Chapter 760: Chapter 761: It hurts. It hurts so much
The birth pain truly started after that, but it did not move the way the older woman expected.
At first, everyone in the room still had hope that the birth would be quick. This was the beast world after all. Many females gave birth fast, especially when their bodies had already started preparing and when the young inside were strong enough to come out on their own. The two experienced women had seen many births before. They had seen females bite down on leather, grip their mates’ hands, scream until their voices went hoarse, then deliver their cubs, pups, hatchlings, or little beast babies before the fire needed to be fed again.
But Isabella was different.
Her body was different.
Her children were different too.
The older woman guided her breathing and kept one warm hand near Isabella’s knee while the younger woman kept changing the cloths and checking her from time to time. They were calm at first. They told her to breathe slowly. They told her the tight pain would come and leave. They told her that when her body was ready, she would know.
But hours passed.
The pain grew stronger, but the birth did not move forward properly.
Isabella’s face was already wet with sweat. Her hair stuck to her cheeks and neck, and the thick furs that had seemed so comforting before now felt too hot around her body. Her fingers dug into Cyrus’s hand so hard that an ordinary man’s bones might have cracked, but Cyrus did not even flinch. He only stayed beside her, letting her hold him as tightly as she needed.
Another wave of pain came.
This one tore a scream from her throat before she could stop it.
"Ah!"
Her back arched against the furs, and Cyrus immediately moved closer, one arm behind her shoulders while his other hand pressed over the curve of her stomach. His palm glowed faintly again as he pushed down the violent heat that kept rising inside her. His face had gone pale from using too much power, but he did not stop. He could not stop. Each time that strange demonic heat surged, Isabella’s body became weaker and the babies became more restless.
The older woman saw his face and frowned. "Male, you cannot keep using your strength like this."
Cyrus did not even look at her. "I can."
His voice was calm, but his breathing was already wrong.
Isabella heard that through the pain.
Even now, she heard it.
She turned her head a little and looked at him with wet eyes. "Cyrus..."
"I’m here," he said immediately. "Look at me. Breathe with me."
"I can’t," she cried, and her voice broke in a way that made his chest feel like it was being crushed. "It hurts. It hurts so much."
"I know," he said, though he knew that he did not truly know. He could fight beasts. He could bleed. He could be torn open and still stand. But he could not understand this kind of pain. He could only watch the woman he loved suffer while his hands failed to take enough of it away. "I know, my love. I’m here."
Glimora stayed beside the furs.
The little white beast had stopped moving around completely now. Earlier, she had tried to press close to Isabella’s hand whenever the pain eased, but now even she seemed to understand that something was very wrong. Her ears were low. Her body was tense. Her round eyes followed every sound Isabella made, and whenever Isabella screamed, Glimora’s small body trembled as if the pain had touched her too.
She did not growl.
She did not steal anything.
She did not act proud.
She only stayed there, quiet and frightened, watching her mama with the kind of loyalty that made even the younger woman glance at her with pity.
Outside the room, things were worse.
At first, only Kian, Zyran, Osiris, Shelia, Ophelia, Luca, Asael, and Valen had been waiting in the corridor. Valen had come after hearing Ophelia’s worried voice, and the moment he arrived, he stood beside her and held her hand in both of his. Ophelia was trying not to cry, but every time Isabella screamed from inside the room, her whole body flinched. Valen rubbed slow circles over the back of her hand and whispered that Isabella was strong, but even he looked worried.
Shelia was silent.
That was how people knew she was truly scared.
Usually, she would speak. She would ask questions. She would try to understand the situation. But now she only stood near the wall with her hands clenched together, her face pale and her eyes fixed on the closed door. This was Isabella. This was her friend. This was the person who had changed everything for them. If anything happened to her, Shelia did not know what this whole place would become.
Luca could not stand still.
He moved from one side of the corridor to the other, then stopped, then moved again. He wanted to be useful, but there was nothing for him to do. That made him feel worse. Every scream from inside made him look at Kian, as if waiting for the king to break the door open.
Asael stayed near the wall with his jaw tight. He was trying to keep the guards away from the inner passage, but the news had already spread. No one had needed to announce it loudly. Beast people had sharp ears. They heard the movement, the rushed footsteps, the women being called, and then the first scream.
Soon, the whole palace knew.
Then the village began to know too.
People gathered in small worried groups outside the palace gates and near the lower halls. Some of the refugee porters who had been taken in weeks ago stood with their hands pressed together, whispering prayers to whatever spirits might listen. To them, Isabella was more than a ruler.
She had given them food, shelter, names, work, and a place where they were treated like people again.
