Chapter 3 - 03: Dying Wish III
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A midwife servant knelt beside her, silent and still. She held the newborn wrapped in thin cloth, her face caught between awe and hesitation.
There was something strange about this child.
Not the crying. Not the tiny body or the clenched fists or even the shock of black hair already growing across the scalp.
It was the hand. The right hand.
Wrapped around the baby’s fingers was a ring. A silver band that pulsed faintly with dark light. Not bright enough to fill the room, but strong enough to be noticed. The midwife stared at it for a moment, lips pressed into a line. Her instincts told her to say nothing.
Suddenly, the door creaked open.
Boots stepped across the stone floor. They were too clean for this part of the estate. The man who wore them did not belong in a place like this (the servant area).
He stopped at the edge of the bed and said nothing for a long moment. Then he looked at the child.
"So this is the ninth," he said. "Born in secret. Raised in dirt."