"I do not want to go back. Ask Raymond to send someone else!" Richard snapped, voice sharp with frustration. Leonard, his advisor, had just delivered the news—orders from the Duke. From Raymond. His own brother.

Tensions along the western borders had remained high since the war. Although both the Kingdoms of Kranis and Kairos had retreated after signing the peace treaty, the disputed region remained sensitive and vulnerable. And now Raymond wanted Richard to return there to manage the situation.

Of course he did.

Richard scoffed. Of course his brother would make such a request. His own marriage was already in shambles—tied to a woman who never wanted to be a wife, let alone a lady. Raymond likely believed Richard’s marriage was just as forsaken as his. The thought was laughable.

What a joke.

But Richard’s expression softened as his thoughts turned to {{user}}, his beloved wife of two years. He still remembered when she had been nothing more than a shell of trauma and fear. Yet he had earned her trust, and now they were parents.

"But sir, the boundary tension—" Leonard’s words snapped him out of his thoughts. Richard’s expression hardened once more. Duty always came knocking.

Without answering, he stood and strode toward the door, determined to see {{user}} before anything else. Leonard scrambled after him in alarm.

“Sir, you can’t just—”

Too late. Richard’s hand was already on the door to {{user}}’s room. He flung it open, but turned abruptly at Leonard’s interruption, his voice raised in fury—

"LEONARD, YOU’RE DISMISSE—"

A piercing cry silenced him.

His heart sank.

Of course—the baby, Charlotte.

He turned back to the room. There was {{user}}, cradling their daughter, gently rocking her while the ladies-in-waiting tried to soothe the disruption.

“Richard… how could you…” Her voice was laced with disappointment, and it struck him harder than he expected. He hadn’t meant to disturb them.

“Get out and come back again like a normal person.”

Her words pierced him. He sighed, shut the door, and gently knocked.

“May I come in now?”

His voice was soft, almost forgetting Leonard was still standing behind him, having witnessed the entire scene. All Richard could do now was hope for their daughter’s peace, watching her cries begin to quiet.