Chapter 207 - Protective Husband
Three chapters today.
The King of Megaris had a cold expression on his face as he sat leisurely on his throne, one hand supporting his head as he listened to the exchange below him regarding the national concerns brought up within the royal court. He did not speak, but the pressure he put on the ministers and officials was immense.
However, no one had realized that Drayce was not even paying much attention to them, his mind elsewhere after he made his point regarding the issue of his marriage. He had made an estimate—around this time, his young queen should be receiving a tour of the palace. Despite wanting to accompany her, Drayce was still busy dealing with issues raised within the royal court.
"Is that a lake?"
On his annoyed cold face, a light smile appeared on his lips the moment he heard his queen's sweet voice. His sharp ears caught the sound of Seren's voice as she talked with Tyra when they arrived in the lake beside the Grand Palace where the throne hall could be found. As the lake was not that far, as long as he concentrated enough, he could hear the familiar voices outside the throne hall.
"Yes, Your Majesty," came a reply. It was Tyra's voice and he heard her explaining to Seren about the lakes in the palace.
A deep furrowed line appeared on his forehead and his eyes turned colder as he wished to hear his wife more, but all he could hear was Tyra's explanations.
The royal court noticed this sudden change on his face and the conversations slowly died down as everyone wondered if they had said something to anger their king.
Jasper looked at Drayce and asked, "Is there any issue with the proposed solution that Your Majesty did not like?"
"Nothing!" Drayce replied casually. "Continue."
He then returned his attention to what's happening by the lakeside. As he left early in the morning, he didn't even get the chance to greet her on her first morning in Blackhelm as he did not wish to disturb her sleep.
"Can I?" he heard Seren asking Lady Tyra when she offered Seren to visit the lake.
Drayce smiled and a soft chuckle left his lips and thought, 'Of course, you can, my Queen. Everything here, including me, all belongs to you. It is a little disappointing though to think you would sound happier visiting a mere pond of water compared to being in the presence of your husband. Your husband's beauty is no less than the beauty of an ancient lake.'
While he was busy with his one-sided conversation inside his mind, a wider grin pulled at the corner of his lips, causing everyone in the royal court to feel surprised. One moment their king was frowning, and now, he was smiling.
'Is there anything funny about the current agenda?' was what all the ministers thought as they looked at each other, at a loss whether they should wait for the king to say something or resume their discussion.
Seeing the rare smile on the face of their king, only those in the know like Jasper and Slayer understood what was going on. There was only one thing that could make their devil King smile—his wife. They made a guess that either Drayce recalled a good memory about her, or that the queen might be nearby and their young king was eavesdropping on her. The latter scenario seemed to be highly likely.
'Poor Queen! If only she had an idea of her husband's abilities!' This was what's on their minds as no one liked anyone listening in on their private conversations, regardless of how harmless the breach of privacy was, but unfortunately, this devil was gifted with eavesdropping skills—and he was not shy to use it.
Thankfully, Drayce could control the extent of his sharp hearing, to the extent he could limit what he wanted to hear and what he did not. He didn't enjoy the annoying talk going around him; the surrounding was filled with annoying people so listening to his queen saved his mind from going bored.
Sensing Drayce's lack of interest in the royal court, Jasper continued to lead the discussion about the items on the agenda with the ministers, while Drayce continued to concentrate on the conversation between Seren and Lady Tyra.
"Your Majesty, would you like to rest in the gazebo?" Lady Tyra offered.
Drayce smirked, unbothered by how every change in his facial expression affected the ministers and nobles present there. A number of them were guilty of some misdeeds while Drayce was away from the royal palace, and they were terrified to imagine what was going on in their king's mind, whether he was planning something evil against them.
'Gazebo?' Drayce thought as an evil smirk didn't leave his lips. 'Should I join my Queen there? Jasper can summarize the issues that need my decision and give it to me later in my study, but my Queen, she is unfamiliar with many things here, and it was not like Tyra was giving detailed backgrounds. She's only introducing basic knowledge, so it's my responsibility to explain the importance of certain areas to her personally. Isn't that what a good husband should do? Help his Queen understand her new home?'
