Erdene, lying down with the sheet pulled up to her chest, blinked a couple of times. Her rapid breathing had calmed down a bit, but the heat still lingered, and her body felt as if it was throbbing here and there.
“What are you looking at?”
Arkan, who was lying next to her, turned his head slightly toward Erdene, then looked at the ceiling as if trying to find what she was looking at.
Erdene lightly touched the rustling sheet and began to cry.
“In my room when I was young.”
Then, suddenly, she giggled at something funny and continued.
“In my room in the empire, there were swirls and wave patterns on the ceiling.”
Arkan’s eyes, looking back at Erdene’s face, which was immersed in the dim darkness, sank silently.
However, Erdene did not look back at Arkan, so she did not notice the change.
She continued.
“When I was young, I would lie in bed trying to sleep and squint my eyes like this, and the patterns on the ceiling would move little by little. If I kept looking at them, the patterns would seem to change, and if they were connected one by one, I would see something like a large shape. That’s what I remembered.”
Arkan, who had slightly parted his lips, quietly swallowed his breath.
“What do you still see?”
He whispered, and his warm breath tickled Erdene’s cheek and ear.
She turned to Arkan, holding onto the sheet, and stretched her arms toward the ceiling.
“Hey. That lapis lazuli pattern and the jade next to it make it look like a bird with its wings spread.”
Arkan followed Erdene’s lead and squinted his eyes, but he had a hard time finding the shape of the bird.
When the shadow of the candle flickered once, Erdene’s finger pointed somewhere else.
“And the sparkling part over there...”
When she trailed off, Arkan turned his head with a curious look. Erdene looked at him with a mischievous smile and said,
“It’s like goat poop.”
Arkan’s brow furrowed.
“...I thought you were only good at smashing tables, but you’re also quite good at ruining the mood. Is it that you’re so good at smashing things?”
“You know that now, and you still call yourself my husband?”
Erdene snorted, and Arkan lifted the sheet as if he was dumbfounded and raised his upper body.
“I’m your husband. Now, no one will ever be able to say that I’m not your husband.”
“Oh, right. It makes sense. I understand that very well. So go back to bed right now. The sheets are going to fall down because you’re up.”
I hate you so much!
Arkan, who had his eyes tightly shut, clenched his molars.
There was no need to learn meditation; it was like the sound of a dog eating grass.
Arcan, who had vowed to learn the most effective meditation method as soon as tomorrow morning came, sullenly fell down next to Erdene.
Then he reached out and slightly twisted the tip of her small nose.
“Ouch.”
There was a small voice that wasn’t even a groan, and a “slap!” sound. Arkan, who had been hit on the back of his hand out of nowhere, opened his eyes wide.
“Look at this! Are you going to slap me without even noticing whenever you get a chance?”
“With that much. Why am I slapping you...”
When Erdene responded indifferently, Arkan kicked the sheets away again and got up.
“That’s right. It’s the same when you go to war. No one goes in with their cards exposed from the start. They first throw out the bait and wait for the enemy to react. Then they choose the most effective strategy among the ones they’ve prepared.”
“What are you looking at?”
Arkan, who was lying next to her, turned his head slightly toward Erdene, then looked at the ceiling as if trying to find what she was looking at.
Erdene lightly touched the rustling sheet and began to cry.
“In my room when I was young.”
Then, suddenly, she giggled at something funny and continued.
“In my room in the empire, there were swirls and wave patterns on the ceiling.”
Arkan’s eyes, looking back at Erdene’s face, which was immersed in the dim darkness, sank silently.
However, Erdene did not look back at Arkan, so she did not notice the change.
She continued.
“When I was young, I would lie in bed trying to sleep and squint my eyes like this, and the patterns on the ceiling would move little by little. If I kept looking at them, the patterns would seem to change, and if they were connected one by one, I would see something like a large shape. That’s what I remembered.”
Arkan, who had slightly parted his lips, quietly swallowed his breath.
“What do you still see?”
He whispered, and his warm breath tickled Erdene’s cheek and ear.
She turned to Arkan, holding onto the sheet, and stretched her arms toward the ceiling.
“Hey. That lapis lazuli pattern and the jade next to it make it look like a bird with its wings spread.”
Arkan followed Erdene’s lead and squinted his eyes, but he had a hard time finding the shape of the bird.
When the shadow of the candle flickered once, Erdene’s finger pointed somewhere else.
“And the sparkling part over there...”
When she trailed off, Arkan turned his head with a curious look. Erdene looked at him with a mischievous smile and said,
“It’s like goat poop.”
Arkan’s brow furrowed.
“...I thought you were only good at smashing tables, but you’re also quite good at ruining the mood. Is it that you’re so good at smashing things?”
“You know that now, and you still call yourself my husband?”
Erdene snorted, and Arkan lifted the sheet as if he was dumbfounded and raised his upper body.
“I’m your husband. Now, no one will ever be able to say that I’m not your husband.”
He had meant it seriously, but in return, Erdene snorted.
Arkan looked as if he would fall over in shock at any moment, and then blew his bangs.
“Are you laughing at me?”
“I’m laughing, then. Are you some kind of adolescent boy who attaches so much meaning to something like sleeping together?”
“What are you talking about? It’s not something that has a short meaning!”
“Then what?”
Erdene, who had asked back, immediately waved her hand and shook her head.
“No, don’t tell me.”
Arkan’s eyebrows shot up as he prepared to give a long speech about the physical and mental relationship between a couple.
“Why don’t you tell me not to tell you?”
Arkan looked as if he would fall over in shock at any moment, and then blew his bangs.
“Are you laughing at me?”
“I’m laughing, then. Are you some kind of adolescent boy who attaches so much meaning to something like sleeping together?”
“What are you talking about? It’s not something that has a short meaning!”
