Chapter 114: Blood does not make a Mother

Crack, crack, crack.

Even Philip’s teachings were useless on the hard stone floor. My footsteps echoed in the space, mocking my efforts to walk silently.

A narrow and steep staircase continued. It was narrow and high enough that someone with claustrophobia or acrophobia couldn’t even set foot on it.

Finally reaching the top, I was out of breath. I stood in place for a moment and looked down. The wind entering through the open arch, offering a panoramic view of Noberten, cooled my flushed face. The cloudy sky looked dreary.

After catching my breath, I moved my steps again. Clack, clack. Was it just my imagination? My footsteps seemed to echo louder than when climbing the stairs.

The destination soon came into view. Behind the dense iron bars, in the deepest corner of the space clearly intended for confinement, he was there. I stood before the iron bars.

Wrapped entirely in cloth, he was huddled up tight.

He even let out sounds of gasping for breath more urgently than me who just climbed the high stairs. It was clear that the sound of my footsteps scared the person trying to hide in the corner beyond the iron bars.

Clang, as the wind shook the iron bars, the confined person screamed hic in surprise. He even tried to tighten the cloth already covering his whole body more firmly.

It was the same as when the King pushed him off the platform.

He, the Queen Consort, was still absorbed in covering his body marked with pockmarks.

The one ousted from the position of Queen Consort. Now his residence was not the Queen Consort’s palace with the rose garden blooming even in midwinter, but the top of a spire unable to block the chilly wind of early winter.

The cloth covering his body was also not expensive and soft silk but rough blanket, which was different from then. Not caring about scratches on his body wrapped in cloth softer than skin all his life, he is desperate to cover his body. The position of Queen Consort obtained by abandoning lover and child, and the expensive rubies used to bloom the red garden seemed less important to the current him than that worn-out blanket.

“Did you come to mock me?”

Did he finally feel sure he covered his body completely? Or did he want to remove my gaze staring at him somehow? He spoke in a gloomy voice.

I didn’t answer. Nor did I turn my gaze away from him.

Wheezing breathing sounds were heard. He seemed unable to endure my gaze more and more.

“I asked if you came to mock me, who lost the father, the richest man in Henia, the brother, the strongest Alpha of the next generation, and the position of Queen Consort!”

Along with the agitated voice, the scent of young roses flowed. But soon he screamed aack. The rose scent that wafted briefly scattered in an instant. The cold wind blowing just in time erased even the residual scent.

Heuk. The sound of swallowing tears rang.

The only dominant Omega born outside the royal family. Designated as Queen Consort since childhood, he lost his power. Like his father, Count Umbra, and his brother, Spes Umbra.

Still, his situation is better than theirs. Count Umbra and Spes Umbra became idiots. Not only them but all others who moved as the King’s puppets lost their reason. It’s the result of the King moving twisted power as he pleased.

And they are now waiting for their execution in the underground prison.

“I am already miserable enough.”

Perhaps the Queen Consort’s words might be right. Since those trapped underground without a ray of sunlight waiting for execution actually cannot understand what situation they are in.

The voice mixed with crying trembled terribly.

I can understand his position. It’s natural for anyone to feel their own circumstances as the hardest and biggest.

But I didn’t come to soothe his crying.

Except for those who became the King’s puppets, other nobles are recovering slowly. The Prime Minister, most severely injured, became unable to move his legs in the future, but no news was heard about anomalies in pheromones or magical power.

The King didn’t move the Queen Consort like a puppet. It means there is no way something happened to the Queen Consort’s pheromones due to the incident at the victory ceremony.

Duchess Mare, who confined him in this spire, was quite dumbfounded. Because a huge amount of rubies, Pigeon Blood at that, were found contaminated in the Queen Consort’s palace.

To purchase rubies produced from her biological father Count Umbra’s Rubrum Mine, the Queen Consort wasted the national treasury.

Duchess Mare judged the Queen Consort embezzled the national treasury and confined him in this spire.

“Since when did your pheromones weaken?”

At my question, the Queen Consort’s crying stopped abruptly. Inhaling breath urgently hup, he started trembling. He even pulled the cloth covering his body tighter.

