IWMHWD 81

Chapter 81 – What Do You Think of Me?
2024.01.20.

When the roses are in full bloom, that’s when the wedding should be.

With her eyes closed, Rosalyn Embley pictured a garden overflowing with roses in full blossom.

She had imagined it countless, hundreds of times—so vividly that it was as if it unfolded right before her eyes.

People clapped and cheered for the bride and groom. Rosalyn, holding a bouquet made of red roses, walked down the aisle. At the end stood Maximilian.

She walked toward him, half holding her breath from nervousness, until she finally reached him. Then, he would take her hand and say—

“Miss, please, come to your senses!”

“Open your eyes. You need to wake up!”

“If you don’t hang on, the baby could die. Miss! Miss!”

Baby.

Ah, right. I’m… giving birth.

“Aaagh!”

The pain split her body apart again. Rosalyn clenched her teeth and screamed. It felt like someone had set fire beneath her waist—or hacked at her with a blade.

“I can see the head! Push down with your upper belly!”

“Miss—hic—please, oh God, please, please…”

Sophia, the maid who had served Rosalyn since she was very young, wept as she prayed ceaselessly to God. That was all she could do.

The midwife couldn’t bring herself to snap at Sophia. The mother’s condition was that dire—so bad that neither her life nor the baby’s could be guaranteed.

“This won’t do. The mother isn’t able to push at all.”

Wiping the sweat from her brow, the midwife gestured to a waiting maid.

“Someone get on top and press her belly. If the baby stays in the birth canal too long, both will be in danger.”

At her words, an older maid climbed up over Rosalyn.

“Push! Harder!”

“Aagh! Aagh!”

Rosalyn howled like a wounded animal. One moment she begged to be saved, the next she pleaded to be killed. Watching this, Sophia finally collapsed to the floor in sobs.

“Miss, push! One more time!”

By now, Rosalyn could no longer tell what was reality and what was dream. The rose garden appeared and vanished, over and over. Time stretched endlessly in her agony.

“I can see the ears. The baby’s head is almost out. You’re doing well—just one last push!”

“Miss! Miss! The baby’s coming! Hic, Miss…”

Her ears were open, but her mind barely registered the words—only a distant buzzing filled them. Sophia held her hand tightly, wishing she could take some of the pain herself.

My poor lady, my pitiful lady.

Her pity for Rosalyn quickly turned to rage toward the one she blamed—Maximilian.

He had ruined her life, and now he was about to take her life as well.

It was because of him they had fled Ershe to this far-off foreign land of Ancen. It was because of him she was now forced to give birth in this rural place without a proper doctor.

“There, it’s out! A boy—it’s a boy! Such a handsome boy.”

“Hic, Miss—it’s a boy. Miss…”

The midwife swiftly wrapped the baby in clean cloth and cut the cord with practiced hands. At first, the child made no sound, unfamiliar with the strange new world—but soon he began to cry.

The moment his wailing filled the room, everyone present sighed in relief.

Until then, Rosalyn had heard nothing, but the baby’s cries pierced through to her as if lodged in her ears. Struggling even to breathe, she forced her eyes open and reached weakly toward him.

“A… a boy? It’s a boy?”

“Yes, Miss. A boy—he looks healthy.”

Sophia wiped her tears, then brought the baby over. Rosalyn strained to focus her blurred gaze.

My child. My son.

“Baby…”

Born two months early, the baby was unusually small. Rosalyn’s eyes filled with tears—she felt guilty. If she had been healthier, he would not have been forced into the world so soon.

“Daniel… I’ll call him Daniel.”

“A noble name indeed—Young Master Daniel.”

“Daniel…”

Rosalyn gazed at him with eyes brimming with love. Red and wrinkled as he was—far from the prettiness one might expect—he was, to her, the most beautiful angel in the world.

She tried to keep her eyes open as long as possible to take him in. But the more she tried, the blurrier her vision became.

The seasoned midwife was the first to notice what was happening. Seeing Rosalyn slipping into unconsciousness, she shouted:

“Damn, she’s bleeding… Fetch the doctor outside, now!”

“Miss, you can’t sleep yet—you have to see Young Master Daniel. Miss! Miss!”

The brief calm gave way to urgency again. The doctor waiting outside hurried in to check her.

“Her temperature’s too high, and the bleeding is severe… You said she had a weak heart?”

“Please save her, I beg you—save my lady.”

