Chapter 11

Tarkan's eyes sharpened.

'Huh?'

"You don't know?"

Aristine asked, half in disbelief.

'How could you not know that I was under house arrest?'

She realized Irugo's information network was not as good as she thought.

'No, Irugo couldn't have missed it. It must be that Tarkan didn't know.'

The reason was obvious.

'He didn't care... about the person who was to be his bride.'

It seemed he cared very little.

Thinking about it, the image she saw in the magic mirror earlier came to mind.

[Do you perhaps have a liking for the princess?]

[No way.]

'What could it be? Why would I not be to his liking?'

[You know.]

It wasn't just the implication that 'you know the princess is dirty.'

[My heart will not change.]

On the day the bride for the political marriage arrived, a woman asked if the bride was to his liking.

To that woman, the man replied, 'You should know, my heart will not change.'

'So, is it a cliché story?'

Though she lacked social skills due to being confined, she had seen such situations a few times through the imperial eye.

'Hmm.'

Aristine tapped her fingers on the desk.

After finishing her thoughts, she spoke to Tarkan.

"First, we need to sort out our relationship. Even if it's a political marriage, we will be husband and wife."

Aristine tilted her head after speaking.

"No, do we need to sort it out even more because it's a political marriage?"

Tarkan raised an eyebrow at Aristine's indifferent attitude.

He didn't feel much about this marriage, but this woman seemed even less affected.

"I'll ask you directly."

Aristine met Tarkan's eyes.

Their gazes mixed slowly in the air heated by the afternoon sun.

She consciously smiled.

"Your Highness Tarkan, do you perhaps desire war?"

* * *

"What?"

Tarkan looked at Aristine, bewildered.

He didn't know how many times this woman, whom he met for the first time today, had surprised him.

Probably, the number of times he was surprised in the past year combined would be less than today.

Aristine looked at him with an unchanged expression.

Her eyes were neither light nor heavy, but calm.

Tarkan couldn't help but realize that this woman was not a delicate flower in a greenhouse.

She wasn't spouting nonsense without thought.

Tarkan's expression became serious.

"There are people who desire war."

He said in a low voice.

His golden eyes shone like a predator's in the dark.

"But I am not one of them."

Aristine was silent. The smile had disappeared from her face.

Her smile was beautiful but felt artificial.

Why did her expressionless face seem more natural?

Tarkan couldn't help but think as he looked at Aristine's beautiful face, which seemed crafted by a god with great care.

He didn't even realize it was the first time he had such thoughts about someone's expression.

For a long or short moment, they stared at each other without a word.

Though no words were spoken, something was definitely passing between them.

Aristine broke the strange standoff first.

"Then it's settled."

It was a very simple conclusion.

"Why did you ask that?"

"The easiest way to start a war is to kill me."

Tarkan was taken aback by her sudden statement.

But Aristine looked unperturbed.

"Of course, I don't want to die."

She said as she spread blueberry compote and clotted cream on a scone.

For some reason, Tarkan felt she was watching him as she spread the cream.

"And if you don't want a war, I need to stay alive, right? How about it, our interests align, don't they?"

Her attitude was so light, as if she were talking about someone else's life.

At least to Tarkan, Aristine didn't seem to value her life much.

She wanted to live but treated her life like a coin.

'What kind of woman is she...?'

"Isn't that right?"

Aristine urged Tarkan, who didn't respond.

Tarkan suppressed the thoughts reaching out to her.

This woman was talking about important matters.

He needed to take it seriously.

"How can I trust you? It's very common to say such things to make the other person relax and then plot behind their back."

Tarkan looked at Aristine directly and continued.

"There are many ways to start a war."

Despite being contradicted, a faint sense of satisfaction appeared in Aristine's eyes.

She was glad her future husband wasn't just a superficial fool.

"You're right. I could leak this place's secrets to Silvanus, or contact Irugoans who desire war. Or—"

Aristine lifted a butter knife and pointed it at Tarkan.

"Kill you."

Then she tilted her head and pointed the knife at her own neck.

Tarkan raised an eyebrow without a word.

For some reason, her direct provocation didn't seem bad.

"As I said, I don't want to die. If I kill someone here, I'll die too, so why would I do that?"

Aristine put down the butter knife.

"And I don't like Silvanus enough to go through the trouble of being a spy."

Aristine gauged what information she could share and spoke.

Tarkan would find out eventually.

'It's better if I tell him myself.'

"I was under house arrest since I was young."

Aristine spoke so casually that Tarkan didn't immediately understand what she said.

"The great Emperor of Silvanus dislikes me. You can imagine how a child who fell out of the emperor's favor and was placed under house arrest was treated..."

Aristine omitted the rest and smiled. It was a beautiful smile that curved her eyes.

Tarkan looked at her as if seeing something incomprehensible.

He couldn't understand why she revealed her weakness so casually.

It was something he couldn't even imagine.

It felt like having sand in his mouth.

He wanted to say something, but it wouldn't come out.

He knew nothing about women.

Why she was under house arrest.

What kind of treatment she received.

What she had experienced.

'I know nothing, but...'

Tarkan recalled the first time he saw her.

The back of a woman standing alone, enduring the ridicule and mockery of her siblings.

'I know one thing.'

At least, she wasn't the kind of person who would be deeply hurt by today's humiliation.

