Dyon lightly smiled as he looked over Amphorae's delicate figure. The more time he spent with her, the more his curiosity for this Queen Luna grew more fervent. What kind of woman was Queen Luna to make him forget this beauty? Whether it be intelligence, demeanor, or looks, Amphorae could be considered to be perfect. Dyon found it hard to believe that a young man could grow up with her by his side, understanding that she was his alone, and yet fall in love with someone else simply because of one trip.

There was a second problem with all of this as well. This was the Imperial Harem. The person that should be at the helm of it wasn't Amphorae. That person should have been Queen Luna. And yet, she was nowhere to be seen.

This clearly exacerbated the situation. It seemed this Queen Luna was just as bad at public relations as her husband. Maybe they really were a match made in heaven.

However, for now, Dyon put this aside. After all, wouldn't he meet his queen tonight? For now, he had to focus on the task at hand. Because he intended on allowing some traitors to purposely sneak past their vision tonight, there was no way the attacking clans would stick to their one-week time table. In all likelihood, they would move up their attack.

So, Dyon began, accepting Amphorae's placement by his side with nothing but pleasure and comfort on his features. This was the easiest way to convey that he had accepted her. At the same time, he had to be careful. He was well aware that this was the first time his character had seen Amphorae like this, so if he was too eager, it would seem to make his motives lecherous. Although there would be a time for that, it wasn't now.

Seeing Dyon's demeanor, the women couldn't help but inwardly nod with approval. Their grievances weren't so simple as their being neglected sexually. If their King came here and thought he could just wave around his penis around to pacify them, although they would have no choice but to accept the matter, it would likely only push the majority of them further away.

"I understand that I've made mistakes. But, as a person with a single perspective, it's impossible for me to know every aspect of every situation. So, I want you all to take this opportunity. Everyday moving forward from now, you'll be treated as family should be. However, for today, I want you all to ignore proper customs the same way your terrible King has.

"Forget etiquette. Don't think of punishment. Speak your minds freely."

When they heard Dyon's words, many of the women looked at each other, unsure how to feel about things.

Dyon had, of course, expected this. After all, just because he said that there would be no punishments, humans were subject to being emotional, especially a King who had been pampered with praise all of his life. No one had even dared to berate him for neglecting his harem. To his face, he only heard praises for being such a loyal man.

Knowing all of this, how could these women know how Dyon would react to criticism? What if he got angry and rescinded his promise? Or, what if he didn't rescind his promise, but instead used underhanded means to suppress those that said the most damning things?

These were all things they didn't know and wouldn't claim to know. The atmosphere immediately turned into a game of follow the leader, where everyone looked around to see who would break the ice.

Seeing this, the outgoing Pearl decided to step out on a limb.

"If you learn that Queen Luna is the reason we've been exposed to this attack, what will you do?"

The air seemed to be sucked out of the room, replaced by a cold wind that sent shivers down the spine of all of the women. They didn't dare to look at Dyon to see what his reaction would be.

At first, they had hoped to be able to slide into this topic, maybe starting with lighter matters first. Yet, Pearl had cut right to the source of all of their dissatisfaction.

Anyone with half a brain would suspect Queen Luna for being the true traitor. Because of this, many of the women here, although they didn't show it, were dissatisfied that their King had come here first instead of investigating the more likely perpetrator first. With their intelligence, how could they not understand the underlying meaning of Dyon's visit? He wanted them to "become closer" because he suspected one of them had betrayed him due to their dissatisfaction.

Knowing this, how could irritation not build up in their hearts? Whether their King was aware of it or not, they had silently and respectfully served him for dozens of years. And yet instead of suspecting his oh so beloved wife, he blames them first. How could they not be frustrated?

However, they had deeply buried this dissatisfaction. Even if their courage was hundreds of times larger they would never say a thing about it. But, Pearl had stepped out and spoken first.

Seeing the situation, even Amphorae didn't have the heart to look toward Dyon. She had been planning to be the one to speak on this topic, to take the burden away from her fellow sisters, but Pearl had seen through this and pushed her behind herself for protection. Knowing this, Amphorae couldn't allow someone she saw as her younger sister punished for protecting her.

Amphorae abruptly tried to stand to drop to her knees in apology. "King plea "

She never got an opportunity to finish. Dyon reacted faster than she did, grabbing onto her waist and keeping her firmly planted to the elegant tiles they sat on by the diverted river.

Dyon released her, delicately using his finger to turn her chin toward him. After almost getting lost in the soft touch of her skin, Dyon refocused himself and looked into her light blue eyes that seemed to be swimming with clouds.

"You are my woman. Do you understand what that means?" Dyon's words caused the hearts of the women around him to tremble inadvertently. Did their King always have such presence? "There is no one in this life you have to kowtow to, even if that person is me."