Idren perused once again the letter from Thalia Runtalis-Amaren, the second princess of Egelbahmot. Though the letter wasn’t very long, he couldn’t help but doubt his eyes.

After a brief verification confirming that he hadn’t misread the words, he rubbed his face.

Banishment?

What was written on the paper was the reason why the second prince of Aglante could leave his home country.

He had thought there would be some sort of deal with the emperor at most, but the answer provided by the second princess was completely different from his expectation.

Banishment, and an unofficial one at that.

Still, to completely expel a member of the royal family from the country, there must have been something convincing even to the victim, beyond just a forced pretext.

But the second princess either couldn’t find out about that or chose not to explain it in writing. Since it was unofficial anyway, it was likely that only the emperor and crown prince knew, so he wasn’t disappointed, but the situation itself was certainly perplexing.

Moreover, the second prince’s treatment seemed too good for someone who had been banished. He hadn’t lost his name, hadn’t had any body parts mutilated, and hadn’t had his assets significantly confiscated.

Those assets would have flowed intact into Brinwell.

It was information that could confirm what the King of Brinwell had considered in advancing his troops, but apart from resolving the doubt he had harbored all along, the situation felt very unsettling.

Idren couldn’t understand why the second prince was going to such lengths to attack him. Why he would stake his entire fortune to do this.

Because of Ophelia? But all his actions were too malicious to attribute to affection and the jealousy stemming from it.

To be honest, it wasn’t a big problem that the man was targeting him. Excessive jealousy could turn into murderous intent, after all.

But wasn’t the target wrong?

If war broke out, Ophelia would be caught up in it too. Once married, they shared the same fate.

Moreover, unlike in his previous life, the fact that he and Ophelia were close was already widely known. Idren knew how his words were circulating outside. That blinded by love, he had even dismissed an old advisor and given away a legion that was like his own limbs.

It wasn’t wrong, so he left it as it was, but the more tightly they were bound together, the more those who disliked him would keep Ophelia in mind too.

In such a situation, to go to such lengths to empower his enemy.

Tapping his finger on the second princess’s letter paper on the desk, Idren thought that Brinwell wasn’t the only problem.

He disliked the second prince of Egelbahmot from his appearance, disliked his cunning temper even more, and disliked his actions more than all of that combined.

Shouldn’t jealousy be directed at the competitor, not the object of affection?

It seemed he would have to kill the second prince after dealing with Brinwell. He would probably have to do it without telling Ophelia. As he briefly pictured the delicate face he had glimpsed before, someone knocked on the door.

“Your Majesty, it’s Salode Chesa. I have urgent news to report.”

“Come in.”

When the pale-faced finance advisor appeared, just as he had done before, Idren gauged what news he might have brought. Last time it was news of Brinwell’s advance, so this time it might be news that they had crossed the Kirios Mountains.

The pale-faced man acted exactly as he had predicted.

“The army led by the first prince of Brinwell has crossed the peak of the Kirios Mountains.”

As forewarned, the Brinwell army crossed the Kirios Mountains just before the harvest season.

Unlike in her previous life, since Idren had been informing her of the situation promptly, Ophelia was able to know more detailed progress. First, the border was being defended by the Soar family, and they were planning to organize reinforcements from the capital to send support as quickly as possible.

“I will also be going to the border with those reinforcements.”

One night, lying in bed, Idren said so.

Though it was something she had known, Ophelia felt her stomach churn for some reason and turned away. Even with the lights not fully extinguished, she felt she might be caught with a distorted expression if she faced him.

With her back to her husband, who was surely looking at her, Ophelia asked.

“When will you return?”

“Well, if things go well, it shouldn’t take more than a few months, so I’ll be back by winter. If the situation gets complicated, it might go into the next year. Either way, it’s shorter than in my previous life.”

The man’s nonchalant voice seemed a bit annoying. It felt like he alone wasn’t concerned about something that even made her feel strange.

