Chapter 40

"His Highness Tarkan, Your Highness."

Diona bowed respectfully to the two of them.

'Hmm, should I leave them alone?'

The explanation that she handled the diplomatic issue well can be given later.

It would be best to give them some time together.

As Aristine was thinking this, Diona spoke first.

"Your Highness, I'm sorry, but may I borrow His Highness Tarkan for a moment? I have something to say to His Highness."

She was going to suggest that anyway.

Aristine was about to nod and let go of Tarkan's hand when Tarkan suddenly grabbed her hand that was trying to pull away.

He held it tightly, as if telling her not to let go.

Aristine looked up at Tarkan in surprise.

But he wasn't looking at her.

"I also have something to discuss with my wife."

Wife.

The word came naturally from Tarkan's mouth, and Diona's face turned pale.

But she smiled gently and nodded.

"I see. I didn't realize. I apologize for the intrusion."

Then she bowed to Aristine.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness."

'No, why is she apologizing to me?'

Aristine looked at Diona with a somewhat bewildered feeling.

This made it seem as if she had interrupted Tarkan and Diona's date.

'No, it wasn't me who refused, it was your boyfriend.'

Aristine didn't want to be in an awkward position, like a third wheel in a couple's relationship.

"You don't need to apologize to me. Or do you want to come with us? What Tarkan and I have to talk about isn't really a secret."

As she said this, her right cheek tingled.

She could tell without looking that Tarkan was staring at her with an intense gaze.

'Why is he acting like this?'

If they wanted to have a secret conversation, they could do it after Diona left.

They shared the same bedroom, so they could talk at night.

"Really, is that okay?"

Diona asked, her face lighting up.

"Sure. Let's have some tea. Tarkan."

Aristine subtly revealed her personal preference.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Diona smiled warmly, her eyes narrowing.

Tarkan, who had been watching this, called out to her. His tone was stern.

"Diona."

"Yes?"

Diona pretended not to know what was going on and looked up at him innocently.

After a moment, Tarkan frowned slightly and turned his head away.

'She's going to follow.'

Diona was a quick-witted woman.

She always read Tarkan's intentions and acted accordingly before he even spoke.

She must have noticed that he didn't like her following.

'Can't help it.'

Aristine had invited her first, so Tarkan couldn't refuse.

That would be disrespectful to Aristine's wishes.

Most importantly, there was no reason to send Diona away and be alone with Aristine.

'...But why do I feel so annoyed?'

"The princess is now my consort, so please address me as Consort from now on."

Tarkan's cold words made Diona's eyes waver.

Even though Aristine was still the princess of Sylvanus, she was now also the consort of Ailugo.

It was strange for the people of Ailugo to call her the princess of another country.

But she didn't expect Tarkan to point this out.

Tarkan was a man who didn't pay attention to such trivial matters.

'But why...!'

Why did he keep showing a different side of himself when it came to Aristine?

Diona hid her tightly clenched fists in the folds of her skirt.

"Ah... I apologize. It was out of habit..."

Of course, it wasn't out of habit.

She didn't want to call Aristine Tarkan's consort.

That position should be hers.

Aristine's face reflected in Diona's sea-blue eyes.

Diona moved her lips as if cutting with a knife.

"...Consort."

The simple pronunciation felt like her mouth was being cut and bleeding.

Diona was clearly smiling, but her face looked like it would be better if she weren't.

Aristine wanted to get out of this uncomfortable situation quickly.

"Sure, that's fine. If you call me correctly from now on, that's all. Shall we go?"

Quickly changing the subject, Tarkan nodded and started walking.

He was still holding Aristine's hand.

His broad shoulders and developed shoulder blades, his slender waist, and his long, elegant legs made him look like a god.

Standing next to him, Aristine, with her delicate and soft features, complemented him beautifully.

Aristine and Tarkan, even from behind, looked like a scene from a myth, mysterious and heart-stirring.

Diona saw the palace attendants staring at the two of them in awe.

Among them were attendants who followed her closely.

Diona bit her lip tightly. Even to her, the two of them looked well-suited, so how much more so to others.

She thought of the crowd praising the two of them at the wedding yesterday.

Among the people watching the wedding parade, some were even sobbing.

A fan club was formed almost immediately.

And what about the newspapers?

The hero of Ailugo's prince's wedding, and even more so, a political marriage with the Empire of Sylvanus.

It was an event that couldn't be ignored.

But the tone was strange.

'That damn romance of the century!'

How well the two of them suited each other, how they exchanged glances, the crisis they faced during the wedding parade and how they resolved it with love.

It was filled with such useless things.

So many photos were published.

It was confusing whether this was a newspaper or an illustrated romance novel.

Unable to contain her anger, Diona tore the newspaper to shreds.

She even burned it while cursing the journalists.

At the same time, she obsessively collected gossip magazines to see if there were any bad rumors about Aristine.

But.

On their wedding night, the bed broke due to the prince and consort's activities.

[Exclusive] Photos of the prince and consort's bed.

Gossip magazines, as if by agreement, published articles about Tarkan and Aristine breaking the bed on their first night.

One gossip magazine that exclusively published the bed photos reportedly recorded the highest sales in its history.

After reading the gossip magazine and wailing like a madwoman, Diona couldn't bear it and came to the palace to see Tarkan.

She thought she would feel better if she could see it with her own eyes.

After all, there was no way Tarkan would give his heart to Aristine.

Such a thing would never happen.

Tarkan had clearly said his feelings wouldn't change.

