The morning light cascaded down on the black silky hairs through the window. Her body shifted under the soft touch of the blankets, and her eyelashes fluttered slowly. She was not fully conscious yet, and in her dreamful state Anna's first words were, "Izana…"

A moment later, she woke, only to find the other side of the bed empty. The memories of last night trailed through her mind, skipping a heartbeat. She was in the aftermath of yesterday's night. If it wasn't for her state of undress, she would have assumed it was all a dream. A dream, from which she'd never want to wake up.

"You are awake."

Immediately, she glanced around the room, dragging her gaze from the bedsheets. Izana was standing near the mirror, already donned in his royal attire, about to start his day. Her husband and his duties, which he took very seriously.

Their gazes met and a flush spread over her cheeks. Unintentionally, she clutched the covers tighter over her body.

Izana smiled faintly as he walked towards the bed.

"Good morning." He greeted idly, sitting on the bed, beside her.

"Good morning."She whispered, her eyes lingering on the mischievous gleam on his face. She guessed she would be teased to death. There was no escape, but neither did she wish for one. She was getting used to his antics, and after last night there was no question she wouldn't have expected it.

"You look mortified, wife." He remarked.

"Whose fault is that?" She answered back, her gaze steady.

He chuckled playfully.

When she realized that he had no plan to tease and traumatize her right now, she let out a breath of relief. Her extensive feelings subdued.

"Get some more rest if you want." He advised and then reached out, his fingers trailing through her hair. He tucked stranded wisps of hair behind her ear.

Their eyes locked, time stood still. It could be a lie if she said she wasn't fallen hard.

The King of Clairnes was a tricky man, they said. A plotter and politician.
And if someone would have told her this marriage would result in passionate love, she would have laughed at them.

"You'll be late for your duties, Izana. Lord Haruka wouldn't be pleased." She spoke, reminding him. It was crystal clear that he wasn't the one to compromise his duty.

"Today, he can wait for a while." His voice was compellingly authoritative.

Her lips parted in surprise, she couldn't comprehend for a moment. It was entirely unexpected. A tentative selfish satisfaction curled up in her chest.

And the next moment, he claimed her lips. It was a tender kiss, nothing compared to some of the others they'd shared last night, but it still made her feel dizzy. For a few minutes, they were immersed in themselves without any care of the world.

After he left, Anna tugged the covers over her head like a child. Shamefully, she didn't want him to leave soon. She shifted against the sheets, watching as daylight spread through the room. Many thoughts unfurled in her mind, swaying like ocean tides.

A few moments later, she heaved a deep sigh and reluctantly pulled herself out of the bed, getting ready for the day. Even though he told her to rest, she had no excuse for remaining in the bed any longer. She was feeling perfectly fine. Maybe more lively than ever. And her duties were calling for her.

Shirayuki rose from her slumber with a terrible headache, a hangover from last night. After the discussion with His Majesty Izana in the evening, she remembered dancing with zen, both of them in a drunken state (thanks to the pastries his majesty offered which surprisingly contained alcohol in them). Shirayuki would never be able to understand that man.

"Shirayuki, everyone's already awake. You should also get yourself ready." Kiki informed, just after she found the other woman woken.

Shirayuki nodded in agreement and started preparing herself. Their brief time in the Wistal had come to end in the blink of an eye. And without wasting any time she would be leaving with Obi for Lyrias again.

An hour later, all of them left the castle for the checkpoint. There before leaving, she and Obi spent some time together having breakfast with Zen, Mitsuhide, and Kiki. While eating, she and Zen discussed the task which has been given by Izana yesterday.

At the time of leaving, Zen pulled both Shirayuki and Obi close by their shoulders, and spoke, "We'll be sure to watch after you all. So make sure to watch after us too."

Both of them were surprised at first but then smiled and nodded at him.

"We'll meet again soon! Shirayuki! Obi!" Zen cheered before waving his hands at them.

"Yep! We'll meet again soon!"
Shirayuki smiled warmly, riding on the horse with Obi.

"Be sure to send some gifts over often!" Obi reminded them, mischievously.

In the castle, while walking towards her office, Anna suddenly recalled Shirayuki and Obi's departure. An instant embarrassment coiled in her belly. Due to all the events from yesterday's night to the morning, she must have forgotten about it. Upon remembering now, she immediately asked the servants about them.

"All of them left the castle with Highness Zen a while before." A maid told her.

And here she thought she would be able to meet them. At least, she needed to make sure Obi took her conversation seriously yesterday.

Seeing Queen's disappointed look, the maid spoke further, "Should we send a word now? There's a chance they still could be at the checkpoint fort, ready for leaving."

"It's alright," Anna stated hastily, "No need to disturb them now."

"Your majesty, it seems like you missed the chance." Garack's voice came from behind her.

Anna turned around with a sad smile that graced her lips and replied, "Unfortunately, yes."

Then both of them together walked inside the Queen's office. Garack had some documents that needed to be checked by her.

"This time, shirayuki has been given a difficult task," Garack informed her after they settled down for their work.

"Which task?" Anna amused. She had no clue what her husband discussed with Shirayuki and Zen yesterday.

"Do you remember how that disease was spread in lyrias?" Garack inquired.

"What about it?"

"The disease was spread by the flower called Olin Maris which is very rare and poisonous. For a while now, research for a non-toxic cultivar of the flower is going on in lyrias." The Chief Pharmacist paused, before explaining further, "And yesterday, his majesty gave Shirayuki the role of getting permission from every governor of northern lands to allow the flower to spread in the northern base. Only if shirayuki can grow the poison-free flower first."

