During the first rest stop of the convoy, Rian stepped out of his Imperial carriage and immediately looked towards the Rosewood carriage. As Ren Xiyang exited, their gazes met.
Rian’s eyes brightened as his heart sped up in anticipation.
Out of sight of Queen Mira, Rian was envisioning a beautiful romantic trip, where he could spend days upon days in Ren Xiyang’s company and deepen their relationship—
Count Aegean stepped in between them, his back towards Rian. “Earl Rosewood, come here, if you may. I’ll give you and His Highness a lesson together before lunch.”
Rian and Ren Xiyang: “….”
Rian suppressed his huff. Fine, he’d talk to Ren Xiyang in private after lunch when Count Aegean was resting.
After lunch:
Count Aegean had a sly expression as he looked at Prince Rian in the eye. “While I rest, I’ve asked Healer Mage White to teach you and Earl Rosewood advanced healing techniques. She has kindly agreed.”
Rian: “…”
In contrast to the displeasure that Rian felt, the sweet, lovely, innocent Ren Xiyang—who didn’t know that Rian had very important things to talk to him about—looked interested at the prospect of learning from Healer Mage White.
Rian reluctantly let go of his grumpiness at the face of Ren Xiyang’s non-zero enthusiasm. Looking on the bright side, at least they could continue sitting next to each other. Rian made sure to sit close enough to Ren Xiyang so that the sides of their feet would press against each other.
In the afternoon, the convoy passed into the Schauss fief and detoured to the Schauss family’s main manor.
Duke Schauss and his family were there, waiting for them.
There was no one in this convoy that Duke Schauss was good, honest friends with. But between talking to Duke Blewitt versus talking to Prince Rian, Duke Schauss preferred Prince Rian. So after he welcomed the convoy to his fief, he requested Prince Rian’s time for a private meeting, to talk about certain functions of the Royal Healers’ Service.
Meanwhile, Orion Schauss and Perseus Schauss entertained Earl Rosewood. Duchess Schauss, with Cassiopeia Schauss at her mother’s side, hosted the rest of the convoy.
The relationship between Cassiopeia and Earl Rosewood and Prince Rian wasn’t as bad as it used to be, especially after she was accepted into Prince Rian’s association of future leaders. But Duke Schauss was still wary. Even if King Edric himself asked for Cassiopeia to marry Prince Rian, Duke Schauss wouldn’t agree.
During dinner, Duke Schauss made sure that Prince Rian and Earl Rosewood weren’t seated within talking distance of Cassiopeia. Aside from polite greetings between them, there was no other direct interaction.
Prince Rian and Earl Rosewood didn’t make any unusual glances towards his daughter. Instead, it was Cassiopeia who seemed a little stiff.
Duke Schauss had organised light entertainment during the dinner, in the form of an orchestra. After that, he had the Schauss servants lead the convoy members to their rooms for the night.
He personally accompanied Cassiopeia to her bedroom and bade her good night. He couldn’t wait for the convoy to depart.
Inside her bedroom, Cassiopeia’s smile faded.
She wasn’t stupid. She had noticed that her father was being overprotective.
And that made her feel guilty.
She wasn’t the same person who made that outburst three years ago. She wasn’t a baby.
And what happened three years ago was…mostly her fault.
She could never become like the other noble children who were dazzled by everything that ‘Ayden Rosewood’ did and wanted nothing more than to be his friend. Unlike them, she knew that Ayden Rosewood wasn’t as imaginative and smart as he appeared—he was just copying inventions and dishes from their old world!
But his strength was undeniable. He was scarily strong, and Cassiopeia was no longer stupid enough to get on his bad side. She was studying healing very hard in the last few years, and her father even called her a genius, but she still wasn’t as strong as Ayden Rosewood.
…She also felt guilty because she had benefited from the things that Ayden Rosewood made. She had gotten an Azure-Obsidian-Rosewood communication mirror the moment it came out. Last year, her father gave her a personal magical kitchen filled with state-of-the-art kitchenware including precision ovens and smokeless stoves—with almost all of the goods being affiliated with the Rosewood group. It made making desserts ten times more easy, and even easier to receive praise from her friends and family for her baked goods.
If she hadn’t said those words back then, where would she be now? Rather than Prince Rian and Earl Rosewood being known for being great friends, would there be a famous trio including her instead?
