Special Story 2.3
Lee-Jae had woken at the crack of dawn to meditate.
The King, rising a bit later, silently watched her.
He thought to himself—
‘The Queen’s been acting strange lately.’
He’d already checked with the knight commander.
Apparently, there had been a personal concern, and Lee-Jae had written something on the ground without much explanation.
That didn’t sit too well with him either, but at least her words hadn’t been lies.
Still, the King was someone with sharp instincts.
And the feeling that Lee-Jae was hiding something was hard to shake.
She didn’t seem upset, but something subtle was off.
The King knew his wife’s routines intimately.
When she worked—her study or the receiving room.
When she wanted to rest—the lakeside.
For tending herbs—Arthur’s forest.
The back garden—she only went there to brew medicine or shoot her bow.
But lately, Lee-Jae had been practically living in the garden every spare moment.
To the point where she even skipped her usual dawn meditations to be there.
Most mornings, he woke to find the space beside him empty.
When he asked her to stay the night, she said she had a book to read and retreated to the study.
When she didn’t return for too long and he went to fetch her, she wasn’t in the study—she was in the garden.
That, more than anything, was strange.
Because when he went to find her there, there were no traces of medicine brewing, no signs of target practice.
Only Lee-Jae standing still in the middle of the garden—smiling, as if she had known he would come.
“Darling, what are you doing?”
“Just resting.”
“At this hour?”
“Couldn’t you rest with me in our room instead? Come with me then. Do you not like me or something?
The King wanted to spend all his time—outside of royal duties—with his wife.
But she was hardly ever in their shared space.
It didn’t feel like she wanted to be with him.
Eventually, he even started to feel like she was avoiding him.
So now, even just seeing her exchange greetings with another man irritated him.
The other day, when she wasn’t beside him again and he opened the door—only to find her whispering with the knight commander—he nearly exploded.
‘What could possibly be so good to talk about that you’d leave your husband and spend time with another man?’
But after that frustration faded, what rose in its place was always unease.
Still resting his chin on his hand, the King continued watching Lee-Jae.
Beside her, a spirit from the chest was seated in the same meditative posture.
Suddenly, the King had the urge to ask it directly—What on earth is going on with my wife lately?
Sensing the King’s stare, the spirit visibly flinched.
After hesitating, it retreated, shrinking away into its little home.
The King watched it disappear in silence.
Then he turned his gaze back to Lee-Jae—only to find her already looking at him after watching the spirit retreat.
“Your Majesty.”
“…Are you done meditating?”
Though he harbored lingering dissatisfaction, it was the first dawn they had shared in a long time.
So he spoke gently.
But then, Lee-Jae glanced once more toward the spirit and asked him something unexpected.
“Why do you keep glaring at the spirit?”
“Huh?”
The King paused, trying to grasp what she meant.
Then, incredulous, he asked again—“When did I ever?”
Sure, there were times he stared at it quietly, not wanting it to intrude on their moments together.
But glaring? Especially not just now.
‘Does she not realize how much I’m already holding back, and now she’s saying weird things again?’
The King let out a disbelieving chuckle, then slowly narrowed his eyes.
“Wait… are you mad at me because of that?”
“…Pardon?”
“Did that thing tattle on me to you like that?”
“Pardon? No, I mean… not exactly. Just… don’t scare it, okay? It looks pitiful.”
Roderick was speechless.
Utterly dumbfounded, he felt compelled to at least defend himself on this one point.
‘You might not see it that way, but most people do find me intimidating.’
“Lee-Jae. Do I really come off as pathetic enough to scare something like that?”
Lee-Jae silently shook her head.
But Roderick, still feeling stifled, ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
This wouldn’t do.
He sat up abruptly.
His expression wasn’t good, and Lee-Jae looked at him, startled.
Then Roderick held out his hand.
“Let’s go out.”
“Sorry?”
“Let’s get some air. I want to talk to you.”
Before she could respond, he found her hand and gently pulled her out of bed.
The King and Queen took a quiet walk around the Queen’s palace.
Roderick didn’t speak for a while, so Lee-Jae simply observed him, reading his mood.
Despite the odd tension, their hands remained tightly clasped.
Within the palace walls, construction was ongoing.
A new fountain was being built—a process requiring time and the connection of aqueducts to bring in water.
For now, only the location and rough size were visible.
The two of them silently gazed out over the patch of rough, upturned earth.
Lee-Jae knew the fountain was being built for her.
In fact, at first, she’d thought he was joking—talking about digging a pond or even a lake for her.
