Pherenike - Chapter 69

Some thought Peleus had been given too many opportunities, viewing the time these chances were afforded as long and tedious. Just as jealousy makes a day feel like ten.

With the queen’s reputation soaring, it was unlikely her father was disregarded.

In their view, Peleus Vassilios’s glory days were over, and as the queen’s father, he was left to boast about this role. Now deemed useless on the battlefield, moving him to a gloriously idle position seemed a way to fatten the Vassilios family’s coffers, merely to hear sweet nothings from the queen.

Conversely, those truly familiar with Peleus saw King Actor’s appointment as neither more nor less than exile. His robust frame was still that of a warrior, with plenty of youthful vigor remaining. To suggest farming or trading to a soldier fit for battle was an insult.

Such contrasting views freed Vassilios from suspicion and scrutiny.

In reality, Peleus had gained nothing from his daughter becoming queen over the years, a fact evident to anyone giving it a moment’s thought. His movements were severely restricted, and rejection and vigilance were rampant.

Yet, benefits could come in the future. Even Peleus, typically indifferent to worldly matters beyond war, might struggle to remain dispassionate in front of a grandchild inheriting the Vassilios bloodline.

“….Having a daughter as the first child is a good omen.”

“Was I a good omen for you, father? Even though you lost my mother because of me?”

“What does your mother’s incident have to do with you?”

Peleus, standing by the window, extended his hand towards the void outside expressionlessly. His fingers brushed against the Orthea like a thin veil.

His Orthea barely held any light, sometimes resembling mist.

Pherenike squinted at it.

The faint mist of light descended the stone wall below the window, crossed the floor in a straight line, headed towards the door through which Ino exited, climbed the doorframe, and disappeared, ensuring no one else could overhear their conversation. This was also something her father had taught Deucalion.

“Being a daughter is indeed a good omen. Daughters don’t necessarily have to die.”

“….?”

Peleus walked over to her bed and fully drew back the partially closed curtains. Sunlight directly illuminated her pale face.

He looked into his daughter’s eyes under the bright light, as if binding and pressing down a guilty person.

“It’s time for this father to know what’s inside you, Pherenike.”

“What is it?”

“Will you continue to thrust that knife into Actor Pelagon to the end?”

“….”

“Or will you collapse and die by Actor’s side like this?”

She remembered her father’s final choice ‘then’. Throughout his life, he fought battles for the entirety of Evdokia, but in the end, he did not abandon Thasos and Deucalion.

There was no conflict then. For Peleus, Thasos was a mentor who guided him in place of his deceased father, and Axiothea’s siblings were like brothers to him in his youth.

Deucalion was the only boy he took as a disciple, and eventually, his daughter married him. Nothing was misaligned.

“…Father.”

“Even if you deceive the whole world, you cannot fool your father’s eyes.”

His voice, growling low, fell upon her face.

“Did you need the wealth and honor of being a queen? For the daughter of Vassilios?”

“…”

“Nonsense.”

Peleus coldly scoffed at the rumors circulating.

“When has the first prince ever not been loved by his father? Did you not know before that he was born closer to the throne? If you sought his hand because your own glory was insufficient, how do you explain your current, inglorious state?”

“….I was ill long before giving birth to the princess. That’s why.”

“Suffering to birth a child of a man you did not desire. Such a withered state.”

“…”

“What were you thinking, crawling here to the side of Actor Pelagon, to end up in this state?”

Pherenike turned her head away from her father, but Peleus’s large hand immediately grasped her face and turned it back towards him. As if sighing like when she was young, she apologized.

“…I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I know I’ve caused Father a lot of trouble in various ways. Forcing you to do things you didn’t want because of me…”

“It sounds like you feel very guilty.”

“But eventually, you’ll be at ease if you’re free of me. So.”

Peleus twisted his lips.

“You have trapped yourself like an animal, calculated your worth in flesh, and squandered the powers granted to you by God.”

“…”

“And now, you sit here, wasted away, as if you’ve given all your remaining life to that useless daughter of Actor.”

Before having the child, she was already gravely injured inside, and after giving birth, the internal injuries somewhat healed. Her strength was gradually returning. Whether this body could last a few more years was uncertain.

However, Peleus hadn’t seen his daughter in too long. Compared to the last image he had of her, the daughter before him now was significantly emaciated.

To his knowledge, the only reason his daughter had ended up this way was due to giving birth to the princess.

And in Peleus’s view, it was useless for his daughter.