It was too late for regret, but Cassiopeia regretted nonetheless.
Rian peeked his head through Ren Xiyang’s open window.
Ren Xiyang was standing by the window with a deadpan expression. He silently pulled Rian in, closed the windows, and fully drew the curtains.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Mlcjiis,” Eljc rjlv fwqtjalmjiis. Lf kgjqqfv tlr jgwr jgbecv Efc Wlsjcu jcv rdeffhfv alutais.
“Oof,” Ren Xiyang grunted. “Do you want to break my ribs?”
“Ktfc P mjc cegrf sbe yjmx ab tfjiat jujlc, Tjcusjcu,” Eljc afjrfv. Lf rtloafv tlr tbiv bo Efc Wlsjcu ogbw j teu ab j qglcmfrr mjggs jcv abbx Efc Wlsjcu ab atf yfv.
Ktf Vmtjerr yfvgbbwr tjv yfvvlcu lc qlcx, ktlaf jcv mgfjw. Pa kjr j mtjcuf ab tjnf Efc Wlsjcu ilf bc remt rboa mbibegr.
“I have important things to tell you, but first…”
—
After some fun, Rian snuggled in bed with Ren Xiyang.
“Did you do anything interesting that I should know about?” Rian asked.
Ren Xiyang’s face became serious. “Yes.”
“Oh?” Rian snuggled closer.
“I talked to Florence before you all left and—”
“I spoke with Florence too.”
Ren Xiyang frowned. “About…marriage?”
Rian frowned back. “Wait, do you want to marry her?”
Ren Xiyang’s frown was replaced with a deadpan expression. “Yes, right after rolling in bed with you, I admit that I wanted to marry Florence the whole time—no, of course not. You know that perfectly well.”
Rian kissed Ren Xiyang on the cheek. “Just making sure. I too spoke with Florence on the matter of marriage. She suggested that I speak to you.”
“Same,” Ren Xiyang said.
“I also spoke to my Imperial Mother about marriage. Did you speak to her as well?”
Ren Xiyang’s heart thumped. What? He gave Rian a suspicious look. “No, I didn’t. ”
Rian had a mischievous smile. “Well, she knows that I love you. I told her how you don’t love me back. And I also promised her that I won’t propose to you on this trip.”
“…”
Ren Xiyang pressed his lips together. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it: about what Rian said, and the fact that Rian had told Queen Mira without talking to him first.
It wasn’t the priority though, so he pushed the Queen Mira problem aside and returned to Florence’s advice. “We’re going to talk about that later. But first, Florence told me how she viewed marriages. And I realised that the way she viewed it wasn’t the same as how I viewed it.”
Rian had a moment of realisation. “Oh—”
“Yeah, it’s not that I plan to become someone else’s partner, but rather, marriage meant something different in my old world. Or, at least, it meant something different to me.”
Rian grasped Ren Xiyang’s hands under the blankets. “Tell me everything.”
Ren Xiyang told him all about how he felt about marriage. “…So, I introduced gay marriage to the Rosewood fief because it was the right thing to do, not because I was anticipating to marry someone. I understand that other people want and desire marriage.”
“You didn’t anticipate me.”
“No one can anticipate the great Crown Prince Rian.” Ren Xiyang’s lips curled up.
Rian smirked. “That’s right.”
Ren Xiyang’s smile faded. “And there’s something else. We’re both in the closet. Aside from Florence—and now Queen Mira—no one else knows that we like men, let alone that we like each other. You have to sneak over. We have a clear separation between our private life and our public life. I feel like there are milestones that we should complete before a wedding. I’m not in a hurry. I want to take time, and enjoy the process.”
Rian’s eyes softened. “I see.”
“—Also, I’m not like you. You liked me for over two years and had much more time to think about this.”
Rian huffed. “I know you liked me too, you just didn’t realise it!”
“I did not,” Ren Xiyang retorted.
“You did too!”
“Do you know me better than I know myself?”
“Yes!”
“Yeah, nah, I think you’re wrong—mpffff!”
Rian lunged forward and kissed Ren Xiyang deeply, cutting off his words. It was highly effective.
After one final nibble of Ren Xiyang’s lips, Rian pulled back.
Ren Xiyang gazed back at him, half amused and half exasperated. He knew perfectly well why Rian had done that.
