfied with the result?”
“That can’t be. If she wasn’t satisfied, why would she have defended Colonel Grace earlier?”
“Hmph, Females are just unfathomable. Who knows what they’re thinking? I’d say Grace really has it tough. Let him have some peace, don’t disturb him.”
Suddenly hearing this, the few people present fell silent. Was Grace really having it tough?
Duke Lu Xia had personally come to see him and even defended Grace in front of them. Wasn’t the truly pitiful one now Colonel Kofi, who was still shouting “I’m an idiot”?
Put yourself in their shoes—if they were Colonel Kofi, they’d buy a ticket out of the First Military District the moment they left, unable to bear staying on the Imperial Star for even a second longer.
But at this moment, Grace had no mind to dwell on Kofi. His thoughts were entirely consumed by the news of Lu Xia’s pregnancy. By the time he returned to his office, his emotions had somewhat settled.
He had fully grasped the magnitude of the secret Lu Xia had revealed to him.
If what Duke Lu Xia said was true, then wouldn’t Duke Lu Xia be the first Female in the Empire to achieve Natural Conception in centuries?