Looking at the seagulls flying over the blue horizon, Arundel once again felt peace in her heart.
What a beautiful scenery it was.
The sea surrounding her, the vast green meadow, and the picturesque house.
She had only settled here a week ago, but it was a view she felt she would never tire of.
“When did you wake up?”
The mellow voice added a finishing touch.
The owner of the voice was her one and only man…man…husband…
Suddenly, Arundel’s face flushed hot.
She was still not used to it. The fact that she spends every day with Zion from the moment she falls asleep to the moment she wakes up.
“Your face is red.”
“It’s… It’s okay.”
One of Zion’s eyebrows rose in dissatisfaction.
“Are you still uncomfortable?”
“…”
Avoiding Zion’s gaze, Arundel spoke in an awkward voice.
“Zion! Do you know?!”
Zion looked at Arundel as if to say ‘what?’
“…..”
She had shouted out in a hurry to change the subject, but she had nothing to say.
“What is it?”
At Zion’s urging, Arundel blurted out anything.
“I’m much older than Zion!”
“…However?”
“Zion is no longer an emperor, and I’m not an empress. We’re just an ordinary couple.”
Arundel felt her words getting tangled. Looking at Zion, his expression seemed to urge her to continue.
“So?”
“So… we…”
How to finish… Arundel glanced at Zion.
“We.”
“Let’s drop the formalities.”
It wasn’t what she originally intended to say, but it wasn’t a bad conclusion. Thinking about it, it wasn’t right for him to continue speaking formally.
Considering the days she had lived, she had lived dozens of times longer than Zion, and they had also stepped out of the relationship of emperor and empress. They were an ordinary cou…cou…couple.
So it was right to speak informally on equal terms.
“That’s right.”
A compliant answer fell from Zion.
Considering Zion’s personality, she thought it wouldn’t matter much whether she spoke formally or informally.
“…Yeah.”
Arundel nodded awkwardly.
“You’re older than me.”
“Yeah, of course.”
“By how much?”
“Well… at least a few hundred years?”
Arundel answered, recalling her age. Saying it like this made her feel too old, which wasn’t a great feeling.
“Then you must have had more experiences.”
A somewhat low voice flowed from Zion.
“Experiences…? Right? I’ve lived much longer than Zion, after all.”
Arundel scratched her head in response, not knowing what he was talking about. But Zion’s expression gradually darkened.
“Zion…?”
At Arundel’s call, Zion lifted the corners of his mouth.
“If you know more than me, how about teaching me?”
“Hmm…? What?”
A prompt response came to the innocent question. Zion’s hand suddenly delved into the waist.
The knowing touch quickly touched sensitive areas.
“Z-Zion! We’re outside…!”
“What’s the big deal? It’s just the two of us on this island anyway.”
The strange voice tempting the angel whispered in her ear.
“Z-Zion… I don’t like this!”
“If you didn’t want it, you shouldn’t have provoked me.”
Zion nibbled at her ear as if stinging like a bee.
And as if not going to back off, his rough hand boldly slipped under the clothes.
“Ugh.”
The familiar touch immediately drained Arundel’s strength.
“I won’t let it slide today.”
Arundel wanted to retort to the threatening words.
When did he ever let it slide? Since coming here, she had been tormented all night and barely managed to fall asleep.
But for some reason, Zion, who seemed visibly angry, looked like he would really torment herself all night.
In an attempt to soften him a bit, Arundel clung to Zion like a lifeline, gently caressing his shoulder blades.
His rough actions softened slightly. Just a little.
Soon, he leaned in for a kiss.
His excitement was evident in the rough kiss. He ravaged her mouth without leaving room for any other thoughts.
Through barely open eyes, she saw the sea. Above the calm waves…
“Huh…?”
Something unfamiliar was approaching the island.
Startled, Arundel hit Zion’s chest.
“Z-Zion!”
Zion looked at Arundel with half-lidded eyes. His appearance was so sensual for a moment that Arundel swallowed hard.
Oh, no!
There was something she needed to tell before succumbing to his temptation.
“Something is approaching the island.”
Zion, annoyed by Arundel’s words, looked at the approaching presence. Something was indeed coming towards the island.
Gently smoothing out Arundel’s disheveled clothes, Zion stood up from his spot.
“I’ll go check it out.”
But Arundel got up following Zion.
“Shall we go together?”
Soon, they went down to the beach.
A ship was coming from far away.
‘What?’
Arundel couldn’t hide her bewilderment towards the approaching ship. Because this place was an ‘uninhabited island’ that Zion had bought.
The island, which was so beautiful that it could be called a paradise on earth, was not far from the Croyden Empire, and Zion had bought it at an auction.
This island was private property, so no one could enter, and it was not well known, so there was no way a ship could be roaming around.
So she couldn’t help but be more surprised. There were three people on the approaching ship.
‘No way…’
Arundel paused for a moment.
But before he could tell Zion anything, the ship was gently moored on the beach.
Soon, someone got off.
