Chapter 914: How Dense Are You?!

The morning light crept through the windows of Ragnora’s bedroom, accompanied by the distant chirping of birds that had somehow found a home even in the chaos of the Holyfield mines.

Outside, the familiar sounds of battle rumbled in the distance—explosions, the clash of steel, the roar of monsters—but inside this room, there was only the soft rhythm of two people breathing together.

Ragnora lay sprawled across Cassius’s chest like a great crimson cat. Her head rested on his shoulder, one arm wrapped possessively around his torso, her legs tangled with his.

Cassius, for his part, was absently playing with her hair. His fingers threaded through the wild black curls, working out the tangles with patient, gentle strokes. Every so often, his hand would drift to her horns, tracing the ridges with feather-light touches that made her shiver even in her half-asleep state.

To anyone watching, they would have looked like lovers.

And yet, beneath that calm exterior, Ragnora’s mind was anything but peaceful as she couldn’t believe what had happened last night.

All her life, she had possessed an almost supernatural stamina.

Whether as a slave hauling loads that weighed as much as small houses or as a commander leading her troops through battles that stretched across days—there had never been a moment when she was genuinely, completely exhausted.

Even in her worst moments, when her body was battered and bleeding and begging for respite, she had always found some reserve of energy to draw upon.

But right now?

Right now, she could barely move.

Her muscles felt like they had been hollowed out. Her bones ached with a pleasant, bone-deep weariness. Even lifting her head from Cassius’s chest seemed like an impossible effort.

Slowly, with great difficulty, she turned her head to look at him.

’How did he do it?’ She wondered. ’All night long. Over and over. Like a man possessed. Like someone who had been saving up his entire life’s worth of passion just for this moment.’

She’d lost count of how many times he had taken her.

How many times he had filled her with his seed.

How many times he had brought her to the peak of pleasure and then pushed her over the edge into oblivion.

It had to be dozens. At least.

And now her poor, overwhelmed womb was absolutely flooded with his essence. She could still feel it inside her, warm and thick and full of promise.

But then a smile spread across her face.

’A baby. Our baby.’

There was no doubt in her mind. After everything Cassius had pumped into her last night, if she wasn’t pregnant by now, then either her body was fundamentally infertile, or Cassius himself had somehow been holding back. And given the sheer volume and enthusiasm he had demonstrated...

No! She was going to have a child! She could feel it. A deep, instinctive certainty that went beyond logic or reason.

The question was: what should she name it?

Her mind began to wander through possibilities.

’If it’s a boy...maybe something strong. Something that carries weight. Thormak, after the legendary ogre chieftain?’

’No, too traditional. Maybe something that honors both sides of his heritage. Lucian? That sounds noble. Or perhaps...perhaps Cassius Junior. Cassius the Younger. Little Cassius.’

She almost giggled at the thought.

’But what if it’s a girl? Something beautiful. Something that captures her spirit. Laura, like the heroine in my favorite novel?’

’No, that’s too obvious. Maybe Florence. After Big Sis Florence. That would be...that would be perfect.’

’Florence Ragnora Titanborn...’

’A name that honors the woman who saved me, and the mother I hope to become.’

She went back and forth like this for several minutes, cycling through names and combinations, imagining what her child might be like.

Would they be tall like her? Would they have her crimson skin, or Cassius’s pale complexion?

Would they inherit her horns, or would they look more human?

The possibilities were endless. And each one filled her heart with more joy than she had ever thought possible.

Finally, she realized that she should probably just ask Cassius. After all, he was the father. He should have a say.

She lifted her head, opening her mouth to speak—

And stopped because she remembered.

Cassius wasn’t going to be here.

That was the arrangement, wasn’t it? She had paid him for a service. He had provided it. The transaction was complete.

Soon, maybe today, maybe tomorrow he would leave with Isabelle and return to his home, to his wives, to his other children. And she would be left here, alone, with only the child growing inside her as proof that any of this had ever happened.

She had known this from the beginning. She had told herself, over and over, that she was grateful for whatever Cassius could give her, that she didn’t need more, that a child alone would be enough.

But now, lying here in his arms, feeling his heartbeat against her cheek, the thought of him leaving felt like a knife twisting in her chest.

And worse, far worse was the thought of her child never knowing their father.

She thought about the orphans she’d seen over the years—children who had lost their parents to monsters, to war, to the cruel randomness of fate.

She’d always felt a special tenderness toward them, a kinship born of her own abandonment.

And now, in a strange and painful way, her own child would share something with those orphans.

A missing parent. A hole in their heart where a father should be.

’I don’t want that. I don’t want my child to grow up wondering who their father was. I don’t want them to ask me questions I can’t answer. I don’t want—’

Before she could stop herself, the words were tumbling out of her mouth.

"Cassius?"

"Mmm?"

