Pre-war tension part 2

"The minister for food and other affairs was appointed almost 10 years ago when he completed his training under the previous count of his region. At this point, it would not be wrong to say that it is a hereditary position" the pair did not really meet eyes, their thoughts preoccupied with other things.

But the elephant in the room seemed no less prominent than before. This time, both the participants were aware of that presence.

"Is that what you want to ask me?" The curious tone was not hidden and now the king had an opening should he choose to go ahead with it. It was as good a verbal confirmation as one was going to get from the fox at any rate.

But the king decided not to go ahead with that curiosity, his respect for the other would not allow him to take such liberties.

He wanted the other to come out and tell him the truth from his own mouth, even if it took centuries.

"Yes, that is what I want to ask" finally, it seemed as if the air was really clear between them. With an unspoken agreement, both decided that it was best to drop this topic before it actually became a clashing point for both of them.

"If this is a topic you want to pick up then I will not fault you for it. Perhaps, it would be better if we discuss it over the context of the map" the king agreed and opened the map in between them.

Compared to the present times, the map was basic in style and representation. It might have been considered a very detailed map for its time but when Keito saw it he could not help but feel jealous of the present times.

It was really difficult to rely on this map now.

"As we know, the valley lies here" the fox pointed to the vaguely marked area of the valley, "and the minister hails from here" the placement just right of it. "From this, we can tell that his wife is from the shaman clans, famous for their voodoo magic. Hence, there is a high chance she was able to get those bodies out of the borders without notice" the masked fox looked on in concentration.

The king should not be getting distracted by the presented image the fox made, but he could not help it. His eyes would leave that concentrated body posture of the fox's adult form. There was something alluring about it behind the table, over the map.

'Should we add to it?' the yelp could not be suppressed, it was just that surprising.

And apparently loud enough to attract the attention of the bent body of the fox which straightened itself.

'How unfortunate' Keito thought that the thought had belonged to the alpha wolf and had bled over to his side but he coloured once he realised that it had been his own thought.

This was not good at all and the mocking laughter aimed at his person did not feel nice at all. To hide his embarrassment, he coughed in between his hands and switched his attention toward the map.

"It is also curious that the connection between Kyushu (not jp one) and meshi was made through a marriage alliance. The minister of food offered the female's hand in marriage to me she's current overlooker but no one knew anything about the female at all till the date. The lack of fanfare was noted though and now it makes me wonder" the kings left it ambiguous but the other finished those thoughts for him.

"It was not entirely due to a reason. Generally, this nobility call for the temple to perform their matrimony but this marriage was an exception. Instead, the minister sent people of his own to perform the rites. It is clear to see that this was something which was planned a long time coming and even now we cannot access people who performed those ceremonies"

"You think they were from the valley" the king finished, his face laxed in worry.

"We could not check since we did not have that authority and this case was never brought up again but there had been a resurgence in people seeking these outsiders more and more in the recent years. Ryu thinks it's an attack to weaken the temple's influence too" this sounded serious.

But why had something like this not reached his ears at all till now?

"I see. So it was an all-out offence against and not just targeted at nobility? That's a relief"

"I won't say that. In recent years, there had been too many attempts to fill the temple with nobility and people were not….'happy' with it" which brings them back to the point - nobility.

Maybe they were the source of all the problems currently occurring right now. If not of the kingdom, then they certainly were the bane of Keito's current rule. They nagged and never tried to be productive in any way.

The members who were deserving were too busy to keep others in check to really make an impact on society.

"Ah, why is it so difficult to keep everyone happy? What should our next course of action be?" The king was stumped and threw his body on the giant, fluffy bed which bounced with his weight.

He was acting childish but it felt good and right. Besides, the other would not judge him for his behaviour.

"Anyway, our first course of action should be to stop body trafficking from the valley. I think the attack earlier was a warning of some sort" a warning which took the royal couple away was a highly effective one.

"I guess I should tell the council that I will be away and to prepare for my trip? Hey, where are you going-" seeing as how the king was busy in his own world, Noah made a motion to leave but was stopped by that last order.

"It's not appropriate for me to be here" the fox was right. Even if no one knew his real gender or designation, he was still an omega and should not be here alone with the king.

He had already broken too many rules today and he had no intention of breaking anymore right now.

"Who cares? It's not like it has stopped you before. Just stay here for today so that I feel better" there was a pause before the masked teen tilted his head in agreement and took a step back inside.

Keito waited for him to start moving toward the bed but the person turned the other way and walked right past him toward the couch section.

"You can join me here. This bed is far too big" Keito complained but he was ignored once again and at this point, even he knew that sharing a bed was far too big a step for them to take with their current standing.

He turned around to once again lie on his back and looked at the canopy of the bed above.

It was different today, this room and this atmosphere. He had not noticed it before but sleeping alone had been stressful. Not only was the room far too large for him alone but there was a certain detachment to the whole process.

But with the presence of Noah inside the room, it felt peaceful. Just the mere presence of another body was a comfort he could not begin to compare with.

And slowly, his eyes closed and he lost the battle to sleep.

It was one of the best night of sleep of his life and felt like the shortest too. It felt as if he had just closed his eyes when he had been woken awake by the shrill voice of a male. It immediately made him stand on alert and look around for a weapon.

His eyes would not open fully due to sleep clouding them but he could make out a huge shadow standing over his couches with a shrieking servant pointing to something there and it occurred to his tired mind all of a sudden what they were pointing at.

Noah was sleeping there.

And he was being panicked up, wide awake now and with a stiff body. The mask was coming almost loose and Keito would bet anything that the other was about to snap.

"Let him go" the warning came too late for the poor soldier who was thrown over the teen's shoulder. The masked teen had somehow regained his balance, his mask falling to the floor and the unbound hair hiding the familiar face from the view.

Then he bent down to pick up the mask and secured it before anyone could have a view of it.

"This news should not get out and if it did then I would not be lenient with anyone involved. Did you understand?" The servant looked even more terrified and the soldier looked ashamed with his display.

Both could not lift their heads after such a display and Keito was not sure if he wanted to laugh or cry at that scene.

In the end, he did neither and left in the afternoon with the other but a new rumour was born that day. The rumour of the ghost in the young king's room defeateing a guard and scared a servant to never speak of that incident again.