Arkan, who was slowly catching his breath while calming his suddenly thumping chest, gently grabbed Erdene’s shoulders.
“Honey.”
At that moment, Erdene’s body froze and froze.
It was as if time had stopped only around her... Erdene stared at Arkan with her eyes wide open without lifting a finger.
Arkan said.
“Please, I beg you, promise me you won’t kill those people. You can’t help but beat them up. I think they’ll take some beatings. But if you kill them, things will get really complicated from then on. So promise me you won’t kill them. Then I’ll let you go. But you’ll bring along Rusmov, Bewls, and Belen Wiziard.”
Erdene’s eyes slowly... very slowly blinked a couple of times.
Now, she couldn’t even hear a breath.
Arkan grabbed Erdene’s shoulders and shook her gently.
“Why aren’t you answering? You’re not going to kill me? I said you won’t kill me!”
“...What did you just call me?”
For a moment, he couldn’t understand what Erdene was saying, so he bit his lips tightly, feeling like an idiot.
Then, a moment later... Suddenly as if a light had been turned on, his memory came flooding back.
Oh my god, what am I saying?
Erdene watched the process of Arkan’s neck starting to turn red, then his cheeks, eyes, and forehead.
Even her own face felt tingly for some reason, but she didn’t jump up and push him away or suddenly punch him.
She e didn’t know if Arkan could feel it, but it was a huge change.
“That, uh.”
When Arkan started to groan strangely, Erdene frowned as hard as she could, suppressing the feeling of her stomach shrinking.
She was trying to hold back her laughter, but Arkan misunderstood her expression.
“...No, there’s no reason to show that you’re upset with that face, right?”
Anyone would just babble nonsense when they’re embarrassed, but Arkan didn’t even realize that he was.
Erdene looked at him with a look of bewilderment and then laughed in vain.
“When did I?”
“You did that just now. You could’ve planted a carrot on your forehead. Or a potato. Or a turnip. Or something.”
Erdene pressed the tips of her thumb and middle finger together and flicked Arkan’s forehead.
It was the first time in her life that she had been hit with a slap, and it was quite shocking.
“It hurts!”
“I did it gently.”
“What? Didn’t you hear my skull crack just now?”
“If it’s a skull that’s going to crack that much, it’s going to crack even if you just breathe. Human heads don’t break that easily, Your Majesty. I’ve told you this many times.”
Arkan probably wouldn’t believe it even if she told him a hundred times, but Erdene’s words that she did it gently were the truth without a single lie.
She could easily crack a large walnut with a slap...
That’s why Thelma and her adjutants were more afraid of being slapped by her than of being hit with her fists.
It wouldn’t break their skulls, but their noses could break if they were not careful.
Erdene patted Arkan’s forehead as if she found it cute and laughed.
“If it weren’t urgent, I would have treated you more kindly. It’s a shame to leave you alone when you say such cute things.”
“That sounds like something I would say.”
“Get rid of that male-centered thinking, Your Majesty.”
The shock that was worse than the slap made Arkan freeze like a stone.
The moment he was about to say something back, there was a knock that sounded hesitant but very firm. It was Plat.
“...Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Queen. I’m so sorry to interrupt the time of a pair of amiable doves, but Prince Kensilom has almost finished his cup of tea.”
Erdene bit her lips and lowered her head.
She held back laughter, shivering. Arkan glared at Plat, his face reddening again as he barely calmed down, and coughed.
Something I can help you with. Erdene thought. Of course, there was. And it was a very serious and important matter. She turned her head slightly and saw Arkan with a serious expression.
However, Erdene thought that more than half of that serious expression was intentional.
To completely draw Damon in.
Erdene felt a vague feeling of being surprised that Arkan could do such a trick, or feeling a strange sense of guilt at the thought that he had somehow changed.
“I must first say that I am sorry to have to tell the Prince this news.”
Damon became even more tense at Arkan’s words.
His cheeks, which had turned pale at once and then flushed nervously, twitched shallowly.
His lips, curled so deeply that they were barely visible, were quivering up and down as he bit them.
“It’s okay, please.”
Anyone could tell that he wasn’t okay at all, but Damon tried his best to keep his composure.
In that sense, he could even say that he was better than his father, King Grax...
Arkhan didn’t answer Damon’s words and spread the portrait on the table.
Damon’s expression changed as he lowered his gaze.
He was bewildered, then furrowed his brow as if he had seen a strange painting, and then his lips parted in faint shock.
“This is...”
Erdene asked.
“Do you recognize him, Prince?”
Damon’s lips trembled. A rough, whooshing breath escaped his teeth.
“Yes, I know,”
Damon said. He kept his mouth shut for a moment, then sighed again.
Oddly enough, it felt like spitting out rocks.
“Kensilom’s... He looks very much like a man named Count Trivi."
He said.
“As I’m sure Your Highness knows, he’s the Minister of Foreign Affairs.”
Erdene’s gaze fell smoothly from Damon’s face to the table.
Damon clicked his tongue slightly, raised his eyebrows, and nodded.
Damon was increasingly unable to hide his anxiety.
“What on earth is going on?”
Said Damon, who had been maintaining a sufficiently quiet silence.
