Meanwhile, Arkan, who had a huge fight with Erdene, had to attend a meeting of officials without even having time to vent his anger. Since it was an urgent meeting to discuss tax issues, he couldn’t just leave them alone and tell them to do whatever they wanted, so he sat down, but unlike usual, his attention seemed to be elsewhere.
“Excuse me, Your Majesty.”
Among the officials who were just looking at each other at Arkan’s ominous mood, the eldest Marquis cautiously called out to Arkan.
However, Arkan’s gaze as he looked back at him was prickly, unlike usual.
“What’s wrong?”
“No, uh... is there anything uncomfortable? Or is there a problem with the budget...”
Arkan let out a deep sigh.
The officials all kept their mouths shut, and Plat, who was standing a little away from the throne, also looked at Arkan with confused eyes.
“No, that’s not it. Let’s proceed with the southern tax issue as discussed. And let’s make a decision about the rest of the regions later.”
“Oh, I understand.”
Arkan stood up from his seat without even declaring that he would adjourn the meeting.
The officials, who had been blankly staring as if possessed by a ghost, muttered with bewildered eyes only after Arkan had completely disappeared from their sight.
“What on earth is going on? Today...”
“I heard His Majesty was in the study, did he read a book he didn’t like...”
“Is there a book that His Majesty doesn’t like? That’s ridiculous.”
“Then why on earth would His Majesty do that?”
“How could I understand?”
The officials, who had been whispering in low voices, tilted their heads and left the conference room.
Arkan walked briskly down the hallway, leaving Plat behind him, who was following him anxiously.
Plat tried to talk to him several times, but he kept missing his chance because Arkan would run away every time.
'This must have been how the Marchioness of Fiddlers felt a while ago.'
Plat thought of Arkan pretending not to hear the Marchioness of Fiddlers's desperate voice.
It was a bit unfair to think that he was being treated in the same way as her, but in any case, there seemed to be no time to talk to Arkan right now.
It was the moment Arkan turned the corner toward the King's residence.
Pelarhar suddenly appeared out of nowhere and wrapped his arm around Arkan's stiff shoulder.
"Why are you so dead? Who else eats delicious food besides you?"
Arkan only moved his eyes and glanced at Pelarhar, then shook his arm away as if it was annoying.
But Pelarhar, as soon as his arm dropped, used the recoil to grab his shoulder even more firmly.
“Oh, don’t bother me.”
Arkan, who had kept his mouth shut as if he had bitten into a glueball, finally said an irritated word.
Pelarhar smirked as if to say, “That’s what you do.”
“Excuse me, Your Majesty.”
Among the officials who were just looking at each other at Arkan’s ominous mood, the eldest Marquis cautiously called out to Arkan.
However, Arkan’s gaze as he looked back at him was prickly, unlike usual.
“What’s wrong?”
“No, uh... is there anything uncomfortable? Or is there a problem with the budget...”
Arkan let out a deep sigh.
The officials all kept their mouths shut, and Plat, who was standing a little away from the throne, also looked at Arkan with confused eyes.
“No, that’s not it. Let’s proceed with the southern tax issue as discussed. And let’s make a decision about the rest of the regions later.”
“Oh, I understand.”
Arkan stood up from his seat without even declaring that he would adjourn the meeting.
The officials, who had been blankly staring as if possessed by a ghost, muttered with bewildered eyes only after Arkan had completely disappeared from their sight.
“What on earth is going on? Today...”
“I heard His Majesty was in the study, did he read a book he didn’t like...”
“Is there a book that His Majesty doesn’t like? That’s ridiculous.”
“Then why on earth would His Majesty do that?”
“How could I understand?”
The officials, who had been whispering in low voices, tilted their heads and left the conference room.
Arkan walked briskly down the hallway, leaving Plat behind him, who was following him anxiously.
Plat tried to talk to him several times, but he kept missing his chance because Arkan would run away every time.
'This must have been how the Marchioness of Fiddlers felt a while ago.'