“Yangyang…”
“Yes, Riri?”
“I had always thought of marriage as a necessary matter, something determined by my Imperial parents,” Rian said. “I would marry a woman of high standing, likely the daughter of one of the dukes.” He swiped his thumb over Ren Xiyang’s red, well-kissed lips. “But then, I met you.”
They held each other’s gaze.
“I want to use marriage to show to you and the kingdom how much I respect you and adore you and love you.”
Ren Xiyang’s face grew red. “Mm…”
“Marriage is my guarantee that we will be together forever and that no one can come between us. We will be partners in every sense of the word.” Rian kissed Ren Xiyang on the lips. “You know I love you.”
Ren Xiyang gave a shaky exhale. “Okay. Thank you for telling me.”
There was silence for a minute.
Ren Xiyang spoke first: “I didn’t expect to sign that contract variation this morning.”
“King Augustus gave up earlier than expected,” Rian said.
“What about Aurelia? Is she ready?”
“Her current position could be worse. We need to wait and see. I expect the next few weeks in Angio to be quite hectic.”
“How about the underground tower?”
“Viscountess Venenum has been keeping a tight team. Don’t worry. I’m sure my Imperial Father will keep a close eye on all matters.”
“It would have been faster if we assassinated King Augustus.”
“We should let those with personal grudges against him deal with him,” Rian chided, bopping Ren Xiyang on the nose.
Ren Xiyang made a face. “The thought of it being inefficient though—”
“Princess Aurelia is as efficient as you. She simply didn’t have a ‘me’ like you do.”
“Ah yes, you’re my secret advantage. What would I do without you?” Ren Xiyang said drily.
“Not so secret,” Rian said. “But if you want to thank me, next time, you should sneak into my room.”
“…Okay.”
“You could also kiss me some more before we sleep.”
“…Right.”
The next morning, Ren Xiyang walked calmly out of his assigned room, while Rian walked out of his with a spring in his step and a satisfied smile on his face.
After breakfast and Duke Schauss’s farewell, the convoy headed to their carriages.
Count Aegean intercepted Earl Rosewood. “Earl Rosewood, join us in the Imperial carriage for class.”
Ren Xiyang looked at him without blinking. “Oh, my apologies,” he said in a voice that didn’t sound apologetic. “I have many scheduled long-distance meetings with my staff and with my student—I mean, Lord Hadrian Terra. So I can’t stay and chat.”
Count Aegean was rendered speechless. Student? Earl Rosewood hadn’t even been to the academy yet, let alone the university!
With a slight head nod, Ren Xiyang strode to the Rosewood carriage and closed the door. Inside, Ren Xiyang let out a sigh of relief. Sorry-not-sorry, but Rian’s company wasn’t worth the pain of Count Aegean’s teaching.
King Augustus sat on his throne, with Princess Aurelia standing by his side.
This morning, the flow of nobles in for morning court was slower than usual. That was because they had all to sign a contract at the door before entering the hall.
The new Sedaverian contract variation was on its way to Angio. King Augustus’s agents were headed to the Angio-Sedaverian border to accept the contract and take it back to the Capital.
King Augustus’s magic would return faster if he also headed to the Angio-Sedaverian border. However, he couldn’t leave the Capital. If he did, Prince Marcus would swoop in and take over.
Until his magic returned, King Augustus had to rely on other people to keep him safe. But he didn’t trust anyone completely.
In the end, that annoying Prince Rian had a use: inspired by his words, King Augustus had those waste mages in the mage tower draw up a new contract, one that made people unable to harm him, or else they and their families would die. This meant that the nobles attending morning court and their families would need to sign.
On this first day, King Augustus graciously allowed the nobles to enter without their family members’ signatures. But he would be enforcing it from tomorrow onward.
Admittedly, it was unclear whether the contract would actually be enacted, i.e., whether the magic of the contract was strong enough to take the lives of the signers if they broke the contract terms.
But it was a strong risk and a powerful deterrent.
Aurelia had signed it without a word, just like how she was standing next to him without a word.
Oh, King Augustus knew that Aurelia hated him. But she was too weak to even rebel! Unlike that traitorous Marcus.
King Augustus would deal with him when the time came.
