The Lotus Of East Palace
The Chapter 20 (Shuu)

This morning, unlike usual, our King woke up earlier than everyone else in Dong-gung. He asked us to meet him in the basement as soon as we finished breakfast.

"What do you think he wants to talk about?" Kaze asked as we were on our way to the basement. We pass by Dong-gung Park which is getting more and more beautiful to look at. Even when the petals of cherry blossoms have begun to fall, the flowers in this garden are not disturbed at all. They're still blooming.

"Lately he has closed his mind. It seems whatever it is, he doesn't want us to know."

"What possible... He wants to talk about that?"

"About what?"

"You knew... About the man who killed Prince Yi. Are we gonna keep our mouths shut about that?"

"If he asks, we must answer him honestly. We can't lie to our King."

When we arrived at the unlocked basement this time, our King invited us to sit down. He poured fruit juice for us, while for him himself he poured wine. He had already drunk wine. A thousand years ago, he avoided alcohol.

Our basement is a replica of the lounge of our former Palace, a more modern version of course. A thousand years ago there was no crystal chandelier like the one here. This room is the size of a house with several doors to other rooms that I do not know what space is in it. It was in one of those rooms that our King and Queen kept a stockpile of wine they had brought from Schiereiland.

I glanced at our King who was watching us alternately. I tried to read his mind, but I couldn't. He blocked me.

"Where is Her Majesty?" Kaze asked, breaking the silence between us.

"Anna was not feeling well so she was resting in the third floor room. Louis gave her the medicine. Let him sleep all day."

"Yesterday he didn't leave the room all day." Renung Kaze's.

"Is it bad?" Ask directly.

"No. Not bad." Said. But from his tone of voice, he seemed to doubt it. I just noticed it now, Our King doesn't seem to sleep all night. He looks messy and messy. Her eyes were black and her eyes were all crying. She instead of waking up early, she stayed up all night looking after our Queen who seemed to be unwell. He downed his wine, "I hope it's not bad" he said again, more to himself.

I tried to guess what he was going to tell us. If the Queen is sick, maybe our King would like to ask us to work in the tavern and not come out today. Perhaps he also wanted to bring the Queen back to his home country. Or maybe he wants me to heal him with the power of the Water Dragon. No. gabe. That's not. Our king just needs to kiss her and she'll heal right away. So why is our Queen still not healed? Why did he ask Louis to give him the medicine? Is this how people who cannot read minds for their whole lives feel? The curiosity of the mind of others is really frustrating.

"Should I call a physician I know, Sire?" Ask Kaze.

Wh why? If His Majesty alone cannot cure him let alone an ordinary Physician? I asked through our telepathy.

Maybe because he doesn't understand the problem. The physician can detect the source of the problem, not just figure out how to cure it.

Is there anything he doesn't know? If something wrong happened to Her Majesty, she would know right away.

You guys don't understand. Something like this happened a thousand years ago when you don't remember?

"Thank you Kaze, but Anna refused to be examined. For now we better wait for the results of treatment from Louis first. He's a royal herbologist, he might be able to treat it." Said.

I'm not sure Louis can treat it. Kaze's Comments.

Tumben once you doubted Louis when you used to always praise whatever he did.

"There's something I want to ask you guys." Our king started with a more serious tone of voice this time. Me and Kaze automatically sat up straight. "You were in Nordhalbinsel when it happened. When my father and Prince Yi were killed on the same day."

We nodded simultaneously. Ready not to be ready, we had expected that someday we would be questioned about this. And we promised we wouldn't tell anyone about this. But he is our King and we do not lie to him.

"I've investigated it. I know what killed my father was my stepmother, Selena. My stepbrother told me directly. As for Prince Yi..." He was silent for a moment, seemingly hesitating whether to ask her or not. I think he knows or at least suspects someone. "My investigation team found a bottle of Morta's poison in the room occupied by one of Prince Yi's bodyguards. The poison is still full. Not used at all. And I know how that poison works. I know the characteristics of people who have been exposed to the poison. The features were not on the body of Prince Yi. He didn't die from Morta's poison, although there might have been some who planned to kill him with it. The plan failed."

I waited. I will only answer if he asks, and I will answer him honestly.

