At those words, Arkan’s eyebrows shot up again.
However, he didn’t spit it out and listened to her quietly.
Erdene, who had been silent for a moment, probably thought he would say something, smiled and looked up at the ceiling again.
“So for the past two months, I’ve been doing what I can. Retraining soldiers, reorganizing knights, reading military books...”
Her eyes moved slightly in the darkness and looked at Arkan.
Ironically, it was the first time in his life that Arkan had seen such captivating gazes.
Before he got married, and even now that he had a Queen, he had always been surrounded by splendidly dressed nobles, trying to get his attention, but none of them had ever made his heart flutter like this.
“And teasing Your Majesty.”
However, he didn’t spit it out and listened to her quietly.
Erdene, who had been silent for a moment, probably thought he would say something, smiled and looked up at the ceiling again.
“So for the past two months, I’ve been doing what I can. Retraining soldiers, reorganizing knights, reading military books...”
Her eyes moved slightly in the darkness and looked at Arkan.
Ironically, it was the first time in his life that Arkan had seen such captivating gazes.
Before he got married, and even now that he had a Queen, he had always been surrounded by splendidly dressed nobles, trying to get his attention, but none of them had ever made his heart flutter like this.
“And teasing Your Majesty.”
He took back what he had just said. Arkan’s eyebrows tightened.
He felt angry again when he saw Erdene’s eyes, which were twisted like a mischievous child.
The fact that he still couldn’t take his eyes off that face didn’t bother Arkan.
“You were gritting your teeth and telling me that you were only thinking about teasing me all day, but you were the one thinking about teasing me all day?”
“Not all day. About half a day?”
Arkan’s lips twitched.
He knew in his head that she was doing this to boost his medicine, but when he came to his senses, he was playing around in Erdene’s palm. It was completely different from how Arkan had always acted in front of others.
He was still a calm, gentle, and sensible King in front of the officials.
Of course, Plat, who was his closest aide and served him all day, had long known that Arkan had changed drastically, but the others didn’t know that Arkan would get irritated, sullen, and even act like he was running around like this over such trivial things.
Most people couldn’t even imagine Arkan like that.
Arkan deliberately scanned Erdene’s appearance from top to bottom.
Even though her neck and below were hidden by the sheets, the image of her sitting on her bed in a sloppy manner that made him dizzy was still vivid in his mind.
Arkan tried hard to shake off the thought and grumbled.
“That was the result of your half-day attempt to upset me, wasn’t it?”
Then suddenly, he felt a small thud and a sharp pain in his thigh. Erdene had kicked him from under the sheets. Arkan, taken aback, quickly pulled the sheets away and tilted his upper body up.
“Did you just kick me?”
“That’s because you’re talking nonsense. What do you mean, I was upset when I was in Your Majesty’s bed earlier? I put so much effort into choosing those clothes, what are you talking about?”
Then Arkan was the one who had nothing to say again.
This isn’t it. Something else... seemed to be playing on her tongue.
Arkan danced with many people since he was a child—and that was an important social interaction as a King—but this was definitely the first time he felt like he was dancing on someone else’s tongue.
But the words “carefully chosen” didn’t sound so bad.
After all, it meant that someone had thought of him. No matter what she wore...
At that moment, Erdene’s eyes sparkled. Even in the darkness, even in the faint light that shone from afar, so that he could only see the outlines, they were clear enough to see clearly.
“So I’ll do the same today. To me, and...”
She pulled the sheet up to her chin and closed her eyes.
“And I won’t let anyone who opposes you stay still.”
The dawn deepened at the castle of Vetor.
The soldiers yawned and took turns inspecting the castle’s surroundings and interior.
It was a daily routine, so it wasn’t difficult or particularly problematic.
Today, the leader of the Wiziard had stationed a few more soldiers outside the castle, but they thought it was understandable since foreign envoys were here.
Repeating familiar things over and over again inevitably creates loopholes.
If you don’t notice those loopholes and keep doing the same thing over and over again, the gaps that were nothing more than ant holes at first will eventually widen, allowing even raccoons, rats, and even wild dogs to sneak in.
