Author: 冬瓜茶仙人 / Winter Melon Tea Immortal

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 106

Priscilla felt her breathing become difficult, her body increasingly heavy, and almost every night, sleep eluded her, significantly draining her spirit. Fortunately, Erica was very capable, shielding her from many unnecessary social engagements. Even so, her exhaustion and weakness were quite evident.

“Mr. Ceylan is at the dock. You…” Although Erica knew about Priscilla’s secretive relationship with Louis, especially at such a critical time, the last thing she needed was any controversy that might jeopardize whether the child was Lestrop’s, but she couldn’t help but mention it.

Priscilla shook her head.

“We better maintain our current employer-employee relationship. I’m a wealthy Countess, and he’s a host for the Wolf Family.”

But you want to see him, don’t you?

Erica didn’t voice this thought. She had fully inherited her father’s ability to read situations and knew that if her mistress had made up her mind, further persuasion was useless. She then slightly opened the curtains, as the rain was lessening.

If the rain really stopped before sunset, they could’ve been less hurried. However, the city had been uneasy lately. The Black Gold Families thought it could affect Priscilla and strongly recommended that she board the ship as soon as possible.

“Has the rain stopped?” Priscilla asked, not hearing the rain anymore and tilting her head.

“It’s lessened.” Taking advantage of the fading daylight, Erica opened the curtains wider, allowing Priscilla, who was reclining in a soft chair, to see outside. Dark magic usually avoided sunlight, and curtains must be completely drawn after sunset to block any prying eyes hidden in the darkness.

The confrontation with Lestrop was almost reaching a conclusion, and Priscilla needed to guard against scrutiny from Mokwen… or assassination.

But she didn’t seem too anxious.

“Thank you, Erica,” Priscilla said softly. “You don’t know how grateful I am to have you here.” Perhaps knowing her brother was nearby and successfully boarding the ship had comforted her. Her tone was as gentle as ever, but unusually light.

Sensing this, Erica carefully poured her a warm medicinal tea, letting her hold it in her hands. She softly said, “You don’t need to thank me. Everyone has been worried about you these past years. There was fierce competition when the master decided to travel. If it wasn’t for a backache flaring up, my father would have insisted on staying behind to personally ensure your health.”

Priscilla indeed smiled. “The doctor has always said it would flare up once chilled. The castle isn’t as warm as the manor. Please tell him to dress more casually when he’s not on duty. Dwight won’t mind.”

The former Duke and Duchess passed away too early, and the steward nearly raised the siblings as his own children, with Priscilla especially close to him. Hearing Erica mention him brought back memories, brightening Priscilla’s spirits and even making her chatty.

“When I was little, I heard in the kitchen that your father was a charming rogue in his youth. I hardly believed it. As long as I remember, he has been at Brandenburg, steady and kind, always in a neat long coat. He’s Dwight’s most reliable right hand, and I could never imagine his roguish past until I met you, which made me think there might be some truth in what they said.”

Priscilla was two years older than Erica. At her wedding, she was still a young girl, not to mention the still undeveloped Erica. Reunited, Priscilla was initially stunned, as Erica, who used to train with the knights out of interest, was always sunburned and short, making it impossible to predict that she would grow into her current handsome appearance.

“Father is old, and the master wouldn’t agree to him accompanying him, so I was arranged to come.” Erica said, “I’ve been worried about you too.”

When the Duke left Brandenburg, the once vibrant greenhouse was a scene of decline, with the flower wall hanging barely on it, and no method could revive it. Not just Dwight, but everyone at Brandenburg was deeply concerned for their distant Lady.

“The rose is a blessing given to the Dwight family by the forest nymphs, and I think it’s connected not just to my body but also to my thoughts,” Priscilla said somewhat distantly as she looked at her teacup. “No matter how smooth my life appears to others… I am always missing Lemena, every moment.”

She had never revealed these thoughts to anyone, not to Lestrop or Ceylan.

“I miss the fragrant greenhouse, the golden wheat waves visible from the tower, the mist and waterfalls in the forest, and all of you. Perhaps this intense longing is what the rose thinks that I never left.”

Because pregnancy had weakened her, it was indeed a primary reason for the rose’s wilting, but according to Dwight, these signs had appeared even earlier, around the time she decided not to be weak and planned to take over the southern territory from Lestrop.

The rose had seen her resolve before she did.

Erica looked at her worriedly.

“Will you not go back then?”

If that was the case, then Lemena’s…

“The rose will not wither.” Priscilla reassured her, patting her hand. “No matter what the outcome, the child will return to Brandenburg with you all, carrying my will. With him there, the rose will bloom again.”

This made Erica even more anxious, undoubtedly preparing for the future delivery. No matter how capable Erica was, childbirth was beyond her expertise.