When she said she didn't want to die but treated her life so lightly—

'It means many people have tried to kill her.'

They must have treated her life as worthless.

If so, sending her here was as good as sending her to her death.

There were people in Irugo who desired war.

Tarkan's eyes narrowed.

But instead of probing further, he changed the subject.

"So, coming here in such a state wasn't your choice either."

"Correct."

Aristine nodded, putting the last piece of scone in her mouth.

She added, "If you investigate a little, you'll find out I was under house arrest."

"Now, can you believe me?"

"To some extent."

"Good."

Aristine nodded, satisfied.

For now, that was enough.

'This is almost the first time I've had such a long conversation. I did well, didn't I?'

She had lived almost her entire life without anyone to talk to, ever since she was under house arrest.

'This is a good start, isn't it?'

On the way to Irugo, she had spoken to her maids, but it was mostly 'Come here,' 'Sit down,' 'Eat this.'

'That can't even be called a conversation.'

The conversation with Tarkan today was the first proper one Aristine had in about ten years.

'I must have smiled a lot. I hope it wasn't strange.'

She had smiled intentionally, knowing that a confident smile could be a powerful tool in negotiations, as she had seen through the imperial eye.

She thought it went well enough.

"So, let's get to the main point."

"The main point?"

"Work to ensure my safety. It's a matter of the world peace you desire."

Aristine smiled.

"Is that what you want? You said you wanted my help when we both benefit."

"Yes."

Aristine nodded, her eyes saying, 'What else could there be?'

Tarkan found it a bit ridiculous.

This long conversation was all about asking him to protect her life.

It was hard to imagine this as the first request from a wife to her husband.

He expected something more significant.

But it was just this. Something so obvious and basic.

'What kind of treatment did she receive?'

Assuming she wasn't a spy, Tarkan still intended to protect her.

Now that she was bound by the engagement, she was under his responsibility.

He intervened when she was mocked by her siblings for that reason.

Mocking her was like mocking him.

But.

'Why do the Silvanus people bother me?'

It didn't matter how Aristine was treated in Silvanus.

At that time, she wasn't his responsibility and had no connection to him.

"Anything else?"

"Eh?"

Aristine's question made Tarkan realize he had asked her.

He thought it was too trivial to ask.

When the political marriage was decided, Tarkan didn't intend to pay attention to his wife.

He had dismissed Aristine's proposal about mutual benefits.

It was the same now.

He thought it was pointless and a loss to pay too much attention to this woman.

But for some reason, he couldn't help but ask.

"Anything else? Not really..."

Shaking her head, Aristine remembered something and her eyes lit up.

"Ah, can I start a personal business? I want to create my own fortune, not just the imperial treasury..."

She originally planned to bring it up later after building trust.

'But it's better to bring it up when the opportunity comes.'

"Business..."

"I'm not obsessed with business, really."

Aristine waved her hand.

She had a good item in mind.

It fit Irugo's situation and could fulfill the king's wish.

'Medical scalpel business!'

Irugo, which constantly fought against demons, had highly advanced metallurgy.

Using this technology to make medical scalpels.

'This will definitely succeed.'

The current medical scalpels were small, prone to rust, and not sharp enough.

But if made according to Aristine's method—

'The success rate of surgeries will increase exponentially.'

It was a matter of life and death.

Even countries with poor relations with Irugo, like Silvanus, would try to import them.

Moreover, it could change Irugo's barbaric image.

In other words, it could fulfill the king's wish.

How much profit would that bring?

'If I can attract this business, it will be a huge success.'

As the saying goes, treat gold as if it were your own!

But Tarkan was silent. He felt uneasy.

'Money is precious!'

Aristine started to throw out carrots.

"Ah, right. Besides world peace, there should be direct benefits for you to make it a proper negotiation."

For a well-stocked treasury, Aristine started to promote herself.

"As I said, I can handle situations in your absence. And—"

An offer he couldn't refuse.

Aristine thought so.

"Irugo is currently in a succession dispute, right?"

Normally, Hamir, the son of the main palace, would have been the heir.

But the king of Irugo was delaying the decision.

Because of Tarkan.

Tarkan, born to a commoner mother, was sent to hunt demons at the age of ten.

And he survived.

Actually, it didn't end there.

Tarkan had cut off the throat of Murzika, the demon who had been tormenting Irugo.

His position in Irugo rose dramatically.

"The things a wife can do for her husband, the heir, are pretty much set."

Aristine extended her hand to Tarkan.

"Let's help each other for our mutual safety."

Tarkan looked at the hand extended to him, feeling unfamiliar.

Aristine's intention was clear.

He would protect her, and she would protect him.

Partners.

It was a very strange word.

Many people followed Tarkan.

If he went out, they would kneel and kiss his feet.

But Aristine was different.

She wanted to share the same responsibility and role on equal terms.

"Do you know what that means?"

She wanted to live and had come to the king to prove herself and have this long conversation.

If she got involved in the political struggle, new people would target her life.

"Mother, don't you know what a political marriage means?"

But Aristine smiled and blinked.

Tarkan smiled.

"Of course, I know."

Tarkan's hand caught Aristine's.

Their fingers brushed, and soon their palms touched.

Aristine smiled.

"I think we will be a good couple."

As business partners in a political marriage, without any love.

Husband or not, she wanted to make money.