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After finishing the discussion regarding the alliance marriage, Orius went home. He noticed that his wife was already asleep as it was pretty late now. However, rather than sleeping, he went to his working chamber as he wasn\'t sleepy at all.

The Duke looked through some files and read the draft for the training schedule of the soldiers which Zire made. However, it wasn\'t long before his wife showed up at the door to his working chamber.

"It\'s late," Valerie pointed out. "Why are you still working?"

"I\'m not sleepy at all," Orius replied as he shifted his gaze to his wife. "Why did you get up? You should get some sleep."

Still standing near the door, the Duchess stared at her husband. "I don\'t feel like sleeping while you still work here. It\'s not like you don\'t need a rest.."

Hearing her words, there was a subtle smile on the Commander\'s lips. "Fine then," he said and rose from his seat. Then he walked towards his wife. "Come. Let\'s put you back to sleep."

"You talk like I\'m a baby."

He chuckled at her complaint. "You act like one," he stated and pulled her out of his working chamber. Then he led her to their chamber. Soon, Valerie was back to the bed and he slept beside her.

"How did the discussion go?"

"The Crown Prince accept the alliance marriage," Orius replied. "That means the wedding will happen soon and we can\'t travel to Qalagon for now."

"It\'s fine," Valerie muttered. "If His Highness gets married, that means your sister will also come to attend the meeting. We will still be able to see her."

"I\'m glad you think that way," Orius remarked. "Once Andres settled, we will travel to Qalagon. Don\'t worry."

Valerie nodded and closed her eyes, making Orius smiled at the sight. "You seem so sleepy yet you refuse to sleep without me."

For the first time, she turned to him and hugged his body. As she buried her face in his chest, he almost flinched!

Was it because it\'s the first time or because it\'s too sudden?

The Duke finds his heart race when he felt her.

"Let me sleep like this," Valerie muttered, still closing her eyes.

Slowly, his tense body relaxed and he narrowed his eyes at her. "You look so tired," he commented. "What did you do today?"

"Nothing much," she murmured. "I bet I\'m less busy than you."

Like always, he was amused by her short yet frank response. "Sleep now. It\'s late."

When she didn\'t respond, he narrowed his eyes at her once again, only to realize that she had already fallen asleep.

She fell asleep this fast yet she refused when he told her to get some sleep.

He doubted that he will ever understand how her mind work.

Was this how the mind of every woman work? It\'s complicated much more than he thought.

* * *

Andres Francia wondered how strange things turned out. It was the wedding day of Crown Princess Maria and... the day when the envoy from Aederin was notified of the decision on alliance marriage.

He never thought that his future wife would be confirmed on the day of Maria\'s wedding.

Was this fate?

Yet he wasn\'t someone who believed in such a thing. He believed that everyone was responsible for their own fate.

As it\'s the day of Crown Princess Maria\'s wedding to the young Duke of her kingdom, Andres\'s parents were quite worried about him. However, the Crown Prince was nowhere to be seen in the palace. Right after the court meeting, he left the palace with only Zane accompanying him.

He only wanted to be somewhere quiet where no one would be able to find him. He didn\'t feel like doing anything for that day.

After around two hours, the Crown Prince finds himself on the bank of the Wesree River. He had been here a few times before and the calmness and quietness of this place always calmed him down.

He was always much more of a social person but... at times, all he needed was a quiet time for himself.

Sitting under the shadow of a big tree, his mind went back to the day he bid goodbye to his lover since childhood and... the words she said to him the other day. The day when she broke down in front of him for the first time in more than a decade.

The question Maria asked him that day was repeatedly played in his mind.

\'Is it really over?\'

He finally had the answer.

Though it was long over for them, he could only accept it today. The day she became the wife of another man.

Blankly staring at the river, the Crown Prince thought of how ridiculous his life was.

He was already set to marry Princess Ophelia Arille of Aederin yet here he was, thinking of the love he never get to fulfil.

Andres Francia was suddenly snapped out of his stupor by a sound. He stood up and glanced around his surroundings but he couldn\'t spot where the sound came from.

"Is something wrong, Your Highness?" Zane who was standing a few steps away promptly asked as he came to him.

"Did you hear that sound?"

The guard shook his head and glanced around. Just like his two cousins, the Crown Prince had sharp ears and Zane thought that it was only normal for him not to hear the sound. His hearing skills couldn\'t be compared to the Crown Prince.

"Let me look around," Andres Francia said and went to the right with Zane quickly following him.

On the right just a few steps away from where the Crown Prince sat was the Wesree Woods and when Andres Francia looked in that direction, he saw a woman.

He was right. He felt like what he heard was the sound of a woman screaming as she tripped. The woman sat on the ground, holding her right leg in pain. Seeing this, he quickly rushed over to her.

Kindness and sympathy towards their people. It was what the Francia\'s were famous for in contrast to the former ruling family of Cedore. So, there was no way for the Crown Prince to turn a blind eye to an injured woman who was alone in the woods.

"Are you alright?" Crown Prince Andres asked as he crouched down beside the woman. He looked at her sprained ankle which seemed to be quite painful.

When the woman didn\'t respond at all, he slowly looked up at her and saw her face for the first time. Putting aside the fact that she was staring at him the whole time, Andres Francia noticed that the woman was ravishingly beautiful.

Perhaps suspiciously beautiful to wander alone in the woods.....