novelraw Chapter 74 : The Weight of a Mother’s Fear
Chapter 74 : The Weight of a Mother’s Fear
Selene’s POV
It was only a blink.
One moment, Rooga’s laughter filled the air, the blue-green glow of his Aqua Bloom dancing like stars around the tree. The next—his small body crumpled forward.
“Rooga!”
I was already moving, catching him before his head hit the ground. His skin was pale, his breath shallow. Mana still clung to him, faint and trembling, before fading into silence.
My heart seized. For a heartbeat, I was no longer Selene Valemont, the feared battle mage of the empire. I was only a mother clutching her boy.
I pressed my forehead against his, whispering desperately, “Not you too… don’t leave me, not you…”
His mana signature flickered faintly, like a candle in storm. Too much strain. Far too much for his tiny body.
I carried him inside, ignoring Iris’s worried cries, ignoring Darius’s wide eyes as he rushed from the kitchen. I laid Rooga on his bed, smoothing his damp hair back, my hands trembling.
“Mana exhaustion,” I whispered, voice tight. “Severe.”
Darius’s jaw clenched. “Will he—?”
“He’ll live.” My words were sharp, more to convince myself than him. “But he’ll sleep for days. Perhaps longer.”
The truth lodged in my throat: I had no healing arts to mend him. None. The empire had never taught me how to heal — only to kill. And now, when my own son needed me, I was powerless.
For the next days, the house moved around him. Lyra kept vigil at his side, Iris whispered prayers by the tree, even Darius checked in quietly, his hand brushing Rooga’s hair like he was afraid the boy might vanish if touched too hard.
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But it was me who never left his side.
I held his hand every night, whispering stories he couldn’t hear. About Elara’s stubbornness, about Riaz’s laughter, about how the world wasn’t all blood and fire — though my voice cracked each time I tried to believe it.
Each night I pressed my lips to his forehead and whispered the same words:
“You are not a monster. You are my son. My miracle. Please… come back to me.”
When the seventh sunrise came, I saw his fingers twitch against mine. My tears fell before I could stop them.
He was still here.
He was still mine.
Elara’s POV
The carriage wheels groaned as they rolled over the uneven borderland road. I leaned against the window, eyes fixed on the horizon. My heart thudded faster the closer we came. A whole year away — and now I was finally home.
But I wasn’t alone.
Edmond sat across from me, fidgeting with his sleeves. The prince who once couldn’t stop crying now tried to look composed, though I caught him sneaking nervous glances at me. And beside him sat Seris Revingale, her posture straight, her eyes sharp as her blade. She’d insisted on coming, stubborn as ever.
“I want to see this brother of yours,” Seris had declared. “If I am to be his fiancée, I should know the man.”
I had rolled my eyes. “He’s three.”
“Then I’ll know him early,” she replied without shame.
And now, as the carriage crested the last hill, all three of us froze.
The land stretched out before us — not the bleak, barren borderlands I remembered, but a sea of green. Grass rippled in the wind, dotted with flowers. A great tree towered over the Valemont home, its leaves glowing faintly with blue-green light. Wisps danced like living stars around it.
Our jaws dropped.
Edmond whispered, “This… this can’t be real.”
Seris broke the silence first, her voice breathless with awe. “Wow… Lady Selene is amazing. To think she could revive a land this dead…”
Her words lingered, but my chest tightened.
No. This wasn’t my mother’s magic. I knew her spells — fire and gravity, weapons of war. This was different. Gentler. Alive.
I clenched my hands in my lap, forcing my expression to stay neutral. But when I glanced at Edmond, his eyes were already on me. He didn’t need words; he saw the truth in my gaze.
It was Rooga.
I gave him the smallest shake of my head — don’t say anything.
Edmond nodded once, silently.
Only Seris sat forward, still entranced by the sight, whispering, “To think such power exists in this family…”
I swallowed hard. My brother’s secret was safe — for now.