(From Demetrius''s Perspective)


    I was in a meeting with all the kings of the five kingdoms. After a while, a letter from my wife arrived. A maid of Ataraxia brought it.


    "Her Highness, the Queen of Querencia, said that it is very important and to give it to Your Highness as soon as possible," the maid had said.


    I am sorry if you are doing something important, but I thought that I should let you know this. Actually, this morning, a maid poisoned my tea. What I mean is, it happened just a few minutes ago. I didn''t take even a sip of it though. So, don''t freak out.


    I could not even finish reading thest sentence when I was already bolting towards the pce she was in. Someone tried to poison her when I was not there?


    ''How dare they?!''


    And when I came to my wife finally, she was fine. I checked her fully and it did not seem she drank any of it. Even though she said that she did not drink the tea in the letter, I could only rx after I checked it myself.


    "It''s alright. I am fine," she said with a little smile.


    ''How can you smile like that right now?''


    "Where is that freaking maid?" I asked angrily.


    "She is in another room," she said. "Tied down. Ruby is guarding her. Ruby is quite good at holding someone down. I was surprised."


    "I will see her myself. And what''s this tea?"


    "Ah, Ruby made it for me just a while ago," she said. "Don''t worry. Ruby made it only. No one else."


    Ruby, her personal maid, was trustworthy. Or I would never let her be my wife''s personal maid.


    "Let me take a sip of the tea," I said.


    She sighed and pressed the cup against my lips. I took a sip. I knew it was not poisoned, but I still was worried. Only after taking a sip and making sure of it myself, I could calm down.


    "I think it''s alright," I muttered.


    "Told you so... Are you going to her now?"


    "Yes. You take a rest."


    She ignored me and stood up, on the contrary. "What do you think you are doing?" I asked, surprised.


    "I aming with you," she said. "Besides, I have to talk to you too. Oh, and where were you when I sent you that letter? You weren''t busy, right? If you have to go back..."


    "No, it''s fine. I wasn''t busy," I said. After all, my wife was more important than a silly meeting.


    She held my hand and led me to the room where she kept the maid. I nced sideways at the woman leading me. She truly looked like a queen.


    "A lot of things happened in the morning. After you are done with the maid, I will tell you," she said, looking forward while I was observing her face. When did it happen that I truly fell for her?


    There was one thing I was sure of- I did not want her because I loved her seven years ago. I wanted her for something else. Though I did not know what it was, it surely was not love. And then when I again met her and she saved my life, I perhaps started to like her. But I truly fell for her when I met her that night and brought her into my world.


    Her behavior, facial expressions, words- everything made me crave her more. And now I had fallen for her in a way that there was no turning back.


    It was after our marriage that I realized that I would not be able to let her go. Before that time, everything happened, everything I said was because of some kind of illusion. And that illusion had started to disappear and now, everything seemed real unlike before, when everything felt like to be controlled by someone.


    I was not a moral person. But still, when I was loyal to someone, I would never betray that person and go to another one. I had chosen her as my bride a long time ago for some reason that I did not remember. But I knew that I did not betray her because I wanted only her. Even if I did not love her at that time, I was loyal to her.


    Because I made sure that no boys could get near her, then why would I go near other women? And besides, I never felt anything for anyone before anyway.


    She opened the door and I found a maid with red hair tied down with my wife''s personal maid standing beside her.


    "Your Highness," Ruby bowed. "She said the same thing again."


    "Same thing?" I asked.


    "I see...," my wife said and then looked at me. "Actually, when I asked her before, she said that someone wearing a white hooded cloak came to her and told her to do it, or that person would harm her family. And apparently, that person was a woman."


    Even if she did not tell me, I had suspected it was a woman. Poison was known as a woman''s weapon. Mostly women used it.


    "White cloak, you said?"


    "I know what you are thinking," Blue nodded. "Ask her again if you want to."


    I interrogated the maid a few times, but every time she said the same thing. I could not kill her myself. It was not because she was the maid of Ataraxia, but because my darling wife was right beside me. She had seen me killing before and I knew what kind of effect it had on her. I did not want to see that look on her face again when she looked at me in terror and shock.


    I let the king of Ataraxia take care of the matter. His knights took the maid away to lock her up in prison for the time being until the testimony. I honestly wanted to deal with her myself, but it was a matter of Ataraxia.