The Forgotten Field Novel - Chapter 63, 64
## Chapter 63
### THE FORGOTTEN FIELDS (NOVELA)
When the unwanted guest finally left, Talia earnestly asked the healer to fill the room with a pale, misty smoke. As she inhaled the billowing, pungent air —like the shimmering heat that rises above a fire— the sensations boiling inside her slowly began to calm. Relief washed over her. Just a little longer, and the whitish mist would completely seep into her head. Then she wouldn’t have to think about anything. She just wanted to sleep like the dead. She lay down at full length on the bed and closed her eyes.
But no matter how long she waited, a fine thread of consciousness refused to break, stubbornly anchoring her to reality. Trying to fall asleep somehow, she brought her face closer to the brazier and inhaled the sharp smoke even more deeply; but all she got was a coughing fit. The violent shaking of her body chased away even the slight drowsiness accumulating at the edges of her eyes. Drenched in frustration, Talia looked toward the window. At some point, the sky had taken on a thick hue, red as blood. She stood staring at that dizziness-inducing and eerie twilight light for a while, when she felt something prompt her —a sudden impulse— and she slid out of bed, planting both feet on the floor.
The pain seemed to have disappeared, perhaps because the medicine was taking effect properly. She tried taking a few steps. Her left leg moved a beat too slow, dragging her foot across the floor. However, the sharp pain that used to attack her every time she bent her joints had vanished. At this level, she could walk well enough. She slid her frail feet into her slippers, took a hooded robe from the closet, threw it loosely over herself, and walked out of the room, shuffling her feet. Her nanny would probably already be resting in her quarters. The healer would have returned to his own lodgings after finishing his duties, and the maids should also be resting in their respective rooms. Just as she thought, she crossed the long corridor and went down the stairs without encountering anyone.
Talia crossed the wide foyer and left the annex palace through the side door used by the servants. A cool breeze brushed her cheeks. Breathing the cold air mixed with scents of grass and flowers, she wandered without a fixed direction. She didn’t know how long she was adrift in that manner, directionless, when suddenly she realized she had approached the training grounds. A slight doubt arose in her hazy head. *Why did I come here?* Staring at the open space soaked in red light, she perceived movement and instinctively hid behind a cluster of bushes. Several knights were wielding swords against each other, training on one side of the grounds. She watched them with a lost gaze before continuing to drag herself forward.
She walked for a long time without knowing where she was going, and her vision, previously clear, now undulated like water. The medicinal herbs must have finally been taking effect. Dragging her limp leg like a dead weight, she continued with her slow, snail-like steps. Suddenly, she saw that the shadow stretching at her feet was swallowed by a dense darkness. She looked up. At some point, she had wandered into a gloomy building. *Where am I now?* While she frowned in confusion, a door at the end of the long corridor caught her attention. Attracted by something, she staggered toward it and knocked softly. A moment later, a deep voice answered from within.
“What is it?”
Talia blinked slowly. Upon hearing his voice, she finally remembered what she had come for. With a sluggish voice, she said:
“I came because… I have something to tell you.”
A cold silence followed. Thinking her voice might have been too low, she cleared her throat and opened her mouth again. At that moment, she heard firm footsteps approaching and the door opened wide. Talia raised her head. Varkas, who was apparently resting after finishing his duties for the day, wore only dark trousers and a loose linen shirt. She stared at him, when a cold voice fell from above.
“You came all the way here… dressed like that?”
Talia looked down at herself. Her summer nightgown —which her nanny had put on her— was visible through the open robe. What was wrong with it? While she frowned, something heavy and wide settled over her shoulders. She looked up, bewildered. Varkas had completely wrapped her in his coat, and then scanned the darkening corridor with his gaze.
“Your escort?”
“Escort?”
His eyes sharpened. He lifted her chin slightly, forcing her to look at him. Then he leaned toward her, pinning his gaze directly into her eyes.
“How much sleeping herb did you burn?”
Talia tried to focus, but his face kept distorting before her eyes. Varkas was putting on a strange expression she had never seen on him before. No —perhaps the strange thing was her own head. Nothing in the world seemed normal at that moment— so how could this man be? She slapped his hand away —with more roughness than originally intended— and opened her lips.
“I told you… I came because I have something to say.”
He narrowed his eyes, visibly displeased. Varkas straightened up, looking at the darkening sky through the window and then contemplating his room behind him, as if considering something. She grew anxious. *Did I speak in elven, dwarven, or something? Why isn’t he responding?*
“Aren’t you listening to me? I said I have something…”
Suddenly, her body tilted. Talia grabbed the doorframe in a panic. Walking all the way from the annex must have cramped her leg. The muscle of her left thigh trembled slightly. She pressed both palms against the wall, trying not to collapse. Then, her body was lifted from the ground all at once. Startled, she looked up to see Varkas’s tired face filling her vision. He carried her in his arms into his spacious room, illuminated by a few candles.
