“Okay, Daisy, let’s bath together,” said Lucia.
Lucia gently picked up Daisy. Daisy shyly looked at Lucia’s face and was a bit scared, so she didn’t dare to boldly move around. Lucia softly giggled and hugged Daisy. Daisy rested her upper body next to Lucia’s neck and curiously touched Lucia’s ear. Lucia lingered for a moment while Daisy cheerfully laughed. She didn’t want to let go of Lucia’s ear after grabbing it.
“Ah, you’ve never seen an elf’s ears before, Daisy?”
Lucia bent over at the waist and placed Daisy into the hot water. Daisy didn’t want to let go. Lucia looked at her and gently twitched her ears, leading to Daisy laughing joyously. Lucia giggled in a gentle tone as she gently stroked Daisy’s head. She tenderly said, “Although I don’t like your Mom, I do quite like you, Daisy. You’re very cute, as well. Plus, your hair is very similar to His Highness’.”
Lucia stroked Daisy’s head. However, a displeased Nona, who was behind them, called out. Children experienced jealousy between each other, too, apparently. Lucia chuckled, and then turned around to give Nona, who had just finished having a bath and exuded a warm scent, a kiss on her belly. She grabbed Nona’s hand: “It’s all right. Mommy will be done soon. We’ll sleep afterwards. You must be a good girl tonight and not cry, Nona.”
“Uhm!” Nona nodded.
Vera, who was next to Nona, had started to doze off. Lucia turned back around to give Daisy her bath. She gently ran her fingers over Daisy’s ears, but then she suddenly paused. She clasped Daisy’s face and spaced out. Daisy was puzzled; she didn’t understand why Lucia suddenly froze. Lucia lamented, “His Highness doesn’t have long ears. This is how it feels when I clasp His Highness’s face. This was how I relished his face… I feel a little lonely now…”
Clear teardrops landed on the water surface. Lucia suddenly realised she was crying. She swiftly wiped her tears, and then took in a deep breath to stop herself from crying. She no longer seemed to be able to control her tears after her husband’s departure. Her tears were essentially always on standby. She’d shed tears when she saw the flower garden, when she saw the streets, when she saw the girls and then that night.
“I’m not grieving, so why am I still shedding tears? I’m not that sad. Maybe I’m already in so much pain that I no longer know what pain is. I miss His Highness more than words could describe. I miss him every waking moment. After all, all of this reminds me of him. His spirit lingers next to me, yet he’s no longer here. This is the same as when I was in the Shadow Squad. At the time, I didn’t have His Highness with me, but I was certain he’d appear. Now, however, he’s gone and will never return,” thought Lucia.
Lucia wiped her tears, and then finished Daisy’s bath. After wiping Daisy dry, she placed Daisy on the bed. Lucia revealed a hopeless, yet happy, smile when she saw the three girls on the bed. She said to herself, “His Majesty sure makes girls like him. Even his kids are three girls. But you’re all very cute. Mommy will probably be jealous of you when you grow up.”
Lucia touched the girls’ heads. Nevertheless, she stopped in her tracks when she went to climb onto her bed. She quickly spun around to cover them with the blanket. She went to grab a dagger before sneaking over to the door. Her light physique as an elf and her training with the Shadow Squad allowed her to tread virtually silently.
Lucia long ears twitched a little. She gently grabbed the door handle. She waited for a moment before yanking it, and then slamming it shut, producing a loud bang sound as the product of a collision. Lucia swung the door open again to see an individual trip into the room. Lucia ruthlessly kicked the individual, dislocated his arms and legs and then stomped on his crotch so that he couldn’t scream. She then picked him up by his neck and strangled him. She coldly looked at him and questioned, “Nobody is permitted entry into the inner palace of the Imperial Palace. You aren’t a maid or a guard. What do you want?”
Lucia searched him. She tossed side a dagger then frigidly glared at him: “You want to assassinate His Majesty?!”
The assassin struggled with all his might. His mouth, where he was drooling from, trembled. He continued struggling while replying, “No… I am not… assassinating His Majesty… I… I am not… assassinating His Majesty… I… I… am assassinating…Freya… Freya…”
*Snap!*
Lucia didn’t seem interested in waiting any longer; hence, she snapped his neck then hauled him outside and called for guards. She then turned around and went over to the bed. The girls had fallen asleep in the blanket. Lucia didn’t care whether they were assassinating Freya or not. The guards should’ve known what to do after seeing the corpse. All of the guards had to take responsibility, since they allowed somebody to infiltrate.
“If that violent woman was still here, she’d probably have taken the lives of the guards,” thought Lucia.
Lucia couldn’t care less for Freya’s life. Whether the people were after Freya or not had nothing to do with her. However, there was no way she’d allow the assassin to harm the children after he found his way to the wrong location.
The footsteps of the guards running over approached the room. The guards initiated a search for other assassins. Freya was safe, since she wasn’t in her room.
Lucia sighed. She tightly hugged the girls next to her and shut her eyes. Lucia felt she might have to wake up at night to protect those around her henceforth after the assassination attempt.
“His Highness doesn’t know swordplay, but why was I so reassured when I was by his side? It felt as though there was nobody in this world that could hurt me as long as His Highness was in my arms. That was the only way I felt safe…” Lucia wondered to herself. Lucia lied on the sofa and tightly hugged the pillow below her. In a hoarse voice, she whispered, “Your Majesty…”
Lucia shut her eyes. She always saw the sunny and bright city of Duargana in her dreams. Next to her was always a warm embrace, with that familiar scent floating by her nose. The aforementioned scent came from the man she loved most. It was a blissful scent nothing could compete with. It was impossible for her to see the man who grew up alongside her again… She thought to herself, “I can’t see him, but his warm smile in my dreams fills my dreams…”
============
Ling Yue squinted. She licked her fire-red fur. Most of Ling Yue’s fur had regrown. Her smooth and radiant fur led to her investing into her appearance again. The truth was, her fur started to concern her after she and her husband jumped into the water. After all, she wanted to present a perfect version of herself to her husband. If he came back to see her all messy, he wouldn’t be pleased.
Ling Yue’s abdomen almost bulged downward enough to touch the ground. She sprawled out on the ground all day as if she couldn’t stand up. Of course, she might’ve just been lazy.
After she was done licking her fur, Ling Yue raised her head to peer in Troy’s direction. Anxiety heightened, as she he didn’t know when Troy would be back. He hadn’t disappointed her, yet. Ling Yue firmly believed that, as long as he was still alive, then he wouldn’t forget her. Ever.
“He made me a promise. He promised to be by my side when I gave birth, so he’ll definitely come. He’ll definitely be back. He’ll definitely be back for my child’s birth,” Ling Yue believed.
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