Chương 158: Chapter 148 - Starving Unloved

"I'll send for a carriage."

"Liam! There's no time!" Chelsea yelled, staring at the dotted map one more time, trying to memorize the location.

"Take me there now. I'll push my Constitution higher than your Strength. We have to go now!" Liam stared at her for a moment before letting out a defeated sigh.

"Fine. Let's go."

"Samantha, come with us. I may need your help," Chelsea demanded. The three of them rushed from the meeting room and ran toward the elevator. Chelsea repeatedly glanced at the map while they waited, watching the two red dots continue blinking. They were still alive. Once the elevator reached the lowest floor, Chelsea ran through the cathedral with Liam and Samantha close behind her. Several people moved out of their path as they hurried through the front doors.

Chelsea pulled out her spear and equipped her flying transport title.

"Both of you, grab on here and here." Liam took hold near the head of the shaft while Samantha wrapped both arms around the section Chelsea indicated. The fairy's wings pulled tightly against her back. Chelsea took flight.

"Which way do I go?" she yelled over the rushing wind. Liam released the spear with one hand and pointed toward a distant section of the city. Chelsea flew as quickly as she could. The buildings passed beneath them while Liam continued directing her. When Chelsea looked down to make sure they were both secure, she found Samantha clinging to the spear with terror across her face. Did fairies not fly? They had wings, but Samantha clearly wasn't accustomed to being this high or moving this quickly.

Liam shouted something, but the wind tore the words away before Chelsea could understand them. His pointing arm changed direction, angling more toward the streets beneath them. Chelsea followed the motion and began descending. They touched down in one of the city's poorer districts. Samantha released the spear and stumbled several steps before regaining her balance. Chelsea barely noticed. She turned in place, searching for the two red X indicators. Where were they?

The markers on the map seemed to be directly ahead, near a brothel. Chelsea ran toward the entrance and shoved open the door. She wished she had ripped the map off the wall and brought it with them but she didn't think of it at the time. She hurried through the building, checking every room she could reach. Women and their customers shouted at her as she interrupted them, but the words faded into the background. The two red Xs weren't inside. Chelsea rushed back outside and started toward the neighboring building.

Something caught her attention as she passed the narrow alley between them. Two red indicators hovered close to the ground.

"Here!" she yelled. Liam and Samantha ran to her side as Chelsea entered the alley. An old burlap potato sack had been left among the trash. The mouth of it was tied shut with a thick knot. Chelsea dropped to her knees and pulled at it with shaking hands.

"Come on. Don't die. Don't die. Please, I'm begging you. Please don't die." The knot refused to loosen. Liam stepped forward, drew a small dagger, and carefully cut through it. The sack opened, releasing the smell of death into the alley. Chelsea pulled the rough fabric apart and looked inside. Two naked newborn babies lay on top of a woman's body. The mother was already dead. Red indicators blinked over both babies' faces. Tears immediately filled Chelsea's eyes.

"Oh, gods. Oh, gods. Come on, don't die." She reached into the sack and lifted the first baby. The newborn barely reacted. Her body was cold and weak, and her skin remained coated in dry chalky residue from birth. Chelsea lowered the front of her dress and pressed the baby toward her chest. The child didn't respond. She remained unconscious, her mouth closed.

"What do I do?" Chelsea asked in a panic as she sat on the ground.

"There has to be something." An idea struck her. Chelsea activated Call for Aid.

"Sophiana." Nothing happened. She used the ability again, slowly enunciating the name.

"Sophiana." Red light appeared in front of her, and the goddess materialized within the alley.

"Aww, Chelsea, you finall… What is happening?" Sophiana asked, confused by the situation.

"There are two newborns dying of starvation, and I don't know how to get them to eat," Chelsea quickly explained.

"What do I do?"

"Why would I know?" Sophiana hurriedly asked.

"I didn't know who else to call. Sophie, please. You're the Goddess of Love. There has to be something I can do."

"Okay. Okay. Let's see. I know you have to get the baby to latch on." Sophiana knelt beside Chelsea and carefully took the newborn from her arms. She ran one finger along the side of the baby's cheek. The child's mouth slowly opened. Her head shifted toward Sophiana's finger with what little strength she had left.

"There. Now we'll do the same with… Ah perfect, there's a good girl." Sophiana guided the newborn back into position. This time, the baby's mouth opened and latched onto Chelsea. Chelsea supported the child against her, holding her securely with one arm while watching for any sign that she was swallowing. Liam had already reached into the sack and retrieved the second baby. He held the newborn out to Sophiana while Chelsea cradled the first.

