Chapter 39

〈How dare you call me a eunuch...!〉

〈What do you mean, doctor!〉

Ah, the egg is gone.

My beloved egg is gone.

Oh, shattered egg!

Now burst, now broken egg!

The chilling wails of the men who had lost their life companions echoed through the ward.

Strangely, all of them were still unmarried.

The knights clutched their eggs with both hands, mourning the loss of their precious eggs.

To others, it only looked like they were holding the eggs given by the princess, their eyes brimming with tears of gratitude.

"Why are you like this? Aren't you going to eat it?"

Aristine looked at the senior knight who was hugging the egg and raised her right hand.

In her hand was a silver spoon she had brought from the dining room.

With a gentle snap of her wrist,

Snap!

The egg broke.

The senior knight's pupils dilated.

"No-o-o-o!"

A heart-wrenching scream echoed through the room.

Aristine ignored it and proceeded to crack the eggs of the other knights one by one.

"Eat it well."

"Aaaah!"

"My, my egg...!"

"No, I don't want to!"

The knights wailed as if their eggs had been broken.

They seemed to have lost their sanity, retraumatized by the shock of becoming eunuchs.

'Why, to this extent...'

Aristine looked at the knights with a slightly displeased expression.

They were so cruel to others but so weak when it came to themselves.

'Anyway, since they can't get married, what does it matter if they're eunuchs?'

These kinds of people shouldn't get married, for the sake of all women, no, for humanity.

After a while of wailing, the knights suddenly lifted their heads.

They looked like they had lost their minds.

The knights jumped up to face Aristine, moving quickly despite their bruised bodies.

"What are you doing now! Princess!"

The knights shouted at Aristine, as if they were about to grab her by the collar.

"Are you mocking us for becoming... eunuchs!"

"How can you do this to us and still think you'll be safe!"

The knight who was about to say more suddenly stopped.

"......Yes, you will be safe. You will be fine, no problem at all!"

Aristine frowned at the knight's sudden change in attitude.

'What is this?'

"Y-You didn't mean to mock us, right? Ha ha. You gave us such delicious eggs, and we didn't even eat them."

"We just jumped up out of gratitude. No other meaning."

"Um! Delicious! The eggs given by the princess are even more delicious!"

The knights, with faces as purple as steamed buns, tried their best to smile warmly and please Aristine.

'Why are they suddenly so servile?'

Aristine's gaze became sharp.

For some reason, the knights' eyes seemed to avoid her subtly.

She turned around to see what was behind her, but there were only palace attendants.

There was nothing unusual about the palace attendants.

'Really, what is it?'

When she turned her head back, the purple-faced knights were smiling while eating their eggs.

It wasn't a pleasant sight.

* * *

'Fortunately, she didn't notice.'

Tarkan, hiding behind a pillar, watched Aristine's back and thought.

The knights, who had received his gaze, trembled and laughed foolishly.

Seeing them fawning over Aristine and rubbing their hands, he felt they might say something foolish.

'Weaklings.'

In the face of overwhelming violence, humans become infinitely humble.

Especially these kinds of people.

Two hours ago, after a heated argument with Aristine, who had treated people like inflated, warm bread.

Tarkan skipped his meal and went to the meeting room.

There, he received a report about what had happened the previous night.

It was the news that Mukali, Jackal, and Durante had beaten the Silvanus knights to a pulp.

〈I apologize.〉

Tarkan looked at the three people who bowed their heads without any excuse.

Actually, he didn't care what happened to the Silvanus knights.

Of course, there would be political issues, but he had never cared about political problems before.

Hadn't Tarkan already thrown a knight into the underground prison?

In a way, it was a bit refreshing.

Those kinds of people always bothered him because they were near his bride.

〈Why did you do that?〉

〈The Silvanus knights made inappropriate remarks about the princess.〉

Tarkan's eyes sparkled at Durante's answer.

It was unexpected.

Mukali, who had a short temper, often caused trouble.

Jackal, the strategist, usually kept his cool but tended to get into trouble when involved with Mukali.

'So, Durante usually plays the role of calming them down.'

For Durante to join in and beat up the Silvanus knights was unusual.

Durante was generally uninterested in his surroundings.

He had a broad perspective and quick judgment, but he didn't care about anything.

The only person Durante cared about was Tarkan.

It was strange that he got involved in something related to Aristine.

Especially since the result could weaken Tarkan's political position.

〈I judged it to be the right thing to do.〉

Durante answered Tarkan's question succinctly.

'Because His Majesty cares about the princess.'

Durante didn't say it out loud.

Even if he did, Tarkan wouldn't accept it.

〈If Durante judged it to be right, then it must be.〉

〈Those guys were definitely in the wrong.〉

The warriors showed their trust in Durante and supported him.

Mukali's nose was red.

〈But it's surprising that Mukali stood up for the princess. Don't you dislike the princess of Silvanus?〉

〈Of course! As the princess of Silvanus, I can't like her!〉

Mukali shouted loudly.

〈But why did you do it?〉

〈That...〉

Mukali himself didn't know.

