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Joaquin\'s mouth was set in a hard line, glancing indifferently at the people gathered around the table with him sitting on the end of the long oval table.

"How dare they try to deceive us!" a middle-aged man pounded the bottom of his fist against the surface of the table, smoldering in anger.

"How dare they insult us by sending His Highness\' slave as the crown princess?!"

"That woman disappeared during the world summit! The Haimirich Empire had probably planned this a long time ago!"

"Those bastards...!"

The men\'s outrage was what Joaquin had been hearing all day. They all sing the same words: slave, insulting, the nerve, and the like. It was not like he wasn\'t suspicious of his wife\'s origin, but it was annoying to hear the same words throughout the day.

"So what?" Joaquin\'s toneless voice put the room to silent, watching everyone look back in his direction. "So what if the emperor of Haimirich Empire sent a slave? Shall we behead her and sent her head back to them as a warning? Or should we declare war with them right off the bat?"

There was a long silence in the gathering hall of nobles — mostly attended by the crown prince\'s supporters. Joaquin blinked lazily, his eyes glossing over at everyone\'s resigned expressions.

"The emperor of Haimirich Empire will have all the guts and nerves in the world, for he is the mighty sovereign of a nation as large as Haimirich. He can mess with anyone if he so pleased and will get away with it unscathed." Joaquin stressed as it seemed these people had grown asinine or their ego just inflated so much, just because they held a bit of power.

Truly disappointing.

"I am not saying our Maganti is less than Haimirich, but do not forget why we proposed this marriage in the first place. They are not any small kingdom which we can trample without moving from our seats," he continued his lecture, tapping his fingers against the armrest, his eyes giving them equal attention. "We can send our troops and wage a war if that is what you all want, but know that my men\'s lives... each one of you will pay if their death were all in vain."

SILENCE...

p The men around the table swallowed the building tension in their throats. Some cleared their throat with their chest out, huffing to contain their dramatic pronouncements.

"Everyone is just so infuriating." Joaquin ran his tongue against his inner cheek, finally gaining some time of peace after a hectic day.

Even though his marriage was a political marriage, agreed for mutual benefits, he deserved some peace. But instead of felicitations, nonstop qualms had been ringing in his ear.

Once the silence settled in the room, Joaquin\'s eyes sharpened. "Let\'s say the crown princess is indeed the fallen princess of Rikhill. Then, what? Does it matter?" he lifted a brow, leaning his arms against the edge of the table, hands interlaced in front.

"She came here with the Haimirich\'s envoy, rode the imperial carriage, and married me as Daniella Circe Vandran. In other words, her roots matters not. I secured my seat and gained more influence than my ambitious brothers," he continued, scrutinizing everyone thoroughly while the side of his lips curled up. "Whatever she is planning is not a problem, since I can prepare for what she had in store for me."

An air of confidence emanated from him as he leaned back. "That is if she is my Aries. But if my wife, Circe, and Aries simply share resemblance and she is truly the sister of the aristocrat leader in Haimirich, then we will have to prepare for a war that will surely last for years. Worse. Decades. If we made the wrong judgment."

"Although the Marquess Vandran will blame the emperor of Haimirich if Circe was harmed, they would set their attention on us first before they fight amongst themselves," he continued. "Moreover, her death can be used as an excuse as our provocation, consequently putting a strain on my name and losing the public\'s support. Didn\'t that cross your head, and I had to spell it out for all of you to reach this conclusion?"

Joaquin laughed in ridicule, shaking his head as these men sometimes disappoint him with their narrow minds. "Really upsetting," he spat out.

No one argued with him or voiced out their objections; they wouldn\'t win against this argument after all. Joaquin benefited from this marriage either way, so it truly didn\'t matter. Pushing their luck further could only lead to a more negative result.

"For now, keep your eyes and ears open in the current state of affairs in Haimirich and treat the crown princess with the utmost respect. Until I am certain of her origins, no one will ever touch or insult her," Joaquin warned, but these words weren\'t out of concern for Aries. "One word from her and she can put a wedge in our relationship with Haimirich. Until our Maganti is prepared, tread on eggshell if you must."

Joaquin paused as he drew a breath. "Understood?"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Good." He rocked his head, studying everyone and pleased they understood his point.

*******

After Joaquin dismissed everyone from the gathering hall, he remained in his seat. When he was left alone with a few of his trusted aides, he glanced at the towering man in a knight suit.

"Speak." He beckoned, causing the knight to lower his head.

"I had gathered the information Your Highness needed regarding his wife, the crown princess," reported the knight sternly. "According to the people we planted in Haimirich, they confirmed that the tension between the aristocrat and imperialist increased upon the emperor of Haimirich\'s royal decree regarding Lady Vandran\'s betrothal..."

Joaquin listened in silence whilst tapping his fingers against his armrest. He ordered his men to investigate and confirm everything the second time right after his wedding yesterday, but just like the first report that came to him, it seemed his wife was truly valued in Haimirich.

It was said that her betrothal caused mild unrest, which was put in a truce upon his wife\'s acknowledgment in this wedding. One would say Aries was kind and wanted peace, but for Joaquin, her actions only meant one thing.

Her words had power.

"And your thoughts?" asked Joaquin, glancing at his knight, his sword, a look. The latter remained quiet for a moment before he breathed out.

"There is no loophole, but that makes it even more suspicious. Slow-witted I may be, this humble subject thinks it is still not enough to prove that the crown princess isn\'t that woman."

"That\'s right. It could be a meticulous play orchestrated by the emperor," Joaquin agreed while rocking his head. "But we cannot also deny that this might also be the truth. Either way..."

He trailed off as the side of his lips curled up into a devious smirk. "I can always find out whether or not she is my beloved Aries." He then cast his aide a knowing look.

"You know what to do. Prepare my gift that was meant for Aries. I wonder what would be my wife\'s reaction." His eyes glinted wickedly and whatever he had in mind, his cunning expression screamed it was nothing but trouble.