The Crown Princess's Man (12)

The next day, there was an ennoblement ceremony for the four captains.

Under the witness of Marquis Kyril and Duke Crunel, and watched by countless knights, Haris, Ban, Nel, and Zik were granted fiefs and bestowed the title of baron.

“Haris Crimson, Ban Strin, Nel Pruna, Zik Iason. Do you swear to obey above unto His Majesty and the imperial family with loyalty, and below to care for the people with benevolence and mercy?”

“I, Haris Crimson,”

“Ban Strin,”

“Nel Pruna,”

“Zik Iason,”

The four knights knelt before the Crown Princess.

“Before the glory of Aikadum, we swear to uphold and carry out all that has been spoken, even with our lives.”

It was clear what meaning the ennoblement of those who had held the captaincy for years and won countless merits would have for the fortress’s knights.

They watched the glorious moment with shining eyes and dreamed of the day they themselves might stand there.

They had been allowed to hope for things they had never dared to hope for.

Their Commander, who always watched them from the closest place, was saying it was all right.

Their pounding hearts told them so.

It told them to climb up there with all their might because an impartial measure would judge the fruits of effort without betrayal.

Meanwhile, some knights looked at the Crown Princess and the Commander with somewhat baffled eyes.

They couldn’t believe that the person who waddled about with a chubby, bear-like build and the elegant, delicate Crown Princess were the same person.

So all that bulk was just clothes? How many layers would one have to wear to look like that!? How could anyone commit such an offense against that beautiful Crown Princess in the first place?

No matter how much they respected the Commander, it was outrageous.

They’d long known the Commander had terrible naming sense, thanks to that damned ridiculed order name, but to top it off, he was a fashion terrorist.

It was lucky Kaiston was in a good mood. If he’d been even a bit grumpier, he would have marched the subordinates who sighed at him into formation and given them hell.

Another day passed, and so came the day that Marquis Kyril and Lady Marian returned to the Isles.

The Marquis was surprised to hear that Baron Ban Strin, the corps captain, would be in charge of the escort.

Even though he knew Duke Crunel would be concerned for him because he was Saik’s father, he hadn’t expected support to this extent.

There were as many as five deputy captains.

They had been selected from the twenty deputy captains by volunteer vote.

The remaining five knights had also been carefully chosen.

Not only for skill but for comportment as knights, only thoughtful and cautious men were formed into the escort.

After two days of pestering Kaiston, Marquis Kyril was able to put together some plans.

“You’re really no ordinary person, Duke,” Saik remarked.

Saik only gave a bitter smile at the Marquis’s heavy sighs.

It was easy to imagine how coldly his Commander would have treated the Marquis, who never inclined to lean on others.

No doubt he would have refused every risky plan, telling him to worry about his family’s safety.

Under the escort of Ban and the Red Moon knights, the Marquis’s party left the fortress.

Ban glanced back several times at Kaiston, who watched them off with a composed expression.

“Take care. If anything happens, evacuate the Marquis’s family first. Until further orders, he is my man. You understand what I mean?”

Remembering how he had been pulled aside for that final plea made Ban sigh.

Even if they had said they would leave and never return, he would have sent them off with the same expression.

Ban looked at the Crown Princess Liris, who was waving her hand with Kaiston’s arm linked in hers.

And he prayed earnestly.

“Please stay by the Commander’s side until the end, Your Highness. Even if everyone leaves him, if only you remain by his side, he’ll be all right.”

Time passed quickly.

Taking Marquis Kyril’s advice, Kaiston practiced until he could unconsciously fully rein in the sharp aura that hovered around him.

His gaze, expression, and bearing were meticulously corrected by Liris and Saik.

It wasn’t easy. After all, he’d lived too long with that edge, but Kaiston managed somehow.

It was to the point that if someone unexpectedly tapped him on the back, he could turn as if nothing had happened.

And just as that training concluded, spring arrived even in the Red Moon.

The fortress and the lands around it, which had been drenched in sacred power throughout the winter, began to sprout new life.

Flowers bloomed throughout the inner castle.

Trees grew thickly around the outer perimeter.

Thanks to the liberally poured sacred power, growth was several times faster.

