In the letter, Livius Natantin Carter expressed his desire for an urgent personal meeting with his sister because there was something important that he needed to discuss with her in person.

  "Dear sister,

  I hope you are well. I need you to come home as soon as possible. I really need your help. It is truly important, and I hope to receive an answer from you as soon as possible.

  Please let me know when you can come.

  With love,

  Your elder brother Livius."

  This was what was written in the letter from the Duke's second son. Remesis received the letter, and the expression of confusion on her face became more and more pronounced as she read it. She had not expected to receive a letter from any of her relatives, because in her past life this had never happened. But now, suddenly, she had received a letter from her elder brother.

  Moreover, Livius was asking her for help with something, while not disclosing any details, as, apparently, this matter was too personal to reveal details in a letter. Remesis bit her lip, rereading these lines several times.

  That Livius had asked her to return to their home after many years of absence was more than unexpected. And even more unexpected was that this letter had come specifically from him. She remembered her brother as a very shy child who never even dared to speak to her first. But now he had suddenly personally sent her a letter, and this planted justified doubts in the girl.

  The reasons for such a step must indeed be serious.

  Initially, Remesis had not planned to ever return to her father's house. First and foremost, she was focused on taking revenge on the Grand Duke's family, whom she couldn't even bring herself to call her relatives. Nevertheless, it could not be denied that in this family there was still one person towards whom the girl did not feel such strong hatred.

  Livius Carter, the Duke's second son, who was one year older than her.

  Unlike his brother and sister, the boy had never bullied her, and in his gaze, the girl had seen sincere sympathy towards her. This showed that Livius was actually a kind-hearted person, but due to circumstances, he had to constantly wear a mask to prevent anyone from seeing his weaknesses. When she lived in the estate, Remesis understood Livius as well as he understood her.

  After moving north, even despite being so busy every day, Remesis still sometimes missed her brother. She wondered how his life had turned out over the years. And, of course, she had not expected that they would ever meet again.

  So now this letter had put her in a quandary.

  Remesis could easily ignore a letter from her family, even if it was sealed with the Grand Duke's seal. But what made her resolve waver at such a moment was none other than an old childhood affection. If Livius himself had asked his sister for help, it meant that this was something truly important. In the end, Remesis could not simply ignore him.

  "Should I go?"

  The Princess Consort pondered this all through the coming night, and these thoughts turned out to be so exhausting that by morning, the girl felt as if she hadn't slept at all. Nevertheless, Remesis still made a decision. Realizing that she couldn't simply ignore her brother's letter, the girl decided to fulfill his request after all.

  "Perhaps if I don't do this now, I will regret it later."

  The only thing that worried Remesis was how to inform Asil of her decision to leave. Would she accept her decision so easily? Or would she not care about it? Remesis did not know this yet.

  For this reason, Remesis decided for the first time in recent days to leave her room to eat together with the princess. As soon as the girl expressed her desire to attend breakfast, the maids were beside themselves with joy. They felt immense relief that the princess, apparently, had finally felt better and recovered from mourning.

  The maids carefully combed her dark hair and dressed her in one of her finest dresses. While her thoughts continued to soar in the skies, Remesis didn't pay too much attention to what the maids were doing to her, and when she finally saw her reflection in the mirror, she just sighed.

  Although she considered her appearance too flashy for an ordinary breakfast, in any case, changing again would have been too troublesome, so the girl decided to just leave it as it was.

  Later, walking down the corridor, Remesis did not stop thinking about the upcoming conversation with the princess and what she would say to her. However, soon the wide doors leading to the dining room came into view, and the endless stream of thoughts vanished on its own.

  The Northern Devil was already waiting for her there.

  "...Wife, you've come."

  Asil rose from her seat as soon as she saw her. She was so excited that it was clearly reflected on her face. When she saw her wife for the first time in a long while, she was filled with a joyful feeling, and Remesis was even embarrassed by such close attention. The princess immediately approached her and pulled out a chair, showing due courtesy.

