Lady to Queen - Chapter 114

Chapter 114 – [Side Story] Ch. 6 I’m Pregnant With Your Child 

Rosemond snuck out of the Queen’s Palace through a secret passage that only she knew about. It was designed only for use in emergencies, and thus was impossible to keep a close guard on. Rosemond forewent having Glara by her side and ran all the way to the Central Palace by herself. She had to hurry. 

“Your Majesty…” 

The Central Palace’s head lady-in-waiting was startled to see Rosemond suddenly appear with flyaway hair framing her face. The lady-in-waiting stared in bewilderment at the woman’s presence, but Rosemond ignored her questioning look. 

“His Majesty—Is His Majesty inside?” Rosemond panted. 

“…Yes, he is,” the head lady-in-waiting replied. 

“Then what are you doing still not opening the door?” Rosemond snapped. 

Does she think she’s still the Empress? She’s about to be dethroned,
 

the head lady-in-waiting complained inwardly, but she did not let it show on her face. “…Please enter.” 

As soon as the door was opened, Rosemond hurried inside. 

“Your Majesty.” 

“…” 

Only then did Lucio raise his head up. The couple made eye contact with each other. 

“Your Majesty,” Rosemond repeated pleadingly. 

“I’m listening. I’m not deaf.” 

“Your Majesty, please save me.” 

“…” 

Lucio stared at her with a complicated expression on his face. “Is there anything else you want to tell me?”
 

“What do you mean?” Rosemond asked. 

“About Petronilla,” he said shortly. 

“I thought you’d approve of it,” Rosemond answered with confidence. “You promised to make me an Empress. I believed you like Hell…and I’m getting older. How could I not be worried?” 

Rosemond continued with a cold smile. “I thought you’d understand me, and I still believe that. Am I wrong?” 

“You poisoned yourself and pretended to miscarry a child you didn’t even have. Then you put the blame on Petronilla. Rose, I didn’t want that kind of violence. If the former queen failed to give birth to a crown prince, but you did… That could be handled peacefully enough.” 

“…I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I’m not patient enough to wait for that.” 

Lucio’s slightly red eyes caught Rosemond’s attention. What was he thinking about now? Was he disappointed in her? How dare he think that? 

“Anyway, it already happened,” Rosemond said in finality. 

“…Yes,” Lucio sighed. “But the current situation is not as good as you think. When someone has been dethroned in the Empire, the natural sequence is for them to die. Rose, didn’t you think of the consequences at all if your act was discovered?” 

“No. Everything was going well. It’s just that… that things went wrong unexpectedly.” Rosemond hugged Lucio and whispered in his ear. “But it doesn’t matter.” As always, he could not resist her. Rosemond’s low voice tingled seductively in his ear. “Please help me, Your Majesty. Only you can help me.” 

“The Emperor can’t do anything he wants, Rose. You know that.” 

“It’s something that won’t harm you. Don’t worry.” Rosemond continued with a slight smile. “No one can execute a woman carrying an Imperial descendant.” 

“Are you…” 

“You have the right idea.” 

Rosemond slipped off the dress she was wearing. In a moment, her pale body was laid bare in front of him. 

“Please give me an Imperial descendant, Your Majesty.” 

* 

A few days later, Rosemond emptied the Queen’s Palace. It was exactly a month before Lucio’s birthday banquet. Because she did not have any relatives, she only brought Glara with her and moved to Phelps Castle, which was bestowed on her by the Emperor. 

Although Lucio tried to keep everything as hushed as possible, the people already found out about the story. Rosemond had to endure a barrage of insulting remarks as she rode the carriage to Phelps Castle. 

“You witch! The innocent Queen died because of you!” 

“I can’t believe you did such an insolent thing. You will be punished by Heaven!” 

“The late Queen will punish you!” 

As Rosemond listened to the occasional shout, she couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Who knew they would turn on her this fast? They must have said the same thing to the late Queen a few months ago from the news they had heard. They did not even think about finding out the details. 

Fools! Rosemond laughed to herself and put her hands together neatly on her lap. 

‘I will have to wait at least a month to confirm that I’ve conceived.’ 

Until then, she had to protect herself and take care of a fetus that might not even exist. Rosemond subconsciously stroked her stomach. It never happened, but she felt like her child was already kicking her belly in the womb. 

“Your Majesty, I can’t believe you’re here. How can this…” Glara sobbed. 

Rosemond arrived at Phelps Palace with a minimal number of ladies-in-waiting. Glara’s usual composed demeanor had evaporated and she kept on crying. Rosemond could not stand the sound and responded with a glaring reply. 

“Stop crying, Glara. I hate the sound! Do you think I don’t want to cry right now?” Rosemond unknowingly stroked her stomach again. “No one can lay a hand on me if I manage to get pregnant. Imperial law states that a woman who bears an Imperial descendant shall be spared no matter what felony she is guilty of! All we have to do is wait a little, Glara.” 

“Yes, Your Majesty. How great would it be if things were to go that way?” 

“If you understand, tell the chef to get something to eat. I’m famished after traveling nonstop from Kadye to Phelps Castle.” 

“Yes, Your Majesty.” 