She hesitated, her heart hammering against her ribs. This was unreasonable. She had no right to make this request.

But the motherly instinct that was already awakening inside her refused to be silenced.

"I know this is...this is very unreasonable to ask. And I know you probably have nothing to do with this at all. But..." She gulped, her throat tight. "Is it possible for you to—"

"—to visit our child? In the future?"

Cassius immediately frowned with a strange look on his face.

But Ragnora didn’t notice and pressed on, terrified.

"There are so many children in the world who are orphaned, Cassius. Who don’t know the name or face of their own father. If you were to ask them for a single wish, they would probably say they want to know about their parents."

"But they can’t. They’ll never be able to."

She caressed her womb with trembling fingers.

"But our child—our child has a father. A real father, alive in the world. And just the thought of not being able to show them who that is...it breaks my heart.’

’I don’t want our child to go through what those orphans go through. I don’t want them to wonder. To feel that absence."

She looked up at him with desperate, vulnerable eyes.

"Of course, I’m not asking you to declare yourself publicly as the father. I’m not trying to foist any responsibility onto you. I would never do that. I’m just..."

She sighed, her voice cracking.

"I’m just asking if, sometime in the future, you could come back to the Holyfield mines. You don’t have to tell anyone who you are. You could come as a family friend. You could play with our child for an afternoon and then leave. That would be...that would be more than enough for me."

But even as she spoke, she felt her hope crumbling.

"But I understand if you don’t want to. You already have a large family at home. You’re probably very busy. And you probably don’t want any...any emotional entanglement of this sort. If it’s bothersome for you, you can ignore everything I just said. It’s fine. I understand."

She pressed her face against his chest, her voice muffled.

"But it would be really, really nice if you came to visit. At least once. Please, Cassius. I promise—I swear—I’ll take care of our child. I’ll raise them with all the love I possess. I’ll—"

She caught herself.

"No—I mean my child. I’ll take care of my child alone. That’s what I meant to say. As long as you visit just once, that will be more than enough for both of us. Just—please. Please say you’ll visit."

She finished, her heart pounding so hard she could feel it in her throat and couldn’t help but have a million thoughts run through her head.

’What is he thinking? Is he angry? Is he upset that I asked? Oh gods, what have I done?! I should have kept my mouth shut. I should have just accepted what he gave me and been grateful. Why did I have to ask for more?! Why am I so selfish!?’

She didn’t dare look up. She didn’t dare move. She just lay there, her face pressed against Cassius’s chest, waiting for his response.

The silence stretched on.

And on.

And on.

Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she lifted her head to look at him—

And found Cassius staring down at her with an expression of utter, complete bafflement.

Not anger. Not irritation. Not even the gentle, patient condescension she’d half-expected.

Just...bafflement. As though she had said something so incomprehensibly absurd that he couldn’t even begin to process it.

"Cassius?" Her voice trembled. "What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Are you...are you angry? If you are, just forget what I said. Please. I don’t want this to damage what we have—"

"What we have?" He finally repeated, his voice strange.

"Yes? Our...our relationship? Whatever this is?"

He let out a long, slow breath. Then he rubbed his forehead with the heel of his palm, as though warding off a headache.

"Oh, Ragnora...Ragnora, Ragnora, Ragnora."

She tensed. "What?"

He looked at her and his expression was caught somewhere between exasperation and disbelief.

"I genuinely cannot believe that you are this dumb."

Ragnora’s jaw dropped. "Dumb?!"

"Yes. Dumb. Thick-headed. Oblivious." He shook his head. "I mean, I had heard the stories about you. Commander Ragnora Titanborn. The brilliant strategist. The woman who outmaneuvered the Thornwall siege. The warrior whose tactical genius is studied in military academies across the continent."

He threw his hands up in exasperation.

"And yet! Here you are asking me if I might consider visiting my own child once in the future like some distant relative who can barely be bothered!"

Ragnora pushed herself up onto her elbows, her exhaustion momentarily forgotten in the face of this unexpected assault on her intelligence.

"Cassius, what in the world are you talking about? What did I say that’s so wrong?"

"Everything! Everything you just said!" He threw his hands up. "Do you really think—after everything that happened last night—that I’m just going to leave?"

"I...you have a family. You have wives. You have other children—"

"Yes, I have a family! A big one! And do you know what my family does when I find a woman I care about?" He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her close, his blue eyes blazing. "They welcome her. They embrace her. They make her one of us!"

Ragnora stared at him, uncomprehending.

Cassius groaned. "Gods above, you’re killing me. Do I have to spell it out?"

"Spell what out?!"

"Fine!" He grabbed her face in both hands, forcing her to meet his eyes. "Fine. If you’re going to be this dense, then I’ll say it as plainly as I possibly can."

He took a deep breath.

"Ragnora Vindictus Titanborn...I love you."