Talia examined the familiar yet unfamiliar surroundings. She had gone there many times to meet with him, but not once had she set foot inside. A hollow laugh escaped her. So her crippled legs were finally enough to win her entry into his sanctuary.
“We will talk when the effect of the medicine passes,” Varkas said, laying her down on his bed.
When he tried to pull away, she clung to his shirt. She could feel how the solid and firmly trained muscles beneath the thin fabric tensed slightly. Had he realized what she intended to say? Struggling to keep her eyes focused, she clung to his shirt like a lifeline.
“No… I am going to speak now. If I regain my sanity, I… I won’t be able to say it.”
“…”
“You said… that if I accepted… you would take me as your wife, right?”
He didn’t answer. He simply looked into her eyes without blinking. Talia forced her clumsy tongue to move.
“Do it, then. Abandon Ailah Roem Guirta… and take me as your wife.”
A dense silence fell over the room. On his face, backlit by the dying twilight, an indecipherable expression flickered. Was he… surprised? Since she had spoken expecting a rejection, perhaps he felt caught off guard. However, his voice, when it came, was chillingly firm.
“So I shall.”
Talia scrutinized his face with blurry eyes. Finding no trace of emotion in his sterile expression, she exhaled a hollow laugh. Because of this man, Ailah —the sister who despised her— had gone to beg him, lowering her pride. Talia herself was suffocating in the urge to ruin everything. And yet, this man… why was he so calm? Before that indifferent face that bordered on weary boredom, something inside her broke.
—
## Chapter 64
### THE FORGOTTEN FIELDS (NOVELA)
“Do you know why I am trying to marry you?”
Varkas looked at her in silence. Upon that expressionless face, she emphasized every word as she spoke.
“To see you be miserable. That is why I want to marry you.”
“…….”
“I hope you suffer. A lot, a whole lot.”
His eyes sank into a deep stillness.
She held her breath, waiting for his response. Waiting for that indifferent face to crumble; waiting for him to rage, draw back, shake her off.
*Say it’s impossible.*
*Say you could never take a woman like me as a wife.*
Even if her heart were left so completely shattered that it left no trace of its shape, at least, perhaps they could save what was left of each of their lives.
But, as always, he betrayed her expectations.
Varkas let out a short sigh, as if he had only heard something trivial. He pulled her hand away from his clothes and straightened his posture.
“The wedding will take place as soon as possible.”
Then he walked toward the window and opened it wide.
A gust of wind passed brushing past him and spread over her face.
Talia quietly contemplated his silhouette, soaked in the glow of the sunset. His low and heavy voice seemed to fall from a great distance.
“That will be for the best… both for you and for me.”
What did he mean by that?
Did he mean that problematic tasks were better resolved quickly?
Talia observed his eyes as if searching for an answer, but soon, exhaustion invaded her and she lowered her gaze.
None of that mattered anymore. She would not waste any more energy trying to dig into his thoughts.
If he accepted her out of duty, then she chose to be by his side only to return the wounds she received. She would not make the foolish mistake of expecting anything from him.
She repeated the vow she had made to herself thousands of times.
Tonight, for the last time, she would put a final point to this cursed love.
But she already knew.
The love she killed tonight would find her again tomorrow…
The entire Imperial Palace buzzed with excitement over the upcoming wedding of the Second Princess.
Under the direct orders of the Empress, the maids of the main palace had begun to luxuriously decorate the ceremony hall, while the servants ran endlessly between the storehouses and the kitchens preparing the food and wine for the guests.
However, despite all the bustling chaos, a heavy and unsettling air floated throughout the palace.
Edric, upon leaving the supply depot, saw a group of apprentices huddled in a corner of the training ground, muttering among themselves. He frowned. Their unpleasant words stabbed into his ears.
“So, in the end, both the mother and the daughter lost their men one generation after another.”
He closely observed the boy mocking with crudeness. The son of Viscount Kendon, an infamous troublemaker who had formed his own faction among the apprentice knights.
The boy placed his practice weapon on the rack and continued:
“I heard the Second Princess looks identical to Her Majesty the Empress. With a face like that, it’s no wonder Sir Sheorkan fell for her.”
“Do you think the Commander is like you?” A burly apprentice shook his head. “Besides, this marriage wouldn’t have happened at all if it weren’t for Her Majesty’s order. Only the First Princess was rejected.”