Plat thought of Arkan pretending not to hear the Marchioness of Fiddlers's desperate voice.
It was a bit unfair to think that he was being treated in the same way as her, but in any case, there seemed to be no time to talk to Arkan right now.
It was the moment Arkan turned the corner toward the King's residence.
Pelarhar suddenly appeared out of nowhere and wrapped his arm around Arkan's stiff shoulder.
"Why are you so dead? Who else eats delicious food besides you?"
Arkan only moved his eyes and glanced at Pelarhar, then shook his arm away as if it was annoying.
But Pelarhar, as soon as his arm dropped, used the recoil to grab his shoulder even more firmly.
“Oh, don’t bother me.”
Arkan, who had kept his mouth shut as if he had bitten into a glueball, finally said an irritated word.
Pelarhar smirked as if to say, “That’s what you do.”
“Why is your expression like this when you come home from work like a worker bee? Are you finally taking your first step as a lazy person?”
“Stop talking nonsense and go get some more sleep.”
"Am I a bear? Even bears wander around this season. Plat, please give me some tea.”
Plat, who had been looking at the two cousins with an anxious heart, quickly nodded.
“Understood, Your Grace Pelarhar.”
Plat left, and Arkan and Pelarhar went to the west living room where the afternoon sunlight slanted in, and sat on the sofa.
However, Arkan still had a sullen expression, and his lower lip sticking out clearly showed that he couldn’t stand to complain to anyone.
Pelarhar, who was watching Arkan’s furrowed brows with amusement, said,
“I can see the answer. You’ve made a big fight with your spouse.”
Arkan glared at Pelarhar with sharp eyes, but he quickly let out a sigh as if his temper had subsided.
Pelarhar, determined to tease him, smiled and added,
“I bet she's been nagging you a lot.”
Arkan flared up.
“What are you talking about when you don’t even know?”
“Then you’re saying no?”
Arkan, who had been keeping his lips tightly shut, slammed the armrest.
The young servant who had just come in with tea was startled by the sound and almost spilled the teapot.
Arkan said,
“If she's at fault, it’s hers. She has a foul mouth and she often resorts to violence, and she's also good at threatening. Do you know what she said to me?”
Pelarhar, holding a teacup, chuckled softly.
He lowered his eyes slightly and savored the scent, then took a sip of the warm, steaming tea and leaned back, placing the cushion behind him on his lap.
“Her Majesty must be feeling a bit under the weather, so why don’t you accept it?”
“This is all I can give her.”
“Huh, while I wasn’t looking, our once cuddly King has turned into a hedgehog. Why are you acting so prickly? It’s not like you.”
Arkan, with a discontented expression, stared down at the table as if he were having a staring contest without even touching his share of tea.
Throughout the meeting, no, since the moment Erdene stormed out of the study, his mind, which had been a jumbled mess like a tangled thread, seemed to shrink more and more violently with Pelarhar’s words.
Pelarhar, who had been quietly drinking his tea, put down his cup and rested his chin on his hand.
“It’s mostly my uncle and aunt’s fault.”
Arkan glanced at Pelarhar as if asking what he meant.
Pelarhar blinked and continued, the corners of his mouth tilting.
“They have been so kind to me, so it seems like an ungrateful thing for me to say this, but... To be honest, it was too much for you. You had to always be polite to others, hide your true feelings, and never deviate from the image of the successor they wanted... On the other hand, you had to act lovingly as the only child left.”
“What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”
“Listen. It’s not like you don’t understand why the Princess is so angry.”
Arkan laughed coldly.
“She's not the Princess anymore.”
“Yeah, well. Whether she's the Princess or the Secret Prince. I don’t know why you fought, but I’m saying that you shouldn’t be this angry. It hasn’t been long since you got married, so I don’t know what will happen in the future, but you're been doing well so far, right? That’s amazing. I wouldn’t have been surprised if a few heads had already been blown off. Especially Marchioness Fiddler.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. I don’t know if it’s the Empire, but this is Vetor.”
Pelarhar’s shoulders shook slightly. Although he spoke as if he was driving a wedge, Arkan’s voice didn’t have much strength either.
