Chapter 149
Because the baby was pressing on the nerve leading to her left leg, a burning numbness continued day and night, and the pain in her waist, as if a large nail had been driven into it, never faded.
She wanted to resent God for placing this suffering only on women.
At some point, Thalia began desperately hoping that the child in her belly would be a boy.
She never wanted to become pregnant again after this.
It was nice to receive devoted care from Varkas and everyone around her, but as the physical pain worsened, the satisfaction of carrying a new life slowly faded.
And fear took its place.
Giving birth would surely hurt terribly, wouldn’t it?
Even accepting Varkas’s body had felt overwhelming every time, so could she really endure childbirth?
Looking at her belly, which was swelling more and more, Thalia was seized by extreme anxiety.
On one hand, she desperately wanted to be freed from pregnancy as soon as possible, but on the other, she wished that moment would never come.
“Your Highness, I brewed herbal tea to calm your nerves. It should help you sleep, even if only a little.”
Marisen, who had been stirring a pot in front of the fireplace for a long while, approached with a cup filled with dark brown liquid.
Thalia accepted it without complaint and drank it.
In the early stages of pregnancy, she had not let anything pass her lips if there was even a possibility that it might negatively affect the child, but now, she did not refuse anything that made her body more comfortable.
The baby in her belly was full of energy, while she was growing more haggard by the day.
Thalia was worried that when the day of childbirth came, she might not have any strength left to give birth to the child.
“Would you like to try this as well? It is a medicine sent by Her Majesty the Empress. They say it helps replenish energy.”
Just as she had barely emptied one cup of tea, this time her nanny approached with a small medicine bottle.
Thalia stared silently at it, then soon shook her head.
She did not think her mother, who regarded the child in her belly as an important chess piece, would have sent something harmful to her, but it was still difficult to trust her blindly.
“My stomach feels unsettled, so I don’t want to eat anything more.”
“Please take just a little, if only to consider Her Majesty the Empress’s sincerity. Her Majesty used very precious medicinal ingredients...”
“I said no!”
Thalia knocked away her nanny’s hand in annoyance.
Then the glass bottle slipped from the woman’s hand and rolled onto the floor.
For an instant, anger flashed across the nanny’s round face.
The nanny’s lips twitched as if she were about to snap at her, but she soon let out a heavy sigh and picked up the glass bottle.
Thalia felt guilty, but instead of apologizing, she turned over and lay with her back to her.
She was rather angry that her nanny seemed more concerned about her mother’s gift going to waste than about her discomfort.
She pulled the blanket all the way up over her head and pressed her fingertips into her aching pelvis.
How long had she been groaning like that?
Perhaps the herbal tea had started taking effect, because the pain gradually eased and sleepiness came over her.
Thalia gladly threw herself into the world of unconsciousness.
But peace did not last long.
Around sunset, a cramp seized her leg, waking her from her deep sleep.
She screamed, clutching the violently twisting muscles of her calf with both hands.
It felt as if a blade had been stabbed into her leg.
Tears flowed down on their own.
“Please endure it just a little, Your Highness. I will give you medicine.”
Marisen, who had been resting in front of the fireplace, rushed over and brought a medicine bottle to her lips.
“It is a painkiller. It was made with medicinal ingredients that are not harmful to the child, so please take it without worry.”
Thalia hesitated for a moment, but when the spasm showed no sign of easing, she reluctantly took a sip of the lukewarm medicine.
Meanwhile, Tiuran, who had prepared a hot compress pouch filled with hot water, carefully placed it on her leg.
After a while, once the pain subsided, Thalia looked around the dim room with exhausted eyes.
Her nanny stood beside the bed, looking down at her with worried eyes.
Two young maids were standing by the door, ready to run out into the corridor and call a priest at any moment.
To reassure them, Thalia murmured in a hoarse voice,
“I think I’m all right now.”
“How does your belly feel?”
Tiuran asked as she lowered the compress pouch beneath her calf.
Thalia stroked her lower abdomen.
