The Emperor and the Knightess

Chapter 148

Poliana was disappointed and she didn’t have to see to know that Lucius the First was even more disheartened by the news that his wife wasn’t actually pregnant.

Poliana then murmured, “I was so excited about the baby too…”

Chail replied, “It looks like you are going to get very busy now, Marquess Winter.”

“Hmm? Why?”

“Can’t you see? The three ladies all are so desperate to get pregnant. One was frantic enough to imagine herself pregnant! Soon, there will be even a scarier power struggle in the lady’s quarters than the last one. One husband and three wives! It’s going to be a bloodbath!”

“… Are you being serious, Master Chail?”

“No, of course not. I was just joking, but not the part about how busy you are going to get busy soon.”

Without explaining what he meant, Chail left to return to his room. When he was gone, Poliana asked one of the servants, who was very close to Chail, “Hey, what kind of books does the master read nowadays?”

“Oh, Master Chail enjoys reading the fictional stories about royal power struggles, especially among the emperor’s wives and concubines!”

“Dammit! I knew it!”

Poliana punched the nearest wall in annoyance. Chail knew how serious and awful things could get in the royal lady’s quarters, yet to joke about it like this… What a mean guy. Chail was clearly too into his books because it almost sounded like he wanted horrible things to happen in real life just for some excitement.

‘I’m going to have to go burn all of his stupid books!’

Poliana changed her outfit and headed to work. When she arrived, she found Stra crying after finding out that she wasn’t pregnant. Lucius the First and Tory were consoling her gently, but Rebecca was nowhere to be seen. Poliana looked around and Cekel explained, “Lady Rebecca is resting because she wasn’t feeling well today.”

“Again?”

All of the maids and the ladies-in-waiting were in here comforting Stra, which meant that Rebecca probably didn’t have many people to take care of her. Even the doctor was here with Stra.

Poliana walked to Rebecca’s quarters. She wasn’t good at comforting people because she never knew what to say, so she wouldn’t have been any use to Stra. In addition, Poliana couldn’t understand why a false pregnancy would make Stra sad.

So she thought it made sense for her to go visit Rebecca. Maybe having Poliana with her would make Rebecca less lonely. When she walked into Rebecca’s quarters, her maid was obviously happy to see Poliana.

‘They must’ve felt like they were being left out.’

Many of Rebecca’s maids were also with Stra unfortunately. Poliana felt annoyed; if these were her maids, she would’ve reprimanded them for leaving her when she wasn’t feeling so well. Poliana would’ve punished them even.

Poliana asked one of the maids, “Is Lady Rebecca ok?”

Instead of the maid answering, a man in the room replied instead. “It’s just a mild cold, so you need not worry, Marquess.”

For a long time, Poliana tried to remember who this man was. As the emperor’s personal guard, Poliana used to make a huge effort to remember people’s faces and names, but that was a long time ago. As a marquess and the head of the Second Division, it wasn’t her job anymore to remember these people. It was the other person who should be introducing himself or herself to her. She was now too important to waste time remembering people.

The man looked kind and nonthreatening. He wasn’t particularly good looking, and he was on the chubby side. He was the kind of guy who Poliana could beat up easily.

‘Oh!’

Yes, now, she remembered him.

Frau Sneke.

He showed her his kind smile just like he did the first time he met her.

‘So I wasn’t wrong about my feelings.’

Poliana was now completely certain that if they got into a physical fight, she would win easily. She could probably even win an arm-wrestling match against him. He had no muscles at all and he didn’t look very dependable. However, his voice was soothing and he had a calm and kind demeanor, which was perfect for his job as a doctor.

Frau greeted Poliana, “It is an honor to see you again.”

“Were you examining Lady Rebecca?”

“Yes, you can go in now and see her.”

Frau moved away from the door to the lady’s room. When Poliana was about to open the door, he did it for her immediately. Poliana was surprised that Frau would do this, considering he wasn’t even a servant. Most knights and noblemen showed good manners to noble ladies, but it was very rare for them to do it for her as if they didn’t see Poliana as a woman.

She was so surprised when Frau opened the door for her that she didn’t even think to thank him. She just walked in and found Rebecca in her bed. She was sitting up against a plump pillow, and because she was so small, she looked like she was buried in her giant bed.

Rebecca greeted Poliana pleasantly. Poliana bowed respectfully and asked how the lady was doing. Rebecca shook her head and replied, “It’s just a cold, so it’s nothing to worry about. We should be more concerned with Stra.”

Stra was crying in the arms of Tory and Lucius the First, and Poliana wondered if this was really something to cry about.

‘It’s not like she had a miscarriage… She didn’t lose a baby because she wasn’t pregnant to begin with.’

Rebecca added, “She was so happy because she thought she was pregnant…”

She coughed and sighed deeply. A few hours ago, Stra was smiling widely because she hasn’t had her monthly bleeding for a few months, and she was feeling nauseous. Stra felt certain that she was with a child.

No one could have imagined that it was a phantom pregnancy. Rebecca said quietly, “I’m sure she will become pregnant for real very soon.”

It wasn’t a big deal at all. It would’ve been better if Stra was really pregnant, but this wasn’t the worst thing.

‘I mean, I’m just glad it wasn’t a miscarriage.’

Poliana might have cried if Stra lost a baby, but she never did. It was just a phantom pregnancy. Poliana still couldn’t understand why Stra was so upset. It wasn’t like Stra was diagnosed with infertility.

All the wives were still very young, and they have been married for only a year now. There was no need to be desperate at this point. Poliana then replied, “I agree, Lady Rebecca.”

“Is she really upset?”

“Yes, but his highness is consoling her.”

Only

If a woman didn’t become pregnant after three years of their marriage, the people would begin to whisper that she might be barren, but it wasn’t the situation in this case. They were only married for a year, which meant that they still had two more years to try without worrying.

So why was Stra feeling so desperate?

It must’ve shown that Poliana didn’t seem too concerned about Stra’s situation. Rebecca smiled strangely and Poliana felt guilty, realizing that Rebecca found out how she really felt. Poliana looked away as Rebecca said to her, “Marquess, you don’t think this is a big deal.”

“You are all very young and healthy, so you will get pregnant soon, I’m sure.”

“Does his highness feel the same way about this situation?”

“His highness is a kind considerate man, so I am sure he is much more upset about this than myself.”

“Yes, indeed… His highness is very kind and considerate… He is a wonderful man, and… Since he favors you more than his wives, I am sure your guess is better than mine when it comes to how the emperor feels, Marquess Winter.”