“Life or death is now in God’s hands. Move aside. Joshua! Bring me my bag, now!”

In the midst of the commotion, Sophia clutched the baby tightly, silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

Where had it all gone wrong?

If she had opposed it when she learned her lady would meet Maximilian Atilay—
If she had urged her to give up the baby when she first learned she was pregnant—
Would things be different now?

“Open your eyes! …Damn it, the bleeding won’t stop.”

The doctor sighed heavily, but her condition only worsened.

In Ershe, there was no way to escape Atilay’s pursuit. That’s why they had decided to flee all the way to Ancen, a country on the southern continent.

But even before they could board the ship, Atilay’s net began to close around them. Then Maximilian suggested splitting into two groups.

“If we keep moving together, we’ll be caught, Rosie. I’ll take the knights elsewhere to draw their attention. You go ahead to Ancen.”

“But what if you get caught?”

Rosalyn had feared deeply that Maximilian might end up in prison again. He reassured her.

“Better that than you and our child being harmed.”

“Max…”

She had been frail since childhood, and had never even spoken to another young man before Maximilian.

Naïve as she was, she had fallen for this snake of a man, even bearing his child. Yet despite being forced to flee to Ancen while pregnant, Rosalyn had shown no resentment toward him—only tearfully sending him off.

Watching from the side, Sophia had thought his actions laughable. After all, it was Maximilian who had caused all of this.

Though he claimed they were “splitting into two groups,” the knights with him numbered only three or four. Their real mission was to guard Rosalyn; what happened to Maximilian didn’t matter much to them.

Back then, Sophia’s only focus had been on helping Rosalyn deliver safely once they reached Ancen. She had never imagined things would turn out this dire.

“Does this young lady have family?”

The doctor, sweat beading on his brow, asked. Sophia nodded quickly.

“Yes—her father, the master, is alive. She’s from a very distinguished family. So please…”

“Then get them here as soon as possible. They should be here at the end.”

“‘The end’? What do you mean—what’s going to happen to my lady?”

“I’ve done all I can. If she’s lucky and the fever breaks, she might survive… but…”

Trailing off, the doctor glanced at his assistant, who began packing up.

“It will be difficult. The mother’s body was frail to begin with. The fact she delivered at all is a miracle.”

“Oh, my poor lady… my poor lady.”

“May God grant her mercy.”

Leaving those words behind, the doctor left.

Sophia handed the baby to another maid and went to Rosalyn’s side. She was so pale it was hard to tell if she was still breathing.

The maids changed the blood-soaked sheets, moistened her lips with water, and fed Daniel milk to still his hunger.

Rosalyn only let out faint, intermittent groans. The maids clustered around, tending to her.

“What… what were those people?”

The youngest of the three maids shivered as she spoke.

“I mean, the ones who attacked us. How could they kill so many knights so quickly—in just thirty minutes?”

“It doesn’t matter who they were. Once the master arrives, he’ll hunt them down and kill them all. Just focus on caring for the lady so we can get home.”

“But… will we really be able to go back? What if they come again…”

Overwhelmed, the young maid began to cry. Who could blame her?

Not long after arriving in Ancen, they had been attacked by unknown assailants. In the chaos, only Rosalyn and three maids had survived.

It was their first time seeing such brutal deaths right before their eyes—it was enough to terrify anyone. For Rosalyn, the shock had brought on labor two months early.

“Don’t say that. Lady Rosalyn, Young Master Daniel, and all three of us—we’ll all make it home alive.”

Sophia patted her shoulder.

They took turns tending the baby and cooling Rosalyn’s body with damp cloths to bring down her fever. They endured until morning.

By a stroke of luck, Rosalyn’s burning fever eased somewhat by dawn. The maids, overjoyed, hugged each other in relief.

“Just hold on a little longer—your father is on his way to see you now.”

Sophia whispered into Rosalyn’s ear, praying she would find the strength to endure.

But that afternoon, the door to the shabby inn opened—and the man who entered was not the one they had longed for.

“M-Master, how… how did you get here…?”

“What do you mean ‘how’? Is it strange that I came?”

As if he had waited for all the chaos to pass, Maximilian appeared in perfect timing, stepping into the room where Rosalyn lay.

Sophia was stunned. They had parted ways before even reaching Ancen. How had he known where to find them? They had sent no word.

“How’s Rosalyn?”