“Ah, I feel like I can live now.”
As he embraced me with his large frame, a sound like a sigh escaped him, and I couldn’t help but laugh softly. I raised my hand to gently stroke Valery’s back. Surrounded by a warm scent that no longer distinguished between mine and his, I felt at ease.
“You worked hard today.”
“Anything else you want to say?”
“Hmm?”
What else could there be?
Did the doctor tell him even though I told her not to say anything? I wanted to surprise him, so I insisted on keeping it a secret… But Valery seemed too relaxed to know that secret.
But then, when should I tell him? I pondered this as I felt his warm breath on my neck.
“…There’s nothing else.”
“There must be something.”
“Really, there isn’t.”
“Bella…” His voice deepened.
I suppressed a smile and said, “I missed you.”
Finally, a satisfied chuckle echoed near my ear.
“I missed you too.”
Hearing what I longed to hear, Valery, who had been holding me tightly, checked my forehead and cheeks again for a fever.
“I’m not sick.”
“Still. But what happened today?”
“Why do you ask?”
“You look like you’re hiding something.”
It seemed impossible to deceive this man.
“Ah, that’s…”
Earlier, I couldn’t suppress my anticipation and called the doctor, Peiz.
“W-Where does it hurt? I’m sure you were fine just yesterday…”
“No, it’s not that. I’ve been feeling sleepy while working; maybe it’s spring fatigue, so I thought I’d ask if there’s any medication for that.”
I found it hard to say I wanted to confirm if I was pregnant, so I beat around the bush as soon as I saw Peiz.
“Haa, I thought… Are you really not feeling sick?”
“You always take good care of me; how could I be sick?”
“What symptoms do you have?”
“I feel a bit feverish when I wake up, and I’ve been unusually sleepy. It’s like I’m not digesting well and keep yawning.”
“Hmm… I’ll take a quick look, Your Majesty.”
She checked my pulse and used a stethoscope. Peiz seemed puzzled as she examined me.
“It seems there’s nothing wrong… When did you start feeling these symptoms?”
“Actually, it’s been…”
Perhaps it’s not like I thought. Feeling guilty for making her come for nothing, I quietly added that I might be pregnant. Her eyes widened.
“Oh no…! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?!”
The startled doctor, excited, then hushed her voice. Worried she would have to tell Valery about it first, I calmed her down. Really, who is the patient here? I reassured the now-calm doctor.
“Just check for now. The symptoms haven’t been for long. Just a few days… maybe longer, and I didn’t notice. It could just be a cold. So, you can take it lightly.”
“Haha, I’m Your Majesty’s doctor, how can I take it lightly?”
After calling the doctor over and adding explanations several times, Peiz, happier than I, burst into laughter.
After Peiz examined me for a while without saying much, I became anxious.
“How is it? Is it true?”
“Your Majesty.”
“Just tell me without pressure. If it were that easy, it would have happened by now. Really, don’t feel pressured.”
“I’m sorry, I still can’t feel anything…”
“It’s okay. I thought so.”
Trying not to show disappointment, Peiz suddenly exclaimed as if she remembered something.
“Your Majesty, may I check again?”
“There’s no need to…”
There’s no reason not to trust her.
As I was about to refuse again, this time Peiz took both my hands. It was the first time she held my hands for reasons other than medical.
“Remember when you were very sick…? You didn’t respond to ordinary medicine, so you took a potion made by the Magic Tower and recovered quickly.”
“Ah… yes.”
“At that time, I received a conception-detecting potion from them. It can be detected even in the very early stages.”
“…”
“I’m a doctor, and without a certain number of weeks, I can’t confirm by myself. If it’s okay with you, shall we check using that?”
I hesitated again.
“But if it’s not…”
“Your Majesty has never talked about this before. I also feel it’s different than before. Of course, as a doctor, I don’t rely on superstition.”
Reluctantly agreeing because she might worry, I let her use the liquid to draw blood from my finger. If the blood spread or sank, it meant not pregnant, but if the droplet stayed round and floated, it indicated pregnancy. Those few seconds felt like ten years.
“Your Majesty!”
When the truth was confirmed, I was so overwhelmed. It felt scary too.
“We must tell His Majesty! Hurry!”
“Peiz, please, calm down. Who’s the patient here?”
“I-I’m sorry, but I can’t keep such happy news to myself!”
“Shh. I’ll tell him myself, so keep it a secret until then.”
“I feel like I might not last that long.”
“I’ll talk about it today. So, keep quiet. If you let it slip, it really might shorten your life.”
But later, I thought maybe I should have let Peiz break the news.
Standing before Valery, I felt shy about speaking.
“Go on.”
His large hands cupped my cheeks. As always, he looked intently into my eyes, waiting for my reply.
I took a deep breath and said, “Valery, what if,”
“Yes?”
“That is…”
Has it ever been this hard to speak? Even when I openly shared grievances with Valery, confessions of love, which I usually found embarrassing, weren’t like this.
“It’s okay, go on. I’m listening.”
Reassuring me, his warm hand caressed my cheeks and eyes. Though his hands were calloused from sword training, his touch was gentle without a trace of roughness.
“It seems… we might be having a baby.”
The thumb that had been caressing my cheek froze. He stopped breathing. His lack of reaction made it seem as if time itself had stopped.
Tears welled up in my eyes before I even realized.
