Chapter 3 : The Only Dependency

**Time:** The 7th night after Aurora''s birth, late night

**Location:** Nursery of Winters Manor

The night was deep and silent, Winters Manor enveloped in a profound stillness. Only from the nursery came intermittent, feeble cries.

The sound seemed exhausted from crying, yet persisted, one after another drilling into one''s ears, unsettling and irritating.

The wet nurse held the swaddled infant, sweating profusely as she tried to soothe it, but the little thing simply refused to open its mouth to nurse, its face flushed red from crying, wailing as if its heart were breaking.

"Little miss, please drink just a sip... just one sip..." The wet nurse was on the verge of tears. "You''ve been hungry all day, how can this go on..."

The baby''s face had already thinned, its originally fair skin flushed an abnormal red from crying. Its voice was nearly hoarse from crying, raspy, yet it stubbornly continued to weep, its tiny hands waving aimlessly, as if searching for something.

Evelyn lay in the master bedroom bed, unable to sleep.

The crying seemed to have a magical quality, drilling into her ears one cry after another. After who knows how long, the crying gradually weakened, finally becoming feeble, breathless whimpers.

*Annoying.*

She sat up irritably, her disheveled black hair falling loosely over her shoulders. Moonlight filtered through the heavy curtain gaps, casting her pale face in an even colder light.

Her chest began to swell again.

Evelyn looked down at her breasts, swollen beneath her nightgown, frowning tightly. These past few days postpartum, her breasts had been secreting milk, swelling painfully. She had considered using magical potions to suppress it, but the milk seemed unstoppable, only increasing.

*Tsk.*

She was about to call a maid to attend to her when she heard the crying from the adjacent nursery start again, weaker than before, yet more persistent.

*......*

Evelyn abruptly threw off the covers, bare feet hitting the cold floor, striding toward the nursery.

The nursery was lit by ever-burning lamps, casting the room in warm yellow light.

The wet nurse, seeing the mistress arrive, hurriedly knelt in fear. "Madam! The little miss... she won''t drink my milk, she''s been hungry all day, no matter how I coax her, she won''t open her mouth..."

Evelyn walked to the wet nurse''s side, looking down at the swaddled infant.

The little thing was almost weightless, its soft body curled in the swaddling cloth like a helpless young animal. Its face had thinned, its pale silver-grey eyes wet, brimming with tears, but it wasn''t crying. It stared blankly at the person before it, its tiny mouth opening and closing, as if recognizing something.

Then, it smiled.

It was a weak yet contented smile, as if it had found the safest harbor in the world.

Evelyn looked at that smiling face, feeling something in her chest strike hard.

"I''ll do it." Her voice was somewhat hoarse.

She took the infant from the wet nurse''s arms, her movements stiff and awkward. The moment the little thing was in her embrace, its crying abruptly ceased.

*Silly thing...* she murmured softly, her voice unconsciously tinged with complex emotion. *Starving like this and still smiling?*

The baby didn''t understand her words, just struggled to press closer, its little face rubbing against her chest, its tiny mouth instinctively searching for something.

Evelyn''s body stiffened momentarily.

She looked down at the little thing squirming in her arms, suddenly understanding something.

*...You only recognize me?*

The baby continued rubbing, its tiny mouth touching the collar of her nightgown, making smacking sounds.

Evelyn took a deep breath, waving away the wet nurse and maids.

"All of you, leave."

The nursery door closed, leaving only her and the little thing inside.

Evelyn sat by the rocking chair, stiffly unbuttoning the collar of her nightgown. Breasts swollen for days finally freed from restraint, snow-white, full breast flesh exposed to the air, large, erect nipples slightly reddened from milk engorgement, milk seemingly seeping out.

She brought the baby to her chest, and the little thing, as if smelling a familiar scent, immediately opened its tiny mouth, taking her nipple.

*Mm—*

Evelyn groaned softly.

The sucking force from that tiny mouth was stronger than she imagined, a tingling numbness spreading from her nipple throughout her body. Breasts swollen for days finally relieved, a strange ache making her tremble slightly.

The baby greedily suckled, its little face buried in her breast, making satisfied gulping swallowing sounds.

Evelyn looked down at the little thing in her arms, at its slightly upturned corners of the mouth from satisfaction, at its tightly closed eyes, suddenly feeling the crack in her heart widen further.

*Only recognizes my scent... only drinks my milk...* she whispered to herself, her tone carrying a wavering she didn''t notice herself. *Can''t survive without me...*

As if understanding her words, the baby paused its nursing, then raised a tiny hand, patting her breast randomly, as if Be cute.

Evelyn stared at that soft little hand for a long time.

*...Hmph, don''t think this will make me soften.*

She said this, but her arms unconsciously tightened slightly, firmly protecting the little thing in her embrace.

*Just don''t want someone I plan to kill myself to die by someone else''s hand.*

*I''ll act sooner or later.*

*Sooner or later.*