EP.5 Birth
'Ah, it's warm… So cozy… I want to stay asleep here forever…'
But something with a powerful force was pushing him out, so Junho woke from his sleep.
'Where am I? Who's pushing me out? Hello!!'
Junho shouted loudly to figure out the situation. But the only sound that came from his mouth was a strong cry.
"Waaah~ Waaah~ Waaah~"
"Congratulations!! Your Majesty! A healthy prince has been born!"
There was a constant commotion around him, but when Junho heard the word "prince," he smiled in satisfaction.
'God kept his promise… A prince… Unlike my last life as a dirt spoon, I'll definitely be able to live a life of leisure this time… And I'll find Yuri, spend a hundred years together… And since I'm a prince, surely I'll be allowed to have a few concubines? Hehehe.'
At that moment, the surroundings suddenly fell silent, and a loud voice rang out.
"His Majesty the Emperor is entering."
'Ah… If it's the Emperor, that must be my father… I'd like to see his face at least once.'
Junho forced his heavy eyelids open to look at his father.
'Gasp! He's a complete old man! Maybe they meant the former emperor, not the current one? Or maybe I'm not a prince but a royal grandson.'
"Your Majesty, you must be busy with state affairs… How did you come all the way here…"
"Haha, how could I not come when the Empress has given birth to my son… Let's have a look."
When the Emperor reached out, the nanny holding Junho politely handed him over to the Emperor.
"Hahaha, this prince takes after both me and the Empress. Isabella only took after me, so you must have been disappointed, but this is a relief."
"How could I ever be disappointed in Your Majesty… That's a misunderstanding, Your Majesty."
"Oh dear! The Empress doesn't take jokes. Now… Let's have a look at the prince's little one… Oh my, it's quite big, he's sure to make many women cry! For a newborn to have such a big one, hahaha."
Junho squirmed in discomfort at the Emperor's joke.
"Count Lichtenauer! The newborn prince is squirming so much I can barely hold him, what do you think? He'll surely be a strong knight when he grows up, hahaha."
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! It seems the prince was born with great martial talent. Hahaha."
As the two men continued to fuss over the newborn, the nanny, worried they might drop him, whispered something to the Empress. The Empress then spoke carefully.
"Your Majesty, would you name the prince?"
The Empress asked the Emperor for the baby's name, and the Emperor, after thinking for a moment, handed the baby back to her. The Empress wrapped the baby warmly in swaddling clothes.
"Hmm~ It's hard to come up with a name on the spot. Do you have one in mind, Empress?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. I would like to name the prince Yuno."
"Yuno… Haha, wasn't that the name of a goddess of childbirth worshipped by our ancestors? Why do you want to give that name to the prince?"
"The moment I first saw the baby, the name Yuno just came to me. Also, Yuno governs not only childbirth but also family. As the third prince, I want him to support the royal family and be a strength to the crown prince."
Hearing the Empress's words, the Emperor smiled broadly. Nearing seventy, the Emperor could no longer avoid worrying about succession. The current crown prince was wise but frail, so the Emperor pictured the new prince supporting his brother and defending the royal family.
"Hmm~!! That's right!! Yuno… Good! The third prince's name will be Yuno! And for the middle name, we'll follow the tradition of my father's and your family's names. Announce to the entire empire that the third prince, Yuno Alexander Windrage von Balkan, has been born and hold a three-day festival!!"
"Yes, Your Majesty! Congratulations!!"
"And to pray for the prince's strong growth, release all prisoners with less than a year left on their sentences, except for serious criminals!"
"I obey, Your Majesty!"
After the officials left to carry out the Emperor's orders, he approached the Empress again.
"You've worked hard! I'm so glad the prince was born! Truly, thank you… Rest well and recover your strength, Yuria."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
When Junho heard the Empress's name, his eyes shot open.
'Yuria…? No way… No way…'
Then, as the Empress bared her breast to feed him and brought her face close, even with his blurry infant vision, he could clearly see the face of the mother who had given birth to him.
