If You Leave Without a Word - Chapter 247

‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.

“Miss? Miss?”

Agatha’s hair was plastered with sweat. Worried she might lose consciousness from the pain, Charlotte kept calling her name. It would have been better if she could at least cry out, but for some reason, Agatha just bit down on her lip and endured the pain in silence.

“If you keep biting like that, you might break a tooth. Miss, please open your mouth for a moment.”

Her delicate lips were starting to turn red from the pressure. Charlotte quickly folded a wet cloth and slipped it between Agatha’s lips.

“Lottie, Lottie…”

After a long struggle, Agatha finally managed to call Charlotte’s name aloud. Tears pricked at Charlotte’s eyes, but she kept them at bay. When did this frail, delicate girl grow up enough to become a mother?

For a moment, the image of the late Duchess Kristin overlapped Agatha’s face.

Unable to bear just standing by while Agatha suffered, Liana cracked the door open and peeked inside.

“Has the Marquis returned yet?”

“Not yet.”

“Wh-what’s happening?”

“Has she delivered the baby yet?”

The hallway outside was packed with anxious knights. Rubens, the most impatient, was practically ready to break down the door. A couple of other knights stuck their faces in right behind him, and even Karon started shooting anxious looks inside.

The corridor was cramped, and with so many restless men crowding outside, it was enough to make anyone feel stifled. Liana quickly shut the door.

“The Marquis is being truly thoughtless.”

Worried her hands might have gotten dirty, Liana washed them quickly and then scurried over to Charlotte’s side, helping to wipe the sweat from Agatha’s brow.

“How could he be away on a day like this? He’s always leaving her alone, but even today, of all days…”

“Shh. If you’re going to complain, do it outside.”

It was only after catching Charlotte’s sharp glare that Liana finally closed her mouth, realizing that Agatha could hear every grumbling word.

How foolish. Liana bit her lip, worried that her careless words might have made things even harder for Agatha.

Several hours had passed since Agatha’s labor pains had begun. Charlotte had warned Liana it would take a while since it was her first child, but even she was having trouble hiding the sweat on her own palms. Just then—

“Agatha!

The shout was so loud it could have shaken the walls. Liana practically jumped in surprise, before realizing it was the voice she’d been waiting for.

About time he got here.

Relieved that Cain had finally arrived before the baby was born, Liana still felt a bit annoyed. She knew that, given his position, Cain couldn’t always act on his personal feelings—but it always seemed like Agatha came second to him.

Of course, she didn’t know that Cain had risked everything, abandoning his path to power and leaving the capital just to be with Agatha.

In any case, at least he’d made it before the birth. If he hadn’t arrived in time, Liana had seriously considered giving him a failing grade as a husband. Though, really, a maid like her thinking such a thing was almost comical.

Liana wiped her hands on her apron and grabbed the doorknob.

“Agatha. How is she doing?”

“Ah! You startled me.”

As soon as she turned the handle, the door flew open and Liana almost stumbled forward. The man shoving his way in as if he might rip the door off its hinges was, of course, Cain.

His forehead was drenched with sweat from running—an unusually flustered look for him.

Well, who could stay calm when their own child was about to be born? Liana braced herself, holding the door closed.

“I’m sorry, sir, but you can’t come in.”

“What? Why not? How is Agatha?”

“She’s in labor. She needs absolute calm and quiet right now.”

Leaving Cain in the hall, Liana shut the door again. Cain didn’t argue further when a cry of pain from Agatha sounded inside—evidence that the birth was imminent.

Liana rushed to Agatha’s side.

“Miss, it’s going to be all right. Take deep breaths…”

Charlotte kept dabbing Agatha’s forehead, offering quiet words of reassurance. Thanks to the doctor she’d arranged ahead of time, the delivery was progressing as smoothly as could be hoped. The midwife brought from Pahel was also doing an excellent job.

“Cain… Is Cain here…?”

Caught up in the pain of her first labor, Agatha seemed barely aware of her surroundings. Not having heard Cain’s commotion moments ago, she started reaching for him.

Charlotte quickly caught her searching hand and held it gently.