Jealousy Jealousy

"I want to sleep with Lady Anna tonight," Erwin said.

I almost laughed. Both Erwin and I know we will not make love tonight. I was just not ready yet. I don't know why. Maybe because I am not prepared to be a mother. And Erwin did not ready to be a father either.

"Of course, my prince, you can be with whoever you want. Come, Hagya. Let's go back to the harem."

"I hope you die with your intestines bursting and your womanhood rotting, you red-haired whore." Hagya said to me with her eyes filled with tears. Then, she ran away.

"No one can speak ill of Miss Anna, especially not in front of me. Madam, punish the girl. Cut out her tongue."

"Oh no, Erwin... No, that's too much. One or two slaps will be enough for her. She said it out of jealousy, Erwin."

"As your command, my lady."

***

Night after night goes. Erwin rejected all the girls sent to his chamber. I knew clearly that Erwin didn't just dislike them. He hated them. He hates this palace from the bottom of his heart. King Darril, his father, had been easily manipulated by his concubines. He always makes the an-idiotic decision because he only listens to Lady Tiana's words. On the other hand, Erwin grew a hatred over concubines, calling them "manipulated persons, gold diggers." 

"Not all of them loomed you for the crown, Erwin. Some of them are genuinely in love with you." I said.

"If only I could take off my crown and be a military commander, I'd do it. It's much better than being surrounded by hypocritical girls here. You're the only one who I trust, miss. Promise me you won't betray me. You won't hide anything from me."

"I heartily promise, my love."

"One more thing, I don't want to have offspring. I don't want to bring one innocent human to live a miserable life in this palace. I would like to have children if we live outside the palace. I don't see any good future in here."

****

Erwin had rejected almost all the concubines sent to him. And only accepted me. I knew that the concubines disliked me. Erwin allows me to stay in another room in the corner of the harem. The room was more extensive and more luxurious, a space for the prince's favorite. And that invited their jealousy even more. 

"I think she's barren. She's been sleeping with the prince for months but hasn't gotten pregnant." They said as they gossiped about me.

If they only knew, Erwin had never even slept with me. And Erwin didn't want to have children either.

Then, one boring afternoon, Lady Tiana called me into her room. What did she want from me? Erwin was on a faraway mission. If I were to be hurt again, no one would protect me. However, the reality was not what I feared.

"Lady, you don't have that gloomy face anymore. I know he's spoiling you. How is it? Do you like being a favorite concubine?" Lady Tiana said kindly.

"It's all because of Erwin's generosity."

"Look, who do you think you are? Why do you call him by his first name? Not by his title?"

"Please forgive my lackadaisical behavior, my lady."

She sat on a chair.

"Come closer."

I stood right in front of her.

"Do you know the essence of the harem, lady red?"

"To preserve the bloodline of the royal family. And ensure that the Harlow family has a successor to the throne."

"You're right. And as the head of the harem, I have to make our harem work well. Unfortunately, the royal family is currently on the verge of extinction. One of my sons died on the battlefield, and another went mad. The king himself can no longer provide offspring. The king's brother has also been removed from the line of succession. What's left is the second prince, who survived by luck because if my eldest son had lived, he wouldn't have had a chance to ascend the throne.

"Erwin? I mean Prince Erwin."

"Yes. And the foolish Erwin prefers risking his life as an army commander. Every night we were all anxious, praying for his safe return. If he dies, the dynasty is doomed."

"Why is my lady telling me this?"

"I hate to say this, but I have to. I need your help, redhead girl.  He rejected all the girls I sent him. He only accepts you. It would be best if you got pregnant immediately. And if you give birth to a baby boy, your baby will be the heir to the throne, and you will be the favorite mistress, replacing me. Seduce him. Do whatever you can to get yourself pregnant with his child."

I took a deep breath. Then, I shook my head.

"I'm sorry. We've been sleeping together for a long, but I may be infertile. That's why I never got pregnant."

Lady Tiana smiled. Then, she took a bottle of red liquid from her desk drawer. "I have prepared everything." She said. Then, she stood up. She put the bottle into her palm.

 "What is that? Fertility enhancer?" I asked.

She didn't answer. She didn't even look at me. She looked at her servants. Then, she gave a wave to them, which turned out to be a signal. The servants then surrounded me. They held my arms and legs until I couldn't move. With a dozen servants against me alone, I was outmatched. No matter how much I scorned, I couldn't escape.

"What did I do wrong this time, my lady?" I asked.

Lady Tiana forcibly opened my mouth and spilled all the red liquid into my mouth. After that, he choked me with a lot of water.

 "This way, all the poison has entered your body," she said.

"Poison? What in God's name did I do wrong? What did you do to me?" I asked.

She smiled sarcastically.

"Miss, you are not pregnant because you have no rival here. Whether he was too loyal or you bewitched him too much, I don't know. Your rival now is death."

"I don't understand."

"Look, the poison you drank was named "100 days to death. As the name implies, it will take 100 days to kill you. There is only one antidote to save your life, and I have the antidote. Before 100 days, my lady, I will give you the antidote only if you get pregnant. If you don't get pregnant, you'll die from the poison. The poison will make all your organs swell and burst. Then, you'll die drowning in your own blood. And you can't tell Erwin about this. If he finds out, I swear I'll throw away the antidote. I kept it in a flimsy glass bottle. It could easily shatter if dropped. I'll ensure you don't get the antidote if Erwin finds out. I risked my own life for this mission."