The wild dogs were butting heads. They were growling and panting.
“Are you really going to do this?”
The half-bald envoy from Etonhorn looked around with a slightly anxious expression.
Eight people were sitting around the table.
Six envoys from Kensilom and Etonhorn, and two confidants who had followed them, disguised as guards and servants.
Rather, the captain of the guard was nowhere to be seen. He was of no use in this discussion, so he was naturally excluded.
Then, the other envoy from the Kingdom of Etonhorn, Count Blava, who had been insulted repeatedly by Marquis Fiddler to Viscountess Wickes at the dinner, slammed the table.
“Of course it should be done, what are you talking about? Didn’t His Majesty show such intentions in the first place?”
His Majesty, of course, meant the King of Etonhorn.
Count Blava as if recalling the events of the dinner, groaned with puffed cheeks and turned around to look at the envoys of Kensilom.
“Isn’t that so? Didn’t His Majesty, the King of Kensilom, think the same thing?”
The three envoys of Kensilom looked at each other.
The King of Etonhorn, like the King of Kensilom, was a man of serious but cunning temper.
He had clearly agreed to get rid of Arkan and Erdene at once, but he had also prepared a way out.
If any problems arose, they would blame Etonhorn for everything.
They were planning the same thing, but they were thinking of excuses to blame each other for the evil deeds.
At first glance, they seemed to be in agreement, but in fact, this ship had been creaking since it set sail.
However, the ship was already on the water, and they had to row until they reached land, no matter where.
If they continued to idly, they would drift and sink.
Since the Kings of the two countries had implicitly agreed to get rid of Arkan, if they failed to do their job properly and just went back, it would never end well.
“Even so...”
One of the weak-hearted envoys cautiously spoke.
“Isn’t it true that King Arkan has taken over from his father and is leading the allies smoothly? Moreover, didn’t he tie up the Princess of Hirschsten, whom no one dared touch so that she couldn’t move? Imagine if the Princess had ascended to the throne as the previous Emperor had thought, instead of the current Emperor Tenek. We’re all dead lives...”
He couldn’t even finish his words and shook his shoulders as if he was scared.
Although none of them had directly participated in the war because they were in charge of diplomacy, none of them knew how tense the inland had been when Erdene was the Princess and commander of the empire.
The previous Emperor of the empire, who was already buried in the ground and turning into a skeleton, was famous for his fiery temper, but he was by no means foolish.
He didn’t attempt a reckless expedition.
If he had, he would have gathered troops in the inland, regardless of whether it would work or not, and waged a huge all-out war, but the Emperor used a very clever method to gradually erode the land in the inland.
He waited until they had made their own farmland fertile, and then sent troops to push in from the border.
Once the imperial army was deployed, no kingdom in the interior could stand against them.
The Kings had no choice but to try to negotiate to appease and appease them, who were approaching with such a fearsome momentum that they seemed ready to invade the capital at any moment, and then the Emperor would take the farmlands, mines, forests, and waterways that he had his eyes on.
Count Blava suddenly stood up.
“Yes! Now that the Princess is unable to move is the perfect opportunity. Should we miss this moment when that vicious and cruel woman is in Vetor with her hands and feet cut off? Everyone, think about it. Is there even one person among us who has not lost someone close to the imperial army?”
The envoys kept their mouths shut. In fact, the Count’s words were almost forced.
No one had lost someone close enough to be sad or angry.
A distant relative, or a friend’s cousin, or a second cousin...
Of course, Count Blava was not the type to call someone 'close' and take care of them. The Count's eyes sparkled. He was solely focused on the insult he had received.
The others could vaguely sense it, but the atmosphere was becoming increasingly difficult to escape.
Kensilom's messenger spoke again.
"For our safety, didn't they deploy soldiers outside the castle? No matter how great their skills are..."
Then one of the 'those' he was talking about, the very one Erdene had been keeping an eye on, spoke.
