"Greetings, Your Majesty."
A young man with jet-black hair and light brown eyes greeted Edmund and Ruby the moment they stepped into the main hall.
He was Cassian Moonshadow, the Marquess’s eldest son.
Despite being only seventeen, Cassian was already trusted with many responsibilities, especially those related to diplomacy and formal matters.
From what Primrose knew, the Marquess and his wife had three children—two sons and one daughter. But strangely, their daughter had never once appeared in public, not even during banquets held at their own house.
In fact, Solene had once mentioned that the Marquess rarely even spoke about his daughter, as if she didn’t exist at all.
With that kind of behavior, Primrose could easily guess the Marquess held very little regard for women, seeing them as beneath him and unworthy of attention or status.
"Did your father send you to greet me?" Edmund asked calmly. "The Marquess seems impressively quick at getting information."
Cassian offered a warm, polite smile. "That’s all thanks to the guard at the gate. If he hadn’t reported it to my father right away, we might not have known you’d arrived."
He paused for a moment, then asked respectfully, "But, Your Majesty ... may I ask what brings you to our city?"
Edmund responded in a flat, cold tone. "Is my wife and I not allowed to visit this city?"
Cassian’s face stiffened in panic. He realized too late that his question might have come off as offensive to the King of Beasts.
He quickly added, "No! That’s not what I meant, Your Majesty. We were simply surprised. This is the first time you’ve visited without notifying us in advance."
Primrose, listening quietly beside her husband, caught the boy’s thoughts loud and clear.
[His Majesty did nothing wrong by arriving unannounced. The only one panicking is that old bastard because he hasn’t prepared anything to hide his rotten behavior in front of His Majesty.]
Despite his warm smile and friendly tone, Cassian’s mind was full of frustration and darker thoughts.
[But really, who the hell is to blame here? If only he had done his job properly, he wouldn’t be panicking every time His Majesty decides to visit.]
[I really hope that old bastard dies quickly. I can’t even understand why Mother wanted to marry him in the first place.]
Before Edmund could say anything or mention that Primrose wanted to meet Raven, she stepped forward with a smile.
"This is actually my fault," she said sweetly, her voice gentle as silk. "I was getting a little bored at the palace, so I asked my husband to take me somewhere quiet and lovely for a short vacation."
She glanced around the hall before continuing, "Coincidentally, I’ve heard so many wonderful things from my maids about Moonshadow."
"They say it’s one of the top destinations for nobles looking to escape their stress, so we decided to come here without sending a letter to the Marquess first."
She lowered her head slightly, offering a graceful and respectful bow. "I truly apologize if our sudden arrival made you or your family feel disrespected in any way."
Cassian was momentarily taken aback by the sound of her voice.
[I didn’t expect Her Majesty’s voice to be this soft and gentle ...]
[My mother has told me the queen is a beautiful woman with a graceful demeanor, but she’s even more stunning than I imagined!]
"Please, there’s no need to apologize, Your Majesty," Cassian said, his smile softening as he spoke to her. "We’re honestly honored that you chose our humble city for your honeymoon."
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