The Royal Mark-Chapter 192: Riddle

"My brain is working just fine; I’m simply curious about how you discovered this so early," Elsa inquired, puzzled.

[I detected your baby’s heartbeat and shared the news with Ciel, who then informed Hera, and it eventually circulated,] Gaia explained.

"So Gaia informed everyone. But how can you be certain? It seems too early," Elsa questioned.

"For humans, it usually takes two or three months after a missed period or when the abdomen starts expanding to confirm. Similarly, elves rely on these signs, but their hearing is not as good as werewolves. Only you can confirm, or we can wait for the visible signs of your pregnancy," Hera clarified.

"Indeed, only you can determine if the baby was conceived on your mating night or before your wedding ceremony," Elandir added with a mischievous grin.

"Elandir! Mind your own business and leave my daughter alone," Hera scolded, prompting laughter from Elandir.

Raising both hands in surrender, Elandir said, "Alright, grandma. I’ll let you two catch up. Princess Elsa, please visit me once you feel better; we have a lot of preparations to make for rescuing Christopher."

Elsa nodded in agreement and turned swiftly to Hera, embracing her once more.

"I’ve missed you so much, Mom! I can’t believe you’re here! Why didn’t you come back for me?" Elsa inquired, her mind buzzing with questions. Despite her curiosity, she understood the need for patience and a gradual approach.

"I desperately wanted to return and bring you with me, but I couldn’t leave Qiryn. When Elandir saved my life, he had to take me to the Tree of Life, taking a gamble on whether it would consume or heal me. Once healed, my life became tied to the tree. If I were to leave Qiryn, the Tree of Life would reclaim the life it granted me.

I cried every day and every night, and Queen Ydril empathized with me as a mother herself. She told Elandir to bring you, but he returned empty-handed, stating that Nathan was already caring for you and refused to part with you. Naturally, Elandir was quite scared of your fa—"

"W-Wait, Nathan who? Who is Nathan?" Elsa interrupted Hera, struggling to comprehend her mother’s story.

"Oh, so your father used a different name in Novus?" Hera responded, teasing out a revelation that piqued Elsa’s interest.

"I suppose? My father goes by Ambros Arden. Who’s Nathan?" Elsa inquired.

"Ah, he even adopted a last name, quite clever. His actual name is Nathan. Hmph, it took him a while to locate you; I presume he lost a huge part of his power due to the punishment," Hera muttered to herself in the latter part.

"Mom, what are you talking about? What punishment?" Elsa asked, her confusion deepening, fueled by a growing curiosity about her father.

"I’ll share that with you another time, dear. For now, let’s focus on what’s more pressing—your baby and Chris," Hera said, attempting to redirect Elsa’s attention.

Fortunately, Elsa nodded and agreed, instantly putting thoughts of her father aside.

"Indeed, you mentioned that the bitch queen plans to be marked by Chris as well," Elsa remarked, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

"You mean the witch queen," Hera clarified.

"No, the bitch queen, because she’s trying to steal my husband and messing with me. And why does Elandir know so much?" Elsa expressed, receiving a chuckle from Hera.

"Elandir is still technically a prince, and he has access to the Spirit Oasis. It reveals random events in the past, present, and future to a worthy viewer," Hera explained.

"It’s a powerful tool, even if it’s random. So what about Ciel? Was she revived by the Tree of Life too?"

"Yes and no. She’s connected to you, and when you burned the council’s building, you unleashed a lot of energy that somehow revived her heartbeat. However, it wasn’t sufficient; she was too weak. We suspected it was due to your mana, so we had her drink water from the Moon Well near the Tree of Life, and she gradually recovered.

So, you can take her out of Qiryn if that’s what you’re thinking. But if you want to defeat the witch queen, you must take her back into yourself," Hera advised.

Elsa sighed and laid back on the back, "I had a hard time acquiring Nuri and Nile, and if I am really pregnant like what Gaia is saying then acquiring Gaia and Ciel would be dangerous for the baby," Elsa said.

"Not really, if we do it slowly. Earth means life and training under that element wouldn’t harm your baby. The elves are experts regarding that element and I already talked to Elandir to teach you, but surprisingly, Queen Ydril volunteered to be your teacher," Hera said.

"When is that blood moon that you said earlier?" Elsa asked.

Hera placed her fingers on her chin as she tried to calculate the next blood moon, "If my computation is right, it will be six months from now."

"Six months? How will I be able to fight with a huge belly?" Elsa exclaimed worriedly.

"You have already given birth by then. Your baby is not completely human, it will be a mix of you and Chris. And the blood of a true alpha is quite strong so you might give birth four to four and a half months from now. Then you will still have a month or a month and a half to train before the blood moon," Hera explained.

Elsa’s jaw dropped, she could not imagine herself being pregnant and now she was just told that she would give birth in less than six months. She’s a doctor but she couldn’t even envision how is that even possible to happen in her body.

And the fact that she is carrying a werewolf baby worries her, will it have fur when she gives birth? Will it have fangs when born? There are still so many things that she doesn’t know about Chris’ race and she has a lot of things to research about if she wants to raise this baby well.

Hera’s laughter brought her back from her thoughts.

"Looks like you have a lot on your mind. You can ask me anything you know," Hera urged.

"I do, but I don’t even know where to start... Plus, I am still bothered by my dream, I still don’t know how Chris was about to appear in there."

"What kind of dream?" Hera asked.

"When you left, I always dreamt about your first day in Novus. It ended after I arrived in Vectus. And now I am having another repetitive dream that seems to progress every time I see it. But earlier I saw Chris, he said to not rescue him and to go back to Novus and never return. Then he shifted to his wolf and Yakobo howled before fading."

"If I am going to interpret it. It could be that Chris talked to you through your bond but you were able to see him because your bond is much stronger now because of your baby," Hera explained.

Elsa smiled, "Thank you, Mom. I think you are right. I forgot this feeling exists... The feeling of everything seems to be okay and clear after having a chat with my mom. Will I be able to be like you when I become a mother?"

Hera gently caressed Elsa’s cheek and said, "You’ll be far greater than me, sweetheart. That, I’m sure. Now enough of the drama, I don’t want you crying when you are pregnant. Tell me more about this dream."

Elsa nodded and sat up straight, "I was in a forest then I obliterated like more than a kilometer radius of trees and set them to fire and ashes. Then, I got pissed off at having the same dream over and over so I walked forward until I reached a well. The sound of water calmed my anger and it was soothing. Then I fell into the well and that’s it."

"Do you remember when did you start having that dream?" Hera calmly asked.

"Right before I acquired Nuri, then it progressed to the well before we sailed to Qiryn," Elsa said.

"And your dream hasn’t progressed after that? What else did you see in your dream besides Chris and his wolf," Hera asked, trying to lead Elsa in the right direction.

"Well, after he faded, I cried. It was weird though, flowers grew from the ground because of my tears, and trees emerged from the ground as well when I touched it," she recalled.

"Don’t you still get it?" Hera questioned excitedly.

"Get what?"

"First, you saw fire. Second, water in the well. Then flowers and trees... Think and analyze them carefully, dear."

Elsa tilted her head as she stared at her mother with a frown. She just woke up in a coma after a month and her mother wants to play Guess the Riddle with her. Thinking all of it is already making her head hurt and she still has a lot of things that she needs to think about.