"Zire told me that his Commander is overworking herself these days," Crown Prince Zaro said to Iria when he noticed Zire walking inside the tent.
Hearing the Crown Prince's words, the Commander shifted her gaze to Zire and tilted her head. Noticing her demanding gaze, Zire could feel his throat running dry!
"His Highness asked me how you're doing these days and... I told him the truth. That's all," he quickly clarified as he handed a report to his Commander. Then he stormed out of the tent in a hurry.
Iria Alewine let out a sigh. Then she put away the report and took a seat opposite the Crown Prince. "I'm not overworking. We are short on time and I only give my all," she explained.
"Whenever I overwork myself, you used to scold me saying that my body is not just mine. It also belongs to the people and the kingdom. So, I should take good care of it. That's what you always told me," Zaro Aventine calmly said and glanced at Iria. "We aren't much different. Your health not only concerns you but the whole Alewine Army."
"I - "
Iria Alewine tried to say something but Zaro Aventine silence her with his question.
"What's wrong?"
Iria Alewine struggled for what to say. He was her best friend, the one who knows her the best. He can always see through her when she lied, but... what will she say?
It won't be a big deal if he was just her friend but... that's not the case. First and foremost, Zaro was the Crown Prince of this kingdom. The one who will become her King one day.
Should she tell the Crown Prince that she had fallen for the Qalagon Crown Prince?
Never.
"I'm fine," she finally said after much thinking. "I just returned but with the war ahead of us, there are so many things to do. I think it gets into my head."
Zaro Aventine quietly stared at Iria and it goes on for a while, making the latter perplexed. Then the Crown Prince finally spoke up.
"You're still bad at lying," he remarked.
It gets into her head?
Why didn't she find a better excuse?
"Zaro -"
"I'm only worried about you, Iria," Crown Prince Zaro calmly said, interrupting her from speaking up again.
"I know." Her response came faster than ever. He was the one who always worried about her the most. She was well aware of that.
"Did something happen while you were in Qalagon?"
He knew that she was acting strange these days. Somehow, he used to feel like she wasn't the same Iria Alewine that he used to know.
It won't be about the Crown Prince of Qalagon, right?
He wanted to believe that it was just an empty assumption and nothing else but... when he thought of what Orius said, he couldn't turn a blind eye to it.
"I spent three months there and I think it's only normal for many things to happen," Iria Alewine replied after maintaining her silence for a while.
"What kind of things?" Zaro Aventine promptly asked.
"Such as... assassination attempts." It was the only way she knew to distract him but...
Crown Prince Zaro's face turned sour in the blink of an eye!
Assassination attempts? Was his sister's life not enough for the enemies?!
When Iria noticed his expression, she realized that she was using the wrong method.
She shouldn't be so thoughtless.
Zaro Aventine forget everything else, including his uneasy heart.
Who was daring enough to launch an attack against her?!
"It's in the past, Zaro," Iria Alewine promptly said, trying to pacify his anger. "Besides, those people don't know who I really am."
"Was it the doing of the Qalagons?" the Crown Prince asked. His low voice hinted at a hard suppressed anger which Iria Alewine didn't fail to notice.
This was bad.
She even wondered if Arin Helev reduced her intelligence. She was never this short-sighted!
What had gotten into her?
"I'm not sure but I doubt that." She recalled how the second attempt was still a mystery. It wasn't the Queen's doing but no one else came to her mind. "It's a mystery," she added.
Zaro Aventine thought of how they received a report saying that the Qalagons were serious about the alliance marriage. As such, he knew that she had a point.
It might not be the doing of the Qalagons.
"Don't think too much," Iria calmly said, hoping to assure him. "I survived and I'm fine now. That's good enough."
"How is it enough?" Zaro Aventine argued. "Once the enemies heard about the truth, things might become more complicated."
Iria thought about it and also recalled her promise to Commander Nico Petrus. "It might be the doing of the same person," she said and added, "I mean, the one who poisoned Iria. So, once I finished fighting the Helsians, I plan to investigate the truth.
"Once the war started, the people will need you more than ever. So, you should focus more on them. Leave other things to me."
Zaro Aventine thought of the meeting that took place the other day. He was still disappointed about it and it was also evident in his face. "It's such a dangerous war. I really want to fight with you. Besides, I'm worried about Orius."
"Trust the Second Prince," the Commander quickly said. "He might be more responsible than you think."
The Crown Prince looked at her with a confused face. "You've change, Iria. You even speak up for my brother now."
Didn't they use to be at odds? Just what happened between them?
His thoughts only reminded Zaro of his brother's strange advice. Seemed like both Iria and Orius changed ever since they returned but he had no idea of what happened.
The Orius Aventine she knew in Qalagon... the Masked Commander placed trust in that. Though she didn't know why he acted indifferent again after they returned, she believed that they will be able to win as long as they work together with the same goal in mind.....
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