  Despite there being no need for such etiquette, Remesis thanked the princess and sat down at the table.

  "Thank you, Your Highness."

  Asil beamed a radiant smile at her.

  "Wife, why did you suddenly decide to eat together?" The woman asked the question that clearly interested her most.

  "I thought we hadn't talked in a long time, so I decided that after such a long break, we should talk."

  Answering the question, Remesis looked as impassive as usual, so it was difficult to understand what she was thinking.

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  Nevertheless, the girl began to eat the soup that was right in front of her, behaving casually. The princess was also positive, since Remesis had been the first to initiate dialogue.

  "Your Highness, how have you been all these days?" Remesis asked at one point.

  "Actually, it's been a difficult time for me..." she answered, after hesitating.

  "Were there too many things to do?" Remesis suggested the most likely, because due to the fact that she had temporarily stepped away from her duties and left it all to the princess, this could indeed be the case.

  "No, it's all because I haven't seen my wife for too long."

  "Hmm, I see..."

  Remesis thought she had been foolish, as she hadn't expected such an answer immediately.

  Asil paused, looking at her, and then continued, making a more concerned face.

  "Wife, are you feeling unwell?"

  Remesis, who looked a bit tired, lifted her eyes from the soup she was eating. She told the princess the truth in her usual tone:

  "I just didn't get enough sleep."

  All because Livius's letter had triggered various thoughts in her that had kept her awake all night.

  The Princess of the North frowned and looked at her wife. It seemed this answer did not satisfy her.

  "Wife, if you're feeling unwell, we should call a doctor," she immediately said.

  But Remesis objected:

  "There's no need for that."

  "Wife, you should be more attentive to your health," the princess insisted.

  Remesis, like most natives of the south, did not have as robust health as northerners. So if the girl overexerted herself, she could fall ill. Asil, knowing this, often worried about her condition. She constantly said that Remesis needed more rest, and official matters could wait. The princess was a caring spouse in every way. Remesis, however, found such concern for her excessive.

  "You don't need to worry so much, I'm perfectly healthy."

  "I understand, but you know, I always worry about you."

  "And why is that?"

  "Isn't that my duty?"

  Asil smiled shyly, uttering these words. Remesis took a deep breath: on her face, the familiar expression of annoyance became more and more evident.

  The princess smiled even wider, seeing how her spouse's expression changed when the girl was displeased with another of her meaningless remarks. At that moment, something else flickered on her face.

  "What's the matter?" Remesis asked, noticing with the naked eye that the princess was looking at her longer than usual.

  "I think you want to tell me something," the mistress of the north's guess turned out to be surprisingly accurate.

  Remesis cleared her throat. With age, her spouse was definitely becoming more perceptive. Perhaps this was an appropriate moment to start this conversation.

  "Your Highness, yesterday I received a letter from my brother," the princess began slowly. "He asked me to come because something had happened at home. I thought about it for a long time and made the decision that I should go there after all."

  "....."

  Flustered by the fact that there was no reaction at all on the princess's face after her words, Remesis added a clarification:

  "Can you give me one month? I mean... I'll try to resolve all the problems and return as soon as possible."

  Asil's face darkened slightly at her words. Remesis said nothing and simply waited silently for what would happen next. For some time, complete silence reigned in the dining room.

  "Alright," she finally uttered hoarsely, "so I am to wait for my wife here?"

  Although it was imperceptible from the outside, the hand of the Princess of the North clenched the cup of black tea tighter, but not enough to break the glass.

  Remesis, on the contrary, was by this point quite surprised. She had thought the negotiations would require more effort, but Asil's behavior hadn't changed at all. She was behaving as if she was truly ready to let her go like this.

  Hearing the princess's unassuming answer, Remesis gripped the spoon in her hand tighter.

