The vice-captain, who had escaped earlier to avoid watching Sig and Britia’s overly lovey-dovey behavior, went straight for the alcohol.
“This is what I needed.”
After just one sip, he felt satisfied and settled down in a corner of the banquet hall, drinking comfortably. It had been a long time since he could relax with a drink, especially with all the worries weighing on him lately.
He had really missed drinking this particular liquor from the capital.
“I love this stuff, but it’s been so hard to get my hands on it.”
Every year, he’d order Evry to bring some back, but he’d only manage to get a few bottles. Just when he’d start enjoying it, he’d run out. But here, he didn’t have to worry about that.
There was a reason someone who loved alcohol as much as he did hadn’t left the North since getting married.
He used to say it was because he’d traveled so much as a kid that he got tired of it. But in reality, the one who didn’t want to leave Altheim was his wife, Heather.
‘Do you really have to go to the capital with the duke? I hate the idea of being apart from you for so long.’
In their first year of marriage, Heather had said that to him, and from then on, he promised to stay in Altheim to look after things. Even though she didn’t say it anymore, he knew.
Every year, when Sig left for the capital, she would give him that subtle, expectant look. And every time, he’d tell her he wasn’t going anywhere without her. She couldn’t hide how happy that made her.
He found her so endearing that he refused to leave for the capital every year. Luckily, Sig never forced him to go.
“Even though I got dragged here this time.”
He said it like he was complaining, but he didn’t seem upset. He was thinking about the letter Heather had sent him a few days ago, saying how much she missed him.
After ten years of marriage, Heather didn’t show affection as easily anymore. When he tried, she’d call his words cheesy. But this time, her letter had said:
[It feels so empty without you. I miss you. When are you coming back?]
That little message brought back some of the closeness that had faded over the years, and he found himself looking forward to heading back to Altheim.
He caught a few people glancing at him as he smiled to himself. Being quick on the uptake, he wiped the grin off his face, cleared his throat, and took another sip of his drink.
“I wonder if the duke is still lost in his little world with the lady.”
He spoke louder than necessary to cover up his embarrassment and looked toward the entrance, trying to spot Sig. But the big guy was nowhere to be seen. Not that he was about to go looking for him.
If Britia had gone off alone, he would’ve gotten up to search for her, but since Sig was with her, there was no need.
With that overly protective guy by her side, not even an ant would dare get close to the young lady.
The vice-captain, who wasn’t much different himself, was convinced that Sig was exceptionally over-the-top when it came to Britia. And he wasn’t wrong—at least he didn’t feel the urge to literally put his wife in his mouth.
It was around the time Sig had started taking evening strolls with Britia.
“I’ve got something bothering me. It’s about Britia.”
Sig’s voice was so serious that the vice-captain immediately felt on edge.
“She’s not having second thoughts about the marriage, is she?”
Sig shot him a sharp look.
“Then what is it?”
Growing more anxious, the vice-captain pressed Sig to just spit it out, worried that Sig had gotten himself into a mess he couldn’t fix.
“Do you remember that thing Little does when he’s in a good mood?”
“You mean when he rolls over and wants you to scratch his belly?”
“That, yes, but also when he puts my head in his mouth.”
The vice-captain nodded. But what did that have to do with Britia?
“Are you worried Britia might be scared of Little?”
Considering that Little was a massive dire wolf, it wouldn’t be surprising if she was a bit intimidated. That would make sense.
“Come on, she’s the type of woman who’d probably find even you cute. I doubt she’d be scared of a big softie like Little.”
“…What do you mean by ‘even me’?”
Sig frowned, but the vice-captain ignored him.
“Does she not like dogs? If she had a bad experience as a kid, like getting bitten, that could be an issue.”
The vice-captain was already thinking he might have to keep Little out of Sig’s room for a while.
“No, Britia isn’t scared of dogs. Or me. That’s not it. The problem is… when I look at her…”
Sig hesitated, like he was about to confess something embarrassing. The vice-captain narrowed his eyes.
“What is it, My Lord?”
After a long pause, Sig finally admitted it, his hesitation only making the vice-captain more nervous.
“Sometimes, when I feel too strongly about her… I get this urge… to put her in my mouth, like Little does with me.”
Sig, blushing slightly, seemed dead serious. The vice-captain stared at him, his eyebrows shooting up in disbelief.
“I know I shouldn’t, and I try to resist, but sometimes it’s just… really hard.”
“…Why don’t you just go ahead and say you want to swallow her whole and carry her around inside your stomach?”
The vice-captain said it as a joke, but Sig looked at him like he’d just read his mind.
“Do you think it’s okay to tell her about this?”
“Do you really think that’s a good idea?”
