The Queen Conceived
1119 Words
ONCE UPON THE LIFE OF THE WISE KING
Volume 1
The Birth of The Wise King
Chapter 15 - The Queen Conceived
The investigation about the traitor among the higher-ups bore results. They identified one person who registered Gio Kifer as a palace guard. The person's name was Alfredo Faust, one of the council members.
During the hearing, Alfredo Faust insisted that he was not a traitor, telling them that he was not the only one who had the authority to register a soldier or guard, so they should conduct a further investigation regarding the matter. However, his penmanship matched the style used in writing Gio Kifer's name. But then again, they can not convict him based on his handwriting due to the possibility of it getting forged by someone else.
The King decided to strip Alfredo Faust of his position and monitor his actions. But, what they did not know was that everyone was under monitoring. Even doing so, a year already passed, and there was no progress with their investigation, which brought another possibility of being controlled by the enemy so, they had to be more careful.
"We are going to town?" Prince Colin asked his mother. They were in the saloon, drinking tea. The Second Prince, Alphonse, was on the floor quietly playing with his toys.
"Yes." The Queen nodded her head. "Alphonse is one year older now. His clothes don't fit anymore, so we need to get new ones for him."
"Do I have to come?"
"Of course." Queen Cielisse took a sip of her tea. "You have to accompany me."
"Can I... Can I not go with you?"
"Why? Are you afraid to face the townsfolk?"
Prince Colin did not answer immediately. He looked down and fisted his hands on his lap.
"I know you don't want to hear them talking behind your back. Don't let it get to your heart. These people are your people. As someone with a higher position, you should be more understanding towards them," the Queen said. "Even if you are not the heir, you are the First Prince, and you must fulfill that role and obligations that come with it."
"I understand, mother..."
"I am done with my tea." Queen Cielisse place her teacup on the table. "Let's go before it gets darker."
She took Prince Alphonse and gave him to the maid. The Queen instructed her to take the Prince to see the King.
The maid did as she was told and left.
Prince Colin followed his mother out. They rode in the carriage and made their way to the town that was twenty minutes away.
Along the way, they found two men fighting over their share of the harvest. As the Queen, she had to stop by and hear their sides. It turned out that the men were brothers sharing five paddies of field. The eldest wanted three parts out of five of the harvest, but the youngest wanted it to be fair and make two and a half each.
The Queen asked how much they spent on their crops. Based on that, the Queen calculated how much they should receive from their harvest, resolving their conflict.
"I'm glad that we have resolved your problem," Queen Cielisse said with a smile.
"It all thanks to Her Majesty."
The men bowed their heads to the Royalty until they got back in the carriage and rode away.
"Are you okay, mother? You look a little pale."
"I'm fine. The heat just got to me. I will be okay after some rest." The Queen leaned back on her seat. Her hand subconsciously went to touch her necklace pendant, the black firestone.
They continued their way to the town, and soon they arrived. The Queen visited multiple shops together with her son and followed by their guards. While shopping, Prince Colin could not help but heard what some people said about him. Some of them gossip, wishing that the First Prince was the heir or hoping that the Queen would conceive the heir son.
"I know you can hear them clearly, but don't listen to them," Queen Cielisse told her son when she noticed him feeling down. "Stop listening to them, Okay?"
"Okay." Prince Colin nodded and smiled at his mother.
"We are almost done. Let me buy some socks."
"Mother!" the Prince exclaimed when the Queen suddenly lost consciousness and collapsed. Fortunately, he made it in time before his mother fell to the ground.
The guards helped the Queen back to the carriage.
"Let's go back immediately!" Prince Colin, who held his mother in his arms, ordered.
The people who witnessed the scene watched as the carriage went away. All of them were talking about what could have caused the Queen to faint.
Back in the palace, the Prince called for the doctor to come and check the Queen's condition. He also ordered the nearby maid to call the King, who rushed to the bed-chamber upon hearing the news.
The doctor who checked on the Queen finished his diagnosis and turned to the King. "Your Majesty," he said.
"How is she?" King Wenhart asked.
"There is good and bad news."
"Tell me the good news first."
"The good news is the Queen is pregnant. Congratulations, Your Majesty!" the doctor bowed deeply to show his appreciation of the good news.
Despite the good news, the King was not that happy. There was also bad news that he did not hear yet, so he prompted, "And the bad news?"
"Her Majesty is showing signs of fatigue and poor health. It is not that grave, You Majesty. But I would like to advise Your Majesty to let Her Majesty take three days of bed rest to recuperate. I will also prepare a list of food that will help improve her condition."
"I see. I understand. Thank you, doctor. You may go."
"You are welcome, Your Majesty. Please call me if you need something," the doctor said as he briefly bowed his head and left.
Prince Colin, who was on the other side of the bed, looked at his mother. He was happy to have another sibling. The Prince hoped in his heart that the baby was a girl but also hoped that it was an heir. He felt conflicted.
"Father, what gender do you hope the baby is?" He asked his father.
"It does not matter whatever the gender is as long as both of them are healthy."
"Don't you want to have a daughter? Or another prince who will become the heir?"
"I don't care about that, Colin. I only want my family to be happy."
Prince Colin smiled. He felt glad to have a very understanding man as a father.
- Writer
