Rya has been trying to pace herself during her meals the st couple of days but her body needed nutrients for the child that was slowly growing inside her. And now the cravings were too much for her to ignore.

  Hilda looked shocked, but then a satisfied smile formed on her face.

  'Maybe the Divine Ones are on my side!' Hilda thought, feeling victorious.

  Rya blushed and acted like it wasn't her who let out that loud stomach groan.

  "Oh! Where are my manners, here you go, Rya. It looks like the chef seasoned the steaks with a lot of rosemary. They smell heavenly, don't you agree?" Quinus asked with a warm smile while putting a good 8 oz steak on her pte.

  'And garlic... Oh, God...' Rya nodded, not trusting herself to speak. 'J-Just take your time. You don't have to eat this thing in one bit... Only take a couple bits here and there until the hunger pains subside...'

  Rya was doing everything in her power not to just bite into the rge chunk of meat like Dalia who was almost doing that, but the Wolfkin has learned to use silverware instead of her cws.

  Hilda was observing Rya closely, and she was watching her reaction closely.

  'Hmmm, her cheeks are flushed. She must be fighting the Divine Ones' influence! Maybe I can give her the nudge she needs?' Hilda thought with a wicked grin.

  "Wow! It does smell so good!" Hilda said in her sweetest voice, trying to sound innocent and girly. "Can someone pass me a steak too, please? I'm starving!"

  "Of course," Quinus replied, taking another steak from the ptter.

  He then handed it to the servant, who proceeded to serve it to Hilda.

  "Oh, my?... I don't know how anyone could resist such a delicious looking meal..." Hilda continued as she gracefully cut off a small piece and started eating it slowly. "It's so juicy and tender... Mmmm!"

  "Huh!? Red can taste it too! At least she knows good food when she sees it! Right, Alpha!" Dalia said happily as she was already on her second helping.

  'GOD, DAMMIT, DALIA!' Rya was sweating now, and her cheeks were burning hot. 'I-It's good! But not that good... C-Control yourself... D-Don't listen to the voices!'

  The more she struggled, the stronger her craving became. Her nostrils were fring, and she was breathing heavily through them. She clenched her teeth tightly, and her body began to make her hungrier. Her child needed her to feed. And the scent was driving her mad.

  Rya slowly cut off a small piece and brought it up to her mouth. Her heart was racing. 'Okay, just a little bite... You'll see! It won't taste as good as you think it will...'

  Rya put the small morsel into her mouth, and her pupils dited.

  'Fuck. This is good.'

  Then, Rya couldn't stop herself. She started feverishly cutting bigger and bigger pieces of meat and stuffing them into her mouth. Her mind was consumed by the deliciousness.

  Eine, Quinus, Hilda, Yuliana, Nieren, and Octavius were staring at Rya, shocked and amazed at how quickly she inhaled the meal.

  'Wow!?... I didn't know sister had such a big appetite... The stories about Dark Elves must be wrong after all. Sister is funny,' Eine thought as she was amused by Rya's behavior. It was something she never thought a Dark Elf would do. She was more like a Beastkin than an evil being.

  Yuliana and Nieren were watching Rya devour the meat. They didn't know what has gotten into her. Sure her appetite has grown over the past few weeks, but nothing like this.

  'Maybe Rya needs to see a doctor?' Nieren was worried. 'It might be a sign of an illness.'

  'What in the Spirits' name has gotten into you, Rya?... I've only seen elven eat like her when they were—Oh!? OH! Is she!?' Yuliana started to realize that Rya might be showing signs of being pregnant but it was taboo to pry into such things until the elf in question reveals themselves as it was bad luck and it was said to cause a miscarriage if someone were to speak it into existence before the mother knew she was pregnant. For when the spirits align with a elven mother they will reveal the blessing of their child with a shapely belly and Rya's belly wasn't quite showing yet. So, Yuliana didn't want to say anything just in case it really was true and not just her overthinking the situation.

  'By the Spirits, BY THE SPIRITS! OH!... Don't say it! I can't curse my daughter's pregnancy with my ignorance... Oh, Spirits! I-I need to grow pnts to help with her prenatal nutrients, and herbs to help with the mood swings... Spirits, why do the blessed always have the worst mood swings and cravings?' Yuliana was thinking of when she was pregnant with Nieren and by her third month her hunger was very simir to Rya's right now. 'She will need the right pnts to help with the nutrients and the cravings. I will have to start tonight and make her a prenatal paste... But I can't let her know that it is for her. So, I will have to hide it. I need to start pnning a garden to help me gather the right herbs for the baby and the right pnts for her nutritional needs.'

  Yuliana's mind was a storm of activity as a sly smile grew across her face.

  'Spirits, I can't wait for my first grandbaby! If you will bless my daughter and she finds out! Then all these nobles have to approve of her as the Crown Prince's wife. If they don't, then the Spirits will smite them!'

  While Yuliana was over the moons about the possibility her daughter was pregnant, Rya's stomach wasn't satisfied with one steak and a side of roasted vegetables. It was demanding more meat and Rya couldn't help herself.

  Quinus noticed that she was looking at the ptter of steaks again. He smirked and got her a second helping.

  Rya's resistance to go on a diet started to crumble the more she eat it. She couldn't help be sense Hilda looking at her with a triumphant look on her face. As if saying, "You will be big and round before you know it and I will ugh."

