It was a pleasant royal family gathering.

The children filled their tummies with sweet treats and ran around the garden laughing. The maids were close by to keep them safe. After all, these children were of precious royal blood.

The adults were watching with a proud smile. The cut-off line for the adult table was Roselia.

Even the first princess Beatrice, who always tried to act like a grown-up, couldn’t help but play in delight with her cousins. She looked lovely with her cheeks flushed in excitement.

Liliana suddenly exclaimed with wide eyes. “Oh…!”

She patted her big belly as Bina asked, “Oh, the baby’s kicking?”

“Yes. It’s very active. When I was pregnant with Cullen, he barely moved so I was worried, but it is very different this time.”

“That’s funny. I guess Cullen was shy even when he was in your womb.”

Clodys shook his head. “I hope our second child resembles Liliana and Cullen. If this one is anything like its aunts… I tell you It will be the death of me.”

Everyone laughed at Clodys’ joke. He outwardly complained about his sisters-in-law, but everyone knew how much he cared for Roselia and Margaret, who were also his cousins.

Margaret, especially, was about the same age as Cullen so Clodys treated her like his own daughter. Lucretius and Bina knew that when it was time for Margaret to marry someone, Clodys would be a scary substitute for a father-in-law. Even with Roselia, Clodys looked annoyed at any bridal gifts Genoa would send. No one could be good enough for his girls.

Roselia’s wedding was coming up soon.

“So is the wedding plan going well, Roselia?”

Roselia blushed prettily, making her face flush like the redness of her hair.

“Yes, your highness. It’s all thanks to you.”

Liliana looked gloomy at the mention of Roselia’s marriage. Liliana raised Roselia like her own daughter, and soon, Roselia would leave to a faraway country. One good thing was that Prince Izid had announced he would forgo the Genoan tradition of having two wives and just marry Roselia. He was being considerate for his future wife as well as attempting to maintain a good relationship with Cransia.

Roselia was still very much in love with Prince Izid, so this was a good match for her. Liliana was thankful for this, but being unable to see her little sister every day was still a difficult concept to grasp.

Roselia noticed Liliana’s expression.

She held her older sister’s hand sadly and murmured, “Sis…”

Liliana quickly forced a smile on her face. “… Please be happy, Rose. Don’t forget to write me lots of letters, okay?”

“Of course. Don’t worry, Sis.”

Roselia smiled brightly and continued, “Besides, we still have a whole year together. I will not leave your side while I am still here.”

“Okay.”

Liliana finally smiled for real.

While the sisters chatted, Lucretius made some calculations in his head.

‘How much dowry should I send to Genoa for Roselia…’

If Bina knew Lucretius was worried about it, she would have become angry, but this was a normal concern for Lucretius.

Genoa was a very important political ally and the current Genoan king beheaded his own son, Coronel, to show its desire to maintain an undying friendship. On top of that, they even sent the blue tear of the goddess, their national treasure, for the empress.

Cransia needed to show its appreciation, and this was why Lucretius was thinking to prepare the biggest and the most extravagant dowry in history. The treasury would be very unhappy, but with the money they saved by the emperor not having multiple wives, it wouldn’t be hard to afford it.

Bina looked at the two sisters proudly. Liliana and Roselia had such hard childhoods, but they survived it. She was glad to see them happy now. Bina liked to think that she helped a little in achieving this, and she felt pleased.

Bina remembered her own sister.

Sis…

There was a big age gap between Bina and her older sister, but they were very close. They used to fight a lot, but they were also amazing friends.

Bina watched Beatrice, who was playing with her cousins. Her black hair danced around her as the warm wind blew.

‘Now that I think about it… she looks like her.’

Lucretius was always pleased because he thought Beatrice resembled Bina, but now that she thought about it, Beatrice reminded Bina of her older sister.

Bina wondered, ‘I wonder what my sister would say if she saw Beatrice.’

She would have been shocked to see a five-year-old niece suddenly.

‘And she would have loved her. She would have been an amazing aunt.’

Bina was sure of it.

***

The gathering ended after dinner. They had a wonderful feast out in the garden.

Liliana and Roselia were taking care of Margaret, who fell asleep after a tiring day. Clodys carried Cullen, who was just about to fall asleep in his arms. He whispered to Lucretius and Bina.

“Is there good news yet?”

Lucretius frowned. “Beatrice is enough for us.”

Clodys had heard this many times before.

He replied with a frown as well, “It’s just that there are some people who have been pestering us recently.”

When Lucretius’ eyebrows raised, Clodys continued, “Since Princess Beatrice is the only heir to the throne, there are families who have been trying to arrange a marriage with our Cullen.”

“I am aware of that.”

Lucretius sounded displeased, which made sense. Lucretius had many spies, including the areas around the Toruka family, so the emperor was well aware of the situation.

As long as Lucretius had only one daughter as his child, Cullen remained the strongest candidate for the throne after Beatrice. This meant Cullen was Beatrice’s biggest rival.

For this reason, and also for the fact that Cullen was of solid royal blood, Lucretius had considered having Cullen as Beatrice’s husband. This was one of the few options the emperor was considering. Lucretius was having a hard time with this problem on his hand. When Clodys came to him with a pressure of having a second child, he became angry.

Clodys recognized that he shouldn’t push any further. He stepped back.

“I was just concerned, that’s all your highness. But you can’t deny the fact that having many children will solidify the royal family.”

“…”

Clodys sighed. “If you and her highness weren’t so scary… And if Cullen was a stronger child, I may have become ambitious for my son, but… I know Cullen. He is a boy who needs to lead a quiet life.”

Lucretius laughed quietly. “What a good son you have. He was born introverted for his father.”

Clodys bowed. “Yes, it’s true.”

With this, the conversation ended. Bina was listening to the conversation quietly. There was a lot she needed to think about.