  "...Your Highness, do you really not mind if I leave the north for a while?" A slight uncertainty sounded in her voice.

  "But do I have any reason to worry or object?"

  "But..." the girl stammered.

  "I respect my wife's opinion. If you have made a decision and it is necessary, can I stop you? I only hope that in that case, you will not leave me for long..." Asil muttered the last words and looked at her with longing.

  "......"

  Remesis was quite puzzled by what was happening.

  She had thought that after she brought this up, the princess would show some kind of violent reaction.

  But, contrary to her expectations, Asil's face remained calm. Confused that not the slightest hint of anger had appeared on her face, the girl couldn't find words for the first few moments. In her previous life, Remesis wouldn't have even dared to hint at this, because she knew what reaction to expect to this.

  Despite the fact that in her past life, she and the princess were merely strangers living under one roof, Asil still refused to show her any loyalty in this matter. Without the permission of the Lord of the North, the girl had no right to leave the castle, and so the iron fortress had become like a cage for her.

  Was it because Asil considered her wife such a bothersome nobody that she didn't want to give her even a chance at anything good in her life? And wasn't it because in this life their relationship had turned out differently, and the princess's reaction was also different?

  "...The only thing I worry about is your safety, wife," Asil's worried voice sounded again. "I will choose the most talented people to accompany you, and they will be responsible for your protection during the journey."

  Remesis, on the contrary, considered such precautionary measures excessive. No normal person would ever think of targeting the wife of the Lord of the North, the strongest person in the empire. Moreover, it could be said with certainty that no one would dare attack Remesis, given her high status at the moment. Besides...

  "There's no need to involve the castle's best soldiers for this. They should stay and guard the fortress. It will be enough if Hannes comes with me."

  "Hannes Wrightly...?" the woman interjected.

  "Yes, I am completely confident that he can protect me," Remesis confirmed her words with a serious nod.

  "....."

  The princess hesitated over this for only a moment, but soon she was looking at Remesis with a calm gaze. It was unclear what thoughts were wandering in her head at that moment. Nevertheless, the pause, which was becoming more and more tense, dragged on. Remesis also felt uncomfortable.

  "...Alright." the princess answered calmly after a while. "If it is my wife's will, so be it."

  Remesis was ready to breathe a sigh of relief. She was glad that during the negotiations with the princess, she had encountered no difficulties.

  "Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness. In that case, I intend to depart the day after tomorrow."

  Asil Nara Ashelot slowly nodded to her. She beamed a radiant smile as the atmosphere at breakfast became increasingly exciting. Her beautiful face shone wonderfully.

  Unable to bear such a sight, Remesis turned her head away. She still could hardly believe that this conversation had gone so smoothly.

  "Then I'll leave first, Your Highness. I need to start packing."

  "....."

  With these words, Remesis hurried out of the dining room to begin preparations for the upcoming departure.

  Asil watched her go until the girl's silhouette disappeared behind the door. The servants busy clearing the dishes after the meal retreated as the princess gestured for them to leave her alone. As soon as the princess was separated from her wife, an impenetrable darkness descended upon the woman's face.

  Asil picked up a glass of water and took a sip. Then she said in an indifferent voice, addressing the emptiness:

  "Boris."

  "Yes, Mistress."

  When she uttered this name, a person appeared before the princess in an instant. He led a detachment that carried out the orders of the Lord of the North, whose existence neither Remesis nor anyone else in the castle suspected.

  Asil looked impassively at the warrior who had knelt before her and parted her lips.

  "Follow this."

  "As you command, Mistress."

  Despite the lack of explanation, the knight already knew what his mistress needed without asking further questions. Moreover, his duty was to always be aware of his mistress's needs. The information the princess wanted to obtain was obvious to him.

  "Rest assured, I won't take my eyes off your wife," he assured her.

  But the woman, hearing her subordinate's words, winced slightly and opened her mouth:

  "I'm not talking about her."