Side Story 1 – Early Spring (Part 1)

When she opened her eyes, Ria found herself on a hill covered with fresh green grass.

She immediately recognized the large tree in her view and realized that she had been here before. This was inside her dream.

Tapping under her eyes a couple of times with her fingers, Ria let out a small sigh.

‘It seems I’ve fallen asleep again.’

The day they returned from the villa to the Astina residence in the capital was around mid-winter’s last month. It was also around that time that she began feeling unusually fatigued.

At first, she thought it might be because she had returned after being in a warm place for a while. But as the days passed and the condition persisted, it seemed there might be another reason. She had one particular suspicion, though it felt unlikely…

‘I should get an examination before the four of them arrive.’

Dragged back to the capital by her pleading attendants, the men had claimed they weren’t busy, but their late returns every night told a different story. They had mentioned an influx of documents that couldn’t be brought to the villa, which wasn’t surprising given how long they had stayed there.

Still, it wasn’t as though they couldn’t spend any time together. They managed to share tea occasionally, so she saw them every day. She simply hadn’t mentioned her recent habit of frequent naps, not wanting to worry them unnecessarily.

Since she hadn’t experienced any significant health issues recently, she figured she could wait until after the examination to share the results. Moreover…

Given their tendency to overreact, if the examination turned out normal, the embarrassment would be hers alone.

‘With Elpis here, I should be able to ease their worries a bit.’

Though she felt guilty knowing the reason for their overprotectiveness and was grateful for their love, even love could sometimes be too much. She couldn’t help but think this, though she would never voice such thoughts in front of them.

Sigh. 

Ria let out another small sigh and began walking.

Since she could move freely in her dream, she decided to search for the golden-furred wolf pup she had seen before. She had a personal hunch that meeting the wolf might confirm her suspicions about her physical condition.

However, when she approached the large tree, what she encountered was not the golden-furred wolf pup.

Lying curled up in the shade of the tree, seemingly napping, was a silver-furred wolf pup.

‘Hmm?’

Ria stopped in her tracks. She rubbed her eyes and looked again, but of course, the fur color didn’t change.

At that moment, something small suddenly leaped out of nowhere and threw itself into her arms.

Caught off guard by the unexpected weight, she staggered backward. Quickly taking a step back to steady herself, Ria looked down at the creature that had leaped into her arms. The first thing she noticed was the radiant golden tail wagging furiously.

It was the golden-furred wolf pup she had been searching for.

“So you really were here.”

Lowering herself to her knees on the grass, Ria gently set the pup down. The golden-furred wolf rubbed its face with its paw and looked up at her with a longing expression.

Meeting the pup’s blue eyes, which were so similar to Rune’s, Ria instinctively placed a hand over her abdomen. When she realized what she was doing a few moments later, she flinched and withdrew her hand.

Yet her heartbeat quickened. It truly felt as though her suspicion was correct, and a wave of complex emotions washed over her.

The feeling was close to excitement.

Placing her other hand over the one she had rested on her abdomen, Ria fidgeted with her fingers and bit her lip nervously before parting them slightly.

The thought of confirming her suspicion made her lips dry with tension.

Hoo. 

Letting out a small breath, Ria met the blue eyes staring up at her and licked her lips to moisten them.

A clumsy cry rang out, and something shot toward the golden-furred wolf pup at lightning speed, colliding with its body. The golden-furred wolf, knocked over in an instant, was pinned down by none other than the silver-furred pup Ria had seen earlier.

While Ria stood frozen, her mind unable to process what had happened, the two pups growled at each other, baring their teeth, before tumbling and wrestling together.

Snapping out of her daze at the sound of their growls, Ria hurriedly grabbed the silver-furred pup.

If they had been actual wolves, she wouldn’t have dared to intervene. But for some reason, she found herself acting without hesitation. And when her eyes met the silver-furred pup’s, she couldn’t help but widen her eyes in astonishment.

Whimper…

The pup folded its ears back and looked at her with red eyes.

Eyes that looked exactly like Eden’s.

Ria’s mind raced as she tried to process what she was seeing. Not that it helped much.

‘It looks like Eden. What does this mean? Does this mean my suspicion is wrong? No, that doesn’t seem right…’

Her mind was a whirlwind of confusion. Reflexively, Ria glanced around, checking if there were any other pups resembling Cherta or Kahin. Thankfully—or perhaps unfortunately—there were only the two pups and herself in this place.

Ria tried to piece her thoughts together. At that moment, something soft and blunt tapped her hand. It was the silver-furred pup placing its paw on her hand.

And then, something extraordinary happened. As Ria looked at the paw, a blue pattern appeared and gradually dissolved into a butterfly that fluttered into the sky.

Ria instinctively knew what it was. The color was similar to her own ability, so it was impossible not to recognize it. It was undoubtedly divine power.

Ria, who had been gazing into the air with narrowed eyes as if chasing the traces of a butterfly that had already disappeared, finally came to her senses when she felt the movements of the silver wolf struggling in her arms. She gently placed the wolf on the ground.

The silver wolf, as soon as its paws touched the earth, quickly darted toward a tree, grabbed something, and returned. It was the same type of fruit that the golden wolf had given her previously.

The golden wolf, who also noticed the fruit, began thumping its tail on the ground in discontent, wearing a sullen expression. Then, with its ears perked up, it charged at the silver wolf. Fortunately, before the two wolves could collide, Ria lifted the golden wolf into her arms.

The golden wolf, seemingly delighted to be in her embrace, purred contentedly. However, its gaze toward the silver wolf remained fierce.

Seeing the silver wolf snort in defiance, Ria thought to herself, 

‘Not only do they look alike, but their poor relationship mirrors Rune and Eden perfectly.’

To calm them down, she alternately patted the heads of both wolves before setting the golden wolf down. The golden wolf no longer lunged at the silver wolf but instead rested its head on her thigh, purring softly.

“Is this for me?” 

Ria asked the silver wolf, now that the atmosphere had settled. As she directed her attention to it, its tail wagged enthusiastically like the blades of a fan. Finding it adorable, Ria chuckled softly.

The silver wolf placed the fruit it was holding onto her hand and then sat upright, gazing at her with sparkling eyes, as if eagerly waiting for her to eat it.

However, Ria, unlike before, didn’t immediately eat the fruit. Smiling, she asked, 

“If I eat this, will I be able to see you outside of my dreams?”

The silver wolf’s ears perked up. The golden wolf, too, lifted its head abruptly, its ears standing straight.

Looking back and forth between the two wolves, Ria burst into laughter, realizing from their immediate reaction that the answer was a clear “yes.”

Clearing her throat to suppress her laughter, Ria ate the fruit in three bites, just as she had done before. After showing them the remaining stem, she spread her arms wide open.

“I’ll be waiting.”

My little ones.

As if they had been waiting for this moment, the two wolves leapt into her embrace. A radiant light enveloped her.

***

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine. Let’s go quickly; they must be waiting.”

Holding Eden’s hand as she stepped out of the carriage, Ria responded to his worried question with a bright smile, urging him to hurry. She knew that if they lingered here, they would waste a lot of time.

After returning from the villa, they decided to belatedly celebrate the new year. It was a rare occasion where both Their Majesties, her grandfather, and Letban, who had come up from the North, gathered for a meal. Being late was not an option.

Moreover, she had joyful news to share.

When she woke up that day, Ria was already confident in her assumption about her condition. She considered her cycle, matched it with the early symptoms she had heard about, and finally called the family physician for a diagnosis.

The result confirmed her suspicion: she was pregnant.