novelraw Chapter 302: Back Home with Grief and Hope
Chapter 302: Back Home with Grief and Hope
Kael left the hut where he had been staying for the past nine months. He carried Jojo in his left arm and his daughter in his right.
He made sure to protect the baby from the biting cold by tucking her under his cloak, letting his daughter touch the warmth of his skin, and the baby would stop crying after that.
As for food, his daughter was half faerie, and Jojo said that his baby sister only needed a flower with nectar and would drink it with relish to feel full.
Her power also helped, because even a small flower would produce so much nectar that it shouldn’t be possible.
Jojo also said that the faeries had been watching over them from afar but dared not to approach them, which made Kael wonder if they just felt too guilty over his beloved’s death.
Well, it didn’t really matter to him because he couldn’t see them anyway. But it would be nice if those faeries could accompany Jojo and his daughter while he was busy in the throne room.
As he continued his journey, Jojo finally raised a question, "Daddy, what’s my baby sister’s name?"
Kael fell into a long silence after that. He had also been thinking about it, but he had never given someone a proper name.
Of course, "Jojo" was not a proper name. It was just a nickname to mask the fact that Jojo shouldn’t have known his real name due to his power as the Dawn Star, as learning it early might make him accidentally trigger his power.
But Jojo should have known that he was "Sael" now, since he had passed through the painful process using Sisi’s miraculous water from the faerie land.
Kael still remembered that his wife wanted their daughter to have Silk behind her name to remind her that she was still part faerie.
He looked at his daughter, who was sleeping comfortably in his arm. He already knew that his daughter was a very good and obedient one, just by looking at how she didn’t throw tantrums as a baby, unlike Jojo, who threw tantrums and cried so loudly every other minute when he was a newborn pup.
His daughter actually had a tiny fang already growing inside, but her eyes were the same as her mother’s—a pair of beautiful violet eyes that only Sisi had.
Both signified that she was indeed a half faerie–half wolf beastman.
Kael smiled and finally decided on his daughter’s name.
"Her name is Violeta Silk. You can call your baby sister Vivi."
"Oh! Vivi!" Jojo happily rubbed his cheek against his little sister. "Vivi, I am Jojo, your big brother! Don’t worry, Big Brother will protect you from harm, okay? I will hunt a bull for you every day, so you can eat a lot!"
"She’s half faerie, Jojo. She is probably like your mother, who prefers to eat vegetables and fruits more," Kael mentioned.
"No, can’t do! Mommy was so frail, Vivi needs to eat meat too so she can be strong!" Jojo insisted, and the baby laughed at her big brother.
"Oh! Daddy, Vivi laughed!"
"Mhm, I can see..." Kael said as he also smiled upon hearing that jolly laughter. The way she laughed while staring at him truly reminded Kael of his beloved wife, which eased his heartache a little.
"Vivi, Daddy and your big brother will love you unconditionally. We are your family, so you shouldn’t bear any pain alone, alright?" Kael said to the baby. "If you ever feel too much pain, you must tell us, so we can bear the burden together."
Kael was reminded of his wife, who died after enduring so much pain. Sisi was so kind and strong, but she was also stubborn.
Probably because they were similar, both he and his wife grew up in such a harsh environment that they became hardened by nature and refused to share the burden of pain because they were used to doing everything alone.
He didn’t want that to happen to his children. They needed to know that a family was meant to love and protect each other, and that was the first thing he wanted to teach his children so they would grow up having a strong bond with each other.
They had arrived at the Beast Kingdom with everyone already lining up in the capital city and at the main palace, because Kael had informed Grishaw’s soldiers about their Queen’s passing.
Sisi might have only ruled for a short while, but everyone remembered her lovingly despite her not being a beastman, mostly for her help in the bureaucracy and also in the war, when her power determined their landslide victory against the invading humans.
Kael walked into the throne room, with all the high-ranked beastmen already kneeling left and right, and sat on the throne to announce to these beastmen, who would in turn announce it to the public.
"Our Queen has sadly passed away around early spring this year after an intensive labor to give birth to our little princess. We shall mark early spring to celebrate the Spring Festival, and also to commemorate her passing every year. Everyone will be given more rations during the Spring Festival as a reminder that our Queen... my wife, Queen Siselia Silk, will be the only Queen to ever sit on the throne side by side with me, and also the only woman I will ever have in my life."
Nobody wanted to object to that statement. They simply thought that their King wouldn’t want another woman anyway, and nobody would be worthy enough to replace Queen Sisi and everything that she had done.
"As for our precious daughter, her name is Violeta Silk. You can address her as Faerie Princess Vivi. She shall live with Crown Prince Jojo and me in the Queen’s courtyard from now on, and will be attended by nannies and maids when I’m not around."
Every beastman in the throne room made a mental note of this, making sure that they would treat their princess with the utmost care.
"We are tired after a long journey. My children and I will be resting in the Queen’s courtyard. The court is dismissed."