"Come on, sweetheart. Come on," Sophiana sang softly as she stroked the second baby's cheek. Chelsea looked between the two infants. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. No one had even cleaned them after birth. Interestingly, neither had an umbilical cord. That meant one thing… elves. Sophiana continued moving her finger along the baby's cheek until the newborn finally turned toward it and opened her mouth.

"There you are, good girl," Sophiana said. Samantha crouched in front of Chelsea, ready to help guide the second baby into place. Sophiana carefully handed the newborn over. The child turned toward Chelsea and latched on without any trouble. Chelsea released a shaky breath of relief. She cradled the second baby in her right arm while keeping the first supported against her left side. Chelsea adjusted her wings behind her to support her back against the alley wall.

Both infants rested securely within the bends of her arms, and one hand was positioned beneath each of their heads. They were eating. They were still alive. Chelsea activated The Eyes on the baby in her left arm first.

[Status] Name: — Race: Elf Class: — Profession: — Title: — Titles: 1 Level: 1 Attributes Physical Strength: 1 Dexterity: 0 Constitution: 1 Stamina: 1 Mental Intelligence: 0 Wisdom: 0 Psyche: 0 Social Charisma: 0 Luck: 7 Abilities Passive N/A Active N/A Enhancements N/A Ailments N/A She was the blankest slate Chelsea had ever seen. The baby didn't even have a name. Her only title was Unloved. Chelsea immediately removed it.

"There you go, sweet girl. You're no longer unloved. I love you. I love you so much." The words came without hesitation. Chelsea quickly gave her the Child of the Holy Empress title before turning her attention toward the newborn in her right arm.

[Status] Name: — Race: Elf Class: — Profession: — Title: — Titles: 1 Level: 1 Attributes Physical Strength: 1 Dexterity: 0 Constitution: 1 Stamina: 1 Mental Intelligence: 0 Wisdom: 0 Psyche: 0 Social Charisma: 0 Luck: 11 Abilities Passive N/A Active N/A Enhancements N/A Ailments N/A"That yucky title is gone for you as well," Chelsea cooed to the second little girl. She removed Unloved from the baby's status. Their ears were pointed, though not nearly as much as Chelsea had expected from pure-blooded elves.

Perhaps they had to grow into them? Chelsea had already adopted two half-elf children, and their ears looked much closer to those of the newborns than Ivy's or Rose's.

"I love you way too much for that lying title to stick around." Chelsea gave the second baby the Child of the Holy Empress title as well. She didn't assign the titles to either child yet. She only gave them the titles, Neither of them had a first name, and Chelsea didn't want their status to display only Wixx. That would be weird. Chelsea lifted her eyes and found Sophiana watching her with open affection.

"Chelsea, you aren't just saying that. How can you love these little things so much after only seeing them now and under such circumstances?" Before Chelsea could answer, an angry voice came from the entrance to the alley.

"Hey! What the fuck is going on? Get away from there!" Everyone looked up. The owner of the brothel Chelsea had searched only minutes earlier stood at the mouth of the alley. His face was red with anger, though some of his confidence disappeared when he noticed Liam and Sophiana. Chelsea tightened her hold around the newborns.

"Liam, I have some questions. Don't kill him, please, but bring him here. Samantha, do you happen to have a blanket or something to cover us?"

"Yeah, of course I do. Someone is always cold with so many kids around." Chelsea raised an eyebrow as Samantha reached into a three slotted pouch and pulled out a knitted blanket. She carefully draped it over the two babies and Chelsea, covering them from the neck down without disturbing either child. By the time she finished, Liam had returned with the brothel owner. The Lord Commander gripped the back of the man's neck with one hand.

His other arm had been twisted behind his back and held there, forcing him to walk bent forward.

"Hi there," Chelsea said. The man's eyes widened when he noticed the red glow coming from Sophiana only a few feet away. His attention moved between the goddess, Liam, and Chelsea before finally settling on the two small shapes hidden beneath the blanket.

"What do you want?" he asked. Chelsea kept her voice calm, though every part of her wanted to tear out his throat.

"Can you please explain to me the potato sack over there?" The man glanced toward the part of the alley without showing any concern.

"One of my girls died havin' babies. Neither one was a boy, so I threw them out with their mother. Girl elves aren't worth anything until at least twelve." Chelsea stared at him. The babies continued nursing against her chest, unaware of the man discussing them as though they were damaged property.

"Ah, I see. So you just threw them out," Chelsea said with her sweet, serene smile.

"Just a couple of moldy apples." She let out a quiet laugh, careful not to jostle the twins.

"You're a garbage human being. You know that? Hey, Sophiana, can you tell how much Psyche he has?"