'Aaaagh!! Why is Yuri's face here!! No matter how I look at it, this is what Yuri looked like when she was young!!! Damn that god!! I asked to meet her easily, but did you have to make it this easy?! Damn you, god!!!'
Junho—now Yuno Alexander Windrage von Balkan—cursed the god who had reincarnated him. The woman he loved most in his past life, died with, and was reincarnated with, had become his mother.
Of course, Yuno would love her as his mother from now on, but since he could no longer love her as a woman, he fell into despair.
'Wait! For her to be Empress and give birth to me, she'd have to be a certain age, right? And didn't they mention an older sister named Isabella? She shouldn't look this young! She looks like a middle schooler! What a crazy old pervert!'
In Yuno's mind, the Emperor was clearly a crazy, perverted old man. So Yuno resolved to protect Yuri from the lolicon Emperor.
'Ahhh, Yuri has become my mother… Well, maybe it's because I couldn't protect her in my past life… In this life, I'll definitely protect Yuri—no, my mother!!'
Of course, as a newborn, Yuno couldn't do anything, and he was forced to suckle at his mother's breast, wrapped tightly in swaddling clothes. But seeing his mother still as Yuri, Yuno refused to nurse.
"Yuno~ Why aren't you eating? You need to drink milk to grow strong~"
Empress Yuria, worried that Yuno wasn't feeding, kept offering her breast and squeezed out milk to encourage him.
After a while, the sweet smell of milk and hunger overcame Yuno, and he forgot his resolve, nursing instinctively as a baby.
'Ah, so sweet… This is mother's milk… It's delicious…'
"Finally eating… Good boy… My son, drink lots of milk and grow up strong~"
Once he was full, Yuno fell asleep in Yuria's arms, and Yuria smiled gently as she watched her sleeping son.
"Your Majesty, we'll take care of the prince, so please rest and recover."
"No, nanny. I'll care for the prince myself. You've been awake through the whole birth, so please go rest."
"I'm worried you'll overexert yourself."
"I'll take care of myself. Don't make me say it twice, nanny!"
At the Empress's firm words, the nanny flinched, bowed politely, and left with the attendants.
Now alone with her son, Yuria gazed at him with loving eyes.
"Fufu, how can you be so cute and handsome? My son… Just like His Majesty said, are you going to make lots of women cry when you grow up? Fufufu."
Yuria watched her son for a long time, then began to feel sleepy. Although her second childbirth hadn't been too hard, she was already drowsy, proof that childbirth really does take a toll on the body.
"Yaaawn, so sleepy… My prince~ Sleep well and grow up strong~ When you're older, let's go on trips together~ Promise~"
Holding her son's tiny finger, Yuria drifted off to sleep.
"Mmm… mmm… Junho… I love you…"
Words of love slipped from the sleeping Empress's lips, but no one heard them—not even Yuno, nor Yuria herself.
From the next day, Yuno spent his days nursing, sleeping, and showing off his handsome face to the noble ladies who visited the Empress's palace.
The ladies found Yuno so cute they didn't know what to do, and since Yuno had no memories of being popular with women in his past life, he enjoyed his new life even more.
A year passed, and Yuria gave birth to another imperial child—this time, a daughter.
Though not the prince the Emperor had hoped for, he was still delighted, naming her Marie after a saint, and wishing she would grow up to be a virtuous and proper princess.
Yuno was also happy to see his newborn sister, and before long, he would say he wanted to carry her on his back, making the Emperor, Empress, and even the courtiers smile.
But not everything was happy. After Marie's birth, when Empress Yuria turned sixteen, the Emperor no longer saw her as a woman, took on younger concubines, and stopped visiting her chambers.
Still, even though she lost the Emperor's favor, as the daughter of a duke and mother of a prince, Yuria was not removed from her position as Empress. However, with the Emperor's affection gone, the power-hungry nobles and their wives no longer flocked to her; only a few close friends from her maiden days would occasionally visit for tea.
Thus, Empress Yuria devoted herself to raising the prince and princesses with care.