"Did you really see what happened?"

"true." Kaze replied, while I just nodded while clenching my hands.

"Not to be afraid. I'll protect you. That guy won't hurt you." He said as he watched we looked scared as he recalled the incident. "Is it true that he was killed by magic?" Ask again.

We just nodded this time. Kaze held my hand tightly.

"Is..." He himself seemed unprepared to ask. "Is it true that Eleanor killed Prince Yi using her magic?"

I looked up at him. From his expression I knew he himself did not want us to answer honestly. He was not ready to hear the truth. But he should know. "Yes, Sire. Queen Eleanor, I mean, the former Queen who killed Prince Yi."

From his reaction to being more worried rather than surprised, I guess he already knew that Eleanor killed Prince Yi. He just asked to be sure. She then massaged her temple, sighing deeply, "Did Prince Yi do something bad to her so Eleanor would inevitably use her magic to defend herself?"

"No." My answer. "It was still very early in the morning, Prince Yi was still asleep, but we had already woken up because we used to get up early to take a walk in the morning air. The usual bodyguard was in front of his room somewhere, but the door was open a little, so we could see it. Eleanor suddenly came up with teleportation magic and killed the Prince who was still asleep using her magic. We watched him as Prince Yi seemed to have trouble breathing until he was not breathing at all. Then Eleanor used teleportation magic again and disappeared quickly."

He shakes in disbelief. His frown seemed to think hard looking for a reasonable reason. "No... It can't be Elle... He wouldn't do that. Elle is not that kind of person. Elle won't kill anyone. I've known him since childhood. He's a good man. That might be someone else. It must be someone else disguised as him."

"I read his mind. That is true of him. Not anyone else." I said.

For a long time he seemed to be thinking about many things. Again I could not penetrate his mind. So the three of us just fell silent in the room until he finally asked us again.

"Other than you two, does anyone else know?"

"none. Just us." My answer.

"Did Elias know?"

"Elias doesn't know about it at all. Elias still suspects that his twin sister was slandered and that the one who killed Yi was Haru's man."

"All right..." He sighed again. "Hide this thing. Don't tell anyone especially Elias."

"Okay, Sire." I and Kaze answered simultaneously.

...****************...

We have many customers today. Me and Eri, who have now recovered, help our King who returned disguised as Riz. Kaze and Louis were sent to go find a trustworthy healer to check on our Queen because days had passed and she was still lying weakly on the bed.

Our king seemed to feel something happening to His Majesty. He seemed to be in a hurry to go to the third floor. I do not understand what happened, but our King tried to cure him but it did not work. Things like this don't usually happen.

So it was just me and Eri who worked extra hard at the tavern. I wonder why all of a sudden our customers have doubled today. So I try to read the minds of the customers and gather information while working as a waiter in Dong-gung.

Apparently today the Emperor's family returned to Jungdo and they held a large party in the center of Jungdo as well as to welcome the arrival of the noble princesses who would take part in the selection of Emperor Haru's concubines. Then Elias must have been in Jungdo to pick up Yeon-Hwa as soon as he came today.

"Shuu, we need your help!" Kaze suddenly comes with Louis. They were holding the wrinkled hands of an old woman who seemed to be blind.

"What's up?" I asked after approaching them.

Kaze seemed to signal Louis to take my place in the shop. Louis immediately took the tray from my hand and deftly began to work. "This is the doctor."

"He's blind." I said directly.

"And mute."

"What?"

"Baginda the King ordered to find a physician who could be trusted. He could be trusted because he was blind and mute so he wouldn't divulge any secrets. But relax, he's not deaf."

"So?"

"You can be his intermediary."

"I don't understand sign language."

"You can read his mind and tell him what he said. I'll ask him to say his diagnosis in his mind."

Finally we led the physician to the third floor. We went very slowly because the physician was very old and blind. On the way to the third floor I could hear them in their original voices. It seemed like they had already removed that transformation ring.

"I'm fine, Xavier. Just dizziness and nausea. Go back downstairs. I just need to take a little nap."

"You're exaggerating. I didn't spit it all out."

"You even spit out water."

I knocked on their bedroom door on the third floor.

"Lake in."