“Prince Damon, listen carefully to what I’m going to say.”
“Of course, Your Majesty.”
“Recently... we caught a group of smugglers who were illegally distributing the sapwood in collusion with the smugglers of Kensilom. Of course, we were very surprised. The royal family and government of Vetor assumed that they were not just dealing in sapwood, or that they would not stop there.”
Damon now looked like he’d been hit in the head with a huge bludgeon.
Before he knew it, a terrible headache had once again pressed down on his head, and his fingertips and toes had become as cold as ice.
He could tell that the vitality he had finally regained had suddenly left his body.
“Your Majesty, that is...”
Arkan raised his hand slightly as if to ask for silence for a moment and continued.
“So, we set a little trap on our side. We put knights disguised as smugglers in contact with Kensilom’s smugglers.”
He had subtly changed Rusmov and Bewls’ dangerous solo action into a royal order.
It was entirely the right decision, and now Damon was trembling. It wasn’t his fault, but he couldn’t stop the fear from swarming through his body.
Arkan's finger tapped the portrait.
"As a result, I found out that the leader of Kensilom's smugglers is this man."
It was a result he had expected, but Damon shook his head reflexively.
He shook his head several times with his eyes empty as if he was almost out of his mind.
"That can't be. Your Majesty, what kind of misunderstanding is that... That can't be."
“Honey.”
At that moment, Erdene’s body froze and froze.
It was as if time had stopped only around her... Erdene stared at Arkan with her eyes wide open without lifting a finger.
Arkan said.
“Please, I beg you, promise me you won’t kill those people. You can’t help but beat them up. I think they’ll take some beatings. But if you kill them, things will get really complicated from then on. So promise me you won’t kill them. Then I’ll let you go. But you’ll bring along Rusmov, Bewls, and Belen Wiziard.”
Erdene’s eyes slowly... very slowly blinked a couple of times.
Now, she couldn’t even hear a breath.
Arkan grabbed Erdene’s shoulders and shook her gently.
“Why aren’t you answering? You’re not going to kill me? I said you won’t kill me!”
“...What did you just call me?”
For a moment, he couldn’t understand what Erdene was saying, so he bit his lips tightly, feeling like an idiot.
Then, a moment later... Suddenly as if a light had been turned on, his memory came flooding back.
Oh my god, what am I saying?
Erdene watched the process of Arkan’s neck starting to turn red, then his cheeks, eyes, and forehead.
Even her own face felt tingly for some reason, but she didn’t jump up and push him away or suddenly punch him.
She e didn’t know if Arkan could feel it, but it was a huge change.
“That, uh.”
When Arkan started to groan strangely, Erdene frowned as hard as she could, suppressing the feeling of her stomach shrinking.
She was trying to hold back her laughter, but Arkan misunderstood her expression.
“...No, there’s no reason to show that you’re upset with that face, right?”
Anyone would just babble nonsense when they’re embarrassed, but Arkan didn’t even realize that he was.
Erdene looked at him with a look of bewilderment and then laughed in vain.
“When did I?”
“You did that just now. You could’ve planted a carrot on your forehead. Or a potato. Or a turnip. Or something.”
Erdene pressed the tips of her thumb and middle finger together and flicked Arkan’s forehead.
It was the first time in her life that she had been hit with a slap, and it was quite shocking.
“It hurts!”
“I did it gently.”
“What? Didn’t you hear my skull crack just now?”
“If it’s a skull that’s going to crack that much, it’s going to crack even if you just breathe. Human heads don’t break that easily, Your Majesty. I’ve told you this many times.”
Arkan probably wouldn’t believe it even if she told him a hundred times, but Erdene’s words that she did it gently were the truth without a single lie.
She could easily crack a large walnut with a slap...
That’s why Thelma and her adjutants were more afraid of being slapped by her than of being hit with her fists.
It wouldn’t break their skulls, but their noses could break if they were not careful.
Erdene patted Arkan’s forehead as if she found it cute and laughed.
“If it weren’t urgent, I would have treated you more kindly. It’s a shame to leave you alone when you say such cute things.”
“That sounds like something I would say.”
“Get rid of that male-centered thinking, Your Majesty.”
The shock that was worse than the slap made Arkan freeze like a stone.
The moment he was about to say something back, there was a knock that sounded hesitant but very firm. It was Plat.
“...Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Queen. I’m so sorry to interrupt the time of a pair of amiable doves, but Prince Kensilom has almost finished his cup of tea.”
Erdene bit her lips and lowered her head.
She held back laughter, shivering. Arkan glared at Plat, his face reddening again as he barely calmed down, and coughed.
“I’ll be right there.”
Plat’s lips were almost filled with the words “please”...but he quietly turned around. As he disappeared down the hallway, Erdene giggled and grabbed his hand tightly.
"Let’s go, dear. Before His Highness Prince Kensilom faints from filling his stomach with tea. Or before Plat’s breath catches.”
"Let’s go, dear. Before His Highness Prince Kensilom faints from filling his stomach with tea. Or before Plat’s breath catches.”