“It does feel a little tight... but it isn’t severe.”
“I will bring you another cup of tea. It should help calm your mind.”
She struggled to raise her upper body.
Beyond the long window opened for ventilation, she could see the sky turning red.
“Has Varkas not returned yet?”
“His Grace the Grand Duke is at the association hall. He sent word a few hours ago that he would be late.”
Tiuran answered kindly as she placed a pillow behind her waist.
Thalia soothed her displeasure by stroking the baby’s small bottom through the thin skin of her belly.
Throughout the Season of Rest, Varkas had not left her side for even a moment.
He handled most of his work while sitting at the desk set up in the bedroom, and after the cold wave arrived, he gradually reduced tasks such as going to the association hall or attending the city court.
Thanks to that, Thalia had enjoyed the luxury of ordering the Grand Duke of the East around like her own manservant.
Varkas held her through the night as she whimpered, massaged her waist, or brought cool towels to wipe the sweaty stickiness from her neck and face.
Sometimes, he even prepared a compress pouch himself and held it against her aching areas until she fell asleep.
However, once the Season of Water began, Varkas had no choice but to return to his busy daily life.
All sorts of work that had been postponed throughout the winter came crashing in like a tidal wave.
While reorganizing the territory administration that had stagnated during winter, Varkas also led the knight order around the barracks to inspect the state of military preparations.
There seemed to be more than one or two other matters demanding his attention as well.
Large-scale military training had begun at the training ground of Raedgo Castle, and at some point, armed messengers began going in and out of the castle frequently.
Thalia felt that the spark of war smoldering in the north was slowly awakening, but she did not say anything about it aloud.
Even if war broke out in the north, she wanted to firmly believe that it would not affect this eastern region.
Varkas had fulfilled his duty as a loyal subject by dispatching cavalrymen, and what came afterward was the Imperial Family’s responsibility.
“Perhaps Gareth will personally set out to suppress the treason.”
If that man died during the war, Thalia would only be grateful.
Thalia let out a small giggle as she imagined her half-brother pierced by a northerner’s blade, but then suddenly felt a thought flash through her mind like lightning and went rigid.
Could Senevier be behind this war?
If the north truly started a war for independence, there was a high chance the Crown Prince would be appointed commander-in-chief.
If she could send him to the battlefield, her mother would gain an opportunity to remove her stepson without drawing any suspicion.
Thalia became absorbed in that thought, then realized she had fallen into a fantasy without any basis and let out a faint laugh.
No matter how powerful Senevier was, she could not manipulate even the nobles of the north from behind the scenes.
Even if such a thing were possible, would her mother really instigate a civil war?
If even a single piece of evidence emerged that she had been involved in treason, even an Empress would not escape hanging.
There was no way Senevier would take such a dangerous gamble.
Thalia was laughing at her own absurd imagination when she suddenly felt her belly tighten and set down the teacup in her hand.
Then, as she carefully changed her position, she felt her damp skirt unpleasantly cling to her legs.
Thalia frowned.
It seemed her whole body had become drenched in sweat because she had thrashed around so badly.
She lowered her feet beneath the bed and gestured to the maids with her chin.
“I think I need to wash. Prepare bathwater.”
“Hold on to me. I will support you.”
Tiuran, who had moved the compress pouch aside, held her arm.
Thalia grabbed the woman’s slender but firm shoulder and carefully rose.
Then, suddenly feeling lukewarm liquid flow down her thigh, she flinched and went rigid.
Surely she had not wet herself, had she?
As she looked down at her soaked skirt with terrified eyes, she heard the sound of rough, panting breaths beside her.
“Oh my God!”
Assuming that Tiuran had screamed after witnessing her mistake, Thalia’s face turned bright red with shame.
Then she saw the fear that had appeared in the woman’s eyes and stiffened.
An ominous premonition ran down her spine.
“Call the priestess immediately!”
Tiuran hurriedly laid her back down on the bed and shouted loudly at the maids.
“What are you all standing there for? Her water has broken! Hurry!”
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