THHAAWMF Side Stories

Side Story 21

It felt as though he was attending to a critically ill patient, not a mother. Reynos, his face drained of color to the point where I feared he might collapse, called out to me in desperation.

It's going to hurt a lot more here, but I can't. If I leave it like this, Reynos will be traumatized.

"Get out."

"Huh?"

"I don't think I'm going to be able to concentrate properly if you're here, so leave."

Without a word, Reynos obeyed, casting a lingering glance back at me as he exited the labor and delivery room.

As the door closed, the room fell into a heavy silence. May, who had remained motionless until then, reached out and grasped my hand.

"You've got this, Duke."

"I do. But is it truly as excruciating as it seems?"

"Yes. It feels like I'm on the brink of death."

"Well, that's not good news for me. I'm not one for pain."

I managed a strained smile, attempting to mask my own apprehension as we continued our unusual conversation.

Soon enough, my abdomen began to throb intensely, the pain spreading throughout my entire body in waves of indescribable agony.

This is what it's like to have the sky sing, I realized. Someone once told me that labor pains (intense pains that come in short bursts when you're close to giving birth) feel like being run over by a forklift, and that's exactly what happened.

Amidst the torment, I couldn't discern if I was even breathing. The pain was unbearable, forcing a primal scream from my lips.

"Aaaahhhhh!"

"Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Your Highness, you can't come in!"

Reynos, likely drawn by my cries, briefly entered, only to be hurriedly ushered out by a startled May, who slammed the door shut.

I had never experienced such excruciating pain, not even during my time transformed into an evil dragon. This was unparalleled.

Clutching at anything within reach, I sobbed as the agony consumed my senses, pushing until exhaustion threatened to overtake me.

"It's almost over! Just a little more!"

Amidst the chaos of my mind, the reassuring words reached me—I was nearing the end. Even if I were to collapse, I had to endure just a little longer.

Summoning every ounce of strength, I took a deep breath and pushed with all my might.

"Waaah!"

With the resounding cry of my newborn, relief flooded over me, and I relaxed into the moment, drifting toward sleep.

But before I could fully succumb to rest, May's slap on my cheek jolted me back to consciousness.

"Don't fall asleep, you've still got one more baby to go!"

...Yes, I still had two more to go, so I squeezed my eyes shut as she instructed me to rest briefly before pushing again with the next contractions.

Moments later...

"Waaah! Waaah!"

My second child entered the world safely.

The midwife erupted with excitement.

"Congratulations! It's a prince and a princess, both healthy and thriving!"

Yes, healthy. I had brought them into the world through sheer determination...