Chapter 110: Kestrel’s Mother
"Do you know my mom?" Kestrel asked.
"Didn’t anyone ever tell you? Your mom has ties to the royal family because of her blood." The queen responded, a small smile on her face, "I’ve met her on several occasions. Lainey, your mom, was both pretty and strong. I really liked her."
Kestrel was kind of shocked. Growing up, not many talked about her mom and dad. And now, she was finding out that she was related to the royal family.
Actually, the fact that her family had a big house near the Tower hinted that they were super rich or from noble families. They must’ve been famous back in the day. But for some unknown reason, Kestrel had never met any of her family from her mom or dad’s side. It felt like everyone related to her just... vanished, leaving her by herself.
The place she grew up in, the Tower, was pretty quiet. The only visitor she remembered was Roy, who used to work with her mom. Almost no one spoke to Kestrel about her parents.
The Queen stepped down from her fancy seat, grabbed Kestrel’s hand, and started showing her around the huge and beautiful palace. As they strolled, the Queen shared memories about Lainey, Kestrel’s mom. Her touch was like a soft pillow, and the look in her eyes was kind, making Kestrel feel relaxed and welcome.
"I remember Lainey coming over a lot when she was about your age. We would walk just like this," the Queen mentioned, her voice hinting she was lost in the past for a moment. "You’ve got a lot of her looks."
"Do I? Am I really like my mom?"
Kestrel wasn’t so sure she looked like her mom. She had seen pictures of her: a tall, lively woman with her hair up and fast-moving legs. Her mom was always smiling.
Kestrel felt she wasn’t like that. Not on the outside or inside.
The Queen gently smiled, as if she could read what Kestrel was thinking.
"Your mom, Lainey, was super smart and had a strong personality. She had her own ideas about everything. And even if you’re different in some ways, you two have a lot in common personality-wise."
Kestrel’s heart swelled with pride, thinking of her mom. She felt her emotions even more being in the palace.
"I heard you ended things with your fiancé and joined SRD. You went to a bunch of Polluted Zones and even fixed up the Erdtree’s Polluted Zone, right?" the Queen asked curiously.
Kestrel just nodded, confirming it.
"That’s amazing. It’s been ages since anyone has taken back land from the Polluted Zones," the Queen said, beaming, and squeezed Kestrel’s hand. "You’re definitely Lainey’s daughter."
Even though Kestrel could hardly remember her mom’s face, she still remembered the cozy feeling of her hugs and softness of her hands. She wished she could hear even more stories about her from people who really knew her.
Following the Queen without even realizing it, Kestrel felt comfortable and found herself wanting to be closer to her. She wanted to listen to her more and wished she could always be guided by her like this.
She thought, "No wonder so many people like the Queen. She seems so kind and elegant. She’s like the most beautiful thing in the world, almost like a mom."
They walked to a big window.
The huge Tower was smooth and as white as shiny porcelain. It looked perfect and reminded Kestrel of an ivory tower from fairy tales. What was strange was that there weren’t many windows on it, except for this one, way up high.
The Queen wanted Kestrel to look out. From this high up, they could see the whole city below. Tiny houses, roads, rivers, and even the walls that surrounded the city.
Right next to the Tower were some fancy buildings with bright green roofs and red walls. But if you looked past them, you’d see the houses looked older and not as nice. Everything looked kind of gray and crowded.
From here, you could also see a soft light shining from the top of the Tower. It looked like a bowl flipped upside down, covering the whole city. Everyone walking below, who looked tiny like ants, and all the houses, were under this special glow.
It looked like people wanted to be close to the Tower, trying to stay under this magic-looking light, making their way in a world that didn’t always seem friendly.
A cool wind came in from the window, moving the Queen’s veil a bit and showing her chin and a bit of her lips.
"Life is getting tough for people. We really depend on the Tower now," she said quietly, looking a bit sad. "Sometimes, I wonder if we’re doing the right thing and if there’s hope for a better future."
Hearing her talk like this, full of worry and caring so much about everyone, would make most people want to promise they’d always support her.
But Kestrel, who didn’t usually get too emotional, just sighed with her, which was a big deal for her.
While they were by the window and the Queen holding Kestrel’s hand softly, she asked, "I wanted to know, when you went to the Erdtree’s Polluted Zone, did you get a part of the Erdtree’s trunk?"
Kestrel was about to reply when something in her mind told her:
"Don’t tell her."
Kestrel took a deep dive into her own mind, and it felt like she was looking up at a huge night sky with a big, bright moon.
Even though she was a bit dazed and felt like her head was in the clouds, Kestrel snapped back to reality — she knew she couldn’t just blurt things out, or Kaworu would be in trouble.
She felt a shiver run down her spine. Deep inside her psychic landscape, she could see the incarnation of herself, looking like a huge sea creature with glowing amber eyes. It seemed to be staring up at stars filling the sky, like it was challenging something far away.
It felt like someone, somewhere in that starry space, was quietly watching her.
"After the Erdtree in the Polluted Zone fell, it crumbled completely, not even leaving one leaf," Kestrel answered. Holding the Queen’s hand now felt cold, not warm like before.
Kestrel wasn’t really lying, so she felt okay about her answer. And whatever was watching her from far away in her mind couldn’t sense any guilt.
The Queen, looking elegant with a white crown and dressed in white, stood by the open window, looking peaceful and lovely.
She looked at Kestrel for a while, and it seemed she was okay with Kestrel’s answer.
"I heard you also went to Polluted Zone Five," the Queen said softly. "That was your first time there, right? Did you bring anything back?"
Kestrel explained that she found some valuable ancient energy stones, but they were taken by a rough group of alphas — who were actually from the Imperial Nexus.
"They were from the Public Security Department. The main alpha guy’s name is Jax," Kestrel told the Queen. "After I got back, I told our SRD head Roy about it. He said he’d help, but in the end, I didn’t get anything back."
The Queen laughed, "For someone like you, a beta, going to the Polluted Zone might be too risky. You should have a strong alpha to help you."
She looked a bit dreamy, saying, "Back in the day, there were many alphas and betas like that."
Finally, the Queen called over Luther from the Royal Guard and told him to make sure Kestrel had someone to watch over her when she went to the Polluted Zone.