It was a political marriage for peace, so they couldn't avoid the wedding night.

If they used separate rooms, the whole country would be in an uproar.

The queen's side would attack, and most importantly, it would dampen the spirits of the people who were excited by the wedding yesterday.

So she thought Tarkan would be doing his duties, not caring about the princess, as usual.

But.

Diona watched Tarkan, who didn't look back at her and just walked away.

She stood there, not moving a step, wondering how he could not look back even once.

While still holding Aristine's hand.

Crunch.

Diona gritted her teeth.

A tidal wave of anger surged in her sea-blue eyes.

'Do you think I'll back down like this?'

No matter what happens, she wouldn't back down.

'Because His Highness Tarkan must be mine.'

Chapter 12. Diona, Keep It Up!

The tart, topped with finely pureed, sweet persimmons and baked, looked fresh and sweet just by looking at it.

Aristine gazed at the tart in awe.

She hurriedly took a bite with a fork, and the rich almond cream and persimmon cream blended perfectly, making her eyes close involuntarily.

The golden tart crust was so crispy and buttery!

She felt a deep sense of appreciation from the bottom of her heart.

The pastry chef in this palace was not only good at making scones but also excelled in other pastries.

If she ever divorced Tarkan, the pastry chef she had never seen would be the one she missed the most.

Seeing Diona, who wasn't touching the tart, Aristine encouraged her.

"Diona, try it. The pastry chef here is really good, so everything is delicious."

Such delicious things should be promoted.

"...The pastry chef?"

Diona asked, a bit reluctantly.

Tarkan didn't enjoy such desserts.

He rarely sought them out, and even when they were served with tea, he rarely touched them.

So the pastry chef in Tarkan's palace was just average.

They might be good outside, but within the palace, their skills were clearly lacking.

But to hear that they were good...

'Living in confinement, her taste must not be very refined.'

She laughed inwardly, but then remembered something Mucali had mentioned in passing.

"His Lordship seems to be thinking of using scones as combat rations."

"Scones?"

"Yes. He suddenly asked to recruit a pastry chef who is good at making scones. He said it didn't matter how much it cost or if they were from another palace."

"But bringing in a pastry chef from another palace will cause conflicts..."

"Jikalen will handle it. He's smart. Since His Lordship wants it, we'll do it."

At the time, she found it absurd to make combat rations out of scones.

But now, she had a bad feeling.

"Miss, did you hear? Princess Yenika fired her pastry chef."

"Really? She was quite fond of him. She often boasted about him."

"Well, I'm not sure... But everyone is in a frenzy trying to recruit that pastry chef from other families."

"One of the reasons Princess Yenika's tea parties were popular was because of the desserts."

The conversation with the maid flashed through her mind.

At the time, she didn't think much of it.

When the maid was brushing Diona's hair, she would often talk about the gossip she heard from maids of other families.

So she didn't pay much attention.

If she had to pick the best pastry chef in this palace, it would undoubtedly be Yenikarina's pastry chef.

Naturally, he would be the best at making scones.

"Diona? Do you not like tarts?"

Aristine asked Diona, who wasn't touching the tart.

"No, no."

Diona shook her head, flustered. She had been lost in thought.

"If the Consort says so, I'm looking forward to it. Let me try a bite."

Just as Diona said this and picked up her fork,

"Oh, I'm so insensitive."

Aristine sighed and blamed herself.

"You don't have to eat it. Diona, I'm sorry."

Diona was taken aback by the sudden apology.

'Why is she doing this?'

Even after carefully considering their conversation, there was no reason for Aristine to apologize.

'Ah, is she trying to make me look bad in front of His Highness Tarkan?'

The consort's kind invitation made Diona give a negative response, which in turn made the consort apologize.

'Is she trying to frame it that way? How cunning.'

Diona smiled softly and lowered her eyebrows.

Unlike the almost expressionless princess, Diona was a master of facial and image management.

'I'll show her that she's no match for me.'

"Please take back your apology, Consort. I was just momentarily speechless, moved by your consideration."

Diona's voice was as sweet as honey.

"But to apologize... Did I, Diona, upset you in any way?"

She deliberately acted anxious and looked at Aristine.

This made it seem like Aristine had given her a hint by not responding quickly to her words.

Diona smiled satisfactorily.

Sure enough, the princess, who couldn't manage her image properly, showed a clearly flustered expression.

'Of course she would. She never expected to be counterattacked like this. How dare she challenge anyone.'

"Huh? Why would you upset me? That's not it—"

As Aristine denied and glanced at Tarkan, Diona burst into a hearty laugh inwardly.

'So clumsy.'

She was curious what excuse she would come up with.

No matter what excuse she gave, Diona was confident she could crush it.

Finally, Aristine blurted out the rest of her words.

"You're not feeling well."

"Excuse me?"

It was a completely unexpected statement.

Diona couldn't understand what Aristine was saying.

"Your... um, digestion isn't smooth... "

"Digestion?"

"Yes, if you have that condition, such food isn't good for you. I was deliberately not eating it, but I suggested you eat it... "

Aristine's words were clearly in the common language, but Diona couldn't grasp their meaning.

"I must have made you uncomfortable. I even suggested it again without realizing... "

Aristine looked at Diona with pity.

It was a genuinely apologetic look.

"Last time, it was better, right? If you had to rush to the bathroom so urgently... "

Was it a pleasant and refreshing experience?

Aristine's eyes were asking.

Diona's mouth dropped open.

Surely, surely, right now—

'Is she saying I have constipation?'

Forget about a husband, I'll earn money.