Apparently, the jest hadn’t been hers alone. Even the King’s attendants had taken it as lighthearted banter.
But Roderick now led her closer.
He took off his navy jacket, spread it over the ground, and gestured for her to sit.
Then he sat beside her, resting his chin in his hand as he silently stared.
A long stretch of time passed.
Eventually, he motioned for the attendants nearby to leave, then gently turned Lee-Jae toward him.
He removed her shoes himself and carefully lowered her bare feet—as if dipping them into a stream.
Lee-Jae sat at the edge of the empty pit, her feet dangling in the air, baffled.
“What exactly are you doing?”
But Roderick, seated beside her, only looked calm.
“Does it feel cool?”
“…Is it supposed to?”
At that, the King chuckled softly and drew his sword.
Soon, the sharp tip began to gather blue energy like dewdrops.
As he released that energy into the empty space, a pale blue aura began to swirl and rise,
and like water, it began to fill the pit—lapping gently around her ankles.
“How about now? Feeling cooler?”
Realizing what he had meant to do, Lee-Jae let out a quiet laugh.
Then, wanting to join him, she reached out her hand and infused her own energy.
This time, sparkles glittered atop the blue light—like sunlight on a lake.
They watched the scene in silence.
Roderick wrapped his arm around her shoulders, drawing her to lean on him.
Gently stroking her apricot-colored hair, he asked:
“Darling. Has something been bothering you lately?”
“…”
“Did I do something to upset you?”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. Something just feels off, and it’s making me uneasy.”
Lee-Jae looked at him—really looked.
Then blinked a few times… and suddenly laughed, as if crumbling.
She finally understood the expression he’d been wearing.
These days, outside of official duties, she had spent nearly all her time in the garden’s storage shed.
There were even times she had slipped out while the King slept.
This was his castle.
And his eyes and ears were everywhere.
The only people Lee-Jae could truly rely on were Deborah and the knight commander—whose talisman debt she had quietly cleared.
She had hurried her plans, knowing a perfect crime was out of reach. But perhaps it was that very haste that made her actions all the more suspicious in Roderick’s eyes.
Truthfully, if the King had tried to find out, he could have.
He simply chose this way instead.
Lee-Jae smiled softly and asked, “What made you think something was wrong? There wasn’t.”
‘Because you’ve been acting strange—like you’re hiding something. You barely sleep in our bed, and then you vanish the moment you wake.’
There were a few more things that had bothered him, but instead of listing them, Roderick scratched at his brow and asked, “Then… have you maybe, I don’t know, lost interest in me lately?”
This time, he voiced a truly absurd fear.
Lee-Jae burst into laughter.
For a moment, the King said nothing.
But once he saw her answer clearly in that laughter, he gave a small nod.
“I see. As long as that’s not it, I don’t care about anything else.”
“Roderick. You misunderstood?”
“Yeah. Honestly, I almost got my feelings hurt.”
“…”
“If you ever try to leave me…”
He meant it. He’d chase her to the ends of hell if he had to.
Now that he could see the path, there was nothing he wouldn’t do.
Even knowing Lee-Jae would never do such a thing, the King couldn’t help but speak that foolish fear aloud.
And Lee-Jae shook her head.
“Roderick, you know I don’t like it when you say things like that.”
Still smiling, she placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned in.
As her small frame nestled against his chest, Roderick felt like his whole body was melting.
She tilted her chin up, and he lowered his head to meet her lips.
Lee-Jae kissed him, lightly nipping his lips a few times.
Soft smacking sounds echoed in the silence.
When he parted his lips, she didn’t do anything more—just kissed him gently.
He stayed still, letting her kiss him, just wanting to feel the breeze of spring in her lips.
When Lee-Jae finally pulled back, Roderick brushed his hand over his forehead, raking his fingers through his hair several times.
Then, letting out a breath, he murmured, almost to himself, “What do I do now…”
“What is it?”
“I think… all my anger’s gone.”
She laughed. ‘So you really were angry, huh?’
Feeling guilty, Lee-Jae kissed him a few more times on the cheek and lips.
Then she stood and gave his navy coat a brisk pat pat, shaking off the dust.
Roderick gave her a puzzled look, but Lee-Jae simply held out her hand.
“Roderick, there’s something I want to show off.”
“What is it?”
‘Something I’ve been working on—my first grand debut in a long time.’
She didn’t answer outright, just smiled and gestured eagerly for him to get up.
When he took her hand and rose to his feet, she led him—toward her hidden garden.
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My face is always stuck in a permanent smile when reading this 😁😁😁😁😁 they’re so cute 😍 💕 💖