"Even though they deployed soldiers outside, there are many ways to avoid being noticed."
Then he placed a dagger with a curved tip on the table.
It was the very dagger that Erdene had given to the messengers as a gift earlier in the day.
"Didn't the Princess just happen to give us a gift? But this is a very valuable dagger. It's made of very good iron, something that is hard to find even in the empire."
Count Blava, who understood what he meant, smiled sinisterly.
“Yes, I can’t just accept something so precious. Wouldn’t it be proper manners to return it to the Princess, no... to Her Majesty the Queen? Don’t you all agree?”
He felt angry again when he saw Erdene’s eyes, which were twisted like a mischievous child.
The fact that he still couldn’t take his eyes off that face didn’t bother Arkan.
“You were gritting your teeth and telling me that you were only thinking about teasing me all day, but you were the one thinking about teasing me all day?”
“Not all day. About half a day?”
Arkan’s lips twitched.
He knew in his head that she was doing this to boost his medicine, but when he came to his senses, he was playing around in Erdene’s palm. It was completely different from how Arkan had always acted in front of others.
He was still a calm, gentle, and sensible King in front of the officials.
Of course, Plat, who was his closest aide and served him all day, had long known that Arkan had changed drastically, but the others didn’t know that Arkan would get irritated, sullen, and even act like he was running around like this over such trivial things.
Most people couldn’t even imagine Arkan like that.
Arkan deliberately scanned Erdene’s appearance from top to bottom.
Even though her neck and below were hidden by the sheets, the image of her sitting on her bed in a sloppy manner that made him dizzy was still vivid in his mind.
Arkan tried hard to shake off the thought and grumbled.
“That was the result of your half-day attempt to upset me, wasn’t it?”
Then suddenly, he felt a small thud and a sharp pain in his thigh. Erdene had kicked him from under the sheets. Arkan, taken aback, quickly pulled the sheets away and tilted his upper body up.
“Did you just kick me?”
“That’s because you’re talking nonsense. What do you mean, I was upset when I was in Your Majesty’s bed earlier? I put so much effort into choosing those clothes, what are you talking about?”
Then Arkan was the one who had nothing to say again.
This isn’t it. Something else... seemed to be playing on her tongue.
Arkan danced with many people since he was a child—and that was an important social interaction as a King—but this was definitely the first time he felt like he was dancing on someone else’s tongue.
But the words “carefully chosen” didn’t sound so bad.
After all, it meant that someone had thought of him. No matter what she wore...
At that moment, Erdene’s eyes sparkled. Even in the darkness, even in the faint light that shone from afar, so that he could only see the outlines, they were clear enough to see clearly.
“So I’ll do the same today. To me, and...”
She pulled the sheet up to her chin and closed her eyes.
“And I won’t let anyone who opposes you stay still.”
***
The dawn deepened at the castle of Vetor.
The soldiers yawned and took turns inspecting the castle’s surroundings and interior.
It was a daily routine, so it wasn’t difficult or particularly problematic.
Today, the leader of the Wiziard had stationed a few more soldiers outside the castle, but they thought it was understandable since foreign envoys were here.
Repeating familiar things over and over again inevitably creates loopholes.
If you don’t notice those loopholes and keep doing the same thing over and over again, the gaps that were nothing more than ant holes at first will eventually widen, allowing even raccoons, rats, and even wild dogs to sneak in.
The wild dogs were butting heads. They were growling and panting.
“Are you really going to do this?”
The half-bald envoy from Etonhorn looked around with a slightly anxious expression.
Eight people were sitting around the table.
Six envoys from Kensilom and Etonhorn, and two confidants who had followed them, disguised as guards and servants.
Rather, the captain of the guard was nowhere to be seen. He was of no use in this discussion, so he was naturally excluded.
Then, the other envoy from the Kingdom of Etonhorn, Count Blava, who had been insulted repeatedly by Marquis Fiddler to Viscountess Wickes at the dinner, slammed the table.
“Of course it should be done, what are you talking about? Didn’t His Majesty show such intentions in the first place?”
