'…..Who the hell is it at this hour?'
Frowning, she looked out the window.
Swaaaaah-
It was raining quite hard and the sound of the rain hitting the window was clearly audible. With how the thunder was striking and the lightning was flashing at this hour, she certainly wasn't expecting anyone during this dark dawn. The two she was expecting wouldn't knock but then just let themselves in.
Once again, a knock at the door was heard. Kalia pushed herself up into a sitting position on the rocking chair. She put down the hat she was holding and picked up a sword mounted above the fireplace.
Approaching the door without deliberately hiding the sound of her footsteps, she asked in a quiet voice, "Who is it?"
"…."
There was no response to her low and heavy voice, which raised her vigilance. Kalia continued her silent battle with the opponent beyond the door for a while. Even though she heightened her senses to the fullest, the loud thunder and the sound of rain erased any sound from the person outside.
Without a choice, her grip on the sword tightened even more. The opponent, who had been silent for a long while, knocked on the door again. The knocking came at a constant, steady speed but grew rough at some point.
Knock knock. Knock knock knock!
By then, the existence beyond the door felt suspicious and annoying to Kalia.
She didn't know who was on the other side, but after checking, she decided she should definitely kick them out.
"Ugh."
Once again, she grabbed her stomach from the pain that came with the clenching of her stomach.
The contraction was so strong she doubled over at her waist.
"Ugh."
She had never uttered a single moan of pain but the pains from the contraction was completely different from any sensation she had ever experienced. It felt as if all her intestines were being crushed and it was so painful she felt like she was going to burst. Her stomach churned and her belly jolted. Despite doing her best to endure the pain, biting her lips and holding back her groans, she eventually had to sit back down with one arm wrapped around her swollen stomach. She was dripping with cold sweat.
'No, Shasha. Not yet. You can't come out now. Please wait, wait just a little more, okay? That's my good boy.'
Seuuuu. Heuu. 1
Kalia took several deep breaths to catch her breath and once again, tightened the grip on the handle of her sword.
As she endured the pains, the sound of knocking at the door had turned into the sound of the doorknob being twisted instead. She continued to take slow breaths to steady her breathing and her grip kept tightening on the sword in response to the waves of pain until her knuckles were white with force.
Clink. 2
Whoo. She let out another breath.
The pain that probably only lasted two to three minutes felt like an eternity long. She could hear a faint voice coming from outside the door, but she couldn't concentrate enough to properly hear with the pain and over the sound of rain.
" …Lia. Open….. door."
The timing could not have been worse.
If the opponent was an enemy, it seemed she only had it in her to deliver a single blow. Heck, she might be taken out with a single blow with her current state. It'd be at least 10 more minutes of contractions and pain. If it really was an enemy, she had to deal with them right away.
Using her sword as a crutch, she leaned her weight on it and waited for her pain to subside. The sound of incoherent muttering and the turning of the knob soon stopped. Whoever it was turned the doorknob once and thankfully didn't seem to be trying to force the door open. Little by the little, the pain was fading away. Due to receding pain, the movements behind the door became clearer to understand than before.
Another knock on the door sounded again. The sound wasn't harsh like someone was pounding or slapping the door, instead, it was a little blunter and softer sound. Though the sound wasn't harsh, there seemed to be an urgency to the knocks. The voice seemed to be getting closer too….
'…Lia.'
The voice was a bit hoarse, the sound low and mellow. It was a sound that somehow felt very nostalgic. She tried to hone in on the voice, but Shasha in her belly wouldn't leave his mother alone.
"Oh, god…..!" In an instant, the tolerable pain turned into sharp pains that felt like her uterus was being squeezed.
Kalia felt cold sweat running down her cheek and all she could think was: 'I don't think these are false labour pains.'
Her muscles clenched as if her body was preparing to release the baby. The baby in her stomach struggled as if he felt the movement of the uterus trying to push him out.
Seuuuu. Hoo.
Clank!3
Kalia eventually lost her grip on the sword; it was taking her all to focus on breathing. She bent down, inhaling and exhaling deeply, concentrating only on the fact that this pain would soon be over.
Allen had said Shasha was an unusually big baby. He had warned her that he was much heavier than other babies and his struggle to get out would be vigorous.
Even in the midst of the unrelenting pain with her face pale and chewing on the inside of her mouth, Kalia was relieved, thinking that it was fortunate that Shasha seemed healthy. Just then, the door that had been clinking was opened with a bang. The door was definitely locked but it opened smoothly. As if it wasn't locked from the beginning.
The incoming rush of wind extinguished the fire in the fireplace, the warm air dampened by the chilly air pouring in and rain pelted in.
