Langga brushed his fingers over the pendant.

Ava, who still wasn’t used to her new father figure, immediately thought her anklet was about to be stolen.

She exploded into tears.

"Daddy! Daddy!"

Her shrill voice filled the carriage. Her furious expression looked exactly like Syeila’s—just a much more adorable version.

"This belongs to your daddy?" Langga asked softly. He was already realizing how sharp his daughter was for her age.

Ava nodded vigorously.

Langga gave a bitter smile and withdrew his hand.

From the side, Syeila had seen everything. She understood immediately what the anklet truly was. From the way the chain was coiled, it was clearly a necklace.

She badly wanted to scold her son for being rejected so thoroughly, but she refused to dirty her grandchildren’s ears. Instead, she shot Langga a sharp glare.

Langga turned his face away, pretending he hadn’t noticed his mother’s murderous look.

...

Originally, the plan was to leave the triplets with Duchess Alterian for only three days.

But Syeila begged Gara to let them stay longer.

In the end, the triplets were returned after a full week.

Gara was stunned when he saw that all three children refused to part from the Duchess.

What did she give them to make them cling like this?

Did she secretly use some potion on my children?

That ridiculous suspicion was immediately shut down by Wina, who praised Syeila’s meticulous care.

It was obvious just by looking at the returned belongings.

The Duchess hadn’t been selfish or indulgent. She still fed them the milk Gara had prepared, used the provided diapers, and let them play with their own toys. There were additional toys too—but all appropriate for fifteen-month-old babies.

Ava’s hair was soft and smooth. Arion’s nails were neatly trimmed. There were no new bruises on Aldwin’s legs.

Only then did Gara fully realize that his children had truly been cared for with genuine affection.

He himself sometimes overlooked things due to his busy schedule. Wina, despite trying her best, occasionally forgot a thing or two as well.

"See? You really should bring the triplets to the Duchess more often," Wina coaxed again.

Unexpectedly, Gara nodded. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"I’ll ask Professor Langga when the Duchess is available to watch them again."

Inside the dimensional mansion, Della was currently instructing two babysitters and one housemaid.

They were slaves brought in by Hilda to help around the house.

The two babysitters were in their early thirties—already considered old for slaves in this world. Both had over a decade of experience caring for children.

The housemaid was in her mid-twenties. Though young, she had been a slave since birth and was extremely skilled at household work.

Hilda had emphasized that all three were human.

Truthfully, she still felt a bit regretful about bringing Della, considering Della’s heat periods could be irregular and troublesome for the household.

But she kept that thought to herself. Her master hadn’t complained either.

...

Gara was no longer as absent-minded as he had been a month ago.

He had begun to accept Madha’s departure. His fiancé continued to send updates from the border.

Gara had just come from Professor Aura’s office. Though he was no longer taking herbalism classes, he still served as the professor’s assistant.

As he walked down the long corridor, he spotted Langga and several students in the distance.

He tried to act natural, but Langga suddenly started blinking at him.

Gara froze in confusion.

Did something get into his eyes?

Or... is he flirting again?

Gara’s expression soured immediately, and he turned his gaze away.

Seeing this, Langga quickened his steps. When he reached Gara, he abruptly pulled him into another corridor.

Startled, Gara nearly shouted—but Langga covered his mouth.

Langga’s tall, broad frame blocked the view of passing students behind them.

Once the corridor was clear, Langga pointed at Gara’s chest.

With an irritated, disgusted look, Gara followed his gaze.

His robe was wet.

"This—" Gara instinctively covered his chest.

"How could you not notice something like this?" Langga scolded.

"Didn’t the Duchess send you thicker undergarments to prevent milk leaks like this?"

At first, Gara felt guilty—and grateful that Langga had saved him from embarrassment.

But being lectured immediately set him off.

He glared at Langga.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to have a chest that keeps producing milk? For over a year, my chest has been swollen from nursing and pumping milk for your children!"

He jabbed Langga’s chest with his finger, completely losing his patience.

"You have no idea how difficult it is to raise triplets! You only met them after they were already grown!"

Gara continued venting.

Langga stayed silent, listening.

He wanted to say that he had never refused to care for the triplets—but he wasn’t that insensitive. He knew Gara was fragile right now, especially after Madha left for the border.

Watching the beautiful man rage in front of him, Langga struggled to restrain himself from pulling that small body into his arms.

When he was with the triplets, he could smell Gara on them.

But smelling it directly from him was entirely different.

It was far more intoxicating than Langga had expected.

"What are you looking at?!" Gara snapped when he noticed Langga’s gaze turning cloudy.

Langga turned his face away, trying to regain control—just as he spotted a girl at the corner of another corridor.

"Hic—!"

The girl who had been caught spying hiccupped reflexively. She covered her mouth, but the sound still slipped out.

Gara followed Langga’s line of sight. From his angle, he couldn’t see anyone at first.

He stepped forward—and his eyes widened.

"Vania!"

Vania’s eyes met Gara’s.

Then her gaze dropped to his chest.

The tiger girl immediately took off her robe, stepped forward, tossed it at them—and ran away.

Both Langga and Gara were stunned.

Langga barely managed to catch the robe.

"She heard everything? About breastfeeding? About the children?" Gara panicked.

Langga remained calm as he draped Vania’s robe over Gara. It was slightly smaller, but it successfully covered the damp spot.

"Why are you putting her robe on me?" Gara struggled weakly, but Langga was still stronger.

"Why do you think she threw it?" Langga said, pointing at Gara’s chest.

"I can’t give you mine. Our robe colors are different."

Gara was still panicking.

Without permission, Langga gently patted the top of Gara’s head, realizing his anger had faded.

Then Langga spoke calmly.

"Don’t you think Vania Shereen has changed a lot?"

...