The far west seaside of Angio was beautiful, with fine white sand and glittering blue seas. It was summer, and the noontime was hot. Here, it was peaceful; Marcia and Ariadne were far from the tumultuous undercurrents in the Capital.
Ariadne was playing in the water with the local noble children.
Marcia sat on a beach chair, ostensibly resting.
But in fact, she was ruminating on the call from Aurelia last night.
“Be careful.”
The breeze should have been warm, but Marcia felt cold.
With the impending return of King Augustus’s magic, King Augustus wasn’t the only one at risk. Anti-imperialists could target Marcia and Ariadne too.
In a large kingdom, there were multiple factions. Marcia had been personally approached by nobles—or nobles’ servants—inviting her to meet them.
She had declined them all. Invitations during this time period weren’t innocent. She wasn’t going to become some faction’s figurehead.
She hoped that everything would be resolved soon, one way or another.
THANK YOU to whoislikeaparadox for more art! This time of Rian!
OMG if there was a modern AU, Rian could definitely be an idol 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Thanks for the chapter! I hope Marcia and Ariadne are ok
Thank you for reading! They should be fine~
xiyang left rian to ~~count aegen~~ the shark
🤭🤭🤭 Rian is also a better student 🤣🤣🤣
I am sure he had some meetings.
He definitely had some meetings…that he might have scheduled last minute 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Off to work—enjoy your lesson…hahhahahaha! Things are a brewing in Angio… Thanks for the update 🤣❤️🤣❤️🤣
Work is more fun that school u_u Thank you for reading!
Queen Mira put Count Aegean to it, didn’t she! 🤣
On the second thought, he is perfectly capable of coming up with the idea on his own. 🤔
Will Ren Xiyang really sneak into Rian’s room at night? 😏
Thank you for the chapter.
Perhaps 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 I didn’t think of a particular reason lol! But Count Aegean does feel the need to educate the unruly Earl Rosewood 🤣🤣🤣
Before tapping the notification: Rian’s beautiful trip with re….😍😍
After tapping: (Imaginary) 😍😀🙂….
(It was still super cute. <3)
Also Finally Cassiopeia shows up☠️..looks like she grew a bit huh..gud gud….u can go bck now.
🤭🤭🤭🤭🤭🤭 This is exactly how Rian would have felt 🤣
And yep, Cassiopeia! Many readers mentioned her so I thought I’ll give her a bit of time 🤣🤣
I won’t get tired of repeating this in every comment, Rian and Ren are so cute 💞💞💞
Queen: it would be better if they remained just friends
Well, never mind, she’ll soon realize how charming Ren is.😂
Thanks for the chapter!
Due to the tight schedule, it is not always possible to write comments, I’m afraid they will look a little dry.
I look forward to continuing every time!
Hehehe if Rian and Ren Xiyang weren’t cute, would you still be reading? 🤣
Indeed, Queen Mira should realise that Earl Rosewood on his own is actually way more serious and a good kid, better than that sly Prince Rian 🤣🤣🤣
You don’t have to write a comment, I treasure and appreciate it every time that you do 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
Of course I would keep reading!
I would just replace the word “cute” with something else 😂
Soon the queen will have another son 🙂
Promising and cute
Rian:/ impatiently waiting for the queen to give up/ ^_^
Ren:/haven’t had time to react to the changes yet/(･o･;) ！
In fact, I would be really happy if the Queen and the king treated Ren as a family member in the future.
Ren deserves love and care
If I can’t take care of him now, let others do it 😂
🤗💞
🤭🤭🤭🤭🤭 Awwww, it would be nice if the queen and king treated Ren Xiyang well!!
Now that you mention it, Rian does look like an idol… and now I kinda wanna watch some idol drama starring Rian & Ren…🤦😅
Thank you for the chapter! A new chappie is always such a joy! 😘
hmm what are idol drama tropes? a car accident? paparazzi? reveal of their relationship to the media? Rian’s mother attempting to throw money at Ren Xiyang? 🤣🤣🤣
Thank you!
is this chapter a real chapter? why does it say imaginary?
The imaginary refers Rian’s romantic trip – he is imagining a romantic trip, but due to reasons, he doesn’t get to do as many romantic things!
please tell with chapter has the map I’m a little confused.
Map? The Sedaverian convoy is travelling east towards the Island nation of Hraun!