Thrown Into A New World: Let The Punishment Begin!

The more she heard, the more tears flowed down her cheeks at the utter surprise and shock she was experiencing.

Her heart was both filled with love at how kind and caring he was and with dismay that she had failed such a person.

“My Queen, Fritzen, and Felicia are my treasures and I love them but, I love you even more.” He confessed his true feelings which he had done numerous times in the past but felt the need to emphasize it once again.

Without his Queen, he never would have gotten the chance to meet those children so how could he be disappointed in her?

This fact he needed to reassure her as the doubt and anxiety was evident in those beautiful eyes that shook with tears in them as she gazed at him.

King Ophire had never revealed that he knew about her secret all along as he had wanted to respect her wishes.

.....

She wanted him and everyone else to be ignorant of her body’s condition so he had supported her decision by pretending to be unaware even though he had heard about it right after she had been given this news by her physician.

He could tell that she was suffering inwardly due to the news she received so he had tried to be considerate by never bringing it up.

The newborn needed more attention but knowing that her mother was in a troubled state of mind, he had not taken it to heart when the Queen refused to stay with Felicia for too long.

They already had excellent maids and he had also appointed a good nanny to look after the child while her mother recuperated.

However, the Queen began distancing herself from her child, only doing the bare minimum as a parent.

The King continued to be considerate while trying to ensure that both sides remained happy but somewhere along the line, he had failed to do so.

If he had known the kind of insecure thoughts running through his wife’s mind then he would have rushed to explain his side to her.

He was more than happy with the little family they had and she need not be depressed about her ‘failures’, which was not how he saw it.

She was a brave and wonderful woman, whose image in his mind would never change.

The King even cursed himself for letting matters escalate to this extent where his wife was drowning in self-blame while his daughter was being starved of a mother’s love.

“I’m sorry...” Queen Zena’s mutters reached his ears and he frowned since she had nothing to be sorry about.

“You did nothing wrong.” He shook his head, pointing out that things had just gotten out of hand.

They were human too and they had made a mistake in their own ways.

The Queen had labeled Felicia as the source of her misfortune while the King had not tried to know what was buried in his wife’s heart, eating away her happiness.

If he had tried to figure it out then he could have given her that peace of mind and assurance that she needed the most from him.

However, it wasn’t too late and now that they had been given this opportunity to discuss this matter thanks to the prince, he could make good use of it.

“But Felicia...” The Queen whispered, knowing that she had done wrong to this child of hers.

Hearing the King’s explanations from earlier made her feel as though a weight that had been placed on her chest, suffocating her, had been lifted away.

To learn that he wasn’t disappointed in her for not being able to give him that big family he desired brought a smile to her face but soon, recalling the innocent victim of her indifference, that smile faded away.

The child she had given birth to after a lot of struggles had been shunned by her due to the troubling thoughts that spiraled in her mind.

She had held Felicia accountable for what had taken place so now, she bit her lips at everything she had subjected the child to so far.

Her lack of care, her indifference, and sometimes, her display of annoyance towards the child was now making her dive deeper into guilt.

During her conversation with Draco, Queen Zena had been reminded that she had done to Felicia just as her mother had done to her.

She had become what she had sworn not to when she was younger.

Realizing that the pain she had experienced each time her mother favored her brother over her, she had projected onto her child as well brought her much grief now.

When King Ophire heard what she had to say, he sighed as they had indeed wronged the child.

He had not brought up their current topic of discussion with his wife in the past in order to not hurt her feelings, instead, he had decided that it would be enough if he pampered Felicia on her behalf.

He tried to give her a mother’s share of love as well but every time he saw the child’s disheartened face after her mother avoided her, he knew that he was failing.

Therefore, the parents had a lot to make up for the mistakes they had made in the past.

“It is already a good thing if you do not blame her for the crimes of fate.” He whispered to his wife, continuing to hug her close to his chest.

He did not want to accuse the Queen of being a bad mother as she too had her own share of burdens to bear back then.

They each had their flaws but the child had paid the price of it so something needed to be done about it now that their inner thoughts had been shared with the other.

“Will she ever forgive me?” Queen Zena buried her face in his chest as she revealed what she feared the most.

On the day she had left her Kingdom to marry the prince of Rosenhyde, she had given up all hopes of receiving any love from her mother.

Thereafter, even if her mother appeared before her, her emotions would not fluctuate as she no longer hoped for anything from her.

Though her mother had never even tried to contact her ever after so many years of her marriage so even that hypothetical situation did not affect her.

The Queen wondered if the same would happen between her and Felicia.

King Ophire was silent for a second as he could not answer this question on behalf of their daughter.

“She is a lovely child who cannot stay mad at anyone for too long.” He explained the Princess’s innate nature which his wife was also aware of.

No matter how the Queen pretended to be indifferent, he knew that she often sent her maids to secretly find out how the child was doing.

It was fine as long as they did not come in contact with each other.

However, if she wanted to get closer to Felicia and try to right the wrongs of the past then this would have to change.

“Why don’t you give it a try and see how it goes?” He suggested with a smile, encouraging her to mend the thorny relationship between the two.

The King had faith in his daughter’s kind heart which still yearned for her mother’s love so he was sure that she would accept the Queen after noticing her sincerity.

Though there might be some hesitation, confusion, and even disbelief after so many years of facing indifference from her mother, King Ophire was hoping that Felicia would recognize this change in her mother, that was for the better.

Queen Zena separated herself from her husband’s embrace, bringing a frown to his face when he noticed the warmth coming from her body had disappeared.

However, she was too focused on her thoughts and had failed to catch the unwillingness written all over his face.

“I... Then I shall try my best!” She declared, though apprehensive if it would work after everything that had taken place already.

King Ophire chuckled at her determined gaze and pulled her back into his embrace, satisfied after feeling her warm body back in his grasp.

“I shall support my beloved wife.” He proclaimed before kissing her forehead, a gesture he often used to express his love for her.