But not wanting to be irritable to someone about to leave, Ophelia finally said just one thing.

“…Try to come back before the year changes.”

This man’s birthday was the first day of every year. It was an easy-to-remember date that seemed fitting for its owner.

Anyway, since she had received quite a lot from him on his birthdays, Ophelia wanted to celebrate his birthday well when he returned next year.

The man, not understanding the implication of her words, answered in his usual tone.

“I’ll try my best.”

It didn’t seem like much time had passed since then, but the day for Idren to depart for the campaign approached. It was before the end of the eighth month.

Standing in front of the castle gate, Ophelia watched from a distance as her husband conversed with Penrel and Hazel, whom he had summoned. She was waiting to say goodbye before he left the castle.

Dressed in ordinary travel clothes, Idren looked the same as usual. If not for the soldiers around him, one might have thought he was just going on a short trip.

Doesn’t that man even get nervous? Ophelia thought, looking at her husband’s neat and calm face.

Then, having finished his conversation, Idren dismissed the two knights and approached her.

Since he was someone who had to leave anyway, Ophelia went to meet him so he wouldn’t have to come too close to the castle.

As soon as she was close enough, the man immediately asked.

“Did you come to see me off?”

Asking about something everyone already knew was also a way to emphasize how much he liked it.

Feeling her husband’s inner thoughts more blatantly than usual today, Ophelia suddenly realized how much closer they had become. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to sense each of his inner feelings so well.

“Yes.”

Upon her answer, Idren grinned again. After all, he was a man who was very honest about his own feelings.

While thinking that he was easy to read and comfortable because of it, Ophelia hoped that he wouldn’t be so easily read by others elsewhere. After all, he was a king, so it was better if he could hide himself well in front of others.

After looking up at him smiling for a moment, Ophelia recalled something she had heard before.

Not long after their marriage, the man had asked if he could kiss her forehead.

At that time, she had refused because it felt strange, but today it seemed like it might be okay. Having decided, Ophelia said.

“You can kiss my forehead.”

Golden eyes immediately widened. Seeing his face clearly showing surprise, Ophelia realized she had said something strange.

Thinking about it, it was such an old incident that Idren probably wouldn’t remember, and even if he did, it was strange enough to bring up such an old story now.

Unable to take back her words and flustered, Ophelia was thinking about how to salvage the situation when he smiled. As his straight lips curved upwards, Ophelia suddenly realized that this man was quite handsome. He had distinct and good-looking features.

“It’s quite a late permission, but thank you.”

And the man lowered his head. As his shadow gently fell over her, Ophelia unconsciously closed her eyes.

But no matter how long she waited, she didn’t feel the sensation she was expecting. Realizing that he wasn’t coming any closer and was just standing still, Ophelia slightly opened her eyes. It was then that she felt a finger lightly touch her forehead.

He gently rubbed the forehead of Ophelia, who had her eyes wide open, unable to think of closing them again, and smiled.

“I can’t do it right away as the long wait would be wasted. Let’s save the forehead for later… would somewhere else be okay?”

Before she could understand what that meant, the man lowered his head a little more. Soon, something warm touched her cheek.

Realizing that he had kissed her cheek, Ophelia froze.

Blinking while still rigid, she covered the place he had kissed with her hand to hide the rising temperature. It certainly wasn’t the first time – she had experienced it during the wedding ceremony too – but she couldn’t understand why it felt so ticklish.

Ophelia lowered her gaze, avoiding the golden eyes looking down at her, and said.

“…I never gave permission for this.”

Idren answered immediately, in a way that might seem shameless.

“Then pay me back.”

And the man raised his hand. Even without looking up, Ophelia knew he was tapping his own cheek.

Realizing that he was teasing her, Ophelia’s face reddened. Not only had he taken two when given one, but he was also demanding a third.

If it were just her original personality, she would have snapped at him immediately, but strangely, she wasn’t angry and couldn’t speak.

Seeing her complexion change in real-time, Idren said.