MHOW 08

Chapter 08

“Still, the most important thing is that you handled it well. Good job. I saw earlier that you even spoke well. Why were you so worried?”

Ares shook his head after gulping down water, looking almost pitifully out of sorts.
No wonder—today’s events were definitely too much pressure for a seventeen-year-old to endure.
But for Herina, that was actually a good thing.
The more shaken he was, the more he’d lean on her, wouldn’t he?

“Anyway, let’s keep hiding things just like we did today. That wasn’t a lie, right? About relying on each other and being there for one another?”

Knock, knock
“Your Excellency, His Highness the Prince is waiting in the reception room.”

Herina turned at the sudden voice. Ares’ pupils trembled uncontrollably as he met her gaze.

“What should we do?”

Ares asked, his face pale, looking at Herina.

“How can you ask me that! Veil! Should I wear a veil? No, that would look weird since the wedding’s over, wouldn’t it?”

Even if she could swallow the duke’s house whole, getting caught by the prince now would be a disaster.
Her grand plan could be jeopardized.

“Ares!”

She grabbed Ares’ wrist, frozen in a daze.
Standing him in front of the bed, she pushed him down so his head hit the pillow, and he looked at her in bewilderment.

“Are you trying to commit murder just to avoid seeing His Highness?”

Herina put her finger to her lips and gave a warning.

“If I wanted to kill you, would I wait until now? Be quiet, please! You’re sick, okay? You got so nervous from loving me too much that you collapsed right after the wedding. Understand? I’ll take care of it, so stay put. If the prince finds out, it’ll be a huge problem.”

Pressed by her authority, Ares pulled the blanket over himself and lay down—but he still grabbed Herina’s wrist as she tried to leave.

“But, the royal family is closely tied with our pro-emperor faction, and if something happens to me, even the second prince would help, right? Just like at the wedding…”

That was true. The second prince might immediately step in if he knew. He had close ties with the duke.
But that was the problem for Herina.
If that happened, her plan to use this young duke as a pawn to control the kingdom would be exposed.

“Secrets leak eventually. I’ll handle everything from now on, so don’t worry! Rest here!”

She put on her shoes, making a casual excuse to keep Ares from suspecting anything.
Seeing her back, Ares lightly held her arm to prevent her from tripping.

“Ah, thank you.”
“Um…”

Herina looked back, annoyed by his fussing, and Ares bowed, looking genuinely grateful.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, the wedding went smoothly. Normally, I’d have to handle this alone. I mean it.”

Herina felt a pang of guilt at his sincerity, but she just scrunched her nose and turned away.

“You’re welcome.”

Herina returned to her room, quickly changed into her formal outfit, and headed to the reception room where the prince would be waiting.

“I greet His Highness the Second Prince, the Star of the Empire.”

She entered the reception room alone and bowed formally. Prince Benjamin couldn’t hide his surprise.

“Where’s the duke? Only you came…? I didn’t expect to see you alone. That fellow usually won’t let you out of his sight.”

Herina sat on the nearby sofa and smiled as naturally as possible.

“The duke stayed up for several nights preparing for the wedding, so he’s not feeling well. Please forgive the breach of etiquette.”

“So Ares is actually sick? He must have really been looking forward to marrying you. In all my time as his friend, I’ve never seen him collapse like this.”

Of course. Right now, the duke wasn’t really sick—he was just lying down because he couldn’t resist her scolding.

“Haha… But why did you want to see me?”

Herina felt extremely awkward. Even though he hadn’t hidden his hostility before she went abroad to study, he seemed so gentle now—just because of the wedding.

“There’s no particular reason. This isn’t a journey that takes three days, and I came to see the friend who married a lifelong companion. But since he’s unwell, I’ll have to postpone. You must be busy caring for your groom on your first day of marriage anyway. I’ll leave now. We’ll meet properly soon.”

Just as he prepared to leave, the word “soon” caught her attention.

“‘Soon’… meaning you won’t go abroad again…?”

“Ah, it’s gotten dull now. His Majesty’s health isn’t great, so as a son, I should stay by his side and help.”

Herina barely forced a smile.

“Right… His Majesty must stay well… So you’ll stay in the empire from now on?”

Benjamin shrugged.

“I suppose so. We have a residence in the capital anyway. If the lady allows, I may visit often. Among my friends, there’s no one like him.”

Ugh… she wanted to hit her forehead.
But she couldn’t show it in front of royalty.

“That’s fortunate. Haha, really fortunate. The duke must’ve been lonely, and if Your Highness is nearby… it will be very good… Yes. A good friendship.”

Why did it have to be with a prince who wasn’t the crown prince?
The second prince wouldn’t be that busy, yet the thought of him coming to her house often made her head spin.

“Before marriage, I didn’t have many chances to meet the lady, but as the wife of my closest friend, I want to be close. I look forward to the bond you will build together.”

The prince’s handsome mouth curved with anticipation.
But Herina found it hard to smile back. Even if today went smoothly, she had no plan for how to keep the duke away in the future.

“Still…”
“Still?”
“If you could just give me a little leeway for now…”

This was all she had left. Acting jealous over her newlywed love.
Herina shyly smiled, playing the role of a woman jealous of a friend.

“The duke was very busy before marriage… If you could just give me some understanding, I’d be grateful.”

She spoke, blushing so much it looked coquettish. The prince was startled and apologized.

“Ah, yes. Understood. I’ve breached etiquette toward you. I’ll postpone my next visit.”

Relieved, Herina saw him off.

“That prince brat… Why does he suddenly act mature? His Majesty isn’t even old! He’s perfectly fine!”

She didn’t understand why he suddenly wanted to stay in the empire, but she was certain it wasn’t for good reasons.