It was afternoon and in one chamber of the palace, Arin Helev stared at Iria who was busy reading something. Even yesterday, she was busy chatting with the Empress as they worked together on finding women who were interested in Orius.
Iria realized that her brother was more popular among the ladies than she thought. Yesterday, she find out that many noble ladies had their eyes on him. Her plan was to pick three or five and talk with them personally but... it was hard to even do that!
She tried to talk with Orius but... her twin brother completely ignored her! He had no intention to take part in the process.
Finally, she managed to pick 5 with the help of the Empress and she planned to start meeting the ladies today. As the Qalagon Queen was so invested in her plan for the afternoon, she didn't even know that her husband was staring at her the whole time.
Finally, Arin walked to Iria and sat beside her. "You are always busy," he complained. "I think I'll soon be bored to death."
There was no response and the Qalagon King frowned. Though it's a good thing that his wife always gave her all whenever she set her mind on something, there were times when it was frustrating! The situation now was one example.
He had many things to handle in his kingdom but... he had to be here, in the palace of this empire, only to be neglected by his workaholic wife!
How pathetic.
Maybe Iria knew how he felt. She finally put down the scroll she was reading and looked at him. His displeased expression drew a smile from her lips. "You will be hunting with Andres. Why do you make a fuss?" she asked.
"I'm not even interested in hunting," Arin bluntly replied. "Andres insisted and I have no choice." He pulled his chair closer to Iria and said, "Will you finally have time for me tomorrow? I want to explore the capital with you once more."
"I'm not sure," Iria said without much thought. "That will depend on how the chat with the ladies goes."
Seeing him frowned deeper, Iria chuckled. "Don't worry. No matter what, I will try to wrap up tomorrow. Then we can go out the next day."
Her response lifted his mood a bit. "Fine then." One thing crossed his mind and he eyed her suspiciously. "In Qalagon, you always find some excuse to spend time outside the palace but here, you always prefer to stay indoors."
"You are always busy," Iria pointed out. "But here, there is the Empress, Orius, Andres and at times, the Emperor too. I have many people to chat with."
Hearing her response, Arin narrowed his eyes. He thought about it and understood how she must felt. Though it had only been two days, it felt too frustrating when she was always busy.
"Did I make you lonely?" he asked. He should know that after losing her closest companion a year ago, she must hate to be lonely even more than before. Being alone must remind her of all those haunting memories.
Iria looked at his eyes and noticed the guilt. She should stop being so thoughtless while saying something. It's not like he enjoyed being busy all the time. He was only carrying out his responsibility as the King of Qalagon and she knew how much he longed to spend more time with her.
"I understand you," she said. "Even before our marriage, I witnessed how uncle was busy all the time. I expect that much."
"I'm sorry," Arin Helev muttered with an apologetic smile.
During the three months of the alliance marriage, he was the Crown Prince and he always had time to spare for her but... now, he was the King and compared to his previous status, he had much more power but responsibility was always the one word that came with it.
It's not easy to administer a kingdom as vast as Qalagon.
"You're the King," Iria said with a smile. "Why must you always apologize to me?"
"Because you matter to me," he promptly said. "More than my ego, my status or even my life; you matter to me."
He never included his kingdom or responsibility and they both knew that. However, she didn't care. If she didn't understand him, then no one else will.
"I'm sorry, Iria," he apologized once again and planted a kiss on the back of her hand. "I promise you that things will be better someday."
With Nardodia and Alora, Jerivia and Nathania on the opposing side, things weren't easy. Though they didn't struggle a lot, they have to be alert and prepared all the time. It was such a headache.
"I want to visit the farm with you again," she muttered, making him chuckle.
"That's simple," he promptly remarked. "We can do that as soon as we return. Don't worry."
Before she could respond to him, they heard the sound of knocking on the door. Iria responded and a servant walked inside.
"Your Majesty, the daughter of Duke Manea is here."
"Tell her to come inside."
With that said, the servant curtsy and left the chamber again.
"Out of the five ladies, the daughter of Duke Manea caught my attention the most," Iria explained to Arin. "So, I decided to meet her first."
The Qalagon King nodded in approval. "That's good." When the lady was escorted inside the chamber by the servant, Arin rose from his seat. "I will be off then. A boring hunting awaits me."
Iria chuckled at his remark and he briefly leaned down to peck her on the lips. He flashed a little smile before he said, "Have a great time." Then he walked out of the chamber.
When the Qalagon Queen shifted her gaze to the lady who was standing near the door, she felt a bit awkward.
"Greetings, Your Majesty," the lady said with a smile as she curtsy.
Iria forced a smile, trying to present herself as natural as she could. "Welcome, Lady Valerie.. Please have a seat."
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