"Uh, yeah. He has…" Sophiana studied the man for a moment.

"Thirteen." Chelsea sighed.

"I really wanted to drop a Sky Lance on him, but that would definitely kill him. Can't have that." The man's face lost some of its color.

"Oh, sorry. I haven't introduced myself. I'm the Holy Empress. I figured the light would've told you that, but I guess not?" Chelsea adjusted her hold on the newborns beneath the blanket.

"I just adopted these two sweet girls, which means you tried to kill two future princesses of the Holy Empire."

"What? But no… they're just elves. Why… ah!" He tried to argue, but Liam pulled harder on his arm while forcing him down onto his knees.

"I do have some wonderful news, though. I just cleared out the cathedral dungeons, so there's plenty of room for you to stretch out." Chelsea's smile remained, but her voice tightened. She activated Call for Aid.

"Freya." Nothing happened. Why was it not working the first time she used it? Chelsea tried again.

"Freya." This time, orange light appeared in the alley. Freya materialized in front of Chelsea and immediately turned, taking in the narrow alley, the kneeling man, and the bundle beneath the blanket.

"Chels, are you okay? Where the hell are we… two more? Newborns this time?"

"I'll explain everything when I get home. For now, I need you to do something for me."

"Anything," Freya replied.

"Aww," Sophiana said, clasping both hands against her chest. Freya gave the Goddess of Love a look. Sophiana ignored it and continued smiling. Chelsea went on.

"I just need you to fly this piece of trash back to the cathedral and throw him in the dungeon."

"That's it?" Freya asked.

"Yeah. Sorry to use you like that, but I need him out of my sight before I decide to convert back into an organ-eating demon."

"No, it's fine. Happy to help." Freya took the man from Liam. Before he could protest, she secured him in one arm and launched into the air. They disappeared above the surrounding buildings at a speed Chelsea wished she could match.

"Sophiana, want me to send you back to your domain?" Chelsea asked.

"Nope." Sophiana shook her head quickly.

"When you sent me back about ten minutes ago, that was the first time I'd been there since you first summoned me after evolving." Chelsea stared at her.

"Wait. You've been out in the world this whole time?" That explained why her call for aid didn't work. She never unsummoned Sophie. Which meant, her saying her name the first time unsummoned her and then she had to summon her again. The same with Freya.

"Yes!" Sophiana exclaimed with joy.

"It's been so much fun. Chelsea, I've had so much sex."

"Okay!" Chelsea said before the goddess could provide any details.

"Hey, I'm glad for you." Samantha stood nearby with the blanket still gathered in her hands. Chelsea suddenly realized she hadn't introduced them.

"Oh, Sophiana, this is Samantha. Samantha, Sophiana, the Goddess of Love." Samantha's face turned bright red. Her wings pulled close to her back as she looked up at the goddess. Sophiana spoke first.

"Chelsea, you haven't adopted this one yet? Is it because she's a fairy? I never took you for someone who had prejudices toward my people." Chelsea let out a quiet laugh.

"No, we're working on it. We're experimenting with the process with her." She quickly explained her theory about Samantha's future class and that the delay had nothing to do with Samantha being a fairy.

"Oh, goodness. You worried me," Sophiana replied.

"You really think I'd be so bigoted?" Chelsea laughed again, keeping her movements controlled so she wouldn't disturb the twins beneath the blanket. Both babies had stopped nursing and appeared to have fallen asleep against her chest. Their breathing was faint, but it seemed steadier than before. Chelsea kept one hand behind each of their heads while watching them for any sign of distress. Her attention eventually shifted toward the potato sack.

The babies' mother remained inside it, abandoned among the waste in the alley.

"Liam, what are we supposed to do with that?" Chelsea asked. Liam followed her gaze toward the body.

"That's actually the correct way of disposing of a body in the city. We have people who go around and collect them for disposal." Chelsea stared at the sack. The woman had died giving birth, and the city's answer was to tie her inside rough fabric and leave her beside the trash until someone came to collect her.

"Seems so cold," she replied.

"So transactional."

"How else should we do it?" Liam asked.

"I don't know." Chelsea didn't have an alternative ready. She only knew that leaving a dead woman in an alley alongside her newborn daughters felt wrong.

"But let's get out of this alley. Liam, remind me to send someone to this establishment to inform them of the circumstances." Liam stepped closer and carefully helped Chelsea to her feet. She adjusted her wings behind her and made sure the blanket remained secure around the sleeping twins.

"Let's head over to a birthing center to get these two cleaned up." She took a deep unsteady breath.

"Kids, I can do. I know next to nothing about newborns."