Chapter 72 – A Sudden Change (1)
Viscount Langdel was a young man besotted with Duchess Tuania. When he was selected as the duchess’ dance partner at the New Year’s ball, he beamed as if he had the world in his hands. That same young man stabbed Rashta…
“He must have thought it was Miss Rashta who started the rumor about the Duchess Tuania.”
The lady-in waiting who delivered the news looked surprised.
“How do you know?”
“Tell me the details.”
“Everything started out fine at first. It was Rashta who let him in her room. I don’t know why.”
Rashta must have allowed him in because she knew he was a lovesick young man. She had watched the men who gathered around the duchess at the New Year’s celebrations.
“I don’t know if I can say this, but…”
The maid started muttering in an apologetic way, but then she waved her hands as if to ignore it and started talking again.
“Duke Elgy came in and kicked down the door, saying he smelled blood, and fortunately he hit—no, he stopped Viscount Langdel. The viscount was seized on the spot.”
“Duke Elgy? He’s returned?”
“Yes, but that’s not the important part, Your Majesty. When Viscount Langdel was caught, he kept shouting that Rashta that ruined Duchess Tuania…”
The lady-in-waiting glanced at me.
“That’s why I was surprised when you mentioned Duchess Tuania all of a sudden, Your Majesty. Is there really something there?”
Although we both approached this from different situations, we coincidentally came around to the same subject.
“How is Miss Rashta doing?”
*
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*
“How is she?”
The doctor felt for Rashta’s pulse. Her face was pale and sweaty as she gave a low moan, but no answer was forthcoming from the palace doctor.
“How is she?”
Sovieshu repeated himself, looking at the bandages wrapped around Rashta’s abdomen. She looked in a terrible state. The doctor sighed and stared at Sovieshu as if to urge him to be quiet.
“Just tell me!”
Sovieshu voice raised to a yell, and the doctor closed his eyes.
“Your Majesty, please be quiet for a moment. I can’t concentrate.”
Sovieshu retreated and paced the room with his arms folded, anxiety eating away at him. He felt like he was going crazy. The doctor had already said the injury was not life-threatening after his first examination, so why was he doing this now?
After a few paces he came face-to-face Duke Elgy, who had been standing nearby. The duke greeted him with a light smile, and Sovieshu clapped him on the shoulder.
“Thank you. You saved Rashta.”
He was so worried earlier that he forgot about the duke’s existence.
“It was just luck.”
“Yes…”
Sovieshu nodded and began to pace again, oblivious when Duke Elgy kept watching him carefully.
“…”
Duke Elgy tilted his head. He had saved Rashta, but Sovieshu made no mention of the fact that another man came to his concubine’s room late in the evening. Duke Elgy was amazed to see the emperor deal with it so coolly.
‘Is he surprised or—’
His thought was interrupted by the palace doctor’s voice.
“What is this? How strange!”
Duke Elgy turned his gaze from Sovieshu towards the doctor, who had let go of Rashta’s wrist and was feeling her stomach instead.
“Can you press the injury like that?”
Sovieshu snapped at the doctor, but he just smiled.
“Not this part. And I’m not pressing hard, Your Majesty.”
Sovieshu was about to give him another warning, when the doctor gave a whoop and turned to Sovieshu.
“Congratulations, Your Majesty!”
“Congratulations? Congratulations on what?”
“There is a baby in Miss Rashta’s stomach!”
The other men in the room froze.
“Baby…?”
Sovieshu looked at Rashta’s stomach in surprise. It looked flat to him.
“Baby?”
“I believe Miss Rashta became pregnant after the time you rescued her from the woods, Your Majesty.”
A stunned silence filled the room. Sovieshu covered his mouth with his hand.
“Baby…”
*
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*
As I readied myself for work, I stared into the mirror while Countess Eliza trimmed my hair with a serious face. She noticed me looking at her and gave an awkward smile, but her expression remained stiff.
“Is everything alright, Countess Eliza?”
She answered with a sigh.
“In truth…There are many things worry about.”
I couldn’t help but agree. There had been an influx of incidents all at once—Duchess Tuania was in the process of divorce, while Viscount Langdel stabbed Rashta for revenge…
Laura was plucking at the plume on my hat when she spoke.
“What will happen to Viscount Langdel?”
She sounded worried, as the viscount was a moderate acquaintance of hers. Stabbing an emperor’s concubine was a definite crime, and the viscount was currently being held in jail.
“Don’t worry. I’ll find out more.”
“I can’t believe Viscount Langdel did that. It’s impossible to believe.”
A lady-in-waiting opened her mouth to console Laura, but before she could, another lady-in-waiting came in the room.
“Your Majesty. The Emperor is here.”
“At this time?”
It was still early in the morning. Sovieshu was here in person instead of a messenger? I looked in puzzlement at the lady-in-waiting.
“Let him in.”
Despite my vexation, I didn’t have any choice, and the lady-in-waiting gave a noise of affirmation and hurried out. I turned away from the mirror and looked in the direction of the door, and a few moments later, Sovieshu entered my room. I wondered what words of comfort I should offer him. To my surprise, however, he did not look distraught. Instead of anger or sadness, somewhere on his face was a subtle joy.
“Your Majesty?”
Was Rashta’s injury less severe than expected? Yet that was still no reason to be happy about it.
“Is Miss Rashta all right?”
The reply he gave left me stunned.
“Rashta is pregnant.”
For a moment, I couldn’t process what I had heard. Who was pregnant? Rashta?
“…I can’t offer my congratulations.”
The honest words involuntary left my mouth. Sovieshu looked at me with a critical eye, but it was true. I couldn’t celebrate this with him.
“It may not be recognized as a part of the imperial family, but it’s still my first child.”
“I know.”
My heart thumped in my chest, but his face seemed strangely chilled. Perhaps my face was equally cold too.
“You don’t have to give your congratulations. Starting from next month, however, I hope will you increase the allowance as much as any other concubine that has children.”
“Of course.”
I would have done that anyway.
“Rashta is not awake yet, but her injuries are not life-threatening.”
I didn’t respond to this information Sovieshu gave me, keeping my eyes fastened on a couch instead. I counted the flowers and leaves on the pattern. Sovieshu sighed heavily, and did not look back when he left the room. Even after he was gone, I simply stood frozen.
I must have remained there for a while, when I noticed a figure sitting on the window sill. Queen was perched there with his beak open. The window hadn’t been shut, so he must have sat on the window sill and waited for me to notice him. Did he come in during the conversation?
Either way, I was fortunate. As I approached, Queen flew into my arms, and I squeezed his body tight and buried my face in between his feathers. Queen wrapped me with his large wings as best he could. I could hear his small heart beating loudly.
“Thank you…it’s so much better to have someone hold you.”
It was a hug better than a thousand words.