The Forgotten Field - Chapter 115

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 115
A fierce wind swept across the Garden at that very moment. Beyond the wildly scattering strands of hair, Senevir’s silhouette blurred into obscurity.
Talia, who had been rigid as a statue, cast her gaze toward the Pond where ripples disturbed the surface. More than the news she had delivered, it was Senevir’s attitude of treating her own suffering as entertainment that truly pierced her heart.
She suppressed the turmoil within and forced out a measured voice.
“Surely you didn’t travel such a distance merely to relay such gossip? It appears the Empress has far more leisure time than I imagined.”
“That couldn’t possibly be the case.”
As if her interest had waned at the bland response, the Empress’s lips drooped.
“I told you. I wanted to see with my own eyes how you and your husband actually live together. And if possible, I intended to try persuading Grand Duke Sierkan.”
A sigh tinged with disappointment escaped between her lips.
“But it had no effect whatsoever. Your husband seems determined to make Gareth Emperor after all.”
“Then what exactly did you expect?”
Talia let out a nervous laugh.
“Did you truly believe he would change his position simply because he married me?”
“I cannot claim I harbored no such expectations.”
Senevir answered flatly, gazing toward the Castle Walls bathed in the glow of sunset.
A fallen leaf carried on the wind brushed against her cheek. Senevir caught it as if snatching it from the air, twirling it between her fingertips before crumbling it to dust and continuing.
“Barcas has always shown emotional reactions only toward you. I have long noticed that something about you stimulates him. That is why I hoped you would shake him more actively.”
Senevir released the crumbled leaf to the wind and turned her head toward Talia. Reading reproach in her gaze, Talia’s face hardened.
The Empress, who had been directing a look of censure at the daughter who had disappointed her, turned her head toward the Knights waiting in the distance and added.
“In fact, your husband seems quite concerned about you. His vigilance against any harm coming to you was rather refreshing.”
….
“But regrettably, he does not seem to value you enough to break a long-standing promise.”
Talia, looking up at her with a drained face, forcibly steadied her crumbling expression.
It was a fact she already knew. There was no reason to be wounded anew by it now.
She lifted her head with rigid dignity.
“I… do not care in the slightest whom Barcas supports. Whether Gareth becomes Emperor or Astros becomes Emperor, it has nothing to do with me. So please do not drag me into your conflict!”
“You are already part of this struggle.”
Eyes as fathomless as an abyss suddenly drew close. The Empress, leaning her head forward intently, spoke as if etching words into her mind.
“That was decided on the day you were born. Do you truly believe Emperor Gareth would tolerate your existence?”
Talia could find no words to refute and merely moved her lips soundlessly.
She stated coldly and decisively.
“Gareth will not care in the slightest that you are the Grand Duke’s wife of the Eastern Territories. That child will seek to destroy you even if it means making an enemy of House Sierkan. Barcas Laedgo Sierkan seems to believe he can stop Gareth, but he has not realized that doing so would require him to kill Gareth with his own hands.”
Words akin to prophecy burrowed between her vertebrae.
Before Talia could even mount a rebuttal, Senevir pressed forward relentlessly.
“Your husband is blind when it comes to emotion. Trapped within the fortress of reason, he can never perceive human madness. That man cannot see Gareth’s hatred, nor Aila’s love. He does not comprehend how destructive hatred can be, nor how far love can debase a human being. Your husband will inevitably contribute to the ruin of you, me, and Astros.”
Talia stepped backward as if to deny that truth. Strong fingers then tightened against her skin.
Senevir, gripping her daughter’s shoulders forcefully, finally broached the true purpose.
“So Talia, you must help me.”
“What… could I possibly do? I have no power whatsoever…!”
“You will bear the heir to the Grand Duke’s House.”
Talia’s eyes froze over. The sudden declaration evaporated every coherent thought.
Even as the howling wind seemed to fade into oblivion, Senevir’s demands continued relentlessly.
“And you’ll make that child Astros’s friend. Just as your husband remains loyal to Gareth, your son will become my son’s devoted servant.”
“Stop… stop saying such nonsense!”
Talia thrashed against her, screaming to break free.
“Isn’t one of me enough? Now you want to use an unborn child for your ambitions too? Why should I? Why would I…!”
“Because it’s the only way you’ll survive.”
Senevir’s tone grew even more vicious.
“Don’t you understand that if Astros doesn’t become Emperor, you’re finished too? Gareth is your enemy as well. For the past decade, you’ve relentlessly reopened those children’s wounds. Surely you didn’t believe you could escape all that karma simply by leaving the Imperial Palace? After stealing even Aila’s betrothed?”
“That was because Mother made me…!”
“Every decision was yours.”
A fierce voice cut off Talia’s protest.
“Regardless of my demands, you must bear a child. If you fail to produce an heir, not only Gareth but the Eastern Territories’ nobility will demand a divorce. Then what will your husband do?”
A sharp sneer played at the corners of Senevir’s lips.
“Answer me, Talia. Will Barcas Laedgo Sierkan protect you even if he turns his back on the Crown Prince, Aila, his own blood, and his retainers?”
The cruel question thawed Talia’s frozen state, and she cried out in desperation.
“If Barcas wants a divorce, let him have one. If Gareth wants me dead… then so be it! I never asked to be born anyway…!”
Like a cornered beast, Talia’s wail caught in her throat the next moment. The contempt gleaming in Senevir’s eyes stripped away her will to resist in an instant.
The woman who had once been my entire world stared down at me with disillusionment and spoke.
“Do you know? Many beasts abandon their weak offspring. It increases their own survival chances and those of their stronger young.”
I met those murky eyes with a vacant stare. She finally voiced aloud the threat she had whispered with her eyes for so long.
“But humans, unlike animals, cannot so easily abandon their own children. That is why I have not abandoned you until now.”
Soft fingers, delicate as flower petals, descended upon cheeks drained of all vitality. Only then did I realize I was weeping.
Mimicking the tender touch of a mother comforting her daughter, Senevir whispered gently against my ear.
“You won’t believe me, but Talia, I do have feelings. The day you were born, I felt them. You were beautiful, so like me, and watching you grow brought me joy. That emotion is what prevented me from abandoning you when you became useless.”
My mother’s form wavered beyond the endless stream of tears. Yet her voice, echoing in my ears, only grew clearer.
“So don’t disappoint me anymore.”
I bit my lips.
The bitter salt of tears and the metallic taste of blood mingled on my tongue. Sobs choked my throat, stealing my breath.
“You understand what I mean, don’t you?”
I barely managed a nod before ice-cold lips touched my eyes.
Is this what it feels like to be kissed by a corpse?
As I gazed endlessly up at Senevir’s satisfied smile, my eyes fell to the Garden shrouded in twilight. Our intertwined shadows stretched grotesquely long, like deformed monsters.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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