“Tch, naive idiot. The Sheorkan family… do you really think they would change fiancées just because Her Majesty said so?” The boy clicked his tongue. “Obviously he accepted because he wanted to! And wasn’t Sir Sheorkan once the Second Princess’s personal knight? Doesn’t that mean they were already seeing each other since long before this? The people who joined the pilgrimage say both of them acted a bit suspiciously…”
“Don’t talk nonsense. Do you know how much the Second Princess tormented the Commander when he was her guard? A pretty face doesn’t matter. After seeing her temperament from so close, as if he would fall for her.” An apprentice sorting practice arrows let out a loud mock. “Besides, the Second Princess was left half-crippled after that incident. Who would choose a woman like that over someone like the First Princess? Surely she used some vile trick behind the scenes, I bet she…”
“It seems training these days is done with the mouth.”
Unable to listen any longer, Edric intervened abruptly. The apprentices startled and straightened up instantly.
He swept them with a cold gaze.
“Do you realize that the conversation you are having could be considered defamation toward the Imperial Family?”
Their faces turned pale.
Edric looked at each one carefully before adding sternly:
“The Knights of Roem exist to protect the Imperial Family. If you wish to be part of them, at least you should know that one must not speak recklessly of royalty in public.”
“S–Sir! We are sorry, Sir Rubon!”
The boys bowed with tense faces.
Edric stood staring in silence for a moment before turning around and walking toward the knights’ barracks.
But then, a heavy arm fell over his shoulder.
Edric turned and widened his eyes upon seeing his superior knight, Sir Theoric Hart.
The man smiled.
“You’ve whipped them into shape quite well.”
“What brings you to the training ground at this hour?”
Edric looked at the clock tower with a bewildered expression.
It wasn’t even noon yet. The superior knights would normally be busier fulfilling their duties in the main palace at this hour.
Theoric laughed at the inquisitive look and ruffled Edric’s hair with his large hand.
“I came running to give you some good news. Your disciplinary probation period is over. Starting tomorrow, you will return to my direct unit.”
Edric paused, looking at him. It was good news, undeniably, but a tangle of complex feelings arose inside him.
He asked with hesitation:
“Then… who will be assigned to guard the Second Princess?”
His superior’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Theoric lowered his arm from Edric’s shoulder and let out a heavy sigh.
“The Knights of Roem have been completely removed from the Second Princess’s guard. Her Majesty the Empress accused us of neglecting our duties on purpose. She even insisted that we will no longer protect the Second Prince either.”
Edric’s face hardened. This was no different from dragging the honor of the Knights of Roem through the mud.
Since the founding of the Empire, the Order of Roem had served close to the Imperial Family, protecting them. Their entire identity was being denied.
Edric lowered his head weakly.
“I apologize… Because I did not fulfill my role, the Order has suffered such a disgrace…”
“It’s not your fault. No one could have predicted what happened. You don’t need to blame yourself.”
Theoric gave him a few comforting pats on the shoulder.
But even then, Edric’s expression did not soften. Theoric rubbed the back of his neck, deep in thought, and suddenly guided his subordinate away from the training ground. Edric followed him, bewildered.
After walking in silence for a while, Theoric finally spoke when they reached a secluded clearing.
“I know you are a boy with a strong sense of responsibility. But this really wasn’t your fault, so stop wearing your heart out over it.”
Edric frowned.
“I was her personal knight. Ultimately, the primary responsibility for the failure in her protection falls on me. So how could I…!”
“That attack occurred due to an intrigue by the Empress.”
Edric froze, staring fixedly at his superior.
Theoric looked toward the ground with a somber expression and continued calmly:
“Don’t you find it strange? A pack of wyverns attacking a unit at a time like that… Large monsters like wyverns never attack an armed army unless their territory is invaded. And our camp was far from their habitat.”
“Well, yes… I thought it was strange, but still, that is not enough to accuse the Empress of…”
“Before the attack, there were reports that members of the Second Princess’s entourage were acting suspiciously.” His tone hardened. “And besides that, traces of high-level magic were found near the site of the attack. Most likely, someone intentionally agitated the wyverns’ nesting areas.”
Edric stood agape.
As the meaning behind the words became clear, a cold sweat broke out along his spine.
“But… the Second Princess was part of the pilgrimage. Her own daughter could have been hurt. How could she be capable of…?”
“That was exactly what allowed her to evade suspicion so easily.”
Edric looked at him, wordless, as the blood drained from his face.
Theoric continued in a somber voice:
“The Empress is terrifyingly thorough. Although we began a covert investigation right after the incident, she left no decisive evidence; only a few circumstantial traces. And since the greatest victim was her own daughter, who would dare to question her?”
Edric slowly lowered his gaze.
He remembered the princess buried under a pile of rocks, crying.
He remembered her twisting in pain while emergency first aid was being applied to her.
That woman had ended up in such a state… because of her own mother.
His stomach churned violently.
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