It was an attitude equivalent to answering that it has been a long time since his pheromones started weakening.

“Did you want to fix your pockmarked skin?”

Although no answer returned as expected, I could easily notice he was affirming my words.

With blood-red rubies, Pigeon Blood, he wanted to recover his ruined body. Traces of persistent research were also found. Ruby was the symbol of the Henia royal family and meant bloodline itself. He believed blood-colored rubies could clear his poisoned blood.

Foolish belief.

The poison he drank himself to erase me in the womb ruined his body. And he devoted his whole life to fixing that ruined body.

“Have you never thought of getting a prescription from Dr. Bonum? He is an authority on herbology.”

“…Did you come to me to confirm that fact?”

This time I responded with silence, and the Queen Consort seemed to interpret my silence as affirmation.

“I have heard your voice. You must be the guy who was beside the King’s Brother on that day, that terrible day. Liberalis Sella, was it? Are you trying to interrogate me, a mere country bumpkin recessive Omega?”

And that touched a nerve.

“Do you think you have that much qualification? Do you think the King’s Brother’s prestige is yours? Don’t be mistaken. How long do you think the willful dominant Alpha will keep you by his side? You will be abandoned soon!”

While remembering my voice heard in that chaotic situation, he seemed not to remember the King calling me a dominant Omega. It probably means he can’t accept it rather than really having no memory.

The Queen Consort pouring curses on me gasped for breath. He showed a visibly weakened appearance. Even though there was no physical damage despite his situation changing overnight.

The words poured on me were practically confessing the treatment he received from the King. The most honorable position of Queen Consort made him unhappy.

“…Is there anything else you want to hear?”

Barely catching his breath, he shuddered. As if unable to endure me not taking my eyes off him.

“I knew the King was becoming stranger since he drank the drug received from him. I never drank the drug received from that guy.”

He seems to want to send back the stranger examining him as soon as possible.

“I am not crazy.”

Wrapping his whole body with the blanket so not even a single strand of hair could escape, the Queen Consort said in a tired voice.

“…I see.”

I didn’t intend to interrogate him. Nor did I intend to torment him.

I was just curious. If he could recognize me.

It was curiosity born because I also came to have a child.

But that person deeply fallen into self-pity seemed unable to even properly remember the fact that he gave birth to a child, let alone recognize me. No, he probably doesn’t want to remember. Since he wouldn’t want to recall the cause of his body being ruined again.

I turned my body. Resonating clack clack footsteps, I moved away from the iron bars. Relieved breathing sounds were heard. Also rustling sounds finding a more secluded corner.

But soon a strong wind blew and erased those sounds. I went down the narrow stairs again.

The regular stairs spiraling the spire erased the sense of distance. I couldn’t tell how much further I had to go down to end. Just as I felt dizziness and thought about resting for a moment.

Footsteps were heard from below.

The space where walls and stairs were all made of stone amplified sound. I could understand a little why the Queen Consort acted so sensitively.

Another footstep followed. It sounded close enough to think I would encounter the person climbing these stairs as soon as I turned the corner.

The Queen Consort and I are not the same person.

He was busy hiding his body hearing my footsteps, but those footsteps I hear now breathed strength into my tiring legs.

Even though he gave birth to me, he is a completely different person from me.

With renewed realization, I hurried down the stairs.

Before I knew it, the end of the stairs was near. Light was visible.

“Jay.”

The person standing on the stairs calling me was naturally Philius.

“Is it okay to run?”

He looked up at me with a furrowed brow.

“I think I’m okay though.”

It’s rare for me to look down at him. In the unfamiliar composition, he looked a little anxious.

“Not cold?”

“That’s also fine.”

To be honest, I couldn’t be cold. Since I’m wearing thick outer clothes and a brooch engraved with a temperature control magic circle. Yet he examined me frowning with one eye.

Because what he really wants to know is not my body but the state of my mind.

“I am really fine.”

Philius disapproved of me climbing the tower alone to meet the Queen Consort. Still, he understood my words that I wanted to see him once.

Therefore he let me climb the tower alone, and couldn’t wait until the end for me to come down.