His hands just moved first.

By the time he realized the dirty and vulgar words were directed at Aristine, the Silvanus knight was already on the ground, thanks to his punch.

〈It wasn't because she's the princess, but because their words were too vulgar!〉

Mukali shouted, feeling he had found the right answer.

Just as warriors have pride, knights have chivalry.

But the Silvanus knights had thrown their chivalry out the window, speaking more crudely than street thugs.

〈What did they say?〉

Tarkan, who had been watching the warriors' conversation, asked quietly.

〈It was...〉

The words were too dirty to repeat in front of his lord.

But he couldn't ignore his lord's question, so Mukali hesitated before repeating what he had heard.

Crack!

The armrest of the chair Tarkan was sitting on made a terrifying sound and bent.

It wasn't made of wood and leather but of metal, including gold.

Yet it bent as if it were made of clay.

〈So, that's what happened.〉

His voice was as chilling as if it had been dragged from hell.

The body stiffened involuntarily.

The warriors held their breath and dared not look at Tarkan.

The air was so tense that they almost summoned their auras.

A feeling they had never experienced even in the slaughter fields stained with the blood of demons.

The chirping of birds in the garden had already stopped.

〈To my bride.〉

The murderous aura that had been raging like a storm suddenly disappeared, sucked into Tarkan.

The warriors could finally breathe.

It was a moment that felt eternal, though it was just a moment.

The chirping of birds still hadn't returned.

〈What about the knights?〉

Tarkan asked.

His attitude was the same as usual, as if the murderous aura had been a lie.

The atmosphere around him was calm, but the warriors couldn't relax.

〈They are in the ward.〉

Tarkan's palace had a large, separate ward.

It was created out of necessity because of the many warriors who followed him.

〈What's their condition?〉

〈They will need to lie down for two months. And...〉

Durante's answer made Tarkan raise his left eyebrow.

〈They became eunuchs.〉

At this, the corners of Tarkan's mouth, which had been heavy, slightly lifted.

A hint of satisfaction appeared in his golden eyes.

If Aristine had seen his expression, she would have definitely kept her distance, thinking, 'Feeling joy from someone else becoming a eunuch... definitely a pervert.'

Tarkan left the meeting room and went to the ward where the Silvanus knights were lying.

'Becoming eunuchs is not enough.'

That was his thought.

Tarkan personally reshaped each of the knights.

Afterward, strangely, his steps led him to Aristine.

Just as he was about to reach the dining room, Aristine suddenly burst out of the door.

For some reason, Tarkan hid behind a pillar.

He quietly followed her.

He didn't know why he was doing this.

Tarkan had never followed anyone before. He had only followed demons.

He was just worried that the woman who had heard the news might be hurt.

His bride was a very unique woman, but such words would definitely hurt her.

'...Maybe reshaping them wasn't enough.'

While thinking this and watching Aristine, he didn't expect her to crack the eggs so casually in front of the newly made eunuchs.

The cruel act made Mukali, who was beside Tarkan, involuntarily pull his legs in.

Any man with a certain part would have flinched in such a situation.

His wife was always different from what he expected, and that was quite pleasant.

* * *

The knights ate their eggs while crying.

Scary.

They never expected that monster to still be around the ward.

The word 'monster' was an understatement for Tarkan. Hell would be milder than him.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it."

Aristine put a rough period to her questions about the knights' sudden change in attitude.

They must be mentally unstable from becoming eunuchs.

Just as she thought this, a voice came from behind.

"Lady."

It was Tarkan.

He must have come to hear the news.

'The attack on the knights by the warriors could escalate into a diplomatic issue, so it's natural he's concerned.'

Aristine made eye contact with Tarkan and signaled vigorously.

'I've taken care of everything! No need to worry! No diplomatic issues! I'm competent, right?'

Tarkan flinched.

For some reason, Aristine was looking at him with incredibly bright eyes.

His confident steps hesitated for a moment.

The male attire in Ailugo typically exposed the chest, and he was currently bare-chested.

Without realizing it, Tarkan raised his hand to cover his chest.

"......?"

Aristine looked at him curiously and approached.

For some reason, Tarkan flinched even more.

He looked at her with a bewildered expression and then turned his face away.

His cheeks were slightly red.

"I've taken care of the knights. I'll explain it to them."

Aristine took Tarkan's hand and pulled him.

Tarkan followed her lead.

The warriors watched them with wide eyes, and the palace attendants nodded with satisfaction.

The two walked across the garden filled with spring flowers.

Aristine's skirt swayed gently in the spring breeze, softly brushing the green grass.

People stopped to watch the two walking side by side affectionately.

'How... beautiful...'

Suddenly, the ordinary garden felt like a divine garden.

Then, a rustling sound was heard.

Aristine turned her head in that direction.

Her navy blue hair fluttered in the wind.

A woman stood there, exuding a seductive aura even in the fresh spring garden.

"Diona."

At Aristine's call, Diona smiled with her red lips.

'I'm done with being a wife, now I'll just make money.'