The Forgotten Field Novel - Chapter 114
## CHAPTER 114: THE FORGOTTEN FIELDS (NOVEL)
The room fell into a deathly silence.
Talia realized that everyone present was watching her reaction, so she forced a faint smile onto her tense lips.
“What are we waiting for, then? Bring the guests in immediately.”
She rebuked the chief servant in a calm, feigned tone. The man, standing by the door, nervously wetted his lips before replying in a trembling voice:
“The matter… it seems Her Highness must receive the guests in person.”
Talia arched her eyebrows.
Currently, she held the highest rank in the East. It made no sense for her to have to go out in person to receive any guest.
Just as she was about to rebuke him, the man’s fearful voice scratched her ears:
“The guest leading the delegation… is Her Majesty the Empress.”
Talia blinked, dumbfounded.
She felt as if her mind had suddenly gone blank. Then, she reacted to the sound of the rising murmurs.
She left the room in a hurry. At that moment, she had no time to worry about her unsteady gait or the glances that might follow her.
Talia crossed the wide hall, lifting the hem of her dress, and rushed out of the building.
In the castle courtyard, hundreds of members of the delegation lined up carrying flags of the imperial palace. At the front, a woman waved with a bright smile.
“Talia!”
A woman as radiant as the sun crossed the garden as if floating on clouds. She looked so young that it was unbelievable she was the mother of a nineteen-year-old daughter.
“How have you been all this time?”
The woman approached her in an instant and wrapped her arms around her, soft as cream. For a moment, Talia felt dizzy from the sweet scent of her skin.
She looked at her with eyes that mixed bewilderment, anxiety, fear, and longing.
“Why are you here…?”
“I came to see you, of course.”
Guinevere kissed her cheek and whispered sweetly:
“I was wondering how you were, so I begged Pyros to send me as part of the delegation. And, as always, he couldn’t break my stubbornness.”
Then, she took her daughter’s face with fingers steeped in the scent of roses and gazed at it in silence.
“You look better than when you were at the palace. It seems your husband treats you well.”
For an instant, Talia felt a chill run down her spine for an unknown reason. She pulled away from her like someone getting burned by fire.
“Why have you really come? What are you planning this time…?”
“Her Majesty the Empress.”
A voice as cold as frost interrupted her, preventing her from finishing the sentence.
Talia turned toward the source of the voice. Varkas was crossing the garden, wearing a long black coat adorned with gray fur.
Apparently, he had heard the news during a meeting at the cathedral and had rushed back. Varkas approached, cautiously stepping between her and Guinevere, and then bowed.
“Thank you for coming from so far away.”
“I offer you my condolences, Duke of Shierkan.”
Her blue eyes, deep as a swamp, swept over the young man’s figure, sculpted with the precision of marble. A strange smile played on her lips.
“Your father was fortunate enough to see his son grow up in such a magnificent way before he died. He must have departed without regrets.”
A hint of irony crossed Varkas’s lips at her tone, which sounded like someone talking to a small child.
He replied in his usual emotionless tone:
“Your kind words overwhelm me.”
“You remain as modest as ever. Many in the palace miss you.”
Guinevere laughed softly, then cast a meaningful glance at Talia and added:
“Especially the Crown Prince and the First Princess seem affected by your absence. It is to be expected, since the three of you were very close.”
Talia clenched her teeth so as not to show any reaction.
Guinevere watched her closely and then smiled mischievously at Varkas:
“By the way, they asked me to deliver a message to you. Could you grant me a moment?”
A sharp gleam flashed in Varkas’s eyes.
Everyone knew that the Crown Prince and the First Princess would never ask Guinevere for anything.
What did she want to discuss with him to resort to such an obvious lie?
Talia could not help but feel a deep sense of unease.
With a trembling hand, she clutched the edge of Guinevere’s dress.
“Weren’t you here to see me? Speak with me, then.”
An expression of annoyance crossed Guinevere’s face at her rushed words.