Even saying I’m fine repeatedly, his expression didn’t smooth out. I knew the reason. Not because he couldn’t believe my words saying I’m fine, but because he didn’t like the formal language directed at him.

“…I’m fine, really.”

At my words, his frowned eyes smoothed out. Those eyes even slowly drew arcs.

The distinctly changed expression wasn’t made intentionally. For him, it was a natural change. So I felt a little troubled.

“Shall we go.”

I nodded instead of answering with words.

Philius laughed shortly and turned his body. His hand reached backward.

Holding that hand, I went down the narrow stairs.

Philius matched my steps. Neither urging nor stopping me.

I won’t set foot in this place again. Although they say the future cannot be affirmed, I could clearly know that fact alone.

The spire was located in the most remote place within the royal palace. Therefore, the sense of desolation I could feel was only momentary. After moving steps for a while, a chaotic atmosphere was felt everywhere.

“It’s busy.”

Erasing traces of the past and welcoming a new owner couldn’t be easy. Even more so if it’s the royal palace’s affair. Although the etiquette servants should possess ought to be much stricter than a mere ducal residence, the movements of people coming and going were just urgent. Enough to see some sweating even in the chilly early winter weather.

Ahem. Philius coughed at my formal language rather than such surrounding circumstances. So I felt a little troubled again.

“Are we not late?”

I’m not trying to be stubborn for no reason. Having all daily conversations with him in informal language is still awkward for me.

Just as the gazes of people passing by glancing at me walking hand in hand with him even amidst busyness are awkward.

“It would be better if we are late.”

The voice containing faint laughter harbored the meaning that he would let it pass for today.

The scent of the forest wafted. Those who saw my face now will forget the fact that we were here.

The royal palace’s circle, having lost its key, showed no reaction.

We walked quite a long way. The appearance of the main palace, which should stand most magnificently, was not seen no matter how much we walked. Instead, debris scattered on a wide site that could be described as vast was visible.

Some mages were seen moving marble blocks several times larger than themselves. Perhaps having worked for quite a long time, the movement of magical power was precarious.

Existing royal mages were all confined underground for the crime of siding with the former King. Duchess Mare hurriedly appointed royal mages, but couldn’t fill the quota. The level of mages is also said to be not as good as before.

It will take a long time to return to before. Building a new main palace was a challenge starting from preparing the budget bill. Whether that budget bill can pass the parliament is also unknown.

Duchess Mare would want to grab the collar of the former King who already returned to soil.

Although the corpse of the man who was once King, thoroughly crushed and fragmented, was burned without being properly recovered.

In Henia, no matter how poor, no one cremates. Even if burying secretly in land with an owner. It was to preserve the body to live in God’s country someday. Therefore, damaging or burning a corpse meant being abandoned by God.

The man who acted like a god was abandoned by the people of this land. Not by a God who might or might not exist.

“The rose scent is too strong.”

The feeling like smelling an acrid scent was an illusion. What the wind carried was, as Philius said, a thick rose scent.

The same scent the man confined in the spire emitted.

Unlike that man’s scent which disappeared quickly, the scent emitted by the Rose Garden wide enough to fill the view is terrible.

Suddenly a cold sensation fell on my cheek.

“It’s snowing.”

The sky looked cloudy, and snow began to fall. The thin snow like rain melted as soon as it reached the Rose Garden and spread like fog.

“Aren’t you cold?”

Someone might describe it as a magnificent view, but Philius frowned.

“As I said earlier, I’m fine.”

“But it wouldn’t be good either.”

His words were right. Before going to the New Continent, Philius had to wait in this garden all day for the King. To get permission to go to the battlefield. Without being able to use magic.

Did he say he would be confined in the tower if he used unauthorized magic in the royal palace?

Right, the King back then would have found fault no matter what magic Philius used. So Philius had no choice but to stand all day exposed to the cold like now, in a place outside the influence of the magic circle installed in the garden.

Duchess Mare, she who will soon become Queen, did she call us here knowing that fact?

Or did she intend to appreciate the trace of the former King about to disappear for the last time?

Her figure was seen in the distance.