Izid Al Bin Genoeum.

When I heard of his arrival, I was able to receive basic information about him from the chancellor. He was the oldest son of the current Genoan king and was Prince Coronel’s biggest rival for the throne. Unfortunately, he was born from a mother who was a low born concubine. Therefore, he was fighting a losing battle against Coronel, whose mother was the first wife of the king.

Izid was the most intelligent and politically savvy brother out of the nine princes, but his background was most lacking. In addition, Genoa was known for valuing physical strength and sword skill, and Izid was not fond of fighting. He valued intelligence and cunning more.

Compared to Coronel and Ludia, Izid definitely spoke better Cransian. We had only spoken a few words, but I could see that he was extraordinary. He also clearly did not want a war with Cransia.

The fact that Genoan King sent Izid to represent his country said it all. Especially with the head of Prince Coronel, who was a highborn legitimate prince.

This meant… I should build a positive relationship with this man.

I smiled smoothly and asked Samantha who was standing nearby, “Please get us the tea from Ilong the emperor gave me as a present.”

“Yes, your highness.”

I hoped I sounded friendly as I started the conversation.

“I don’t think the unfortunate event that occurred recently should affect our relationship negatively. His highness feels the same way, of course. What do you think, prince?”

Izid replied with a perfect answer, “Great minds think alike! I and my king feel the same way.”

“I’m glad. I hope you have a comfortable time here during your stay.”

I sounded like I owned this place. Like I was the empress of this kingdom. It was strange that I was talking like this, but for some reason, it felt right.

***

After a long day of hard work, I finally returned to my bedroom. By the time I entered, I was exhausted.

As I walked like a ghost, I saw the man laying on my bed sleeping. I approached him quietly feeling annoyed. I felt like I deserved to play a prank on him after such a hard day.

What should I do?

Should I pinch his nose? Should I poke his almost-healed chest? Maybe I could tickle him?

I decided poking his chest might make his wound worse. If that happened, I would have to work even more. I decided pinching his nose was the best thing. I took my shoes off and walked towards him quietly.

His breathing was regular. He must have been very deep in his sleep. I checked to make sure and slowly reached out. I planned to pinch his nose and when he woke up in shock, I meant to giggle and run away from him.

Just then!

“…”

His eyes opened and the beautiful grin eyes sparked at me.

“Huh?!”

When I stared in shock, he quickly grabbed me and pulled me on top of him.

“AHH!”

He chuckled, making me feel annoyed.

“You! You were awake the whole time!”

He nodded and kissed my cheek lightly. “How can I not wake up when I hear my wife coming towards me?”

“If you were awake, why didn’t you open your eyes and let me know…!?”

“Then why didn’t YOU let ME know when you returned? You were going to play a prank on me, weren’t you?”

When I tried to get away, he hugged me tight and kissed me.

“…!”

He was… too good at kissing. It wasn’t fair.

It seemed like he was getting better every day. Was it because we were kissing so often? I wouldn’t let him go any further for a month, so all he was allowed to do was just kissing.

What a stupid thought…

The point was, he was an amazing kisser. I melted against him helplessly.

After a long kiss, I took a deep breath. He seemed disappointed as he kissed my neck lightly.

“Oh…!”

I felt an electric shock down my body and almost moaned out loud. I tried to roll away from him, but he wouldn’t let me go. His arms were around my waist, holding me tight.

I was getting annoyed. “Stop…!”

He grinned at me playfully, making my heart skip a beat.

“Alright, I’ll stop, so don’t get mad, Bina.” He kissed my forehead soundly and continued, “Don’t get mad at me. I want you so badly, but I am being patient so give me a break.”

“Hmm, we’ll see.”

When I pouted at him, he looked at me lovingly and whispered, “You have no idea how much effort I am putting in controlling myself. You should look forward to the day when I am fully recovered. I won’t let you leave the bed.”

I felt a sudden heat all over my body. I felt so embarrassed I started hitting him with the pillow.

“You are too much!”

He smiled at me happily. He looked so young and handsome. I couldn’t help but turn red.

***

In my bed, we laid down and talked about the day. This had become our nightly routine. I would tell him a summary of the day’s events, and he would make a few comments. I wasn’t reporting to him to get an approval or an order. He would be back to work in a week or two, so I was letting him know how things were going for a smooth transition.

I also wanted to make sure the decisions I made didn’t stray too much from his policies. So far, everything had been going well.

When Lucretius heard about the gift from Genoa, he laughed.

I didn’t bring the box with me. Instead, I asked the chancellor to keep it safe. It was a person’s head, and I didn’t want to carry it with my own hands. If I brought it to my room, I knew I would get a nightmare.

“The Genoan King must have been incredibly angry at his son. I guess he truly loved his sister.”

I suddenly remembered the meeting. I smiled evilly and put my arms around his neck.

“By the way… Prince Izid was very different from Prince Coronel.”

“Yes, I heard.”

“Such as gentleman and… He was VERY HANDSOME.”

I was being mean. When I grinned at him, he started to frown.

Sounding very cross, he asked me, “Really?”

I smiled even wider. “Yes. I invited him for tea tomorrow, so if you want, you can come by to meet him.”

He murmured in a low voice, “Tomorrow… I see. Yes, I will definitely have to go.”

He sounded truly malicious, which made me laugh. I patted his shoulder.

“You know I’m just kidding, right?”

He looked at me with a blank face. “I don’t understand. What are you talking about?”

“You can’t be mean to him just because you got jealous…!”

He suddenly bit my nose lightly. “Gyaa!”

“If you know what I’m like, doesn’t that mean you complimented him in front of me because you wanted me to become jealous?”

“…”

I couldn’t answer him, because… It was the truth. When he got jealous, I liked it.

I felt satisfied for some reason.

I traced his nose to his forehead with my finger gently like I was patting a cat and whispered, “Don’t worry. You are more handsome.”

“And more gentlemanly?”

I couldn’t help but be honest. “Well, I would be lying if I said you are just as gentlemanly…”

He exploded. He hugged me and started to gently bite my nose, neck, and shoulders.

“Gyaa!”

I squealed, but he didn’t stop. It didn’t hurt. He was being very gentle.

The problem was that his bites… made me want more.

I finally couldn’t take it anymore and raised my hands.

“I, I surrender!”

Thankfully, Lucretius didn’t seem truly angry. I guessed even the smallest-minded man wouldn’t take my joke seriously.

He was on top of me looking down. Such a beautiful face.

I reached out and lifted my head, so we could kiss again.