127. As Though Waiting

Hobbs spoke slowly, enunciating each word.

Larael lowered her gaze to her belly. With trembling hands, she placed her palm upon it. Then she lifted her eyes to Hobbs. Her pupils wavered, clouded with a storm of emotions. Overwhelmed, her breath caught in her throat, and her mind went blank.

Though she felt guilty toward Edward, in that moment she did not think of him at all. Her thoughts were filled only with the child within her womb, overflowing inside her heart. She vowed never to lose this child. No one would be allowed to lay a hand on it.

If Edward were to learn the truth, he would be overjoyed more than anyone. But when at last her thoughts turned to Edward, her eyes sank with sorrow.

‘Edward is not here. Who will welcome this child?’

“For now, please keep it secret. At least until Edward awakens.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Hobbs, saying that the High Priest was waiting for him, quickly gathered his medical bag and left the chamber. For a long while, Larael sat motionless, caressing her belly. Her heart pounded in her chest, so violently it felt as though it were beating right next to her ear. Protecting this child was now her greatest task. Her mind swirled with confusion. At last, she rose from the bed and opened the chamber door.

“I will go to the main palace.”

“Your Highness, the Count and Countess of Hedway are on their way here,” Joanna informed her.

Larael hesitated briefly at her words.

“When Father and Mother arrive, give them a guest room and tell them to rest first. Tell them I am safe.”

With that, Larael made her way to the main palace.

***

Larael spent the entire night awake, seated at Edward’s bedside. She moistened a cloth with warm water and pressed it to his lips so they would not dry out. Again and again, she stroked his golden hair, which seemed to have lost its luster.

Though Edward’s attendants, along with Sasha and Joanna, urged her to rest, she ignored them without a word.

[Your Highness, if you continue like this, you will collapse] Sasha said, her eyes brimming with tears.

And indeed, Larael’s face had grown pale, utterly drained of color, from having not slept a single moment. Her eyes, swollen from weeping through the night, could barely open. She looked at Sasha, then lowered her gaze to her belly, before lifting it again to Edward.

‘Yes… I am no longer alone.’

Larael rose, bent down, and placed a brief kiss upon Edward’s forehead.

“Edward, I have news that will surprise you. Please wake up soon.”

She whispered softly into his ear.

“I will return to Abella Palace to rest for a while, and then come back. I entrust His Majesty to your care.”

She spoke to Trix.

“Yes. The Marquis of Argen will be arriving shortly as well.”

At Trix’s words, Larael managed a faint smile, then took Sasha’s hand and returned to Abella Palace.

She was not the only one who had stayed awake through the night. The Count and Countess of Hedway awaited her in her bedchamber.

“Your Highness!!!”

The Countess, her face haggard and worn, rushed to embrace Larael.

“Mother, I am all right,” Larael said, repeating the reassurance as she gently patted her mother’s back.

“We should never have allowed Your Highness to be sent to the Imperial Palace,” said the Count of Hedway, his eyes brimming with tears. From the Fenrir raid until this very day, he bitterly regretted ever letting her go.

“I am fine, Father,” Larael replied weakly.

“Truly, I am fine. I had the guest room prepared, so please rest there. I must rest as well.”

Larael lay down on her bed.

“Then rest well. Having seen Your Highness with our own eyes, we shall return.”

The Count and Countess looked at her with eyes full of sorrow. The Countess kissed Larael gently on the forehead before leaving the chamber with her husband. Larael drifted into sleep the moment her body touched the bed.

After some time, Larael’s heavy eyelids lifted. The chamber was dark. She called for Sasha and Joanna, who entered and drew back the curtains. They had kept the drapes shut so that Larael, who had fallen asleep still in her gown, might rest undisturbed, making it seem as though more time had passed. Sunlight poured into the room as they pulled the curtains wide.

“What time is it now?” Larael asked as she hurriedly rose from bed.

“Your Highness was sleeping so soundly, we did not wish to wake you.”

Larael felt a surge of shame. Edward lay unconscious in his bed, and yet she had slept deeply, unaware of the passing hours. Without delay, she left Abella Palace and made her way to the main palace.

Before opening Edward’s chamber door, she allowed herself a moment of hope—that upon entering, she would see him smiling, welcoming her warmly. But within, the heavy silence remained unchanged. His attendants and advisors guarding the chamber bowed as she entered.

Larael went to Edward’s side.

Still unmoving, his figure shattered the fragile hope she had clung to. Her heart constricted painfully, almost unbearably. Stroking Edward’s hair, she sat upon the edge of his bed.

“Your Highness, the Marquis of Argen has arrived.”

“Yes.”

Trix entered the chamber with the Marquis of Argen.

“Trix, may I speak privately with you and the Marquis?”

“Yes, of course.”

At Larael’s request, Edward’s two advisors and the attendants withdrew from the chamber. Once they had gone, Larael moved to sit on the sofa. The Marquis of Argen and Trix took their seats across from her.

“Trix, when I am not in His Majesty’s bedchamber, I would like you to strictly control anyone who enters. Record thoroughly the times and names of those who come and go, as well as everything they do inside the chamber.”

“Yes, I will do so.”

“And although we cannot block Her Majesty the Empress Dowager from entering, do not leave her side on the days she visits.”

“Yes, understood.”

Trix nodded with a resolute expression.

“I leave this in your hands. When is the Tower expected to arrive?”

Shifting her gaze from Trix, Larael asked Marquis Argen.

“They should be arriving shortly. Once the wizards from the Tower are here, I will return with them.”

“Very well… Once the Tower Master arrives, proceed directly to the Winters estate together. If possible, use teleportation magic when you travel. There is nothing to be gained from attracting people’s attention.”

“Yes, I will bear that in mind.”

“I heard that you organized an investigation team and went to the site with Joy. What were the findings?”

“We discovered only one corpse, but it had been badly damaged by wild beasts. We assumed that another body had also been devoured by the beasts and therefore recorded it as such. A report on the investigation has already been prepared.”

“Do your utmost until His Majesty regains consciousness.”

“Yes… However, Your Highness, the mood among the nobles seems rather unsettling.”

Marquis Argen brought up what he had hesitated to mention before meeting her. Naturally, it felt like something he must report to Larael.

“What do you mean?”

“They say that if His Majesty remains unconscious for too long, perhaps Her Majesty the Empress Dowager should assume the regency.”

“Regency?”

A hollow laugh escaped Larael.

“Now they speak of regency?”

Her incredulous smile gave way to a rising fury in her chest. To exploit Edward’s unconscious state—how utterly despicable. Larael sprang up from the sofa, her eyes blazing with anger. Startled, Marquis Argen and Trix rose with her.

“I cannot simply sit by and watch.”

“Your Highness! Please, calm yourself.”

Marquis Argen called out urgently. When Larael turned her gaze to him, he continued.

“If Your Highness steps forward now, it will only turn against you. These words come from only a few nobles during their meetings; it has not yet become a public matter.”

“…”

Setting aside her anger and thinking rationally, Larael realized that Marquis Argen was right. She closed her eyes, steadying her trembling heart. Her long lashes quivered. Slowly, Larael opened her eyes again and sat back down. It was perhaps natural that the three of them, at a loss for direction, let their eyes rest on the empty table. No clear way out of this suffocating situation came to mind.

Breaking the silence, Larael finally spoke.

“Regency—as if they had been waiting for this moment. If there are any further remarks connected to that, report them to me without fail.”