“Then what?”
Erdene, who had asked back, immediately waved her hand and shook her head.
“No, don’t tell me.”
Arkan’s eyebrows shot up as he prepared to give a long speech about the physical and mental relationship between a couple.
“Why don’t you tell me not to tell you?”
“I thought I’d nag you. Let me guess. Sleeping together isn’t necessarily due to physical desire or bloodlust, but rather the communion between a married couple. That’s what you were going to say, right?”
Arkan’s eyebrows, who had just about started talking about that, gathered in the middle.
Erdene as if she had expected that, tapped Arkan’s bare skin and made a tongue-clicking motion.
“Stop reading long-winded romance novels, Your Majesty.”
“I don’t only read romance novels! And long-winded sermons? What are you looking at me for? Every single sentence has meaning. That’s...!”
Arkan’s eyebrows, who had just about started talking about that, gathered in the middle.
Erdene as if she had expected that, tapped Arkan’s bare skin and made a tongue-clicking motion.
“Stop reading long-winded romance novels, Your Majesty.”
“I don’t only read romance novels! And long-winded sermons? What are you looking at me for? Every single sentence has meaning. That’s...!”
“Oh, right. It makes sense. I understand that very well. So go back to bed right now. The sheets are going to fall down because you’re up.”
I hate you so much!
Arkan, who had his eyes tightly shut, clenched his molars.
There was no need to learn meditation; it was like the sound of a dog eating grass.
Arcan, who had vowed to learn the most effective meditation method as soon as tomorrow morning came, sullenly fell down next to Erdene.
Then he reached out and slightly twisted the tip of her small nose.
“Ouch.”
There was a small voice that wasn’t even a groan, and a “slap!” sound. Arkan, who had been hit on the back of his hand out of nowhere, opened his eyes wide.
“Look at this! Are you going to slap me without even noticing whenever you get a chance?”
“With that much. Why am I slapping you...”
When Erdene responded indifferently, Arkan kicked the sheets away again and got up.
“If you hit someone with your hand, it’s considered a hand injury. Do you understand?”
“Oh, I told you not to take the sheets! If you keep doing that, I’ll go to your room! ”
“Oh, I told you not to take the sheets! If you keep doing that, I’ll go to your room! ”
“What? Why are you laughing? You said you were cold.”
“But that doesn't mean I'm going to make you look like a bug, and you're going to be naked.”
“Bug...”
Arkan, whose ears were reddening, covered his face with one hand.
“Can’t you say it in a roundabout way?”
“Naked is naked, what do you say? Naked, naked, full. If you say it in a roundabout way like that, does that make you naked any less naked? It’s still the same naked... hmm.”
Erdene’s eyes widened when Arkan’s palm covered her lips. Arkan leaned in close enough to cast a shadow and said.
“Is this really going to happen?”
Erdene blinked and lightly bit Arkan’s finger. It didn’t hurt, their teeth only touched lightly, but the sensation Arkan felt was much more distinct and sensual. Erdene smiled as if enjoying his flinching reaction and moved her lips under his palm as she said.
“If this is going to happen, what are you going to do?”
Arkan, who had been tightening his lips to the point of trembling, pulled his hand away. At the same time, their heated lips collided. They desperately tangled and touched each other as if searching for a drop of water on a sandy floor. When the long kiss ended, Arkan’s hand dug into the inside of the sheet. However, before his fingertips could touch Erdene’s skin, she pushed Arkan’s forehead with her palm. He felt his brow furrow with a small groan.
“Why...”
Arkan muttered. He was like a large dog that had been ordered to ‘wait’ in front of a delicious snack. Erdene said,
“We have something to talk about.”
“Something to talk about?”
Erdene, who had been lying down the whole time, finally got up. Arkan had no room to dig in, and the sheet wrapped tightly around his entire body. In the end, Arkan had no choice but to hug Erdene with the sheet, making a discontented expression.
“What are you trying to talk about?”
Arkan, who was holding Erdene, slowly shook his arms. Erdene, who was suddenly wrapped in the sheet with only her head sticking out, looked back at him and burst into laughter.
“Come to your senses, Your Majesty. We should finish talking about Kensilom.”
Damn, Kensilom. Arkan thought. He wanted to pull out all of King Kensilom’s remaining hair and stuff it between his mustache.
“...Yes, we should. Talk about Kensilom.”
“They say what’s scary when you learn something late is what you get, but you shouldn’t become a pathetic King who neglects state affairs because you’re obsessed with women.”
“No, we’ve only had our first night together four months after getting married, and you’re treating me like a lustful tyrant because of that?”
“Four months or four years, that’s not important right now. Your Majesty said earlier. The guys who took over Maple Mansion were connected to the smugglers of Kensilom. What’s the name of that plant?”
Arkan answered, kissing Erdene’s ear with a fierce expression.
“It’s a dandelion. It’s originally a medicinal plant, but it has serious side effects, so it must be used with caution. However, they didn’t tell us that properly, and there have already been casualties.”
Erdene, who had been lost in thought, clicked her tongue.
“Hmm... Maybe the dandelion was just the beginning.”
Arkan nodded. He had already thought the same thing. There could be other smuggled goods besides the dandelion. Even if there weren’t any so far, if their trade grew in the future, they would definitely seek more profit.
[They boldly crossed the border to smuggle, and it just so happened to be the dandelion...]
Arkan said.
“You’re right. It could be that they were using the herb to see if anyone would find out about their smuggling operation. And even if they did, it would have been easy to create an escape route by using the medicinal plant as an excuse.”
“That’s right. It’s the same when you go to war. No one goes in with their cards exposed from the start. They first throw out the bait and wait for the enemy to react. Then they choose the most effective strategy among the ones they’ve prepared.”
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