Into The Rose Garden

The first labor was full of dread. Aelock couldn’t lie in bed and clung to the couch cushion like a castaway clinging to a single rotting plank in the open sea. He buried his face in the fluffy cotton, screaming his whole life’s portion of screams.

“Endure it! Just what is so painful!”

He couldn’t even hear the harsh voice. Aelock’s mind was hazy, he felt like his lower body was being ripped apart, and he wished someone would cut him open with a knife right away. Soon, the doctor came in. Tears pooled in his eyes, but he didn’t shed any. Instead, his cold sweat, runny nose, and drool made a mess on his face.

“The cervix is still far from opening.”

“It hurts so much. Please…please save me.”

Aelock didn’t care about his pride and begged the doctor. The doctor raised his damp sleeves and awkwardly laughed.

“Huh, you can’t be acting like you’re dying when it’s only this much. It will hurt many times worse when the pelvis starts to contract properly later.”

“Please.”

“Please endure it. As it’s your first labor, it’s going to take a lot of time. Take deep breaths. Inhale and exhale like this. It’ll be tough because your pelvis is small.”

The doctor’s deep breathing method helped a little but then came the intense pain, and Aelock screamed at the top of his lungs, tearing at the cushion, not even able to breathe.

He couldn’t understand why he had to suffer such pain. He was an alpha. He used to be an alpha. Why did he have to become an omega and writhe in pain like his body was torn in half?

Guilt and atonement were nothing in the face of excruciating pain. He just felt resentful. He was extremely resentful of the man outside the door who was watching this way and having a serious conversation with the doctor. He knew exactly what Klopp’s intentions of impregnating him were.

Upon seeing the fake worried expression on his face that he put on in front of the doctor, Aelock gritted his teeth so hard that his jaw trembled. He didn’t want to show tears here. Enduring this much pain was enough. He didn’t want to increase the other person’s satisfaction by shedding useless and sentimental tears.

“Aaaack. Ugh. Uh.”

He exhaled deeply, burying his face in the already damp cushion.

Aelock had been in labor all morning and had finally given birth to a baby boy at sunset. He was so exhausted that he couldn’t even blink, holding onto the torn cushion while breathing shallowly. In the midst of that, he heard Klopp’s voice in his ringing ears.

“The baby boy is an omega with blonde hair.”

“Congratulations, Viscount.”

“Martha, take the baby to the room.”

Where are they taking him? Show him to me. I spent nine months growing and giving birth to the baby while breaking my pelvis.

Aelock screamed, but no one seemed to hear him.

In his blurred vision, a tall man appeared.

“He’s not dead, right?”

“He was just exhausted. He did lose a lot of blood, but it’s nothing dangerous. However, since his body went through a lot of stress, I would recommend that you use contraception in the future.”

“That’s none of your business.”

The doctor didn’t argue anymore after he was cut off.

Other people soon came and lifted the collapsed Aelock and took him somewhere. He couldn’t remember much because he passed out on the way. But when he opened his eyes again, feeling like his body was going to break apart, he was in a shabby cabin that he had never seen before. Aelock couldn’t understand what was going on and thought it was a dream. Then he lost consciousness again. The beginning of a brutal reality set in as he fell into a deep sleep, true vengeance awaited him.

At first, he couldn’t believe it. How could they confine an omega who had just given birth to his child in such a filthy, barren place? It was a dusty room full of dirty wooden beds, where no light could even enter.

Aelock, still unable to walk properly, dragged his aching body out of the cabin. He could see the estate in the distance. He walked, wrapping his still-strong belly with one hand and supporting himself with a tree branch or anything he could grab with the other. Occasionally, something hot trickled between his legs, and he knew it was blood without looking at it. He walked barefoot without shoes, stepping on the thorny, painful gravel until he reached the rose garden. From here, he thought Klopp would be able to see him.

In the distance, through the bright window, he could see Martha holding a baby wrapped in a long lace. Her face was beaming with joy as if the baby were her own grandson. Next to her, Klopp smiled softly while looking down at the newborn baby. Then, he looked up and met Aelock’s eyes. His gentle smile disappeared, and a cold sneer appeared on his face. He opened the large window that also served as a balcony and stepped, soon facing Aelock.

“Can you walk already? Oh my, you’re bleeding.”

“It hurts. And I’m cold.”

“Of course, that’s because you’re walking around in those thin clothes. If you’re cold, go back and light a fire. If it hurts, take the painkillers I brought.”

Even a stranger wouldn’t act so indifferent. Unable to support his trembling knees, Aelock grabbed Klopp’s arm wrapped in an expensive shirt. He grunted a little, but instead of pushing him away, Klopp supported his elbow with his hand.

“Why do I have to be there? What about the baby?”

“Don’t worry about the baby. And now, that place is yours. If you don’t like it, you can leave.”

