A Few Days Earlier in the Elzaran Palace, Before the Invasion of Orcathia

"Honey, you don’t need to go to war," Leona said, her voice soft yet insistent.

"I am in charge of the military. If I don’t go, people might start saying I am a coward," Elfan replied, trying to stay firm.

"It doesn’t matter. I will deal with whoever calls you that," Leona said, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"I promise to return quickly. I’ll be back before you miss me," Elfan offered with a reassuring smile.

"Since you insist on going, then I am coming with you," Leona declared, stepping closer.

"No, you cannot do that. If you leave, who will become queen?"

"Leonie can take my place temporarily until we return," Leona suggested, folding her arms proudly.

This silly girl must think she’s come up with a brilliant idea.

"No, Leonie also has her duties. My love, don’t you trust me?" Elfan asked, reaching out to touch her arm.

"I trust you, honey, but..." Leona’s voice trembled slightly.

Elfan interrupted, "If you trust me, let me do this. I know wars are dangerous, and I don’t want you to be in danger because of me."

Leona tried to reason, but Elfan started kissing her. He knew her weakness and used it against her. Before long, strange sounds were coming from Leona’s office. She was riding as if it were the last ride of her life. She whispered, "Don’t you dare die. You are mine, my possession, and if you die, I will follow you wherever you are and bring you back."

Possession? This silly girl must be scared of losing me, huh.

She continued, "If I ever hear that you were spending time with other girls on this expedition, I will have to punish you."

"I would never, my love," Elfan said.

She mumbled softly, so Elfan didn’t hear, "If you dare cheat on me or leave me, I will put a collar on you with my name on it."

"Did you just say something?" Elfan asked.

"No, I was thinking I should have let Leonie marry you. Then we would be going together."

"It’s okay."

Leona’s fingers tightened around his hand. “Promise me you’ll come back.”

Elfan smiled. “I promise.”

We worked hard the whole day in her office, with Anna and Eli standing guard outside. I wonder how they feel hearing such sounds coming from the office or our bedroom. Do they get used to it?

I analyzed the information we gathered from Orcathia. Their traditions and customs are different from ours. With our forces, I don’t think we can win in less than six months unless we ambush them. They are a warrior country with more seasoned fighters than us. So my plan is simple: coordinate with Aranthor, ambush them, and cut off their supply lines for support—an easy win, right? Damn, I am smart. I see why the goddess chose me. I am the greatest thinker, huh.

The next day, I received news from the Black Blazers. Lyanna said Orcathia invaded them out of nowhere, but the Black Blazers report that Aranthor soldiers were the ones who invaded first and killed orcs living in the village near the border. Did Lyanna lie to me? If she did, then she is a good actor. If she didn’t lie, then someone else started this war. Who stands to benefit the most?

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Thalion? No, I don’t think he is that smart. Sabrina only focused on luxurious goods when she was here, so let me scratch her off the list. King Alaric? I don’t think he would be foolish enough to start a war he knows he cannot win. I suspect merchants, as they can maximize profits. As I was thinking hard alone in my office, the door opened, and Leonie entered. Anna is preparing for the war. I will be going with her.

"Good morning, husband."

What do you want?

"Good morning. How can I help you?"

"...Help me?" She just grabbed my hand and started pulling me, and before I knew it, I was outside the palace.

"My sister told me you will be going to Orcathia, so I was thinking, how about we spend this day together before you leave?"

"But I have a lot of work to do," Elfan complained.

"Are you turning me down?" She asked, looking sad.

"No, no. Just one hour, okay?"

"Okay, one hour it is."

We walked around the capital, went to a restaurant, and visited the theater. Since this world lacked entertainment, I built theaters, and the one in the capital is the biggest. I taught them about acting and wrote a few stories that symbolize unity and love. Most elves can sing, so we also created big halls for music festivals and events. We also built schools that teach music, acting, and dancing. I didn’t want the country to be too militarized, where the only good-paying career is being a soldier. We also visited the theater, and as it was getting dark, a carriage arrived, and we entered. We had a fun day, and although I said "one hour," I got carried away. The carriage didn’t arrive at the palace; instead, we were at Aceso Estate.

"Why are we here?" Elfan asked.

"Don’t worry, I already talked to my sister before I went to you, and she agreed," Leonie said with a bright smile.

How dare that silly girl sell me out. I thought she was just joking about letting her sister marry me, so she...

"Focus on me," Leonie said, putting her hands on Elfan’s cheeks.

The carriage stopped, and a beautiful woman came running. Her name is Uno, Leonie’s personal bodyguard and secretary.

"My lady, why do you always leave alone? It’s dangerous."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"But my lady, you have to take this seriously."

"Are you trying to embarrass me in front of my husband?" Leonie said, glaring at Uno.

"My apologies, my lady."

"She is correct, though," Elfan said.

"Okay, I will listen to you," Leonie said with a cheerful smile.

We entered the estate, and the servants bowed as we passed them. Is the respect for me or her? I turned back. "Miss Uno, how do you tell the two sisters apart?" Elfan asked.

"His Majesty should not call me miss, and I just know. I cannot mistake my master."

Master?

We entered her room, and she started taking off her clothes. She pushed me to the bed. But why is Uno also inside?

Uno just sat there and watched.

OK, this girl is sicker than her sister.

"Wait, why is Uno still here?"

"Don’t worry about her," Leonie said as she snapped her fingers, and Uno went on her knees.

"Wait, Leona won’t agree to this."

"Actually, my sister said our wedding will be when you return from Orcathia, so I don’t think she would mind."

I wanted to resist, but the little guy was already ready to punish this arrogant girl. I started punishing her like there was no tomorrow. She snapped her fingers, and Uno joined us. "Unlike my sister, I share with my loyal servants."

Uno started touching all over. I was going crazy. She whispered, "Let's have fun, Your Majesty."

All night, this two girls milked me dry. I felt as if my back was breaking, and if I tried to rest, one of them would just suck the lollipop, and bam, this little traitor would stand up. Man, I just want to go home.

We had a long night, and the next day, I left the Aceso Estate and went to the palace. Guess what? That damn girl lied to me. She only reported about the date, not the sleepover. I had to wear the collar with Leona’s name, and everyone at the palace was giving me weird looks. She only took it off on the day of my departure to Orcathia. But even though it was embarrassing, I think it was worth it.

As I was preparing to leave, Leona approached me, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Promise me again, Elfan. Promise me you’ll come back to me."

Elfan pulled her into a tight embrace. "I promise, Leona. I’ll come back to you."

She held him for a moment longer, her grip almost painfully tight. "If you break your promise, Elfan, I’ll never forgive you," she whispered, her voice trembling with a hint of something darker.

Elfan smiled, oblivious to the underlying threat. "I won’t break my promise, my love."

As he left, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. Leona watched him go, her eyes fixed on his retreating form, her expression unreadable.