Chapter 291 - Spending Time Together

They ate their dinner and share a good laugh. Vaughn wished that they could always spend their days like that. If only they could leave their responsibilities behind and be free as the wind.

Zenia was contemplating whether it was the right time to discuss certain things. Vaughn seemed to have recovered from his bad mood earlier. She had decided to wait until they were about to go to bed.

"Do you want to go out again tomorrow?"

"This place is quite good. I think I want to spend some time here first. Anyway, we just got out earlier because we need to find some answers."

"Are we just going to stay here in our room all day doing nothing?"

Vaughn began to tease Zenia and hoped that she would agree to his proposal earlier. It was a long shot, but he should give it a try.

Zenia did not give a reply to his question and said, "Let's clean up and go to our room. There are things I want to discuss with you."

Vaughn complied, but he was very nervous. Zenia's tone was so serious that he felt like she would tell him something that he would find outrageous. He just hoped that he was wrong.

It was the first time that Vaughn felt like not wanting to enter their bedroom. Zenia was making him so nervous.

"Sit down," Zenia told him as soon as they entered the room.

Vaughn sat down on a chair by the table and waited for Zenia's next move. She had an imposing aura of the Junior Commander.

"Brother Vaughn I will try to explain this as calmly as I can. We are now officially a married couple who promised to stay together forever. You already know that I hate liars the most, and I want you to be honest with me. Let us talk about having a family. When do you want to have our first child? Do you plan to ascend the throne first?"

Vaughn did not expect that Zenia would open such a topic of discussion. To be frank, he had not given it a thought yet and just wanted to get intimate with his wife. He felt ashamed for having l.u.s.tful thoughts and did not even think of the possible consequence of his actions, like having a child.

"I really want to have our first child after I ascended the throne. I want to spend more time with you first."

"Hmm. We need to get a pregnancy test to see if I'm not pregnant after we did it for the first time. If I'm not pregnant, we can ask the doctor for the most effective contraceptive. How many children do you want?"

"I don't have a specific number in mind – fifteen, maybe?"

"Hmm, do you plan to take in some concubines?"

Vaughn looked at her and shouted, "NO!"

Zenia shouted back, "Then why do you want fifteen children? Are you telling me that you want to turn me into a mother pig? Change the number."

"If I want fifteen children, are you telling me that you will allow me to have some concubines?" Vaughn smiled naughtily.

Zenia looked at him and gave him an evil grin, "I will divorce you immediately before you can bring your concubines in my territory."

Vaughn gulped hard, "I think five children should be enough."

Zenia tapped Vaughn's cheek lightly, twice, and continued, "Good, I think I can manage that number, but we'll still see. What will you do if a concubine is offered to you, like what happened with Verone? What if she can help you strengthen your power?"

Vaughn looked at Zenia, who seemed worried about what kind of answer he would give. They both knew that political marriage was one way to strengthen the reign of the current king.

"Even if it's just for gaining a strong ally, and I won't even go to her bed-chamber, I will still flatly refuse the offer. If they insist, I will tell them that they can deal with your sword first."

"Good reasoning. But, how can you tell that I will beat them all? What if their swordmaster is better than me?"

"Then they will need to deal with my sword next. I did not say that they only need to deal with you, I said to deal with your sword first. I will not give them a chance to win."

Zenia liked the things she heard so far. It was music to her ears.

"You know that I want to travel and put up business everywhere in Maecaea, can I go anywhere I want?"

"You can go anywhere as long as you take me with you. I won't allow you to travel anywhere without me. You can go anywhere in Tissuria without me if it's something inevitable like when you get invited by noble ladies for lunch or tea party. But, you need to take some guards with you."

"Will you take me along with you when you need to visit some areas and will be gone for a long time?"

"Zenzen, you don't need to ask because I will tell you right away that I will bring you along with me. I will not let you spend some boring days in the palace waiting for my return. We will be together like we used to before we got married and when we were investigating something. Besides, you can always come up with unconventional ideas that work."

"Do I still need to attend those gatherings when we get back? I'm sure there will be more."

"You can refuse some of them but not all of them. I know that being a Crown Princess is a lot of work but please bear with it for a while. When I become the King of Tissuria, I will abolish those unnecessary traditions and formalities."

"I'm not complaining too much, and I really don't want you to change your kingdom's tradition for my own good. I will be able to adapt sooner or later."

"If there are things or persons that make you upset, don't hesitate to tell me. I will take care of it."

"You too, Brother Vaughn. If you have trouble, let me know right away even if it involves political marriage or something more troublesome. We are already one. We need to face everything as husband and wife. Let us build a strong family."

"I promise not to keep anything from you, and you must promise to do the same."

Zenia nodded, "Well, I will ask you again if there are things that pop in my mind. Are there other things that you want to clarify with me?"

Vaughn looked at Zenia for a long time and could not think of anything. He did not want her to choose between him and her maternal family if that choice was inevitable to happen. He was certain that Zenia would never fall for another man. He did not know how he was so sure, but he could not deny what his heart and mind were telling him.

"Zenzen, there is nothing I want from this world but for you to stay with me forever. We may experience some difficulties in the future, but promise me that you will never leave me."

"Okay, I promise. Is that all?" She smiled at him when she uttered her reply.

Vaughn nodded his head and smiled back at her.

"It's getting late, but my tummy is still full. Do you want to take a walk outside?"

Zenia nodded, and they held each other's hand when they walked out of the house. 

The Lead Maid was busy preparing the ingredients that she would take to Zenia the following morning. Chief Elder was expecting to get more portion than the previous one. They had huge storage that could keep the freshness of the different meats for a long time. It was another contraption of the one who designed the mechanism of the temple door.

She chose the meats that she would take out in the morning and put them near the storage door. She put the fresh vegetables and other ingredients in huge baskets, which they would carry in the morning. The Lead Maid was satisfied with the preparations that she made. They must depart earlier than usual so that the Madam would have enough time to cook the dishes. The Lead Maid was expecting to see at least two different dishes in the morning.

Somewhere in Ishelon, Zander was gently patting Odessa's back while she was vomiting. He could not say that it was morning sickness because it was already late at night. Odessa knew that she was at least a month pregnant with their first child. However, she did not say anything to Zander yet. She wanted to make sure that her diagnosis was correct. She was not an obstetrician to make an accurate estimation regarding her term.  

"Do you want me to call a doctor?" Zander asked his wife worriedly.

"I'm a doctor myself. We don't need to bother anyone for something like this. We can go there in the morning."

"Do you want me to call Mother?"

Odessa shook her head and leaned on Zander when she was certain that she would no longer throw up. Zander helped her clean up and carried her to their room. 

He put his wife on the bed and asked her once more if she was feeling any discomfort somewhere. Zander did not show any sign that he had a hunch that his wife was pregnant. To be blunt, Zander really had no idea. But, he knew that his wife was suffering, and he wanted to help her feel comfortable anyway he could.

"Zander, do you want a son or a daughter?"

Zander looked at Odessa with excitement in his eyes. Odessa nodded her head and smiled at him.