'I'm screwed.' 4
With clenched teeth, she grabbed the dropped sword and raised her head. Frowning, her eyes fluttered open and looked at the feet of the person who had stepped inside her house. Her gaze locked on the man's clean shoes and his white trouser's hem and trailed upwards. Before she could identify the intruder, the other's scent mixed with the smell of rainwater hit her. It was a refreshing, clean and extremely sexy scent. It had been awhile but the nostalgic scent was not at all unfamiliar to her. Finally, Kalia's slow gaze reached the man's jawline. Bypassing the neck and coming to that sharp jawline, she could also see lips that were moderately thick5 and moist.
Ah, she knew those lips.
Those lips that became softer and sweeter than anything else in the world when kissed could also spit out the harshest words. Her brow, wrinkled in pain, rose in surprise for a moment. She could see that the man had only taken one single step through the open door. He must have been so mesmerized and in shock really at what he saw that he could only take one step in.
"You…."
The wind blew in with the rain, messing with his silver hair. With pale cheeks and shaking eyes, he could only stare blankly at her. He dared not approach any further and had practically turned into stone with how frozen6 he was. The man watched her crotched figure clutching her big belly.
"…Simon."
All Simon could do was stare at Kalia, who was drenched in cold sweat, clutching her full belly with a face as pale as a corpse.
***
Though it was already dawn, the rain was unrelenting, coming down hard with no signs of stopping. Amid the rumbling thunder, Simon stood in front of a white brick house.
It was a small and lovely house, completely different from the Kalia's mansion in the capital. White curtains were drawn over the small windows, but it couldn't stop some orange light from leaking out. The brightest one seemed to be the living room window. The fire's shadow flickered and danced over the curtain.
Standing in front of the door, Simon clenched and unclenched his tense hands several times. His whole body was soaking wet from the pouring rain, but he didn't care.
"…It's fine to go see her, but promise me one thing. Don't be too surprised. Also, absolutely do not startle Kalia. No matter what she looks like, don't press her too hard. Please." Humming had grabbed Simon as he was about to leave and begged him earnestly.
What the hell was Kalia like for her to request that of him so desperately?
Was she seriously injured somewhere?
Or maybe she was cursed?
If not…
Maybe she's become so skinny that it would render him speechless?
He had a lot on his mind. He couldn't figure out the reason for Humming's request.
The man who was said to have held Kalia's hand affectionately – Allen – he was definitely a doctor.
Was she so ill that she had to go around with a doctor?
Even with that kind of circumstance, it wasn't enough reason for Kalia to leave him or the empire behind.
With a fire going in the fireplace, she was most likely on the first floor. Recalling Humming's desperate request not to startle Kalia, Simon carefully raised his hand. He took a short but deep breath and knocked on the door with his cold fist.
Knock knock knock.
Simon's heart trembled like it was going to burst with each knock on the door. The higher one's rank7, the more developed one's body and senses were. His keen sense of hearing caught the sound of a person approaching from the other side of the door.
Sigh.
With each thump of his beating heart, it felt like it was going to break open his ribs and pop out. If it wasn't for Humming's warning, he'd run right in there, grab her like a beast, and hold her until she suffocated8. But he persevered9.
He was afraid that he would see her in a sick state and upon doing so, would startle Kalia and result in her looking at him with guarded, wary eyes. At any rate, if Kalia was to look at him with a sharp gaze, Simon's heart would surely break.
"Who is it?"
....It's Kalia. It was Kalia's voice.
Simon bit his lips in a daze, jaw clenching as his emotions surged. His throat was so choked up that he could barely breathe, let alone answer her question. He settled for knocking on the door once again in reply. Almost crying, the hand knocking on her door became urgent as his emotions soared.
"Kalia. Please open the door." Clenching his jaw, he managed to call her, but his voice was so small that it couldn't reach beyond the door.
The voice that came out was rough and uneven, scratching at his throat.
She didn't answer. Nor did she open the door.
Could she not hear his voice? Or…
At that thought, Simon's chest burned.
"Kalia." He called her name with more desperation.
It felt like it had been a long time since he said this name to call for her and not simply to utter to empty air. It wasn't years nor was it decades, but for Simon, these horrendous months felt like a lifetime. Just as Simon was hesitating on what to do, there was the sound of something falling to the floor on the other side of the door.
Surprised by the clang, Simon's face drained to a deathly white.
"....!"
He was so nervous that the commotion on the other side snapped something inside his mind and…. Without thinking, he opened the door.
The warmth from the fire struck him first. The next thing he saw was a curled up Kalia crouching with a sword laying at her feet. Her wearing a nightgown made for an unfamiliar sight but she didn't feel strange at all. What was more surprising than that was…
That round belly she was hugging tightly.
'….No matter what she looks like, don't press her too hard' Humming's voice fiercely rang through Simon's mind.