In This Life I Will Be The Lord Novel - Side Story, Chapter 27

“Pregnant?”

What did that mean?

I stared blankly at Estira, wondering if it was a joke, but there wasn’t a hint of a smile on her face.

Right, she wouldn’t joke about something like this.

Then.

“Really……?”

“I’ve checked multiple times, Matriarch.”

“So I’m really carrying a child.”

I was bewildered.

I couldn’t believe it.

But my hand was already cautiously covering my lower abdomen.

It was obvious that my stomach was still flat, with no changes yet.

No, it had gotten even flatter because I hadn’t been eating properly lately.

But there was a child inside it.

It was strange.

It was a feeling that could only be described as truly strange.

I asked, still with my hand on my belly, “How far along am I, Estira?”

“About 8 weeks.”

“8 weeks?!”

8 weeks is almost 2 months.

It meant I had been carrying another life in my body for two months.

I hadn’t noticed the slightest hint.

“It’s common, Matriarch. In the very early stages of pregnancy, there aren’t many physical changes, so people often don’t realize it.”

“Even so……”

“Mild lower abdominal pain, loss of appetite, indigestion, headaches, and fatigue can appear, but they can all be mistaken for symptoms of overwork or stress.”

These were all the symptoms I had been experiencing.

“So what I’m experiencing now is morning sickness…… is that what you’re saying?”

“It appears so.”

“So will it get worse and worse, to the point where I cover my mouth and gag just from smelling food?”

“I can’t give you a definitive answer as it varies from person to person, but that is often the case.”

Haa.

Just thinking about it was agonizing.

It’s already this hard, and it’s going to get worse?

“Then, when does morning sickness usually subside?”

“That also varies from person to person. It usually disappears around 20 weeks, but in severe cases, it can last until childbirth.”

Did I just hear that wrong?

Until childbirth?

Can a person live if they have morning sickness for that long?

Seeing my complexion rapidly worsen, Estira quickly added, “There’s medicine that helps with morning sickness. I’ll prepare it right away for you.”

“Will that medicine also give me some energy? I keep feeling sleepy.”

“That’s something that happens as the fetus settles, so medicine can’t solve it. You need to rest, but……”

Estira, who knew my circumstances well, trailed off.

I would take the medicine if told to, and force myself to eat if told to.

But rest was difficult.

There were wedding preparations and meetings where, as Matriarch Lombardi, I absolutely could not back down.

“Then……”

Estira said with a sigh, “I will prepare a tonic that will give you energy. But rest is the most important thing. Matriarch, perhaps you could speak to His Majesty and adjust your schedule……”

“No.”

My answer was firm.

“I can’t tell Perez yet.”

This proposal, the academy matter, was something neither Perez nor I could back down from.

As an Emperor who graduated from the academy, Perez had been preparing this proposal for a long time.

So I had no choice but to do my best to defend against it.

We had been fiercely debating back and forth, inside and outside the conference room, without an inch of concession.

But if he found out I was pregnant.

“I can’t imagine what kind of face he’d make.”

But one thing was clear: he would quietly drop the academy proposal.

“That absolutely cannot happen.”

The next meeting is tomorrow.

If I was lucky, tomorrow could be the last meeting to discuss the academy matter.

Even if not, it had to be concluded before the wedding.

I could hold out for a few more days.

“Don’t tell anyone, Estira. Not Catherine, not anyone. Understood?”

Estira nodded reluctantly at my words.

“I will bring the medicine to your bedroom tonight.”

“Thank you. Please bear with me.”

Estira gathered all the various examination tools she had brought and left the office.

I was alone again in the quiet office.

“No, I’m not alone anymore, am I?”

I lay stretched out on the sofa and placed my hand on my belly once more.

It was a strange feeling.

Was it because it came earlier than expected?

I was still bewildered rather than happy.

It felt like a sudden gift.

“It is a gift.”

And a very big one.

I could feel my body heat through the thin fabric.

And now, there was a being sharing that body heat with me.

“Hello.”

I said a small greeting.

“I’m your mom.”

It was still incredibly awkward, but I kept trying to talk to it bravely.

“Nice to meet you. Let’s do well together from now on.”

Anyone who saw me would think I was talking to myself.

I let out a small laugh.

Did my mother feel this way when she carried me?

“Since she was someone who could see the future, she might not have been surprised.”

If she were still alive, I could share this moment with her and ask her all sorts of questions.

A slight sense of regret washed over me.

“What kind of child will you be? I’m already curious.”

A daughter? A son?

“I guess……”

I hoped it would be a daughter.

But I swallowed the last words.

Just in case the child in my belly was a son, he might be disappointed.

“Just be born healthy.”

It was a heartfelt wish.

I had no other desires.

Why a mother, exhausted after childbirth, would first count the baby’s fingers and toes.

I now fully understood that feeling.

Hmm, what else can I say?

Oh, right.

“Let’s resemble your dad in looks.”

A small baby resembling Perez.

Just thinking about it made my heart flutter.

“By the way, what will your dad…… say?”

It felt very awkward to call Perez “dad.”

That’s how it was.

If I became a mom, Perez would become a dad.

We, mom and dad, would become parents.

“He’ll be happy… right?”

Whenever “children” came up in conversation, Perez would suddenly turn into a clumsy wooden doll.

“Phew.”

He’d be incredibly surprised.

“I should tell him first once the academy matter is settled. That way, he won’t feel left out later.”

What kind of reaction would he have?

I was already curious, and my mouth was itching to tell him.

“Still, he won’t collapse, will he?”

I chuckled, stroking my lower abdomen with a gesture that had already become a habit.
***

The next day.

“Ugh……”

My stomach churned violently at the sensation of the carriage stopping.

I had taken the medicine Estira gave me last night, but unfortunately, it would take a few days for it to take full effect.

“Ah, it’s worse than yesterday.”

Until now, it had just been a loss of appetite.

This morning, I couldn’t eat anything at all.

The smell of omelets, which I usually loved, was overwhelmingly nauseating.

It was a relief that I hadn’t gagged outright at the family breakfast table.

“Sister, perhaps we should postpone today’s meeting. You look very unwell……”

Craney asked worriedly.

Estira had kept the secret as I had ordered.

It seemed Catherine and Clerivan had come to question her during the night, but they had to leave without getting any answers.

She must have just vaguely explained that my body couldn’t withstand overwork and stress.

Everyone had been so worried seeing me unable to eat this morning.

I almost felt sorry for not being able to tell them about the pregnancy.

Well, if I had told them the truth, it would have been even more chaotic.

As soon as I delivered the news, I would probably have been carried by one of the twins and delivered straight to my bed.

Then Perez would rush over, pale with worry, and my father, who was in Chesayu, would ride day and night to get here…

Just thinking about it made my head ache.

At the same time, it was regrettable that it was a process I would have to go through someday.

“I’m fine, Craney. I’m just a bit carsick today. My condition isn’t good.”

“Still……”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine once I get out of the carriage. By the way, are the meeting preparations complete?”

Today, Craney was tasked with providing specific reasons and figures to support the noble faction’s arguments beside me.

“Yes, Sister.”

Craney’s eyes sparkled.

While Craney wasn’t the type to push his own arguments or manipulate others, his specialty was logical development based on accurate figures and facts.

His calm face as he laid out facts was sometimes enough to sway even me.

“Alright, let’s try to go home early today.”

It was both an encouraging remark before the meeting and a desperate wish.

I wanted to leave work early!

“Yes, Sister. I have a good feeling about today.”

“You too? Me too.”

But then.

“……Ugh.”

As soon as I opened the meeting room door, the strong smell of food hit me.