In fact, he couldn’t help but admit that Pelarhar’s words were true to some extent.
As he had said, Pelarhar had met Erdene in battle.
If it hadn’t been for a fleeting coincidence, he would have lost his life at her hands and wouldn’t be here now, and it would have been chilling to think about it, but perhaps because of his personality, he didn’t feel any fear when he met Erdene.
The only thing he was surprised about was that she was acting as Vetor’s Queen quietly, like a dead, broken bird.
It wasn’t that Arkan didn’t understand Pelarhar’s words.
He didn’t know how Erdene was stirring up the battlefield and hoped he would never have to know, but he wasn’t blind and deaf enough to not know the bizarre rumors going around.
Furthermore, when he decided to form an alliance between the inland and the empire by marrying Erdene, the bureaucratic nobles took turns denouncing the cruelty and savagery of Princess Erdene in front of him. And as Erdene herself had said, she was trying to accept the marriage that was no different from an insult and live quietly.
“That’s why I’m even angrier,”
Arkan said nervously.
“I understand. Don’t you know that, you fool? I’m angry because I understand. I try to understand her and approach her, but she just hates me, pushes me away, and swears at me. Don’t you get annoyed? I’m telling you, I’m not the one who stole the throne in the first place!”
Pelarhar tilted his head, holding back a laugh.
“That last sentence sounds a bit like a five-year-old’s. Yes, whatever. Keep talking.”
Arkan forced his eyes as if he wanted to hit him, then sighed again.
“She didn’t marry me on purpose, did she? Of course. But you know, why can’t she see that I’m the same way? Her situation is similar to mine.”
“It’s not like you wanted to marry someone else.”
“Who doesn’t know that? Even if I did, I’ve never thought about marrying her. You say that Father and Mother raised me wrong, but I think differently. My brother died young, so they had no choice. I..
“Stop talking nonsense and go get some more sleep.”
"Am I a bear? Even bears wander around this season. Plat, please give me some tea.”
Plat, who had been looking at the two cousins with an anxious heart, quickly nodded.
“Understood, Your Grace Pelarhar.”
Plat left, and Arkan and Pelarhar went to the west living room where the afternoon sunlight slanted in, and sat on the sofa.
However, Arkan still had a sullen expression, and his lower lip sticking out clearly showed that he couldn’t stand to complain to anyone.
Pelarhar, who was watching Arkan’s furrowed brows with amusement, said,
“I can see the answer. You’ve made a big fight with your spouse.”
Arkan glared at Pelarhar with sharp eyes, but he quickly let out a sigh as if his temper had subsided.
Pelarhar, determined to tease him, smiled and added,
“I bet she's been nagging you a lot.”
Arkan flared up.
“What are you talking about when you don’t even know?”
“Then you’re saying no?”
Arkan, who had been keeping his lips tightly shut, slammed the armrest.
The young servant who had just come in with tea was startled by the sound and almost spilled the teapot.
Arkan said,
“If she's at fault, it’s hers. She has a foul mouth and she often resorts to violence, and she's also good at threatening. Do you know what she said to me?”
Pelarhar, holding a teacup, chuckled softly.
He lowered his eyes slightly and savored the scent, then took a sip of the warm, steaming tea and leaned back, placing the cushion behind him on his lap.
“Her Majesty must be feeling a bit under the weather, so why don’t you accept it?”
“This is all I can give her.”
“Huh, while I wasn’t looking, our once cuddly King has turned into a hedgehog. Why are you acting so prickly? It’s not like you.”
Arkan, with a discontented expression, stared down at the table as if he were having a staring contest without even touching his share of tea.
Throughout the meeting, no, since the moment Erdene stormed out of the study, his mind, which had been a jumbled mess like a tangled thread, seemed to shrink more and more violently with Pelarhar’s words.
Pelarhar, who had been quietly drinking his tea, put down his cup and rested his chin on his hand.
“It’s mostly my uncle and aunt’s fault.”
