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"Enough!" The angry voice echoed through the wide throne hall. Inazuma's advisors and administrators, the royal council, stared at their queen. They were visibly shaken and anxious. She spoke while sitting in her throne, placed on a platform above everyone else.
The people looked up to Her Majestic, which most of them already needed to do because of her height.
"I will not marry, not when it is more important to give our people an eternal peaceful life." You've never been to the border, but I'm sure you've heard of it. " Her voice turned into a growl at the boy, who had no experience being at the front. "How the fear of an ambush on our supply road was almost always present. How many people died because they couldn't be fed? "
The young Duke, Ayato Kamisato, could still hold his noble image, braver than most of the other people in the meeting, as the words were meant for his seemingless reckless remark. " A lot of you seem to not realize how dangerous Watatsumi is just because they have fewer soldiers. You all underestimate how clever they are."
"We should consider ourselves lucky because of the start of the peace talks." Her voice now got a bit calmer, and the relief creeping on the face of her council couldn't be hidden. "But now we should aspire to build on a strong relationship out of trust and not an unstable one based on marriage."
The last time she got so agitated, someone lost their head, literally.
"If we are on the topic right now, General, could you give us a report?"
"Of course, my queen."
A young woman stood up. She just came from the border and would return right after this meeting. Her red mask bounced every time she looked over her hastily written paper as she went over the actual situation and how they were just discussing the last point of the peace treaty.
Another voice was suddenly heard. "I already spoke with some scientists that are willing to go for a couple of years over to Watatsumi to help with their agriculture problems." No one could be angry about this aprut interference because it was the most trusted advisor of her majesty. There was also nobody surprised at how she already knew what the actual problem was.
"Most of them will be arriving next week at the border, general." Yae Miko finished with a nod in her direction, and sat back down satisfied.
"Then I will take this matter into my own hand." The loyal general also sat back down, returning the nod.
With this, the meeting was finished.
The garden was waking up to the arrival of spring. It could be seen as new buds were growing everywhere. It could be heard from the chirping of the birds that came back after the hard winter. The smell that filled the entier enviroment.
The fresh air just made Ei's hands in hers warmer. Miko snuggled closer to her side for warmth and not just because she loved seeing the small red spreading on her lover's cheek.
Both went after the meeting into the garden, because their relationship was still a secret from everyone. As a baronesse, Miko was too low in rank to marry the other, and even Ei couldn't just ignore this fact with her authority. So they just meet in secret until they decide to let Miko advance in rank as a result of her contribution to this peace.
Silently enjoying each other by their side, they went to the pavilion, their pavilion. The Queen built it here herself, a lonely opening in the woods surrounding it. Miko had loved watching her be absorbed in building their white hiding space.
Ei sat down on the floor, not botherd about the cold, leading Miko to her lap. While she helped her sitt down giving her a small kiss on the cheek.
Miko settled herself into a comfortable position from where she could listen to Ei's heartbeat, it always had the power to reassure her that this relationship was the best thing that could ever have happened to her.
"You did great in the meeting."
The Queen got bashful at that sudden compliment. "I just spoke from experience. But you now that you did better. How did you know what the report would be about?" Her voice was filled with curiosity. Looking down to her lover.
Miko turned around to see her face, a bright smile started appearing. "If I am being honest, the general and I sent a lot of letters through a messenger bird to one another."
A memory reappears. "Almsot like we did at the start of our love."
"Should I get jealous over the fact that you use our way of communicating with her or that you have planned all of this in secret, even behind my back, with her?" Miko knew sthat Ei wasn't really angry at her and just tried to mimic the way she would sometimes tease the Queen. We spoke about your wedding with another person today in this meeting.
The fox-like girl rolled her eyes and giggled, "You know, I could never leave you."
The giggle seemed to be contagious, and Ei said after being able to speak again, her voice filled with love. "I know."