After a blissful yet buzzy party last night, the family were having breakfast in the large dining room of the imperial palace.
"How long will you stay?" Emperor Kalos asked the husband of his niece who was always so busy, just like him.
"I'm not sure," Arin Helev replied. "Iria still have some matters to take care of. So, I might wait for her if there is no problem."
With a bit of confusion, Emperor Kalos shifted his gaze to Iria who was sitting beside Arin. "You still have something to do?" he asked.
Iria nodded. "Orius wants me to find a wife for him. I want to do that and plan everything first."
Hearing this, Andres Francia could feel his jaw dropped to the floor. He looked at his cousin who was sitting beside him and disbelief was written all over his face!
"You really say that?" he inquired.
"Yeah," Orius simply replied with a nod. "I realized that uncle was right last night. I spent all my time in the army, so I should just skip one part and married right away."
"That's a good decision," Empress Amina chimed in, her excitement was pretty evident in her voice. "It seems like the palace will soon be busy preparing for a wedding." She turned to Iria and asked, "How do you plan to choose the lady then?"
"I have some plan but I want your help, aunty," Iria said. "You know the ladies here a lot better than me. I want to pick a few and have a chat with them without revealing my purpose."
The Empress gave a quick thought and nodded. "Alright. I will help you with that."
"This is a relief," the King remarked and turned to his son. "Once Orius get married, it will be your turn. So, you should make a move fast if you have someone you like."
Andres Francia briefly narrowed his eyes before he looked at his father again. "I understand."
*
After breakfast, the Emperor summoned Orius in the chamber where he did most of his work.
Though only a year had passed since the two knew about each other, they had formed a close bond since then. Orius looked up to the Emperor and admired him a lot as he was a father figure for him in the past year.
"Do you really mean about the marriage?" Emperor Kalos asked Orius. "I always wish for you to start a family but I don't intend to pressure you if you're not interested."
"I mean it," Orius promptly replied. "I wasn't interested before but... I don't want my family legacy to stop on me and Iria. Besides, I think it will be nice to build a warm and happy family like yours."
"You talk as if you're not a part of that family," the Emperor pointed out and Orius narrowed his eyes.
"It's been a year, uncle," he muttered. "I think I should move out now. Even if I don't live in the palace, I can still come here anytime."
Kalos Francia remained quiet for a while yet his gaze never leave his nephew. "Orius, do you know why I insisted for you and Iria to leave with us when you arrived here a year ago?" he finally asked.
Orius Alewine nodded. "You want us to be close to you, as a family."
"Exactly," the Emperor remarked. "If you don't live with us during the past year, we will never be able to form the bond we have now." He paused and said, "You are someone who rarely speak your mind, Orius. So, at first, it was hard for me to know you well. I can never know how you feel or think. Then slowly, I manage to understand how your mind works though it took me time."
Orius remained quiet while the Emperor observed him.
"I'm always grateful thinking that Wilona had a son like you," the Emperor continued and gave a quick thought on Orius's request. "I think my plan works out well and now, we're a true family. So, you can move out but... only after your marriage."
Orius Alewine looked at the Emperor, confused.
"I want to take care of your marriage for you," Kalos Francia explained. "You will have a wedding ceremony here in the palace and only after that, I will give you permission to move out.
"You're the Duke of Larica now. So, I will order someone to prepare a mansion for you here in the capital. I have one place in mind and after some renovation, I think it will be all set before the wedding."
Orius opened his mouth to say something, but...
"You can't reject this," Emperor Kalos firmly said. "It's already hard enough for me to allow you to move out. So, I won't allow you to live far away."
Orius thought about it before he finally smiled. "Alright. Thank you, uncle."
Emperor Kalos nodded and slightly leaned towards Orius. "Do you want to know one thing?" he asked with a playful smile.
The young Duke of Larica was confused but he still nodded.
With a little smile, the Emperor confessed, "My marriage to the Empress was also an arranged marriage."
Orius raised a brow before he blinked in bewilderment. "Really?" he asked with doubt.
Weren't they such a loving couple even after more than two decades of marriage? Everyone in the palace knew that the Emperor and Empress deeply loved and cared for each other!
"Yes," Emperor Kalos replied. "Our fathers arranged our marriage. At first, I wasn't that interested but... anything can happen in life."
Staring at the confusion on Orius's face, he smiled. "Be it arrange marriage or love marriage, all marriage requires effort to keep it alive, Orius. Besides, the effort should be mutual and not one-sided. You never know if she's the one for you if you don't make any effort.
"So, I want you to remember one thing. No matter who you marry, put in an effort and as time passed, you will eventually see the result. Love or not; if a woman decides to trust you with her future, living up to her expectation and not letting her down is your responsibility. Keep that in mind."
Orius Alewine realized that marriage seemed to be more complicated than he thought and somehow, it scared him. After all, he was never the type to easily open up to someone. However, he already made the decision and there was no going back anymore......
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