Arkan glanced at Pelarhar as if asking what he meant.
Pelarhar blinked and continued, the corners of his mouth tilting.
“They have been so kind to me, so it seems like an ungrateful thing for me to say this, but... To be honest, it was too much for you. You had to always be polite to others, hide your true feelings, and never deviate from the image of the successor they wanted... On the other hand, you had to act lovingly as the only child left.”
“What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”
“Listen. It’s not like you don’t understand why the Princess is so angry.”
Arkan laughed coldly.
“She's not the Princess anymore.”
“Yeah, well. Whether she's the Princess or the Secret Prince. I don’t know why you fought, but I’m saying that you shouldn’t be this angry. It hasn’t been long since you got married, so I don’t know what will happen in the future, but you're been doing well so far, right? That’s amazing. I wouldn’t have been surprised if a few heads had already been blown off. Especially Marchioness Fiddler.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. I don’t know if it’s the Empire, but this is Vetor.”
Pelarhar’s shoulders shook slightly. Although he spoke as if he was driving a wedge, Arkan’s voice didn’t have much strength either.
In fact, he couldn’t help but admit that Pelarhar’s words were true to some extent.
As he had said, Pelarhar had met Erdene in battle.
If it hadn’t been for a fleeting coincidence, he would have lost his life at her hands and wouldn’t be here now, and it would have been chilling to think about it, but perhaps because of his personality, he didn’t feel any fear when he met Erdene.
The only thing he was surprised about was that she was acting as Vetor’s Queen quietly, like a dead, broken bird.
It wasn’t that Arkan didn’t understand Pelarhar’s words.
He didn’t know how Erdene was stirring up the battlefield and hoped he would never have to know, but he wasn’t blind and deaf enough to not know the bizarre rumors going around.
Furthermore, when he decided to form an alliance between the inland and the empire by marrying Erdene, the bureaucratic nobles took turns denouncing the cruelty and savagery of Princess Erdene in front of him. And as Erdene herself had said, she was trying to accept the marriage that was no different from an insult and live quietly.
“That’s why I’m even angrier,”
Arkan said nervously.
“I understand. Don’t you know that, you fool? I’m angry because I understand. I try to understand her and approach her, but she just hates me, pushes me away, and swears at me. Don’t you get annoyed? I’m telling you, I’m not the one who stole the throne in the first place!”
Pelarhar tilted his head, holding back a laugh.
“That last sentence sounds a bit like a five-year-old’s. Yes, whatever. Keep talking.”
Arkan forced his eyes as if he wanted to hit him, then sighed again.
“She didn’t marry me on purpose, did she? Of course. But you know, why can’t she see that I’m the same way? Her situation is similar to mine.”
“It’s not like you wanted to marry someone else.”
“Who doesn’t know that? Even if I did, I’ve never thought about marrying her. You say that Father and Mother raised me wrong, but I think differently. My brother died young, so they had no choice. I..
don’t resent that. Besides, I love Vetor’s delicate culture. It would have been much easier if someone who enjoyed the music and poetry of the inland had become Queen, not an empire that spent eight-tenths of its national treasury on war and military affairs.”
“Then you should have married Sophia Fiddler a long time ago.”
Arkan’s lips were tightly shut. Pelarhar smiled as if he would not miss the opportunity and continued speaking in a hushed, yet gentle voice.
“Isn’t that so? You used to say like it was a habit, that royalty was the most valuable thing on the marriage market. You didn’t marry Sophia Fiddler because you were concerned about your price, and you got the best price by marrying the Princess. So why are you dissatisfied, Arkan?”
“Then you should have married Sophia Fiddler a long time ago.”
Arkan’s lips were tightly shut. Pelarhar smiled as if he would not miss the opportunity and continued speaking in a hushed, yet gentle voice.
“Isn’t that so? You used to say like it was a habit, that royalty was the most valuable thing on the marriage market. You didn’t marry Sophia Fiddler because you were concerned about your price, and you got the best price by marrying the Princess. So why are you dissatisfied, Arkan?”
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