The vice-captain blurted out, unable to hide his frustration.
“If I were a woman, I sure wouldn’t want to marry a guy who talks like that.”
“Do you think she’ll feel the same way?”
Seeing the worry on Sig’s face, the vice-captain just shrugged.
“I’m not Britia, so I wouldn’t know. She’s got pretty unique tastes, so who knows, maybe she’d actually like it.”
“Yeah, maybe she would.”
“Don’t take my sarcasm seriously.”
The vice-captain warned Sig, worried that he might actually go tell her he wanted to put her head in his mouth and carry her around.
“At least save those weird comments for after you’re married, when she’s used to you enough to laugh it off.”
He tried to scare Sig a little, saying, what if she ran off, thinking he was some kind of weirdo? Sig nodded slowly, seeming to take the warning seriously.
He wouldn’t actually go through with it, would he? I did tell him not to, right?
The thought sent a chill down the vice-captain’s spine. Sig Turas was definitely the type to act on something once he made up his mind. And, as it turned out, the vice-captain’s bad feeling was right.
* * *
Two days had passed since the Crown Prince’s birthday party.
Britia had been trying to wrap her head around the fact that Sig had literally put her head in his mouth.
“I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.”
Sig’s shy confession that day had left Britia completely unsure of how to respond.
For her, biting was something you did when you were angry. Growing up, she and Crave used to fight all the time, biting each other’s arms and legs.
Of course, Sig had been gentle—it didn’t hurt. And he wasn’t mad. It seemed like he did it out of affection, as some sort of strange love gesture.
She got that much, but still, letting him bite her head just felt so odd. If Crave ever found out, he’d definitely tease her endlessly.
“Did you not like it?”
Seeing her stiff expression, Sig had asked, concerned. He even apologized, saying he was sorry if it had upset her, but Britia quickly denied it.
No, it wasn’t that. She wasn’t upset. She was just completely shocked and didn’t know how to react.
She could easily ignore her annoying brother’s teasing. And as long as she understood where Sig was coming from, his actions didn’t really bother her. But she still couldn’t understand why he had the urge to bite her head in the first place.
However, as she sat crouched in the palace’s inner garden for two hours, planting heather, she started to think maybe it didn’t really matter.
“Sig.”
Britia called out to him as he worked on the other side, planting flowers.
“You let me touch your tail whenever I want.”
Sig probably didn’t understand why she liked touching his tail so much, but he always let her, just because she asked, even though it clearly hurt him.
“So, if you want to bite my head, go ahead. Even if it leaves a hole, I don’t mind.”
Britia had been quietly planting flowers when she suddenly made a dramatic comment that caught Sig completely off guard. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were a little dazed.
“Uncle, can we take a break?” Sig asked, worried that the hard work and heat were getting to her.
“Instead of taking a break, why don’t you hurry up and finish? At this rate, the sun will set before you’re done,” the emperor said, watching them from the shade with his arms crossed.
“You know, Sig’s the one who offered to make me a heath garden. If you have any complaints, take them up with him,” the emperor added, as if trying to stir up trouble between them.
Hearing that, Sig stood up and made some shade for Britia.
“Uncle, I’ll do Britia’s share as well…”
“This is your punishment for not listening to me and running to your uncle.”
“But—!”
“What’s the point of only punishing you? You’d just get through it quietly without learning anything.”
The emperor nodded toward Britia.
“To really make you feel bad, she’s the one who needs to suffer a bit, don’t you think?”
“Uncle, there’s no need for this. It’s all my fault,” Sig tried to apologize, but the emperor wasn’t budging. It wasn’t until the empress, who had heard what was going on, came rushing over that they finally got a break.
“What are you making these poor kids do?”
The empress, shocked by Britia’s flushed face and Sig covered in sweat, quickly called them into the shade.
“What exactly is the problem here, Your Majesty?”
“Problem? Who do you think asked to see a heath garden?” the emperor replied, frowning like he couldn’t believe she was giving him attitude after he’d granted her wish.
“I said I wanted to see the heath fields back home, not to have one built here!” the empress shot back.
What she had really wanted wasn’t this artificial garden, but the wild heath fields from her homeland. Looking around at the ruined inner garden, the empress was horrified.
“Was it really that hard to just let me visit my homeland for a little while?”
Did he think she was planning a rebellion if she returned? The empress could only let out a bitter laugh at the emperor’s ridiculous behavior.
“And when I die, even if I beg you to scatter my ashes in my homeland, you’ll probably insist on burying me here. That’s the kind of person you are!”
Her voice was rising with anger, and the emperor flinched. He opened his mouth like he wanted to say something but instead took a deep breath.
“Why are you talking about dying!” he shouted, his voice even louder than hers.