Kaze and I immediately led the physician to our Queen who looked very pale and was lying weakly on the bed. His red hair that was now as long as his chest looked tangled and messy around his face. I think he's getting thinner in four days. His gaze was soft, his bones were prominent. There was a hollow under his eyes and his cheeks were getting thinner. He's obviously very ill.

Can anyone explain who this woman is and why she's here? Ask our Queen.

Anna, you need to be checked.

I'm not sick. If I get sick, you can cure me.

I tried and I couldn't cure you.

That's vivid. That's because I'm not sick.

Don't worry, Queen. This physician is blind and mute. Kaze.

You guys overreact when I'm not sick!

But just then, he vomited again somehow today. As he sat down to spit out all his entrails, I could see his hand holding the container where his vomit seemed to consist only of pale bones and skin. How could he look like this in just four days?

Try saying it again. Challenge our King.

Her Majesty turned the eyeballs. I'm just nauseous. Not sick.

Anna's... Please...

Alright. It's up to you guys. Do as you please.

Finally His Majesty allowed the physician to examine him. The way the healer works in Orient is hard for me to understand. They only need to check the pulse and they can immediately know the disease suffered by the patient. The doctor did not blink at all while checking his pulse. He nodded a few times. Then frowned confusedly, then nodded again.

"Whatis that? Why is he nodding like that?" Ask our King.

Our king watched over the physician, seeming apprehensive and nervous and fearful while waiting for the results of his examination. He held the Queen's hand tightly. "What's he saying?" Ask me impatiently.

"Xavier, shut up. He's still concentrating."

"Shuu's? What did he find? What disease? Is he food poisoning?" He asked again.

I read the doctor's mind before our King asked another question. The contents of the healer's mind were completely impenetrable, wide open as if they were begging to be read by me.

Oh.

I told you, right. We experienced this a thousand years ago. The time you forgot? Kaze said in our telepathy. I turned to her, looking at her arrogant smile because she was right. He was right, we had the same experience a thousand years ago.

"Shuu?" Our king is getting more urgent. "What say? How severe? Tell me something!"

I looked at our King who was still waiting impatiently for the results of his examination. "The Queen is not sick." I said.

"I told you so. I'm fine sa-"

"The Queen is pregnant."

...****************...

A thousand years ago, when Her Majesty conceived Nordlijk, she was unable to get out of bed at all during the first three months of her pregnancy. When she was pregnant with Zuidlijk, she could even fight in wars, ride for hours, and run for miles. It was us Dragons who took over the government for a while because the conditions were very weak. At that time he looked like an undead consisting of bones and skin and short breath.

I remember the normally quiet and timid Earithear suddenly protesting and furious towards our King. "I told you, marrying a human is not a wise thing! At least not let you have a child with her. What if the creature kills its own mother by sucking out its life energy from the womb? Now what can you do? Tell him to drop the womb? He's not gonna do it! He had already loved the creature even though the vile creature had not been born. You know for yourself that human physique is very weak! He won't be able to! Why don't you think before you do!"

Earithear wasn't as grumpy as Aerinear who carried the storm wherever he went. Earithear is soft-hearted and loving. He never raised his tone when talking to our King. She had never been that angry before, so when she heard him shout like that at our King, Me and my twin sister were so shocked that they could say nothing more to stop his anger. We can only hope that Earithear does not destroy the Palace and hoard us all alive.

"I can cure it." The calmness in our King's voice sounded cold. The bond of the Dragons back then was so strong that I knew how much our King also felt the same fear. He's afraid of losing Zhera. And he was afraid it was because of his mistake.

"He's not sick! Nothing needs to be healed. You just need to get rid of that thing in her womb if you don't want Zhera dead."

"Zhera will not die and the child, our son, will be born safely. And you won't challenge me again, Earithear. It's a final warning or you'll be back in the sky soon and I won't let you down to earth forever."

Earithear cried at that moment. He then begged our King for mercy and said that he was too carried away by emotions for fear that our Queen could not survive and eventually die. Earithear loved Zhen so much that she could not bear to see Zhenra in trouble for the first three months. In the end, our Queen was able to survive and Nordlijk was born safe and sound. Earithear loved Nordlijk very much as he was born as if he had never asked our King to get rid of him.