His Majesty, of course, meant the King of Etonhorn.
Count Blava as if recalling the events of the dinner, groaned with puffed cheeks and turned around to look at the envoys of Kensilom.
“Isn’t that so? Didn’t His Majesty, the King of Kensilom, think the same thing?”
The three envoys of Kensilom looked at each other.
The King of Etonhorn, like the King of Kensilom, was a man of serious but cunning temper.
He had clearly agreed to get rid of Arkan and Erdene at once, but he had also prepared a way out.
If any problems arose, they would blame Etonhorn for everything.
They were planning the same thing, but they were thinking of excuses to blame each other for the evil deeds.
At first glance, they seemed to be in agreement, but in fact, this ship had been creaking since it set sail.
However, the ship was already on the water, and they had to row until they reached land, no matter where.
If they continued to idly, they would drift and sink.
Since the Kings of the two countries had implicitly agreed to get rid of Arkan, if they failed to do their job properly and just went back, it would never end well.
“Even so...”
One of the weak-hearted envoys cautiously spoke.
“Isn’t it true that King Arkan has taken over from his father and is leading the allies smoothly? Moreover, didn’t he tie up the Princess of Hirschsten, whom no one dared touch so that she couldn’t move? Imagine if the Princess had ascended to the throne as the previous Emperor had thought, instead of the current Emperor Tenek. We’re all dead lives...”
He couldn’t even finish his words and shook his shoulders as if he was scared.
Although none of them had directly participated in the war because they were in charge of diplomacy, none of them knew how tense the inland had been when Erdene was the Princess and commander of the empire.
The previous Emperor of the empire, who was already buried in the ground and turning into a skeleton, was famous for his fiery temper, but he was by no means foolish.
He didn’t attempt a reckless expedition.
If he had, he would have gathered troops in the inland, regardless of whether it would work or not, and waged a huge all-out war, but the Emperor used a very clever method to gradually erode the land in the inland.
He waited until they had made their own farmland fertile, and then sent troops to push in from the border.
Once the imperial army was deployed, no kingdom in the interior could stand against them.
The Kings had no choice but to try to negotiate to appease and appease them, who were approaching with such a fearsome momentum that they seemed ready to invade the capital at any moment, and then the Emperor would take the farmlands, mines, forests, and waterways that he had his eyes on.
Count Blava suddenly stood up.
“Yes! Now that the Princess is unable to move is the perfect opportunity. Should we miss this moment when that vicious and cruel woman is in Vetor with her hands and feet cut off? Everyone, think about it. Is there even one person among us who has not lost someone close to the imperial army?”
The envoys kept their mouths shut. In fact, the Count’s words were almost forced.
No one had lost someone close enough to be sad or angry.
A distant relative, or a friend’s cousin, or a second cousin...
Of course, Count Blava was not the type to call someone 'close' and take care of them. The Count's eyes sparkled. He was solely focused on the insult he had received.
The others could vaguely sense it, but the atmosphere was becoming increasingly difficult to escape.
Kensilom's messenger spoke again.
"For our safety, didn't they deploy soldiers outside the castle? No matter how great their skills are..."
Then one of the 'those' he was talking about, the very one Erdene had been keeping an eye on, spoke.
"Even though they deployed soldiers outside, there are many ways to avoid being noticed."
Then he placed a dagger with a curved tip on the table.
It was the very dagger that Erdene had given to the messengers as a gift earlier in the day.
"Didn't the Princess just happen to give us a gift? But this is a very valuable dagger. It's made of very good iron, something that is hard to find even in the empire."
Count Blava, who understood what he meant, smiled sinisterly.
“Yes, I can’t just accept something so precious. Wouldn’t it be proper manners to return it to the Princess, no... to Her Majesty the Queen? Don’t you all agree?”
Everyone fell silent. There was no turning back now.
The opinions were unanimous, and tomorrow, the castle of Vetor would be turned upside down.
The opinions were unanimous, and tomorrow, the castle of Vetor would be turned upside down.
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