Verdantia woke up slowly, her eyelids feeling heavy as her throat begged for water. Using a lot of willpower, the woman slowly sat up on her bed, looking around dazedly. "...A dream?"
"Good morning, Mom."
Green's gentle voice reached her, making her smile. She coughed twice to clear her stiff throat before speaking. "Good morning, love. Can you prepare a cup of water for Mommy?"
"Of course!"
Verdantia yawned, her body shifting to the edge of the bed. After planting her soles on the wooden floor, she put force on her thighs and tried to stand up. Only, when she did so, she felt a strange weight on her stomach that shifted her balance. Not expecting it, her body fell back down onto the bed, bouncing twice.
Verdantia blinked twice and looked down, confused. 'What happened?' At first glance, she couldn't see anything, not because there was nothing, but because her breasts were too big to look at her stomach.
"Done. Here you have the woodcup, Mom."
Verdantia held her bloated stomach with a confused expression as she reached for the small table by her bed's side, grabbing the cup. After moisturizing her throat, she asked, perplexed. "Um… Love. I feel slightly bloated… and also very hungry."
Green chuckled. "Mom, that's normal! You are pregnant, so of course you are feeling hungry. You must nourish little sister, hehe. Don't worry, though. I will help you. I am accustomed to helping Little Dewna and the others during their pregnancy."
Verdantia's brain short-circuited for a moment. "Pregnant? Huh?"
Finally, the moisture from the water activated her neurons, and memories from that crazy mating session returned to her head. Her face went fully red as she jumped up. "W-What!? That wasn't a dream?"
"Dream?"
Green's question stumped Verdantia. She coughed, her face twitching a bit. "Don't worry, baby."
She would never admit to having had similar wet dreams in the past. Still, ignoring her current embarrassment, she moved to the bathroom and took off her robes in front of a full-body mirror.
The naked figure on the mirror sported a body of sin. Her gorgeous and full curves, wide hips, long male member, and plump thighs were something she was very proud of. However, the previously slim waist was now protruding, making her green eyes show both wonder and confusion.
The gentle curve on her stomach was not too large. In terms of human pregnancy, she appeared to be in the fourth month. Of course, this was the result of Liu Shu planting her seed in her womb.
"... I got pregnant," Verdantia muttered, incredulous. She moved around in the mirror, her eyes never leaving her belly. The more she looked, the wider the arc of her smile. "Haha… I am pregnant!"
Green looked at her mother and chuckled to herself. 'Mom is sometimes so cute.'
"Mom. Since you are pregnant, you must take care. A Sylvan's pregnancy is a bit delicate during the middle stages."
As the Sylvan's womb transformed the seed's essence and gave it life, it would shrink down and release fluids that mixed with the placenta. These fluids were slightly watery during mixing, so strenuous activity could cause leakage. A bit of leakage was normal, and it wouldn't affect the baby. Nevertheless, if too much leakage occurred, the baby would be unable to develop into a Sylvan, becoming a lower-ranked plant species.
Sylvans could be said to be one of, if not the most perfect, plant-humanoid life-forms. They were long-lived, with natural abilities that could rival those of some World Trees, and were able to reproduce with both animal and plant descendant species.
The only drawback of the species was its relatively long gestation period when conceiving another Sylvan.
The average was nine years, with a minimum of eight years for healthy births. But there were cases of Sylvans being pregnant for over 20 years before giving birth. That was like a human woman being pregnant for almost 20 months!
Thankfully, the size of a child would rarely exceed Sylvan's stretching ability. So, cases of stillbirths were more than rare.
Verdantia heard Green speak, snapping her from her admiring and happy mood. "Mom, are you going to eat breakfast? You must get nourishment!"
Verdantia blinked. "Right! Green, prepare a full-course meal! Mommy must feed your youngest sibling!"
The other three Sylvans had similar experiences when waking up, but they all shared the tremendous joy of becoming mothers. When they gathered later, they were all wearing loose dresses already.
Looking at each other, they couldn't help but feel a bit strange. Melody arrived at a similar time, and upon seeing the four of them wearing the same pregnancy clothes, even though they had just gotten pregnant, she burst into laughter. "You four are too cute! Hahaha!"
Blushes appeared on their faces.
Tempestria coughed before speaking. "Aunty Melody, don't tease us. This is a first for us, so we are a bit… ignorant."
"Ignorant? Even after taking care of Liu Shu for the birth of over 120 children?" Melody approached and raised her hand to pinch Tempestria's cheek. "You just can't admit that you are overly excited, child!"
"Aw! Aunty! You are assaulting a pregnant woman!"
