(Orlax Pov)
After I finished preparing breakfast and left it for Catherine and Sera, I headed to the training yard and began my usual training.
In the middle of my training, I heard the sound of the door opening, so I turned to see who had interrupted me.
Standing at the door was Alice, who was wearing a long green dress today, gold earrings, and on her left hand was our engagement ring.
To her right stood Daniel, dressed simply in black pants and a white shirt, with a long sword with a brown hilt strapped to his waist.
At the moment, I was shirtless because I preferred to train without a shirt due to sweating—I didn't want my clothes to get dirty because of it.
So, when they saw my body, scarred with beastly wounds, expressions of shock and slight surprise appeared on their faces.
"Good morning, Your Majesty."
"Good morning, Lax."
They snapped out of their astonishment when they saw me staring at them and greeted me.
"Lax? Where did that suddenly come from?"
Alice, who had called me by that nickname, asked with a smile.
"Your name is hard to pronounce, so I shortened it to this. Why? Is it bad?"
"Hmm, call me whatever you like."
I ignored them and continued swinging my sword, but then I remembered something that brought a slight smile to my face.
"Daniel, didn't you want me to show you my strength before? Come, pick up your sword and let's spar."
"Are you serious, Your Majesty? This would be an honor for me."
Daniel stepped into the center of the training yard with a big smile on his face and drew his sword from its sheath.
I closed my eyes and began focusing on the sword within my body. Particles of light started forming in my hand until the sword fully appeared.
"Wow, is that an artifact? It's the first time I've seen one."
"Yes, even I haven't seen anything like this before."
Alice and Daniel spoke, admiring the dark sea sword in my hand.
"Yes, it's an artifact. Now, Daniel, I will limit my strength to that of a graduate level to ensure a good match. I will use the training bracelet for that."
"I have no problem with that, Your Majesty."
I started tapping on the training bracelet on my wrist until I felt the weight in my body adjust, making me move only with graduate-level strength. I took my stance while looking at Daniel, who was ready.
"Let's begin."
As soon as I uttered these words, Daniel moved swiftly, gripping his large sword with both hands and swinging it toward me.
I raised my sword to block the strike and planted my feet firmly on the ground.
*Clang!*
Sparks flew as our swords clashed. Daniel jumped back, his hands trembling slightly as if he had struck a rock.
"It's my turn now."
I rushed swiftly toward Daniel, who held his long sword in a defensive stance.
I raised my sword for a downward strike and brought it down powerfully on Daniel.
*Swish!*
Before the blade reached him, I quickly rotated my sword, grasped it by the sharp end, and struck Daniel's left cheek with the hilt with all my might.
*Boom!*
Daniel was sent flying to the right, crashing hard into the wall, causing dust to scatter everywhere.
When the dust settled, Daniel was revealed—his left cheek was swollen, he was unconscious, and blood was trickling from his mouth due to the impact of the blow.
"Did you really have to be this harsh?"
Alice asked in displeasure, looking at the pitiful state Daniel was in.
"*Phew,* of course. If I weren't harsh, how would he learn?"
I let out a breath and smirked slightly. The sword in my hand dissolved into particles and returned to my body.
Alice didn't look convinced, but she sighed and ordered someone to carry Daniel for treatment.
"Alright, I've had enough training. By the way, what are you and Daniel doing here?"
I asked Alice while putting on my shirt and heading outside, with Alice following me.
"We came here with my mother."
"Why?"
"Well, thanks to someone, my mother now works here as a nanny, and thanks to the kind emperor, my father has been appointed as his assistant and must return at night due to his work. Because of that, my brother and I were left alone at home, so we decided to accompany our mother instead of staying home."
"The emperor is truly kind—he provided jobs for your family so they wouldn't have to worry about the future."
"Yes, I don't need to worry about the future. My mother will work for him for sixteen years, and my father will work until we find him suffering from a heart attack in the office. The future is secured successfully."
Alice and I continued with our sarcasm until we reached my room and entered, where we found Catherine sitting on the couch, playing with her phone.