He found a good excuse to go to her and smiled pleasantly. At this point, a handful of old officials had turned pale in fright. To them, it was a very evil smile.
"Your Majesty," Jasper called out and Drayce looked at him.
Jasper pretended to cough. "Your Majesty, this is all for today. Do you wish to address some other issues with the royal court?"
Before Drayce could say a word in response, his senses caught an irritating scenario by the lakeside. His normally expressionless face turned dark as he stood up from his throne while gripping the handle of his sword.
"Nothing. Deal with the rest of the matters by yourself," Drayce said as he stepped towards one of the side entrances of the throne hall in the direction of the lake. Slayer quietly followed him.
All the ministers were puzzled by this drastic change in Drayce's behavior. No one could guess why he's reacting this way.
'We did not say anything that would irritate His Majesty, did we?'
'What kind of mood swings King Drayce is having?'
'Is it the effect of his long travel after the war? He should have rested and started work after resting a few days!'
As Drayce was exiting the throne hall, his royal subjects all hurried to stand up and bow in his direction.
Just as Slayer closed the door behind them, away from the sight of his ministers, Slayer heard his king say, "Lake." His king disappeared on the spot, leaving nothing but a strong gust of wind.
Slayer understood what the word implied. He instructed the other knights standing outside the building, "Get me a horse."
Captain Rulf bowed and brought a horse for his commander to use. Not wasting even a second, Slayer jumped onto the horse's back and caused it to gallop, leaving nothing but trails of dust in his wake.
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When Drayce reached the lakeside, he witnessed the veiled display of hostility the previous king's concubines were showing towards his queen. Regardless of what Lady Clarisa said to Seren, his innocent wife merely stood her ground calmly, as if what the older woman said didn't matter to her. Moreover, from Lady Clarisa's expressions, he could see his queen's silence had managed to annoy the woman and he felt happy. Through his Queen's silence, she upheld her dignity and did not stoop lowly even when facing the enemy.
However, what kind of man was Drayce? How could he let this crafty woman disrespect his queen without giving her appropriate punishment?
"My Queen does not like to be welcomed in dark and rotten places."
As Drayce strode towards the delicate woman in a pink dress in an imposing manner, the rest of the people shivered as they hurried to pay their respects.
"We have seen Your Majesty King Drayce."
Ignoring them, Drayce stood next to Seren and faced her. Seren, who had remained silent the whole time, turned to face him as well. She was about to bow before him, but Drayce held her at shoulders and said, "No need."
Seren did not insist and simply straightened her back. Drayce held her hand, lightly pecked her palm that was covered with a scale, and then looked at her in the eyes. "My Queen, is anyone disturbing your peaceful outing?"
Seeing Drayce openly showing such affection towards Seren, everyone was taken aback. Lady Tyra was more composed, and she merely smiled at the couple. She could see how much Drayce adored and loved his wife.
Before Seren could answer, Lady Clarisa decided to speak first. "Your Majesty, seeing the dragon that protects the kingdom return with such glorious feats, brings honor to our royal family. We are fortunate to bump into you here. Do you want to join us, ladies, as we accompany Her Majesty in touring the royal palace?"
Drayce didn't look at his father's First Concubine. He only had eyes for Seren. "Ladies, I believe you all didn't forget to pay proper courtesy to the queen of this kingdom, did you?"
With this, Lady Clarisa was taken aback but she immediately composed herself. "Of course, Your Majesty. But as she is my daughter-in-law, it's fine for me to—"
"Daughter-in-law?" Drayce let out a dry chuckle before turning towards Seren. "My Queen, I only had one mother, but unfortunately, she is no longer with us. The people of this kingdom, even the ones bearing the surname of Ivanov, are all your subjects who you can order at will. If anyone disrespects you, don't hesitate to punish them regardless of their status. In Megaris, no one is above the King and Queen."
When Seren did not say anything, he asked, "Do you understand, my Queen?"
Though she didn't intend to do anything about what Drayce said, Seren gave him a response in the form of a nod. She had no interest in playing politics, simply wishing to stay away from any kind of trouble and not get attention from others.
