The Forgotten Field - Chapter 92

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

Chapter 92
The sharp scent of deep water and acrid mint flooded my lungs.
Talia gazed up at him with trembling eyes. Barcas, bowing his head toward her, whispered something low against her ear.
“If Your Highness makes such a fuss, there’s little point in sharing the same chamber, is there?”
His reproachful tone snapped me back to reality. She swatted his hand away and hastily recoiled.
As distance opened between them, his smooth, sculpted form came into full view.
Talia quickly averted her gaze downward.
“Put some clothes on! Have you no shame?”
She hissed the rebuke in a hushed voice, and a faint crease appeared between his brows.
Barcas shook his head as though exasperated, rising to his feet and speaking flatly.
“That’s rich coming from someone who used to parade through the Imperial Palace half-naked.”
“When did I ever—!”
Talia’s head snapped up indignantly, but she fell silent upon seeing him pull on a fresh shirt. As Barcas threaded his arms through the sleeves, he delivered a pointed remark.
“From the time your coming-of-age ceremony approached, you began clumsily imitating the Empress.”
Talia’s face twisted with humiliation.
Memories of those desperate days, when she had flailed about trying to capture even a shred of his attention, came flooding back, and sorrow welled up in her throat.
She snatched the pillow from the head of the bed and struck his back with all her strength.
“Now that you’ve become someone who can never dream of wearing such garments again, you must be absolutely delighted!”
Barcas, fastening his buttons, turned to regard her with a chilling gaze.
Talia’s indignation faltered, and her body went rigid. Since the incident, Barcas had silently endured every fit of irritability she displayed. Yet his patience seemed finally beginning to fray.
The man’s merciless eyes bore down on her as he climbed onto the bed. Talia rolled instinctively toward the opposite side, attempting to flee, but a firm arm wrapped around her waist.
Pinned back down in an instant, Talia stared up at him with wide, tense eyes.
He was the man who, whenever she spiraled into uncontrollable hysteria, would use brute force to subdue her decisively. Though his rough actions were not entirely unfamiliar, her heart still plummeted.
Barcas leaned his face close and spoke with menace.
“You should break that habit of striking out.”
Talia looked up at him with frightened eyes. His expressionless gaze settled on her lips, which throbbed from being bitten so much. He continued slowly.
“And the habit of self-harm as well.”
My heart, which had been creaking uncertainly, began to thunder as though it might burst.
I couldn’t tell if it was fear or something else entirely.
She squeezed her eyes shut.
“Move… move away.”
“…”
“I said move, didn’t you hear?”
Barcas didn’t budge. Under his relentless stare, her lips grew parched and raw.
She hid her scabbed lip inside her mouth. Observing this through narrowed eyes, Barcas released the hand that had been gripping her wrist. But before she could use her newfound freedom, her chin was seized.
Talia drew in a ragged breath. Calloused fingers forced her bitten lip open. A moisture-laden fingertip brushed across the swollen mucous membrane.
“Stop mistreating your lips.”
Talia gazed up at him, her eyes clouded with anxiety and confusion.
Had anyone else touched her in such a manner, she would have interpreted it as desire. During her time frequenting Senevir’s Banquet Hall, hadn’t she encountered countless men desperate to lay their hands upon her body?
Yet the absence of any hunger in his expressionless face muddled her judgment. What felt to her like a grip upon her very heart seemed to him utterly devoid of meaning.
Talia exhaled the breath she’d been holding.
“Yes, yes, I understand… just go.”
At her pleading voice, those eyes containing fragments of silver lifted upward. The fathomless depths of his gaze seemed to strip away all reason.
Talia habitually extended her tongue to moisten her lips. Then the tip of her tongue brushed against his thumb, and her face flushed crimson. Barcas observed her reaction with careful attention, as though checking whether she truly disliked it.
Feeling utterly exposed, cold sweat beaded on her forehead. Unable to bear the silence any longer, Talia blurted out desperately.
“My legs hurt.”
Barcas hesitated.
She twisted her head to the side and repeated in a strained voice.
“I woke up because of the pain. P-please call the Healer.”
Only then did he finally step back.
Like a beast escaping a trap, Talia scrambled to the corner of the bed. Barcas watched her retreat with a contemplative gaze, then sighed softly and turned away.
“I’ve already prepared medicine.”
“I don’t need medicine. A sleeping draught works a hundred times better, they say. If you call my Healer, she’ll handle it herself…”
At her blunt words, a cold gaze descended upon her once more. Talia trailed off and pulled the blanket up to her chin.
Barcas retrieved a glass vial from the shelf and opened it, offering it to her. Talia glared at it as though it were her sworn enemy before reluctantly accepting it. It was the same medicine she’d been forced to swallow on her first day in the Eastern Territories—medicine she’d poured into flowerpots every time since.
She squeezed her eyes shut and choked down the bitterly acrid liquid as though it might scorch her tongue.
He took the empty vial naturally and laid her back on the bed. His matter-of-fact manner, as though handling a ten-year-old child, only complicated her thoughts further.
What had that been just now? Had he meant to frighten her? Or…?
“Rest now. You’ll need sufficient sleep to manage tomorrow’s schedule.”
As he adjusted her blanket, her train of thought snapped.
Talia watched him as one might observe a viper, never knowing when it might strike.
Whether aware of her vigilance or not, Barcas dimmed the lamp and walked to the corner of the tent. He sat before a table and opened what appeared to be a ledger, examining the financial records of this place.
Talia wondered when he might lie beside her, watching his monotonous form in hushed observation. But as the night deepened, he remained motionless at the desk.
Eventually, she was the first to succumb to exhaustion.
At some point, Talia fell asleep and awoke the next morning alone in the empty tent. The anxiety that had kept her tense all night—worrying about sharing a bed with him—now seemed utterly pointless.
With drowsy eyes still heavy with sleep, Talia surveyed the dim interior of the tent bathed in dawn light and released a deflated sigh.
He had promised nothing would happen. So why had she worried so much?
“Miss, you’re awake?”
As she carefully examined the space beside her for any trace of him, the Nursemaid’s voice called from outside the tent.
Talia unsteadily climbed down from the bed.
“I’m up.”
Soon the Nursemaid entered the tent with quick, mincing steps, balancing a large tray on her head.
“Did you sleep well last night, miss?”
She appeared to be in unusually high spirits. The Nursemaid, her mouth curved in a gentle smile, set down the tray laden with food and chattered away.
“I’ve brought breakfast. This time, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it, miss. The administrator here prepared everything so generously last evening, and everything was delicious.”
Talia frowned and looked down at the gilt-edged dishes. They were piled high with porridge made from various grains, rough-looking white bread, pungent cheese, and thick jam. The mere sight of it made her stomach turn.
“Never mind all that. Just bring me some mead.”
“I can’t do that. The Grand Duke scolded me quite severely for not properly managing your meals. Would it be alright if I received punishment from him?”
Talia picked up a piece of bread and examined it from all angles, checking for any flies or debris, before giving the Nursemaid a suspicious look.
The Nursemaid was one who firmly believed that the Emperor harbored affection for his illegitimate daughter in some corner of his heart. This time too, she was likely reading too much into a casually thrown remark.
Talia’s words came out sharp and accusatory.
“Where has the Grand Duke gone so early in the morning?”

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