Seeing the fortress change day by day, the knights would gather by the flowerbeds during breaks to admire the blossoms.

One day, butterflies flew in and it caused an uproar.

No one knew exactly where they’d come from, but the miracle of life moved everyone.

Liris chose volunteers from among the knights, taught them how to care for the fortress’s new friends, and assigned them duties.

It was to prepare for the times when she would have to leave the fortress.

There were more volunteers than expected, so they had to divide the areas into dozens of sections.

The entire fortress brightened thanks to the Crown Princess’s cheerful, joyful presence as she wandered about.

Kaiston no longer bundled her up tightly and left her be.

He knew it was pointless now that her presence was revealed to everyone anyway.

He wasn’t too worried because Aaron was always with her, guarding and staying by her side.

Millen adapted to fortress life much faster than expected.

The knights treated Millen, who possessed great martial strength, as a comrade without prejudice.

As he endured brutal training, Millen slowly began to cultivate a pure yearning for strength.

Of course, the sparring sessions with Kaiston were still hellish.

The first few months, he got beaten up terribly.

Just as the number of times he dodged and parried began to increase, Kaiston would raise the intensity of his attacks again.

He would drive him to the point of helplessness, force a healing potion down his throat to stand him back up, and insist on filling every minute of the allotted time.

He seemed like the devil incarnate.

And now, after those times, he could feel himself growing noticeably stronger.

When Kaiston occasionally praised him, he felt shy yet proud and had to struggle to hold down the smile that kept rising.

Sometimes Millen would run into the Crown Princess.

Because of lingering mixed feelings, they would both turn away from a distance without caring about who did it first, but one day, the Crown Princess stopped him.

She demanded an apology about the things in the past that had hurt her.

Millen, flustered, mumbled a perfunctory apology without meeting her eyes, shoved her, and ran away.

Liris was a bit taken aback but thought that was enough.

She no longer wanted to harass him.

And so time flowed relentlessly until one summer day.

Aside from her menstruation periods, she’d really been trying hard, but with no results, Liris seemed very disappointed.

It was understandable that both the Aikadum and the Baras imperial families were not fertile and that a baby wouldn’t come easily, but still, she almost grew to abhor the punctual monthly cycles.

So Liris, leafing through books like “Pregnancy Know-How from a Mother of Eleven” and “I’ve Got a Baby!”, decided to try some outlandish methods.

Seeing Liris standing on her hands after sex, Kaiston let out a small sigh.

“Liris, I’m doubtful this method will actually work.”

“Ugh… it’s so hard…”

Having just received him in that energetically stimulating missionary variant that’s rumored to aid conception, and now being in this position, she was exhausted.

In the end, Liris flopped onto the bed.

“Ah, I give up. This really won’t do.”

Kaiston gently smoothed her hair.

“When the time comes, it will happen.”

Liris looked up at him dazedly.

And she murmured, “We love each other like this.”

“Yes. Perhaps the gods are allowing us to enjoy our newlywed days a little longer.”

“Having a baby doesn’t mean it’s no longer newlywed life, you know.”

“But intimacy won’t be so easy, I suppose.”

At Kaiston’s words, Liris took his hand with both of hers and pressed it to her cheek.

“That… is a little disappointing.”

“Right? So let’s not be impatient.”

Kaiston, quietly watching Liris with her eyes softly closed and face nuzzling his hand, lightly pressed his lips to her red, lovely mouth.

“How wonderful it would be to live like this with you for the rest of my life.”

“Are you really content like this? Locked up in the Red Moon right now?”

“If I could see my parents just one more time, that would be enough. There is no one waiting for me now, and nowhere fitting for me to go anyway.”

“Still, once we’re actually in the Isles, it’ll be much more fun than here.”

Kaiston gave a wry smile as he watched Liris speak with sparkling eyes.

“Will it?”

“Of course. There are so many places I want to go with Kai. Let’s go on dates, just us.”

“Come to think of it, I’ve never given you a proper date.”

Married first, lovers later; he thought it was a bit funny.

“If I’d taken you as my bride when you were eight, we’d have had plenty of dates.”

“Ugh… that would be… more like childcare than dating, wouldn’t it?”