CHAPTER 1041: CHAPTER 41: AS HE PREDICTED

"D-dying?!" Arabella was wide-eyed.

She had a clue about the other details the Pope said, since Ferdinand had also explained them to her. But this was her first time hearing about the mother at risk of dying after a third child.

"Yes. It seems you did not know.

Perhaps they did not notice it was the cause, or they did not mind.

But after rechecking with other records kept in the temple, I arrived at this conclusion.

Thus, I want to meet Lady Clarisse.

I heard the Prime Minister is easier to speak with, and he is indeed the one who usually spoke with us and had a much more approachable demeanor than the Emperor, but he is still of the long-lived races.

And he is the oldest Elder Dragon alive, so he has lived for too long with a strong and sturdy body that heals itself.

I know they had been given temporary human bodies, but their monstrous amounts of mana had naturally made it much stronger than a normal human’s body.

Even if he says he understands how fragile the human body is compared to theirs, he may have still failed in judgment.

Lady Clarisse may be at risk of dying after giving birth to this third child, so I need to ensure she was not forced into any of this, or she at least knows what may happen to her soon,’’ Pope Elsevier concluded.

’This is indeed important! Did they not know about this?!’ Arabella’s knuckles had turned white as she tightly gripped the hem of her dress.

In her past life, she did not hear about Clarisse’s third pregnancy. Because back then, what she knew was that several years later, Raymond and his whole family died in an accident.

After learning about Estrella and the faked deaths of the previous rulers and their assistants, she assumed Raymond and Clarisse also faked their deaths and retired to Estrella.

But what if Clarisse died after the third pregnancy?!

When Arabella asked Alwin about Raymond’s death, he only said it was also faked and did not say anything else. What if it was because Clarisse died?

"The long-lived races share their lifespan with their mate. They also have capable healers to take care of their mates. Alwin, for instance,’’ Arabella said with emotion.

"Yes, I have also heard of this.

But you cannot save a body that is already too damaged to heal, even if you give up your whole life.

I also heal using divine power, but there are also instances when it does not work, no matter how much I try.

The same is true with healing magic and sacrificing one’s lifespan in exchange.

Not everything that’s broken can be placed back together.

A body severely damaged by mana from the inside is incredibly hard to heal, and some not even possible to heal,’’ Pope Elsevier explained his reason for this request. "This is why I would like to meet Lady Clarisse before she gives birth. The sooner, the better.’’

"I-I see. I’ll do my best to help convince His Excellency.

I believe, if you tell them about this, they will allow you to meet Clarisse.

And I’m sure they would do everything they could to protect and save Clarisse after hearing about this," Arabella promised.

"That’s a relief. I do not wish to see another mate of the long-lived races pass away," Pope Elsevier said. From the look in his eyes, he had already seen a lot of spouses of the long-lived races die over the years.

"Clarisse won’t die,’’ Arabella said, more to herself than to the Pope.

"Rest assured, I’ll also do what I can so she won’t.

But this once again brings up the difference in the sense of urgency between humans and the long-lived races.

They live for too long that it takes them too much time to notice things like this,’’ Pope Elsevier sighed heavily.

Arabella could not say anything against this since the Pope indeed had a point.

They should have noticed something this important if it had already happened several times. And yet they did not. But then again, they had a different perception of time. Or perhaps, they did, but were not sure yet, so they have not said anything about it.

Or they were afraid Arabella would not want to have children if she heard about this, so they did not tell her.

’Then, does Clarisse know?’ Arabella gulped.

She couldn’t fathom how much pain Clarisse must be in if she already knew about this.

’I should have visited her more often,’ Arabella regretted not going to their estate recently.

She was so busy that she hadn’t gone there in the past few days.

Arabella usually visited Clarisse with Dimo so he could play with Raymart and Alice while she had tea with Clarisse. But recently, it was the kids who visited Dimo in the Magic Tower this time. They were brought by maids or butlers assigned by Raymond.

After hearing about this from the Pope, Arabella worried that Clarisse might be overthinking now and had no one to speak with about it.

"Since it has to be as soon as possible, then shall we call them in? I think both Ferdinand and Raymond should hear about this,’’ Arabella suggested.

This way, they would not have to schedule another meeting, which would also delay the Pope’s visit to Clarisse.

"Yes, I think it’s for the best," Pope Elsevier agreed.

Arabella then invited Raymond and Ferdinand back inside.

And just as the Pope predicted, Raymond and Ferdinand were wary that he was asking to meet with Clarisse as well. Especially since Clarisse had not joined any social events recently.

[Why would he ask to meet someone who had joined recent events? Arabella looked like she had cried too! What did they talk about for her to cry? Did he make her cry, or was it my fault?! Did I do something wrong?!] Ferdinand frowned and began to overthink. No, he had been overthinking since the Pope asked to speak with Arabella alone.

[Her Majesty looks like she cried. Why would she? What did he say? What if he said it to Clarisse, and she gets emotional as well? I don’t want to expose her to stressful things right now, so I haven’t even updated her about the recent events.] Raymond thought.

They were indeed perfect examples of how dragons were overprotective of their mates.