When Abel reached the eighth prince's palace, the only place in the imperial palace that was at peace and guarded securely, he went straight past the guards. It was their first time seeing him, but the order from the higher up was to let the man with green hair, donning a white suit, to let him get access everywhere. Ismael didn't need to do that, though, since Abel could go anywhere if he so pleased. However, it was better for the safety of his own people.
There were more knights and guerillas guarding the guest quarters where Aries was recuperating, but he went past them silently. Reaching the hallway where her chambers were, Abel caught Conan with Curtis, Morro, Climaco, and Dexter idling right outside her room.
"No one's entering," Dexter repeated, leaning against the shut doors, arms-crossed. "She needs more rest."
"Hey, that's unfair!" Conan harrumphed. "You've been going in and out of her room, but we can't?!"
"We just want to make sure she is alright," Curtis added, while Morro and Climaco remained silent, knowing they weren't in the place to argue.
"She is alright. You don't have to see her," Dexter replied with a straight face. "If you truly care, just let her sleep and stop making a fuss here."
"You just want to hog her all for yourself, don't you?!" Conan grumbled, miffed at the constant rejection from seeing her.
"Don't you have another important thing to do?" asked the marques to the angry Conan. "As far as I remember, you have another wedding to arrange and prepare His Majesty's gift for my sister."
"Yes, another wedding!" Morro's eyes lit up, making Climaco, who was standing beside him, sport a complicated look in his eyes. "Sir Conan, let's hurry."
"Yes, weddings... I like." Abel joined in the fun, smiling from ear to ear, watching all of them turn their attention to him.
"Why are you all outside my wife's room?" His eyelashes fluttered, stressing the word 'wife' for everyone to get his point. "I see many people care for MY WIFE."
Dexter and Conan snorted while Curtis scrunched his nose up in dismay.
"You don't have to rub that on our face," said Dexter, looking at him in disdain.
"Don't rub, what? About MY WIFE?"
"Your Majesty, we already know it!" Conan hollered.
"You already know that I am now a married man and have a WIFE named Aries?"
"..."
"Wow... he really likes it, huh?" Climaco blurted out, studying Abel from head to toe with mixed emotions. The first time he saw this man, Abel was slamming Joaquin's head inside a crate full of broken plates with a straight face. He knew, at first sight, Abel wasn't normal and slaughtered people without conscience, but... how could Dexter and Conan talk to him so casually without hiding their disdain?
The interaction felt so foreign for Climaco. In this Maganti Empire, even ministers couldn't talk to the royalties so casually. There was always a line that one mustn't cross.
"Stop it now!" Conan wept, almost on the verge of tears. Climaco and Curtis looked at him with slight surprise, unaware of why this guy was so affected. "Sure, you're a married man and I'm not! This is all your fault! No, did you purposely keep me busy to sabotage my plans from having a wife?!"
Conan barked one more time, pointing at the devious Abel. "Now I got to prepare another wedding that isn't mine! I'm telling you to Lady Aries when she wakes up!" he huffed, walking away angrily.
"..."
For a moment, there was nothing but silence and Conan's heavy stomps. Abel's lips stretched even wider, simpering as he nearly made his dearest vassal cry out of jealousy.
"You, there." He snapped his eyes at Climaco, making the latter freeze on the spot. "Don't ever let Conan approach MY WIFE. He will tell me to her."
"Huh?"
"Marquess — my brother-in-law. Allow me to see my wife." Abel faced Dexter, ignoring the confusion in Climaco's eyes. As expected, Dexter frowned, not pleased at how Abel gloated about his new status as a married man.
"She needed rest." The marquess stressed solemnly. "Do not forget, my sister needs rest. Keep your hands off of her or I'll cut them even before you know it."
"Well, yes, of course, my brother-in-law." Abel raised his hands, grinning from ear to ear.
Meanwhile, Dexter's expression died. It was pointless, he thought. With a faint huff, Dexter stepped aside to let this man in before Abel make his blood boil even more.
"Thank you very much, brother-in-law." Abel pranced, winking at him as he walked past him.
"One more time and I'll cut your tongue."
"Haha! So funny~!" Abel laughed happily, entering the chambers in high spirits.
When the door shut closed, everyone who was left outside — except Morro — was looking at Abel's back in disbelief. The latter looked so happy, and his laughter sounded more evil until the door shut closed.
"I swear to whoever I'll kill him someday," Dexter seethed, grinding his teeth in irritation.
Climaco hadn't grasped everything as his eyes fell on Dexter's back. 'They really... have a strange relationship,' he whispered internally. He snapped his eyes when Morro placed a hand on Curtis and Climaco's shoulders.
"Let's go." Morro pushed them in the direction where Conan left.
"Wait —" Curtis looked back at the same time Climaco did. "Where --"
"We need to help Sir Conan," explained Morro, keeping it short and simple. "His Majesty's gifts to Lady Aries are not here, so we need to move. Else, we cannot attend the wedding on time."
"Huh???"
Despite the bafflement, Morro didn't stop pushing them with his hands on either their shoulder. Dexter cast the three a look, shaking his head before leaning against the window right in front of the shut doors. He folded his arms under his chest, eyes on the door, keeping his silence for a long time.
"Those gifts, huh?" he whispered after the prolonged silence, peeling his eyes from the door to the window behind him. Outside were knights gathering corpses and tossing them on a cart, still cleaning up the mess these very people had started.
"What a miracle," he whispered once more, still in disbelief about how there were people alive in this land when Abel was here. "Really... a miracle."
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