And for women—especially those not strong physically—the risks involved in childbirth were unpredictable and not something that could be resolved by wealth or high status.

Recently, Priscilla’s spirit had been low, and Erica had been avoiding thinking negatively, but Priscilla herself was quite resigned.

“The child will go back with us. Are you sure?” Erica decided to skirt around the ominous topic. “After all, the child’s father is here.”

Although their secret relationship couldn’t be disclosed, the child being in Mokwen was much closer than being on another continent, and once taken away, it was hard to say when they would see each other again.

“Our relationship is over, and to him, the child is more like an accident,” Priscilla softly said. “He’s very gentle and would surely protect this child with his life.”

He would protect him, but not necessarily cherish him.

Erica frowned. “I don’t understand.”

Her tone almost suggested the father was not welcoming of the child. How could there be a father who would reject his own child?

And judging by their attitudes, they clearly still care about each other. Priscilla, needless to say, had not only arranged the trip meticulously but was also personally accompanying it. Although the two didn’t have many private interactions, Erica could feel the extent of the other’s concern, which was not a display of indifference or lack of emotion.

Priscilla didn’t answer immediately but instead asked her, “Erica, have you ever been in love with someone?”

Erica instinctively wanted to say no, but she hesitated as the words reached her lips.

“I’ll take a wild guess, someone from the knights?” Priscilla teased her.

Erica, not one to be shy or coy, laughed in response. “No.”

Perhaps it was her straightforward nature, her handsome appearance coupled with robustness, meticulous care, and grace that made her as popular as the knights. Many had expressed their affection for her, but unlike those knights who put fighting before love, Erica had never truly had a romantic partner.

“Then the person is not currently with you, and perhaps you haven’t really been together?” Priscilla said, “That’s something you only understand after you’ve actually spent time together. Ceylan, he…”

She paused to choose her words. “He doesn’t love me.”

Erica’s expression changed immediately, but Priscilla laughed. “Wait, let me finish. He doesn’t love me, but he has given me the most care and respect within his capabilities. I initiated this relationship, and I believe if I continued to make demands, he wouldn’t leave me.”

“This…” Erica looked conflicted.

This didn’t fit the script of the uncommitted playboy she had imagined. How come it sounded like her mistress was the one playing with emotions?

Priscilla explained, “It’s not that he doesn’t want to love me. He just doesn’t know how to love me. Ceylan… He doesn’t even love himself. Sometimes, he gives me the feeling that no matter what happens, nothing can make him care more about himself. Of course, it could also be because we haven’t spent enough time together for me to fully understand him.”

But one thing she was sure of: if Ceylan didn’t love himself and didn’t love Priscilla, then he couldn’t feel love for the child that resulted from their union either.

He was willing to accept responsibility and duty, but Priscilla wanted more. She hoped her child would grow up surrounded by love.

Perhaps this was somewhat selfish, but only Brandenburg could unconditionally fulfill this wish, so Priscilla had planned everything early on.

Erica had met Ceylan, and while his status as an official of the Wolf Family might not be entirely prestigious, in the eyes of many ordinary people striving to survive, he was young, handsome, and powerful, and held in high regard.

Such a person, for Priscilla to say he didn’t love himself nor anyone else, was quite a strange assertion.

“Actually, I don’t care about his status, and Mokwen isn’t really the barrier between us. It was after I realized that I couldn’t fill the void in his heart that I decided to end our relationship. Otherwise, the more I depended on this relationship, the tighter I would cling to him,” Priscilla explained.

She looked out the window. The sky was getting darker. She took a small sip of her tea, hiding her sigh in the liquid.

Ceylan’s life had already been too burdensome, and Priscilla didn’t want to become another shackle for him.

Erica noticed the approaching darkness too and stood up to go close the curtains.

Just then, a maid knocked on the door.

“Madam, the ‘mage from the other side’ urgently needs to speak with you,” she whispered at the door.

“The other side” referred to the mage accompanying them, employed by the Black Gold Family but indeed a bona fide member of the Mages Association; hence, Erica had agreed for them to board together.

“What’s the matter?” Erica asked.

“They say a witch has been spotted on the docks, and the workers have been evacuated. To prevent the witch from boarding, they want to set up protections in the corridor.”

Erica frowned, leaning out to look down, but the angle prevented her from seeing the area where the cars were parked.

“Has anyone been attacked?” Priscilla sat up straight.

“That’s unclear… The mage said his orders from superiors are to protect you without needing to consider others.”

Erica met Priscilla’s gaze. They both knew Ceylan had escorted them here, and it was highly likely he was still on the dock, probably not leaving before the Azalea sailed.

“Just one witch, how can that cause such a disturbance?” Priscilla, usually mild-mannered, adopted a somewhat sharper tone when serious. “Pass on my orders for him to go down and help. With Erica and others here, no creature of darkness can harm me.”

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