Despite the Emperor’s fiery demeanor, the physician didn’t flinch. Instead, she raised her head proudly.
The mother’s condition was paramount for a safe delivery. The physician prioritized the safety of both mother and child above all else.
With immense pride in her work, she wouldn’t tolerate anyone disturbing the mother’s peace—not even the Emperor of the empire. Moreover, she carried a message from the Empress herself, giving her unshakable confidence. At this moment, no one in the empire could intimidate her.
“Her Majesty the Empress has declared that if you send one more person into the birthing chamber, you’ll be barred from the Empress’s Palace for the foreseeable future.”
“…What?”
Sys’s brow furrowed deeply at the unexpected message. But the physician wasn’t done.
“Her Majesty also said that you’re interfering with the birth, so instead of lingering at the door, you should go attend to state affairs.”
This woman!
It was exactly the kind of thing Bee would say. But in this moment, Sys felt a pang of hurt.
He was waiting anxiously, every minute dragging like a day, desperate for news of the baby’s arrival. Yet the woman in labor, enduring such pain, had the audacity to call him a nuisance and tell him to go handle politics.
Was that something to say to a husband waiting fretfully outside?
Stunned and disheartened, Sys couldn’t muster a response to the physician. He didn’t even have the energy. As he stood there, Lant quietly approached and patted his shoulder in comfort.
“…!”
Though Lant had reluctantly accepted Sys because Bee loved him, he still didn’t like him.
Sys’s slick, handsome face seemed like it could make women cry, and Lant feared it would bring tears to Bee’s eyes one day. His smooth-talking ways and charm made Lant resent how easily Bee had fallen for him.
Moreover, Bee had Evan—a man even Lant found impressive. Lant couldn’t understand why she’d chosen Sys over him.
But perhaps spending a nerve-wracking night together outside the birthing chamber had forged a bond. For the first time, Lant felt a twinge of sympathy for Sys.
Receiving his brother-in-law’s unexpected comfort, Sys’s expression was conflicted. The pride of finally being acknowledged as family clashed with the irritation of Lant’s pitying gaze.
“Aaah!”
“The baby’s passage has finally opened!”
“Your Majesty, we can see the baby!”
“Just a little longer—push harder, Your Majesty!”
As Sys grappled with his mixed emotions over Lant’s gesture, a chilling scream was followed by urgent voices from within.
“I’ll take my leave now.”
Having delivered the Empress’s message, the physician hurried back inside, drawn by the commotion.
Sys instinctively moved to follow, but the merciless door slammed shut in his face.
“Damn it!”
He could easily smash the flimsy wooden door, but the fear that his intrusion might harm Bee or the baby stopped him from even touching it.
Marquis Elient, who had been feigning calm, now stood by the door as well.
Bee’s anguished cries were unlike anything he’d ever heard—or perhaps he had, but they felt new. The suffering of others never fazed him, but his beloved daughter’s screams shattered his heart. He’d endure her pain a dozen times over if he could.
“Aaah!”
“Push, Your Majesty!”
“It’s almost out!”
“Just a bit more—give it one more push, Your Majesty!”
As time passed, Bee’s screams grew louder.
The four men clustered at the door clenched their fists, glaring at it as if it were their mortal enemy. If looks could wield physical force, the door would’ve been reduced to dust long ago.
“Aaaaah!”
“Waaah!”
Amid a heart-stopping scream, the long-awaited cry of a newborn burst forth.
“Your Majesty, the baby is here!”
“Your Majesty!”
The emotional voices of the palace staff echoed from within.
The sounds alone didn’t reveal the full situation. The four men swallowed hard, waiting desperately for the door to open.
As the commotion subsided, the door that seemed eternally shut began to creak open. It was the moment they’d all been waiting for.
“It’s a beautiful princess. Congratulations, Your Majesty!”
“Congratulations, Your Majesty!”
“A blessing for the empire, Your Majesty!”
The physician and maids emerged, bowing to Sys. Those waiting outside with him joined in the congratulations.