  Rya's pride was wounded by the fact she might gain weight after this feast. 'O-One of those bastard Gods of her's must be messing with my body! Because this isn't normal! Food never tasted this good! And the steak was sooo juicy and delicious, and the roasted veggies were amazing. They had a nice sweet taste. Oh, no! What if I become a fatty!? I-I need to find out if some God is fucking with my body... Gah! If Iyomelka didn't put such impossible tasks to allow me to contact her I would try talk to her in her Astral Domain. But how the fuck can someone eat their own head as one of the dance moves to unlock her idol?'

  Ever since that day, when Rya unlocked Iyomelka's Idol to connect to her Astral domain, the Goddess changed the praying ritual and dance moves required a lot of self mutition it makes it impossible to reach her.

  'Fuck! I'll even talk to those two idiot Goddesses, Nils or Nebulus, if it means I can find out why I'm so hungry! This isn't natural... Or is it? No. No. I can't get fat. What if Quin doesn't love me if I get fat? W-What if the others leave me because I'm not thin?'

  "Hey, what's wrong?" Quinus asked with a concerned look.

  "N-nothing, I'm just worried if I become fat," Rya admitted as she finished her second steak but was still hungry.

  Yuliana chimed in a passed a pte full of sad. Dalia gagged when she saw the rge pile of leaves and vegetables heading towards Rya.

  "So, you are realizing the truth? One of the Divine Ones has listened to my pleas. If you release the Crown Prince from your hold then I'll tell them to stop. But if you continue to seduce the Prince. Well, let's just say that your future is looking quite big."

  Rya's eyes twitched and she felt an overwhelming desire to strangle the woman. But then her mother stepped in, "Or you sure that your Gods are causing this? Maybe the food is just very tasty? Or she has a growing appetite because she needs to nourish a active... Let's say life style with her future husband. And I'll have you know that the Crown Prince is very virile. I wouldn't be surprised if my daughter becomes a mother by the end of the year. I'm quite certain that my daughter is capable of having more than one child at a time. She's done the impossible many times for the short time I've known her. So, I'm not the least bit surprised she's able to conceive and birth many children, at the same time."

  Eine was confused by this conversation while Rya was embarrassed.

  "Mother! That's not funny!" Rya said sternly, but her stomach ached for food and the sad Yuliana made her was too good. Rya couldn't help but eat the sad as her hunger got the best of her.

  Yuliana grinned as Rya ate a special nutrients filled cabbage leaf that was sour to anyone that tried. Rya didn't seem bothered by the sourness, just like her when she was pregnant. Only she knew what was going on, and Rya would find out sooner or ter.

  "Believe me, my dear... The gods don't interfere with us mortals in that way... You are an active woman who should listen to your body's needs. And if you are hungry then you shouldn't fight your urges, or you will become very sick and you'll become to weak," Yuliana said in a serious tone.

  Rya gnced over at Yuliana with an unsure look in her eyes. How could her mother know that she wasn't being affected by the gods?

  "How are you so sure?" Rya asked curiously.

  Yuliana smiled warmly. "Yes... Because the gods are not interested in these mortal matters."

  Hilda frowned, "You shouldn't underestimate the Divine Ones! They have the power to create and destroy everything. They are all-powerful and benevolent."

  Rya was about to say something when Yuliana cut her off, "My dear, the gods may be benevolent, but if they could destroy us, then why have they not?... Why send an army to do the dirty work for them? If the Divine Three wanted us all of the other races dead, then what is stopping them from doing so?"

  Hilda looked down at the table, not knowing what to say. It was something that never was questioned before, and she was not sure how to answer.

  "It's because they can't interact in the mortal pne like they can in the astral pne. That is why they need champions and when they do offer their influence it only strengthens those who are graced by their blessings... So, of my daughter was getting influenced by a God, then her beauty or strength would increase, and I can assure you that your Gods don't wish to offer us Elves their blessings," Yuliana answered her question.

  "I guess... But what makes you think the gods can't influence mortals? We know nothing about them, and they could be doing things that we have no clue about," Hilda pointed out.

  "I'm over 400 years old. And I've seen many things in my lifetime. And the gods have never touched me or any elf I've known... The only time when nations or races fall into darkness is when the gods abandoned them. When their followers lost their faith in the Divine and turned their backs on them. That is when their influence seems to disappear... I've seen a couple gods floating high in the sky when they are in their temporal form. They are like an Illusion and you can't physically interact with them."

  Hilda was shocked. She didn't know the elves could see the gods in the sky. No human ever saw a god in the sky, and the thought of the gods watching over them from the skies sent shivers down her spine.

  "H-How did you see the gods?" Hilda asked, curious.

  "It's easy to see the gods when you live in a Elder Tree for most of my life. The branches extend out far into the sky. So we could be safe from harm. But the view of the surrounding ndscape is a sight to behold. The leaves were so green and beautiful. They were like emeralds reflecting the sun's rays. Only the High Elves Spire of Light was taller than a fully grown Elder Tree. And the Spire has a barrier that protects the city from the elements and attacks.

  "But anyway, I have seen the other gods that flew by the Elder Tree. They would be flying low or high in the sky. They were just floating and looking around. It was a little creepy but they didn't seem interested in us. They just floated there and looked.

  "The only time the gods seemed to do anything is when they would appear above a battlefield. Then, after the battle was over, they would vanish again. As if they were never there."