Glara did as Rosemond requested and, after a while, she brought in colorful and lavish plates of food. Rosemond’s face brightened for the first time at the spread in front of her. 

“So many choices. What is this?” 

“Most of the food is seafood that you like. I specifically asked the cook to make it so you feel better,” Glara explained. 

“How praiseworthy.” Smiling, Rosemond carefully lifted a silver dish lid at the front of the table. But before the dish was fully revealed, she made a sound of disgust and dropped the lid. Her face turned pale in nausea. 

“Umph!” 

“Your Majesty!” Surprised, Glara quickly approached Rosemond and examined her condition. “Your Majesty, what’s wrong? Your Majesty!” 

“The food…the smell.” Rosemond struggled to force each word out of her mouth. “Really disgusting… Do they really make that with seafood?” 

“Yes. Of course,” Glara said, looking desperate. “It’s your favorite octopus dish. Does it smell bad?” 

“That’s strange… There’s no way I would hate an octopus dish… Ah!” 

At that moment, Rosemond’s eyes flashed.  “No way… No way…?” 

“Pardon? Your Majesty, what’s wr—ah!” 

Glara’s face lit up when she realized what Rosemond was thinking. 

Rosemond burst into gleeful laughter. 

* 

Even after Rosemond’s dethronement, he did not bring in a new queen to fill in the empty position. People whispered that he must be in shock for it to happen consecutively. For those who participated in the rebellion, it did not matter much, as they wanted the Emperor to remain quiet for some time. 

Two weeks later, Rosemond’s execution date arrived. 

“His Majesty hasn’t been able to come to his senses since the Queen was dethroned?” Laura asked. 

Duke Witherford raised his blank face slightly at his daughter’s words. The two were traveling by carriage to the Gervianen Square in Kadye to watch the execution ceremony. 

“This is already his second queen. Besides, His Majesty loved her dearly, so it’s to be expected.” 

Lauren grumbled inwardly. She didn’t think it was a given. Quite frankly, she thought the Emperor’s behavior was stupid. Just look at what happened to him as a result of not choosing a wife properly. 

Duke Witherford gave Lauren a knowing look, as if he had read his daughter’s mind. “Choosing a spouse is a difficult endeavor for both men and women, Lau. It’s not uncommon to meet the wrong person and have your life ruined.” 

A short time later, Duke Witherford spoke again. “Oh, it seems like we have already arrived.” 

The carriage drew to a steady stop and the two prepared to disembark the carriage. When the door opened, Duke Witherford got off first and held his arm out for his daughter. In addition to the father and daughter pair, there were countless other people gathered in the square, all of whom, of course, were there to watch the death of Rosemond. Many were already jeering, even though the criminal in question hadn’t yet shown up. The plaza was far from solemn and was more like a market. 

At one point, a slightly shaky voice was heard. “Bring in the Queen.” 

A moment later, Rosemond—accompanied by soldiers on both sides—appeared in the square. Her presence in the already noisy plaza roused the crowd into a fevered pitch. 

“The witch!  The witch is here!” 

“Kill her! Kill her!” 

“She killed the innocent late Queen!” 

Rosemond looked surprisingly calm even after listening to the open insults. She held herself confidently, as if she had done nothing wrong. 

Lucio, who was watching her, was burning deep inside in agony. No matter what she had done, she was once a woman he loved sincerely. 

He slowly opened his mouth and recited the charges. 

“Rosemond Mary la Phelps laid a treacherous plot and framed the late Queen Petronilla Laura Le Grochester for murder. Such conduct is immoral, does not match the qualifications of the position as the Mother of the Empire, and is deceiving towards the Emperor and other members of Mavinous Imperial Family. So, I, Lucio Carrick George de Mavinous…” 

Lucio finished his sentence with a trembling voice. 

“…Order the death penalty in the name of the Emperor.” 

“Your Majesty.” 

It was then that Rosemond called Lucio with an elegant smile. Lucio stared at her with reddened eyes. Even when death was nigh, his lover showed no trace of fear or horror. 

“You cannot execute me,” Rosemond declared. 

At those words, the plaza became chaotic again, and questions of “What is she talking about?” dominated every mouth. 

Duke Witherford replied on behalf of Lucio.  “What do you mean?” 

Rosemond remained self-assured. “It’s exactly what I just said, Lord. No one in this Empire can harm me. In my womb, a fetus with the blood of the Mavinous Imperial Family is growing.” 

“No way!” the crowd cried. 

Lucio watched with a dry expression and shouts erupted everywhere. The nobles around him looked flustered. 

“Can you prove it?” a noble spoke up. “If you claim turns out to be false, then the offense of deceiving the entire Empire as well as the Imperial Family will be added.” 

“I suffered from severe morning sickness when I was in Phelps Castle. I couldn’t call a doctor, so I couldn’t confirm it…” Rosemond’s eyes shone brilliantly. “But you can call the palace doctor to examine me. Wouldn’t it be better for everyone to hear the result themselves?” 

“…” 

Eventually, the court physician was summoned from the Imperial Palace and Rosemond was examined meticulously. And after some time, unexpected words came out of the court physician’s mouth. 

“She is not pregnant.” 

At the same time, a scream burst out of Rosemond’s mouth. 

“It can’t be!”