“What about Bee?”
The baby was his and Bee’s, and of course it mattered. But to Sys, Bee’s safety came before a child he hadn’t yet seen.
“Come inside.”
Deciding it was better for him to see than be told, the physician stepped aside to let Sys enter.
Despite the long-awaited moment, Sys, Marquis Elient, Lant, and Evan hesitated. Their keen senses picked up the sharp scent of blood wafting from the room.
Their hearts pounded in unison.
“Your Majesty?”
The physician looked puzzled at Sys, who stood frozen, pale as a ghost. He’d been so frantic earlier, yet now, with the baby born, he stood like a statue, unmoving.
As the staff began to find it odd, a hoarse but unmistakable voice called out.
“What are you doing out there instead of coming in?”
It was Bee. Sys instinctively rushed inside.
The room was thick with heat and humidity. In the center, Bee cradled a small bundle of cloth.
“Bee!”
The first thing Sys saw was her sweat-soaked face. Tears welled up as he took in her gaunt cheeks, hollowed overnight, and her once-rosy lips, now cracked and caked with dried blood.
Heartbroken by her frail appearance, Sys wordlessly reached out, gently brushing damp hair from her cheek.
“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”
Resting her face in his delicate touch, as if handling fragile glass, Bee asked.
Sys’s throat tightened, rendering him speechless. At her urging, he managed to croak out a single phrase.
“…Thank goodness.”
It was all he could say in that moment.
He knew childbirth could be deadly—imperial history was rife with such tragedies. As her labor dragged on, he’d feared she might join those statistics, his heart constricting with every passing minute. The blood’s metallic scent had briefly plunged him into darkness, though his mind insisted the staff’s excited faces meant she was fine. His heart, however, raced with worst-case scenarios.
Bee’s voice calling him had pulled him back from the abyss.
In that moment, only her safety mattered.
His response wasn’t among the ones Bee had expected:
“You did well giving birth.”
“Thank you for giving me a child.”
“Who does the baby look like?”
She’d anticipated words about the baby, but Sys acted as if the child didn’t exist, as if he’d forgotten it entirely.
In her arms, wrapped tightly in cloth, the baby slept soundly. Bee lifted the bundle toward Sys’s face.
“Aren’t you curious about the baby?”
Only then did his gaze shift to the child.
Contrary to the notion that newborns were wrinkled, Bee’s baby was plump, cheeks round as if stuffed with candy. The face was ambiguous, resembling both Sys and Bee yet neither distinctly. Sys didn’t realize he was staring, unblinking.
Bee nudged the baby closer. Sys, unsure of her intent, blinked in confusion.
“Don’t just stand there—hold her.”
At her prompting, Sys awkwardly extended his arms. The baby whimpered faintly, uncomfortable.
“Like this.”
Bee expertly adjusted his hold. Feeling secure, the baby quieted, slipping back into sleep.
“How does it feel?”
Bee asked, but Sys couldn’t answer. The small, red life in his arms was a marvel. Holding it stirred a profound pride and an indescribable surge of emotion deep within him.
“Sister, are you okay?”
Lant’s excited voice snapped Sys out of his reverie. Craning his neck to see the baby hidden by Sys’s frame, Lant’s focus had shifted to the child the moment he knew Bee was safe.
The baby he’d resented during her screams became irresistibly dear the moment he heard it was born.
Sys instinctively tightened his hold, reluctant to show the baby to anyone—especially the three men eagerly waiting behind him.
“Waaah!”
The baby wailed at his tight grip. Panicked, Sys looked to Bee.
She reached out, signaling for him to hand her the baby. Though reluctant, Sys complied, lacking the skill to soothe a crying infant but vowing to learn.
“Shh, it’s okay, little one.”
Taking the baby, Bee cradled and cooed at it. As if recognizing her mother, the baby quieted instantly.
Startled by the sudden cry, Sys finally let out a sigh of relief.
“She’s not hurt, is she?”