Talia suddenly felt as if she had become a nine-year-old girl again; terrified and helpless, just like in those days. While she stood paralyzed, a large hand rested on her shoulder.
“Her Highness should rest in her room.”
Varkas pulled Talia away from Guinevere and then gave orders to the maids waiting by the door:
“Escort the Duchess immediately.”
As soon as the order was issued, the maids rushed toward her.
Talia turned around reluctantly. Then, a melodious voice echoed behind her back:
“Let’s leave the chat between mother and daughter for later.”
Talia looked back at Guinevere with resentment over her shoulder and then continued on her way.
After spending a long time in Varkas’s office, Guinevere went to visit Talia at dusk.
Talia was pacing back and forth in the room and lunged toward the door upon seeing her arrive. However, her nanny was faster.
The nanny ran toward Guinevere, clung to the folds of her dress, and shed copious tears.
“Her Majesty the Empress! To see you again so closely… Now I can die without regrets!”
“Oh, why speak of dying?”
Guinevere gently pushed the nanny away, showing an almost childlike smile.
“You must live a long time. How could I be at peace if you are not by Talia’s side?”
The nanny looked at Guinevere with utter admiration.
Talia watched her with displeasure and then pulled her mother’s arm impatiently.
“Will you grant me some time now?”
Guinevere’s eyes narrowed at her sarcastic question.
“Of course. I came to speak with you.”
Then she smiled at the knights of the Shierkan family who had followed her as guards.
“I would like to speak with my daughter alone. Could you leave us for a moment?”
“We are sorry, Her Majesty the Empress. For the safety of both of you, we cannot comply with that order.”
Tyron el Drakan refused politely, bowing.
The Empress looked with interest at the knight who defied her and then shrugged lightly.
“It seems being alone will not be possible. Shall we take a walk?”
Talia looked at her warily, then took her coat and left the room.
During the entire journey down the hallway toward the garden, countless eyes followed them.
It seemed that everyone in the castle had gone on high alert after learning of the arrival of a political figure opposed to the East.
However, Guinevere did not care about the piercing glances. She walked down the stairs majestically and crossed the hall like flowing water. Talia followed her, limping.
Sweat quickly soaked her back as she tried to keep up with Guinevere’s pace. Nonetheless, it seemed the Empress had not the slightest intention of considering her daughter’s physical condition.
Guinevere entered the garden bathed in the twilight light with an innocent look and turned toward the knights.
“Moving away a little bit is fine, isn’t it?”
As they hesitated to answer, she pressed them with a smile:
“Or have you perhaps received orders to spy on our conversation?”
“No, milady. We will wait here.”
Tyron replied with a doubtful expression.
Guinevere wasted no time; she took Talia’s arm and walked down a path covered in autumn leaves.
As Talia tried to keep her pace, stumbling along, she waited until the knights had moved far enough away and then spoke impatiently:
“What is the purpose of your visit? Don’t lie saying you came to see me. I know that isn’t true.”
“I really came to see you. I wanted to make sure how you were.”
Talia let out a scoff.
The day she departed for the East, this woman never showed up. What was the point of this delusion now? Just as she was about to retort sarcastically, Guinevere whispered in her ear as if sharing a secret:
“And I also wanted to know if your husband could return to our side.”
Talia’s eyes widened at those unexpected words.
Guinevere gazed at the gently rippling water and continued calmly:
“Due to your marriage to him, Garis has begun to doubt the loyalty of the Shierkan family. Because of that, he has begun to extend his hand toward the North in search of alternative forces.”
“Do you mean… that he is looking for a new marriage for Ayla?”
“Yes. It seems Garis hopes that the Duke of the North will take your husband’s place.”
A mournful smile suddenly appeared on Guinevere’s lips.
“But I am not sure that marriage will ever take place. Your husband is actively obstructing the matter.”
Talia squeezed the folds of her dress so tightly that her fingertips turned white.
Guinevere added cruelly:
“Thanks to that, stories about an unfinished love between the First Princess and the young Duke Shierkan are spreading in the palace.”
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