Melody burst into laughter, hugging Tempestria while doing so. "How are you four so cute? Come, come. I will teach you a few things to take into account." She also looked at her own daughter and smiled, satisfied. "You look beautiful, baby."
Harmonixia smiled shyly and hugged Melody's arm. "Thank you, Mom."
Melody looked at the Thermis and Vitae Sylvans and asked gently. "Are Amareal and Verena coming too?"
Cinderielle smiled and nodded, as did Verdantia. They all moved toward the backyard shared by the four tree daughters and sat on a comfortable wooden bench with a table in the middle. Verdantia asked Melody. "How has everything been going lately? Any news?"
Melody nodded, her hand reaching out to pour four cups of tea for the Sylvans. Warm water was not hard to create, and carrying a pot was a matter of course, just in case their adorable daughter-in-law created another world-level phenomenon.
"Thankfully, this time around it has nothing to do with that adorable big girl."
Verdantia chuckled before taking a sip. Melody commented. "There has been a strange worldwide event. All
Liu Shu, who was eavesdropping, couldn't help but look away in guilt. 'Sorry, mother-in-law. It was actually me. I'm the one responsible for the closing of the
Of course, she couldn't say it aloud, or the
Cinderielle spoke, surprised. "Something that big happened? I hope it wasn't too long ago."
Melody smiled wryly. "It was two days ago. It happened a bit after you four woke up and went running to Liu Shu's
The four girls showed embarrassed looks. Trying to change subjects, Tempestria asked, curious. "That… How is Wert doing? He should be 130 years old this year, right?"
Melody's smile became somewhat wistful. "He is… at his deathbed. I don't think he will last for another two years."
The four Sylvans sighed softly. They knew that this day was arriving, so they didn't feel that hurt. Verdantia sighed. "He lived long for a human. I think he should be proud."
"He is… a bit regretful," Melody commented. "He always tells us when we visit that he regrets making Adam his successor. Thankfully, the current leader of the
They all nodded lightly, their faces thoughtful.
Verena and Amareal arrived at this moment. "Hm? What's up with the long faces? Don't my four big babies have good news to share?"
Amareal chuckled, her face gentle. "That's right. I don't know why you are feeling a bit gloomy, but remember that you are now a precious mother carrying a baby."
They all greeted them, and Verdantia looked around, curious. "Where is Dad, Mom?"
Verena spoke softly as she sat by her side and grabbed her hand. "Branthis is with Wert. Let the two men stay together. Wert is… well."
Verdantia nodded. "Melody already told us. But I still feel that his lifespan should be somewhat longer with his strength, right?"
Verena sighed and gently patted Verdantai's hand. "Sorrow can affect us greatly, love. His wife was never a high-level human. She died a few decades ago, unable to bear the passage of time. Since then, Wert's aging speed seemed to have accelerated. I am sure that man just wants to rest and meet again with her."
Cinderielle clasped Amareal's hands, as they both had already experienced that sorrow. Melody spoke gently to them. "You must get accustomed, children. We are Sylvans, and our lifespans vastly differ from those of any other species."
She sighed. "It is also one of the reasons some Sylvans hate other species. Although most of the time you can see them holding it in, you can sometimes tell that they avoid interaction with others. It is not because of hate, but more because of the fear of getting attached. It is easier to see those you don't care about go, after all."
Amareal rested her head on Cinderielle's shoulder. "I can understand them. Lately, I've been a bit hesitant when approaching other species. Still, I know that I can't think that way."
"Mommy!"
As they spoke, they heard someone call them from a distance. When they looked over, they saw Dewna and a few other children waving at them from a distance. Dewna was carrying a petite human girl with facial features resembling hers. By her side, a man and woman walked with calm smiles and bowed slightly in respect.
"Mother-in-law."
Verdantia nodded at them and looked at the small girl. "This child is already so big! Look at her, so pretty."
Dewna smiled sweetly, holding the baby girl with a wide smile. "Right? Right? My baby is so pretty!" Then, she seemed to recall why she came quickly, and her pink eyes glittered. "Mommy! Is it true that you are pregnant!? I never saw Mommy pregnant in the past!"
With Dewna so excited, Verdantia laughed and nodded. "Yes. It seems that this time, it will be me who gives you a little sibling."
"Whoa! That's great!" Dewna sighed lightly. "Only, it is a shame."
"What's a shame?"
Dewna blurted, her slightly childish mind working wonders. "It is a shame that they won't meet Mommy's Avatar. While it is fuzzy, I can still remember how comfy it was to be in Mommy's
Verdantia and the others laughed, amused. The Vitae Sylvan flicked her forehead softly. "Silly girl. Where do you think I will give birth? Where else other than your mom's
Dewna blinked twice and smiled. "I see!"