If Earithear were still here with us now, would he come back angry like that?

I read the minds of everyone in this room. Kaze looked calm, but her mind was chaotic. She loves children, she can't wait for the birth of the child of our King and Queen, she is very happy but at the same time, she is very happy, she knows what the risk is for our Queen if she maintains her pregnancy. Moreover, we are on a dangerous mission. His Majesty's mind is so closed and impenetrable. But I know he feels the same fear.

Our king ordered to close the tavern on the grounds that everyone would go downtown to welcome the new Emperor. That's not why I closed the store. Meanwhile Louis and Eri are asked to deliver the Physician back to his home safely. Kaze and I stayed in their room on the third floor.

"I know what you're gonna say." Our Queen said. His voice was hoarse, his face was pale and he looked exhausted even just to talk. But he used the rest of his energy to talk. Our king knelt by his bed while holding his hand. With the other hand, our Queen held her stomach. There is a new life there. Somehow now I can feel it even from this distance. "I already know. I could feel his presence a few weeks ago. Just as I can feel the presence of all of you if you are near me. I'm sensing. That's why I refused to be examined. Because I know what you're gonna say."

"What am I gonna say?" Ask our King. His voice was as slow as a whisper.

"I want this baby. Even if I defend it, I can die. And none of you can p-p-"

"What do you mean, Anna? Why are you talking like that?"

"A thousand years ago this was also the case. But see? Nordlijk was born safe and I survived, I did not die. Only the first three months were bad, the rest I was fine. So this time I'm gonna keep this kid." Our queen turned her head to the side, looking at our King who had been staring at her since. "Don't look at me like that, Xavier. I-i-"

His words came to a halt because just then our King hugged him. "What am I going to say, Anna? I'm very happy to be a father soon. I was so happy that it was hard to believe it, to the point of not knowing how to express it, that I didn't deserve this happiness. I just don't know.. Is this what you want? I told you before, right? Your body is yours, so you don't have to care about my wishes. I do want that child, I want to have a child from you, our child, but if that means making it difficult for you and making you suffer, then I will not force you to keep it. We've talked about this before. I'll do whatever it takes to make sure you and our son stay healthy and safe. I'll take care of you guys. But the most important thing now is your wish."

When our Queen is sad and sick, we will know and feel it. When our Queen is happy, we can also feel that happy feeling. At the moment our Queen's eyes seemed to be glazed over, but we could immediately tell she was happy.

"This is what I want." He said in a voice that sounded weak. "I want to have a complete family with you, watch our children grow up and see them raise our grandchildren."

"So hold on. Stay alive. Don't leave us." I accidentally read the mind of our Queen. I looked towards him. He seemed to be holding back his tears. This time there was sadness in those words. What did I just accidentally hear? What the hell does that mean?

But of course I didn't ask. The situation is not right.

Shuu, your grandfather used to be a Water Dragon before you. Kaze asked in our telepathy.

Is correct.

How did your grandmother survive while pregnant with the child of the Water Dragon?

Oho! Also true. Why didn't I think of it before. A thousand years ago there was nothing we could do for our Queen because medicine had not been as much as it is now. At that time medical science and herbs have not been mastered by humans, unlike now.

There is a traditional herb that has been passed down in our family, which was kissed by the wives of the Water Dragons while they were pregnant. I finally answered when I remembered it.

Let's get that potion for our Queen!

Suddenly the wind blew and the door opened wide. Someone is coming. My reflexes immediately prepared the water around me to prepare to fight if the one that came was our enemy. I see all around me doing the same thing. Kaze stood beside me, in front of our Queen and King ready to attack with his wind. And behind him, our King was already standing while unsheathing his fiery sword.

But we immediately lowered our hands and our weapons when we found out who was coming.

"Elias! You surprised us! Can't you knock on the door and enter like any normal person?" Tegur Our king.

"Yeon-Hwa is gone." He said in a panic. He looked extremely frightened as if what was missing was half his soul. Oh, of course you are. Because they're soul mates. "Yeon-Hwa does not exist. Everyone had already returned to Jungdo Palace but he was nowhere. He's gone."

...****************...