The revelation was surprising to Anna.

Even Garack wasn't sure how Izana entrusted Shirayuki with such an important task. It seemed he decided after having a conversation with her yesterday. Because she had no prior knowledge of it as a chief pharmacist of the Wistal.

"By the way, you have been late to work today." Garack pointed out. To her knowledge, it had never happened before."Is everything alright, your majesty?"

Anna coughed slightly and then, "I had a minor headache in the morning. Nothing significant to worry about." She tried to shrug it off, but the red hue on her cheeks gave away the embarrassment.

"I see, "Garack said, her lips quirked in a grin, noting her flushed cheeks, "If you need any advice or help, I am right here."

"I am perfectly fine right now. " Anna managed to say, " Thanks for your concern, chief pharmacist."

Till the late afternoon, almost all the guests arrived at the night banquet had left the castle. Only a few royal families remained, due to some important political matters at the court.

Anna supervised all the work for their accommodation and also visited some of them out of courtesy. One of them was Kiki's father, along with some knights from the Seiran household. She was briefly introduced to them during the wedding, so this time she took a stance to greet them properly.

With that being done, when she was leaving she came across Zen and his aides who entered the hall at the same moment.

"Prince zen, you have returned."

"Were you looking for me, your majesty?" Zen spoke, giving her a friendly smile.

"Not exactly," She returned his smile, before shifting her gaze to Kiki, "But earlier, Earl Seiran was looking for Lady Kiki."

"I see." Kiki said, and then turned to Zen," I'll take my leave then, your highness."

As Kiki left for her father, Anna noticed Zen and Mitsuhide's expression sullen.

There was something she wasn't aware of. Furthermore, just yesterday night she had heard people gossiping about Kiki's engagement. But she had chosen to ignore any blether talks.

"Why didn't Mitsuhide-san accompany lady kiki?" She asked cautiously. Maybe Kiki's father had some sort of discord about the match.

"Does her majesty not know?" Mitsuhide asked.

She looked dumbfounded. Know what exactly?

"Kiki has received many marriage proposals," Zen spoke, words sounding in his mouth like poison. "And possibly she would be getting engaged to Lord Hisame."

Anna blinked several times until the words made sense to her. She was beyond stupefied. The whole time she was sure - quite sure -that Kiki and Mitsuhide were together.

"Ah, I see. Excuse me," she apologized quickly, "I was misunderstood."

"I'll also take my leave, your highness." Mitsuhide chirped in. He preferred not to cause any more embarrassment and left them alone to talk.

"Prince Zen," Anna murmured, her tone serious, "Are you okay with it?"

She had no way of knowing how and why Kiki and Mitsuhide ended up in this situation. But she guessed some things anyway.

"To be honest, even if I want, I have no say in the matter." He also sounded very serious," And someone has already decided their priorities." He then sent a furious glare in the direction where Mitsuhide went.

The night was falling, and Izana strode the castle corridors after finishing his today's endeavors as King.

Standing at the door of their room, he witnessed Anna sitting on the bed. Surprisingly, she was asleep. A book laid open on her lap to its last chapter. Without seeing the title, Izana could tell it's the one he had studied many times, about the royal strategies and court politics. She must have picked it up from his shelf.

He moved around the room silently, putting his sword on the sword-stand, removing and hanging up his fancy royal outer robe. When he came to sit next to her, he was no longer King; he was just Izana.

He put the blanket over her shoulders. It seemed like she was tired. Maybe it was a bit of his fault for working her out greatly yesterday. He had no self-restraint.

He then barely touched her face as she jolted awake with a start.

"It is just me," Izana instantly said.

"Oh, you're back. I didn't realize."She collected herself, facing him.

After last night, there was no awkwardness and propriety between them.

"Have you eaten yet?" She asked, knowing he was back early today.

"No."

"Then I will tell the servants to bring the food. You can fresh up." And with that, she was disappeared outside the room.

After they finished eating, they sat on the bed in the solitude of each other's presence.

"You are not in a good mood," Izana stated. It was not the sentence he thought he would utter today. He deduced it after her unusual silence at the dinner.

"If you want, you can put me in a good mood, husband." She tried to say seductively, but her breath shuddered. She had long figured she was not good at it, yet she tried effortlessly.

"Don't joke when I am talking seriously." He replied, his gaze unyielding

"Does it look like I am joking?"

It was a genuine question but didn't come out as one.

"Anna,"

She grew very still. His eyes were warm, burning blue in the candlelight.

Her head rested on his chest, arms encircled his waist, "There's no serious matter. It's not something you should be concerned with."

"Of course, it's not. But you are concerned. A stubborn woman like you won't be satisfied without causing any trouble. "

"Hey, I didn't do anything!" She protested, tightening her hold on him, "The thing is, today I found that Lady Kiki is engaged with Lord Hisame."

That explained it. He should have known.

"Don't even try to interfere in their matter. It's none of your business." He warned, strictly.

"I knew you would say this." She giggled beneath him, quietly, "But don't worry, I have no plan of becoming a matchmaker this time."

She had done it once with her brother and it ended in chaos.

"Izana,"

"Hmm?"

"What will you do if someday you come to regret marrying me?"

Regret? Something that he never truly felt. It wasn't like he never made any wrong choices. But more like he had very few personal choices, to begin with.

Suddenly, he pinned her down on the bed. And then asked, "What do you think?"

A question for a question. Typical reaction. As much she was annoyed by it, she smiled looking at him, "I can only hope that day never comes."

Then he kissed her fervently. Displaying his love and affection deeply.

Hey guys! I know it's been so long. But I finally managed to update. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.