He couldn’t understand what Klopp was saying. No, he didn’t want to understand. Aelock held onto the shirt he had in his hand.

“I’ve given birth to your child.”

“You returned one of the things you took from me. Still, my first child that I lost won’t come back.”

“You asked to have your wife and child returned to you. So…”

The dark brown eyes looked down at Aelock with an emotionless gaze.

“So what? Are you saying you want to play the role of my wife now that you’ve given birth to my child?”

Ah. At that moment, Aelock didn’t know how to react. He wasn’t offering to become a replacement for Rayfiel. He simply thought that, as the biological mother of the child, he had the responsibility and authority to take care of the child.

“I’ll raise the child well on my own, so don’t worry. I don’t plan on raising him to be a criminal who would shamelessly walk around even after committing crimes.”

“But…”

“I’ve told you that you can leave if you don’t like it. I hope you don’t show up in front of the estate in that filthy state again in the future. What was it again? Ah, it damages the reputation of a nobleman to have neglected acquaintances. I have to be more careful of my reputation now, so will you help me with that? I’ll send the fish prepared for you so you won’t hurt your fingers.”

Looking at the cruel man who only chose the most hurtful words even without any profanities, Aelock felt the world plunge into darkness. And everything sank down, and further down.

Was this revenge? Had he been keeping his head down and waiting for this opportunity all this time? So that he would wander forever in this dark abyss. He lost his property, his family, his people, and his child too. He was only left with himself. If he had his everything taken away, he would have rather lived in eternal oblivion. Because Aelock didn’t receive that final thing, it was even more cruel revenge. Lying on the hard bed that only hurt his body, Aelock decided to give up on his final moments.

He ate nothing and drank nothing. He didn’t have the strength nor the will to do so. No one came to visit him in this quiet cabin. It would be a lonely death. But the silence even masked that loneliness. As there was truly nothing left, peace came easily. Besides, his body, which had lost all its will to live, quickly withered.

A day, two days. Although it didn’t seem like much time had passed, he could feel his breathing becoming weaker and his heartbeat slowing down. He had already given up on his sight, but his hearing, which was functioning on its own, gradually lost strength and brought silence. To just disappear like this felt like the most appropriate ending.

Aelock felt his life evaporating until the last drop dried up, and then he felt his body rising up. He read before in the testimony of a certain preacher, called <Paradise>, that death was comparable to a gust of wind. People would float like bubbles, pushed by the breath of God, through bright skies or deep underground, until they reach their final destination, be it a shining sky or a dark underground. That’s right, he was floating right now. But why was it so warm? The preacher did not leave any record of death being warm.

In his blurry vision, he saw a grim reaper carrying dearly the dirty soul with his two arms. He had dark auburn hair and a tough-looking face, with unwavering eyes that could pierce through a person. Some called the grim reaper a terrifying god, but at least to Aelock, he was a very kind and gentle god. That’s why the god appeared in that guy’s appearance at the end. If he was indeed the grim reaper, Aelock could tell him all the things that he wanted to say. Aelock moved his arm, which he couldn’t feel properly, and embraced the grim reaper’s neck. Then he buried his nose in his strong shoulder and smelled his scent.

Klopp.

I’ve always thought of you as my alpha. I had been through a lot of pain and suffering, but I was glad to be your omega. You wouldn’t like for me to end it like this. There was no helping it since it was the price I had to pay for my foolishness. If there was a next time, then that time, I would…

“There won’t be a next time. Your sin is too great to just die like this.”

The grim reaper’s voice was so cold that it could freeze the air. Even until the very end, his heart remained cold.

——

“Ugh.”

Aelock gasped for breath and opened his eyes. Just moments ago, he was dying alone after giving birth to a child. He quickly put his hand on his belly. He felt something large and taut. As he looked up through the open window, he saw a sliver of blue sky. It was still a bright afternoon.

Ah, it seemed like he had been dreaming. He had probably dreamed such a nightmare because of his lying position on the bed. Aelock gathered his cramped joints and lightly patted them with his fist.

Every time he gave birth, he would remember the pain of the first time. At that time, he was healthier than now, but his belly had ached more. And the despair was greater because he had hope. Enough that he even attempted suicide. He feared most of what would happen after that. Klopp never forgave him for trying to die so easily. Even after that, he tried to die once again but he was always saved by Klopp. It would be useless to try again now, and he didn’t even want to die anymore.

If he continued to sit on the floor like this, it might make his water break at the wrong time. To change his mood, he got up and went out of the cabin. He could see the rose garden and the mansion. Aelock smiled and was thankful for the unchanging scenery.

He recalled the last words of the preacher, who said that only by abandoning many things can one find the way to paradise. This place was no longer the abyss. The person currently here was not Count Teiwind, but Aelock. Klopp’s omega. With his light body that didn’t have anything, he was already carried by the breeze to paradise. The time he spent with his baby waiting for his alpha to come was full of delight.

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