At first, he suspected she was lying or playing coy.

But her clear eyes seemed genuinely ignorant.

A queen who had no idea about the traditional way of spending the wedding night of the Laphion royal family.

Rinel was just as flustered.

“What would have happened if the tradition of the clergy watching the wedding night hadn’t changed, huh?”

Rinel whispered quietly, touching her cute nose with his hand.

When he found out that Zelda had no information about the wedding night, Rinel felt as if he were committing an outrageous act.

It was unfair to call it outrageous since it was his first experience too.

As an emperor who should always maintain dignity and proficiency, he tried to remain indifferent in front of her.

Fortunately, she was nervous and probably didn’t notice his clumsy kiss.

It wasn’t that he would never sleep with the queen.

But he had no intention of spending the wedding night in front of the priests who always seek God’s will.

So he changed the longstanding tradition of the Laphion Empire at his generation…

However, he had an accident led by a strange force.

It was odd to call it an accident, but Rinel considered it a mistake since it was an unplanned event.

Moreover, hadn’t they agreed to pretend to act and pass it over without worrying the queen!

After the priests left, Rinel and Zelda stared awkwardly at the ceiling for a while.

Just when their rough breaths were almost simultaneously settling…

He thought, it was then.

From then on, she became special.

And as they conversed with each other, that specialness deepened.

Since being cursed with hypothermia, he had always spent cold and gloomy nights alone.

But he laughed a lot on the night they had their wedding night.

Just looking at each other was a laughter.

Even the air was filled with laughter.

That night, every moment was warm.

Rinel felt like this feeling might be happiness.

After the first night, for some reason, he felt like he had to see the queen every day.

If not, the day felt too empty.

Maybe he didn’t even realize he was setting up such feelings and insisting on them.

But, unlike his feelings that were increasingly drawn to the queen, she often looked uncomfortable somewhere when she faced him.

He knew she was trying to hide something.

He couldn’t tell what she was trying to hide, but for some reason, her pink eyes seemed to carry an apology.

Why? Why did she look at him with such eyes?

Every time Rinel had a conversation with Zelda, that curiosity came up.

She would eagerly respond to his words, but sometimes she would swallow her words.

Also, she would raise her hand to touch him but hesitate several times.

Because he was the emperor, she might have been uneasy about his very existence.

‘Our queen is very shy.’

Rinel thought so.

But that thought was completely shattered tonight.

She was not merely a shy wife.

She stole his lips first, and today she boldly laid him on the bed.

Zelda immediately regretted it, but… well, it was a good try.

Her sudden actions made him very happy and hot.

Remembering the moment that happened just a few hours ago, Rinel wanted to shove the rising sun somewhere.

“Should I wake her up?”

He murmured, feeling Zelda’s abundant and soft hair with the back of his hand.

“I shouldn’t push too hard with my strength, should I? Given how frail my wife is.”

Ah, this is torture.

Rinel closed his eyes, inhaling deeply the scent of her fragrant hair.

“Zelda….”

Finally, Rinel called her name.

Still, he suppressed his voice as best he could, out of guilt.

“….”

She didn’t stir, sleeping soundly.

She had such a frail body, it seemed to fall asleep easily.

“Zelda?”

This time, casting aside his guilt, he raised his voice slightly.

“Your Majesty?”

“Uuhhh….”

Zelda’s eyes trembled and she showed a faint reaction.

Rinel, like a man who found a glimmer of hope in despair, quickly sat up from his lying position.

“Can you hear me? Are you awake?”

Rinel cautiously raised his hand, but he couldn’t bring himself to shake her shoulder.

“Zelda? You should answer when the Emperor calls.”

He earnestly whispered her name, his lost hand wavering above her closed eyes.

A moment later, her lips parted slightly.

Her mumbling lips suddenly spoke.

“Listen….”

“Huh? What did you say?”

Rinel asked, looking down at her face.

Given that she was talking in her sleep, why did our lady’s voice sound so serious?

“Do you have something to tell me? What should I listen to?”

Rinel, suppressing his laughter, questioned her sleeptalking command to ‘listen.’

“Weapon….”

Zelda raised both hands, adopting a pose as if gripping a sword.

“What do you mean, suddenly telling me to take up a weapon?”

“Enough. Listen, weapon….”

Our Empress is strange.

“….There’s no fever, is there?”

She’s talking nonsense.

Rinel touched her forehead, tilting his head.

“Attack!”

She seemed to be fighting someone in her dream.

Perhaps it was because the last conversation they had before sleep was about swords and combat practice?

“It seems you’re having a dream about fighting, which doesn’t suit you at all.”

Rinel laughed, covering his own mouth with his fist.

Her earnest sleeptalking, worthy of a sword master, continued.

“Your body, weapon….”

“Huh? Weapon in my body?”

He continued to engage in conversation with the dreaming Zelda.

“I know…. all the weapons you’re hiding.”

“How did you know? That there are many things in me that could become weapons? Sharp, aren’t you?”

Rinel crossed his arms and sat down, looking down at her sleeptalking as if he was watching a show.

“So, take up your weapon….”

“Zelda, I always carry my weapon. My face is a weapon.”

Rinel spoke with a seemingly serious tone.

“And there are other weapons too, but I can’t casually take them out.”

“You talk a lot. Just take it out….”

“Don’t you say it’s not allowed?”

He fell back onto the bed and replied.

“Attack quickly…. Go!”

Zelda swung her hands, which she had been gripping in midair, from side to side.

“You’re so cute, I’m going crazy.”

He caught Zelda’s wandering hands in midair and brought them down.

And then he pulled her into his arms.

“Ah, just kill me, kill me!”

The moment Rinel was gathering all his patience and exerting his selfrestraint, shouting out,

“Ugh!”

Zelda’s weak fist struck the lower part of Rinel’s abdomen.