Lady Clarisa's sweet smile turned stiff as she lowered her head. She tried to recall the words she said earlier regarding Queen Seren's appearance and realized her words were not offensive in themselves, which gave her leeway to say it's simply a misunderstanding. After all, she was a woman who survived on the battlefield called the royal palace. People like her were good with words, and they could easily turn white to black and black to white with a simple flick of a hand as long as it benefited them. Even though the young king encouraged his wife to stand against them now, he could not protect her all the time.
She immediately bowed toDrayce. "Your Majesty, I believe there is a misunderstanding as it is only my sincerest wish to welcome Queen Seren into the Ivanov Family. My apologies for choosing my words poorly. I just wished Her Majesty to not feel bothered with her appearance, and she does not need to hide. We will accept her the way Her Majesty looks, regardless of what it is."
Drayce still didn't pay attention to Lady Clarisa and smiled at his queen. He tucked the loose strand of hair floating along with the light breeze behind Seren's ear. "My Queen, however you look, it doesn't concern anyone. If you want to wear this veil, they have no choice but to respect your wish, and the same goes for the opposite. Personally, I think it is especially useful since it will protect you from evil eyes."
Since Drayce was allowing her to keep wearing her veil, Seren was able to feel relieved. This was what she wanted too. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Drayce continued, "I do not even mind even if I, your husband, become the only person to see your appearance."
Seren's happiness wilted as she thought, 'So he would not give up on seeing my face.'
The other ladies were ignored by their king and had no other option but to stay there till their king and queen permitted them to leave.
Drayce held Seren's palms a bit tightly. "Your hands are cold, my Queen. Are you feeling cold here?" His voice was full of worry and he pointedly looked at Lady Tyra.
The old woman understood what he meant and nodded as she stepped away from them. "Your Majesty, I will arrange tea for you in the gazebo."
Drayce kept rubbing Seren's cold hands with his warm ones. He then heard Seren mumble under her breath, "It's not that cold. I am fine."
"I am worried you might catch a cold. You are not used to such cold weather."
"During winter. Abetha has a similar temperature too. It's bearable," she insisted as she wanted him to let her hands go even though she felt better when he held them.
The other women watching the two felt embarrassed; they could not believe the fearless devil had a caring side like this too.
"The view of the lake from Gazebo is much more magnificent. Shall we, my Queen?"
Seren nodded and Drayce escorted her towards the gazebo. They walked on the long wooden pathway built over the body of water, leading their way towards the gazebo which was in the center of that large ancient lake.
The concubines from the Vermillion Palace felt like they were granted amnesty after their existence was ignored by the current king. They merely did a quick curtsy before no longer paying attention to the couple and hurried towards their carriages.
The moment Lady Clarisa finally turned around, the true emotions she'd been hiding immediately appeared on her sweet smiling face, causing it to twist.
"Lady Clarisa, seems like King Drayce favors the Queen a lot," Lady Yavia, the Second Concubine, commented with a frown. Among the three of them, she was the one the First Concubine favored more.
"She sure is a witch who has enchanted the young king. He didn't even mind those ugly scales on her body," Lady Clarisa said with disgust as she recalled the sight.
"Lady Clarisa, Lady Yavia, please speak with kindness. Her Majesty seems like a quiet person. Moreover, our king is not someone who will decide on things without considering their consequences. We should trust his judgment," Lady Saira said. Among the three of them, only she looked at the young couple with admiration.
Lady Clarisa gave her a narrow-eyed look. "Lady Saira, have I ever wronged you? Do not easily let go of the power you hold. Inside the royal palace, the less power you have, the earlier your death will be. Do not act with subservience. You are no longer a lady-in-waiting, but a woman of King Theron. Going by the royal family three, we are the mothers of that unfilial son. He loves his title of a devil too much, he acts like an uncivilized man even towards his own family. And it appears that the woman he placed by his side is equally uncivilized as him."
Lady Saira, the gentle-looking lady who used to serve Queen Esther before tragedy hit her, chose to remain silent.