"It seems like you're quite comfortable in your job, Mom."
Alice teased her mother upon finding her lounging on the couch, with a cup of tea and some snacks in front of her.
"Oh, Alice, Your Majesty, welcome. Well, Sera has fallen asleep, and since I have nothing to do, I decided to relax."
"That's good—unlike my poor father, who will soon be drowning in paperwork."
Alice sat on a couch opposite her mother and casually took a piece of candy while talking.
I went to the wardrobe, took a fresh set of clothes, and headed to the bathroom.
"You're right. Now both Armanthor and I work for him, and you're engaged to him. Only Daniel remains before our whole family officially becomes slaves."
I stumbled in my steps when I heard Catherine's sarcastic remark, but I maintained my composure and entered the bathroom.
*'I'm not used to this new Catherine.'*
I emerged from the bathroom feeling refreshed, bid farewell to Alice and Catherine, and went to my office.
When I entered and looked at my desk, I found that the stack of papers had grown larger than yesterday.
*'Alex, you damn fiend, where do you get all this stuff?'*
I asked Lira to bring me earphones and began working.
A short while later, Lira entered the office and handed me a pair of white wired earphones.
I connected them to my phone, played some calming music, and focused on my work.
While I was engrossed in work, Armanthor silently entered the office, sat at the desk to my right, and began working.
We divided the responsibilities—I handled external invitations and dispatching envoys, while Armanthor managed internal empire affairs, given his extensive experience as the capital's administrator.
After a while, Armanthor broke the silence between us and spoke.
"Your Majesty, I heard you sent my son to the hospital."
"Yes, unfortunately, he was injured by accident during our training."
Armanthor's lips twitched upon hearing my response, struggling to keep his expression calm.
"Are you sure this happened by accident during training? Not as revenge for what my son did at our home before?"
"Ah, Grand Duke, do you take me for someone so petty that I would seek revenge over something like that?"
*'Yes, that's exactly what you are.'*
Armanthor thought to himself but dared not say it aloud and returned to his work in silence.
At one o'clock in the afternoon, Catherine and Alice entered the room, each carrying a tray with different dishes.
They placed the food on a table in the middle of the office and sat on a couch beside it.
"Darling, eat first and then go back to work. You too, Your Majesty."
"Yes, Lax, have some food and then return to work."
Catherine and Alice spoke, addressing different people.
*'This is the first time someone has invited me to eat so I wouldn't stay hungry. This… isn't a bad feeling.'*
I thought as I watched Armanthor, who had stood up from his desk and sat next to Catherine and Alice on the same couch.
I got up from my seat, sat on a couch opposite them, and started eating.
*'I've eaten for two consecutive days. For the next five days, I must refrain from eating.'*
Suddenly, Alice stood up from the couch where her parents were sitting and sat beside me.
"Come on, Lax, open your mouth. Say 'Ah.'"
Alice held a fork with a piece of meat on it and offered it to my mouth.
"What are you doing? I can eat by myself. And besides, your parents are watching."
"Oh, come on, what's the problem if they're watching? Let me feed you. Now, open your mouth."
I paused for a moment before opening my mouth and allowing Alice to feed me.
"Oh, your ears are turning red. Are you embarrassed?"
*Click!*
Before I could deny Alice's words, I heard the sound of a picture being taken. I quickly turned my head to see Armanthor putting his phone away in his pocket.
"…"
Silence filled the room as I stared at Armanthor, who was now inexplicably looking at the ceiling.
"Armanthor Zephyrius, give me your phone. Now."
"My phone? I didn't bring it with me today. Otherwise, I would have gladly given it to you, Your Majesty."
"…"
I sighed and turned back to Alice, who resumed feeding me.
*'Anyway, it's just a picture.'*
*Click!*
"…"
I turned back to Armanthor, who was talking to his wife. Then, I shifted my gaze to Alice, sitting beside me, as she quickly hid her phone in her small purse.
"Why are you looking at me, Lax?"
Alice smiled and acted as if she had done nothing, raising the fork again to my mouth.
I sighed and continued eating in silence.