“Long time no see.”
The first person to greet was Duke Richard, the prime minister.
No, he was no longer the prime minister. The prime minister became the emperor after Zion abdicated.
Because Zion had no relatives, there was no one who strongly opposed the prime minister becoming the emperor.
Rather, there were many voices resisting Zion’s abdication, but Zion didn’t care at all.
Thanks to that, he expected that Duke Richard would have had a lot of trouble.
“I’m here too!”
The person who showed up behind was Cain.
When they parted at the palace, Cain was wiping away tears, and it was really a relief to see his face like this.
“Hello!”
Lastly, Belle greeted with a bright face. At the welcome face, Arundel responded with a smile.
“But…are you really Her Majesty the Empress…?”
Duke Richard looked at Arundel and asked with a flustered face.
He had no choice.
Arundel was in her original form, with silver hair and eyes, different from the appearance of Empress Irina. Of course, she was hiding her wings.
“That’s right. Please call me Arundel.”
At Arundel’s words, Duke Richard barely nodded his head. He still seemed unaccustomed.
But Cain and Belle adapted faster than expected.
“Wow! I heard from Captain Royden, but it’s really amazing!”
Belle said in a voice full of admiration. Cain chimed in from the side.
“That’s right! An angel for Zion…it really doesn’t suit it.”
Cain blurted out honestly and looked at Zion’s reaction.
But Zion, for some reason, was already giving off a cold atmosphere, as if he didn’t like this visitor.
“How did you know about this place?”
“I invited them.”
Arundel quickly answered Sion’s question.
In fact, the time they came here was the day when it had been a year since she promised Mannheim, and Arundel, who was preparing for the farewell, had invited them through Royden.
Duke Richard, Cain, and Belle, who didn’t know the whole story, heard the explanation from Royden three times and barely nodded their heads.
They still don’t seem to fully understand the situation.
Everyone seemed busy looking at Arundel’s unfamiliar appearance.
“…Shall we go in for now?”
At Arundel’s words, everyone seemed to come to their senses and moved their steps.
The guests who entered the reception room of the mansion sat facing Arundel and Zion.
“You might have heard roughly from Royden, but I’m actually not a human.”
Originally, angels, unlike demons, do not reveal their appearance publicly. They hide their appearance or act secretly, and only reveal their identity when the world is in chaos.
So, it is an unspoken rule not to tell ordinary people that they are angels, but there are exceptions everywhere.
‘Of course, the exception is what I set.’
Arundel shrugged her shoulders and explained.
“I’m originally Arundel, who holds the position of Archangel. Due to circumstances, I was given a mission by the Lord and replaced the Empress.”
“So, that’s why… you suddenly declared a divorce… because Arundel is returning to her original body.”
Duke Richard retraced the situation.
“That’s right. I asked the Lord for a special favor to return to my original body after a grace period of one year. Zion needed time to step down from the emperor’s position, and I had to prepare for a divorce for Empress Irina.”
As Arundel explained, they seemed to understand roughly.
“I’m sorry. Duke Richard must have had a hard time because Zion suddenly abdicated…”
Arundel looked at Duke Richard with a pitiful expression. The position he suddenly took on must have been very burdensome.
Then Cain, who was next to him, interrupted.
“Me too! I had a hard time too!”
Arundel looked at Cain with a surprised face.
Likewise, Cain, who was a member of the royal office, must have had a hard time becoming the prime minister. But Zion didn’t worry because he believed that he, who was competent, would do well.
And there was another person she was worried about. Arundel turned her gaze to Bell.
“I’m sorry, Belle.”
As Arundel spoke, Belle looked a bit teary.
Knowing that the real Empress Irina would have nowhere to go if she divorced Zion, she asked Zion for a favor.
She asked him to give her land as a divorce settlement.
Thanks to that, she got a mansion and enough money to live on for the rest of her life, not far from the capital.
Also, Belle and the head maid, who were Irina’s maids, naturally transferred to other places.
Arundel didn’t know how much Belle had cried when she announced the divorce news.
Knowing that Belle had always admired Royden, she asked Royden to take good care of Bells when they parted.
“Drink.”
A low voice that broke the touching atmosphere was heard. Zion put down the teacup on the table with a thud!
Fortunately, it didn’t seem like the teacup was broken.
Despite the rude behavior, everyone was lost in thought looking at him. Cain mumbled to himself unknowingly as he lifted his teacup.
“Wow… to drink the tea given by the Emperor… no, Zion…”
Cain wasn’t the only one who was moved. Duke Richard also lifted his teacup, his eyes welling up with tears for some reason.
“I will drink well.”
Arundel thought it wasn’t something to be so moved about, but Duke Richard’s eyes were already red, as if he was in another world.
“This is… a bit absurd, but thinking about Zion’s childhood…it’s really touching.”
At the mention of Zion’s childhood, Arundel asked with a curious expression.
“Zion’s childhood?”
Duke Richard nodded his head. His eyes, recalling the past, seemed distant.