Arkan stubbornly stared ahead, his eyes wide open, and he rubbed his face with his palm. He was so embarrassed that he could die, but strangely, the inside of his mouth, or rather the bottom of his tongue, felt good.
Prince Damon of Kensilom had a better complexion and his eyes were brighter than when he first arrived at Vetor.
However, as soon as he saw Arkan and Erdene coming in together, he immediately became tense and stiffened his mouth, and he almost spilled his second cup of tea as he jumped up from his seat.
“Your Majesty Arkan, I greet you.”
Although they were of similar age, Damon did not forget the difference in rank and greeted him politely. This time, he turned to Erdene. He then bowed politely with a hand on his chest.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty Queen Erdene.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Prince Damon. I have heard your name, but this is the first time we have met face to face.”
Erdene smiled faintly and sat down next to Arkan.
Damon looked back and forth between the two without even being able to lean back properly on the sofa.
“I heard you were looking for me.”
Arkan nodded. When he nodded, Plat put the portrait he had been holding tightly down on the table.
Since he hadn’t unfolded it, Damon smiled vaguely with a mixture of puzzlement and anxiety.
“Is there anything... that I can do to help you two?”
Prince Damon of Kensilom had a better complexion and his eyes were brighter than when he first arrived at Vetor.
However, as soon as he saw Arkan and Erdene coming in together, he immediately became tense and stiffened his mouth, and he almost spilled his second cup of tea as he jumped up from his seat.
“Your Majesty Arkan, I greet you.”
Although they were of similar age, Damon did not forget the difference in rank and greeted him politely. This time, he turned to Erdene. He then bowed politely with a hand on his chest.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty Queen Erdene.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Prince Damon. I have heard your name, but this is the first time we have met face to face.”
Erdene smiled faintly and sat down next to Arkan.
Damon looked back and forth between the two without even being able to lean back properly on the sofa.
“I heard you were looking for me.”
Arkan nodded. When he nodded, Plat put the portrait he had been holding tightly down on the table.
Since he hadn’t unfolded it, Damon smiled vaguely with a mixture of puzzlement and anxiety.
“Is there anything... that I can do to help you two?”
Something I can help you with. Erdene thought. Of course, there was. And it was a very serious and important matter. She turned her head slightly and saw Arkan with a serious expression.
However, Erdene thought that more than half of that serious expression was intentional.
To completely draw Damon in.
Erdene felt a vague feeling of being surprised that Arkan could do such a trick, or feeling a strange sense of guilt at the thought that he had somehow changed.
“I must first say that I am sorry to have to tell the Prince this news.”
Damon became even more tense at Arkan’s words.
His cheeks, which had turned pale at once and then flushed nervously, twitched shallowly.
His lips, curled so deeply that they were barely visible, were quivering up and down as he bit them.
“It’s okay, please.”
Anyone could tell that he wasn’t okay at all, but Damon tried his best to keep his composure.
In that sense, he could even say that he was better than his father, King Grax...
Arkhan didn’t answer Damon’s words and spread the portrait on the table.
Damon’s expression changed as he lowered his gaze.
He was bewildered, then furrowed his brow as if he had seen a strange painting, and then his lips parted in faint shock.
“This is...”
Erdene asked.
“Do you recognize him, Prince?”
Damon’s lips trembled. A rough, whooshing breath escaped his teeth.
“Yes, I know,”
Damon said. He kept his mouth shut for a moment, then sighed again.
Oddly enough, it felt like spitting out rocks.
“Kensilom’s... He looks very much like a man named Count Trivi."
He said.
“As I’m sure Your Highness knows, he’s the Minister of Foreign Affairs.”
Erdene’s gaze fell smoothly from Damon’s face to the table.
Damon clicked his tongue slightly, raised his eyebrows, and nodded.
Damon was increasingly unable to hide his anxiety.
“What on earth is going on?”
Said Damon, who had been maintaining a sufficiently quiet silence.
“Prince Damon, listen carefully to what I’m going to say.”
“Of course, Your Majesty.”
“Recently... we caught a group of smugglers who were illegally distributing the sapwood in collusion with the smugglers of Kensilom. Of course, we were very surprised. The royal family and government of Vetor assumed that they were not just dealing in sapwood, or that they would not stop there.”
Damon now looked like he’d been hit in the head with a huge bludgeon.
Before he knew it, a terrible headache had once again pressed down on his head, and his fingertips and toes had become as cold as ice.
He could tell that the vitality he had finally regained had suddenly left his body.
“Your Majesty, that is...”
Arkan raised his hand slightly as if to ask for silence for a moment and continued.
“So, we set a little trap on our side. We put knights disguised as smugglers in contact with Kensilom’s smugglers.”
He had subtly changed Rusmov and Bewls’ dangerous solo action into a royal order.
It was entirely the right decision, and now Damon was trembling. It wasn’t his fault, but he couldn’t stop the fear from swarming through his body.
Arkan's finger tapped the portrait.
"As a result, I found out that the leader of Kensilom's smugglers is this man."
It was a result he had expected, but Damon shook his head reflexively.
He shook his head several times with his eyes empty as if he was almost out of his mind.
"That can't be. Your Majesty, what kind of misunderstanding is that... That can't be."
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