He didn’t get to finish his sentence before Tessandra jumped into his arms, crying and kissing him wildly, making everyone around laugh. Phemera sighed.
“And that is a yes if I’ve ever seen one,” she chuckled.
“...Too bad her mom isn’t here,” whispered Cassandra. “She’ll never believe me...”
Cessilia was so happy, both for herself and her cousin, she could barely realize everything that was going on. She turned around to face Ashen, his arms around her waist.
“...I did my best,” he whispered. “Your family can only stay one night, but...”
“Ashen, shut up, please. It’s absolutely perfect. It really is. I’ve never been happier... Thank you.”
They smiled again, and she put a kiss on his lips, completely unable to stop.
She was truly happier than ever. And this was just the beginning for them.
*The End*
Epilogue
“The new commercial road is a success, Your Majesty. The number of permits registered for traveling merchants has doubled, a third of them coming from the Dragon Empire. We expect a dozen new shops to open this month alone in the new district of the Capital, and probably twice that in the neighboring cities.”
The King nodded, looking down at the paper full of information in front of him. The data was detailed and quite positive, as usual. He turned to the General.
“What of the recruitments for protecting those merchants?”
“It’s going well, Your Majesty,” Sabael nodded. “We have a hundred knights who volunteered as patrol units, and even though we haven’t finalized the candidates registration for knightship next year, we expect it to be higher than the previous years. As you predicted, we are also seeing the new Mercenary Guilds offering their services as security escorts for the roads that aren’t covered by the patrols; we plan to work with them to make sure everything goes well.”
“Make sure only registered mercenaries can establish contracts with the merchants, and that the process is simple but safe. I do not want some fake guilds robbing those merchants the minute they’re on the roads.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The King nodded, and turned to the next page with a serious expression. While he wasn’t looking, everyone around the table exchanged looks. Next to him, the Royal Counselor cast her eyes to the door on their left, biting her fingernail nervously as she exchanged a glance with the General.
“The next subject is about the new crop fields in the south. I know the new river digs are almost completed, how are the architects doing? We’re supposed to have the village ready for the farmers by next month.”
“It will be ready in time, Your Majesty,” Nana smiled, “but the remaining matters of today’s session aren’t urgent and could wait a couple more days.”
Ashen finally lifted his eyes, glancing at Nana. She gave him a little accomplice smile. He hesitated, then glanced around the table. All the people seated gently smiled at him, some hardly repressing a laugh. Others were even looking at the King with proud expressions. After a few seconds, Ashen nodded, then put the documents down on the table.
“Then, if you’ll excuse me...”
He stood up first and quickly left the room. As soon as he was gone, several people who couldn’t repress it anymore laughed, including Nana. Lady Bastat, more elegant, hid her smile behind her long sleeve.
“It seems our young King really did his best to hold on until now.”
“You guys are too mean,” pouted Nana. “We could have let him leave earlier...”
“What fun would there have been in that?” chuckled her brother Sabael. “His Majesty is too serious all the time, we have to tease him.”
“I agree,” smiled Hephael, leader of the Hashat Tribe. “His Majesty should learn to be more open.”
Nana pouted, slightly disagreeing with them. She glanced at the door with a faint smile. In fact, she thought the King’s self-control was to be praised, given the situation.
A few corridors away from these people already, King Ashen was hurrying up the stairs, breathing quickly to keep up the pace. He had been dying to do this for a while, but now his nerves were reaching a peak. The quietness as he got close to their private apartments worried him more than anything. Never before had he hated the silence so much. He knew he was the one who had ordered anybody unnecessary to stay away from their living space, but now, he was worried he’d made a terrible mistake. What if–
“Daddy!”
He stopped and turned his head to see a little silhouette running toward him. Ashen only had time to turn before she landed right against him, grabbing his waist and lifting her head toward him with a big smile.
“Daddy, you’re back!”
“Daddy!”
He glanced behind her. A smaller silhouette was also coming toward him, with much more unstable but determined steps. He smiled, and gently shifted his older daughter to the side so he could squat down. Immediately, the toddler facing him smiled, even more confidently.
“Daddy!” she exclaimed with the cutest voice.
“Come here, baby,” he smiled.
His daughter waddled toward him. She had only learned to walk recently, but she could already run, which was quite an exciting challenge. A young maid behind her was watching her every step, her hands ready to grab the young Princess as soon as she’d show any signs of potentially falling. She wouldn’t do anything unless she was absolutely certain, though. The little dark-haired Princess had made huge progress with her running, and moreover, she hated to be helped when she didn’t need to be. As they had learned, letting her fall was actually better than a maid catching her, as she hated to be surprised. Hence, with cautious, small but sure little steps, his second daughter waddled all the way to him, and once she got close enough, she landed face first in his arms, with a cute happy sound of relief. Ashen smiled and lifted the baby girl up in his arms, putting a big kiss on her plump cheek. Somebody had put her hair up into two cute little buns today, her favorite hairdo since she had started copying everything her godmother said and did.
“Well done, my princess.”
The baby girl smiled and happily nestled her head against her dad’s neck, wrapping her chubby arms around it. Ashen then turned back to his oldest child, who was patiently waiting while holding his available hand.
“Not yet?”
