Note:

This chapter is dedicated to dear Kelly Goodwin for gifting a castle for this book and boost it again. THANK YOU so much! Now, let's read about Edgar's glorious return. xx

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"You are too noisy, now Harlow has stopped talking," Mars chided the two girls.

He massaged his temple and looked at Harlow deeply. The baby was now chubby and looked so adorable. Her silver hair looked a lot like his, and so did her eyes. He knew Harlow would grow up to be a stunningly beautiful woman.

He wondered if, as days went by, Harlow would start looking like Emmelyn... However,  it seemed he could only hope but it would not happen. Harlow took after him so much physically.

Well...  maybe she would have Emmelyn's personality? He would love to see his daughter act and behave like his wife.

Gosh...he missed Emmelyn so much. It felt like forever since the last time he saw her.

If there was life after death, he would want to see her after he died. He just had to make sure he raised Harlow well and found her a good husband to protect her. Then, he could consider his job done.

"We are sorry, Your Majesty..." Ilma Athibaud pursed her lips, holding back her tears. "We are just... too excited."

Lorian nodded. She looked like she wanted to cry too. Mars rolled his eyes and waved at them impatiently. "Okay. I understand. Please don't be too noisy next time. Loud noise  is not good for babies."

The two girls nodded and lowered their heads. Harlow seemed to enjoy seeing the two women getting scolded, she suddenly laughed and rubbed her father's arm. The king's anger instantly dissipated.

"Oh, Harlow... you are happy, aren't you?" Mars smiled broadly and moved Harlow's body closer to his chest and he kissed her hair. His daughter was the best. She always made his day bright and happy.

Harlow chuckled and started muttering, "Da da..."

"Wow...! You said that again!! Smart girl!"

This time Ilma and Lorian stood still like statues and didn't make any sound. They watched the father-and-daughter's interaction with glee.

Ilma and Lorian Athibaud had been spending a lot of time in the royal palace lately because the little princess's care needed to be supervised by a noblewoman, as suggested by Ellena Greystorm, the king's old friend.

So, Mars thought Gewen's sisters would be good candidates for the job. They were from a good family and he could trust the Athibauds. They could help him keep an eye on his daughter when he was busy and John was doing other things.

Ellena was very scorned when she realized she was still not allowed to get close to Harlow, but she faked a smile every time she came to the royal palace to see Mars.

The king still kept Ellena around him by inviting her to tea every week, as he did to his other friends, Lily and Athos, and of course, Gewen. 

He did it in such a way that made Ellena thought they had resumed their friendship, but not enough to go back to where they were in the past.

So, she made extra effort to redeem herself and brought many gifts for Harlow, or asked how she could be of any help. Mars always politely declined. He wanted to keep her close but not that close.

"How is Gewen doing?" Mars asked Ilma after Harlow fell asleep on his chest. "Have his 'injuries' recovered?"

He pretended that he didn't know Gewen was not really injured to give face to Gewen and his family.

After three weeks of getting treatment and recuperation, he heard from Mr. Vitas that Gewen's condition was getting better, but he still wanted to hear from Gewen's sisters.

Lorian said, "Oh, he is fine now, Your Majesty. In fact, he said he will visit you here tomorrow."

"He will?"

"Yes. He is feeling so guilty because you wanted him to go and look for Lord Edgar, but he had to be involved in that bar brawl and now he couldn't go," Lorian added. "He said he will go to Atlantea as soon as possible because now he has recovered."

"Didn't he know that I already sent General Frey?" Mars asked again. "He can stay in the capital with me and we can wait for General Frey's updates. It's no use to send him again."

"Understood, Your Majesty." Lorian nodded respectfully. She pointed at the baby on Mars' chest and asked, "Do you want me to bring Princess Harlow to her chamber?"

Mars looked at his daughter, sleeping peacefully with her mouth open. Ahh...  Harlow looked so peaceful. He didn't have the heart to move her. What if she woke up?

He shook his head and motioned them to leave him and Harlow. "It's okay, Lorian. You and Ilma dan go now. I will let Harlow take her nap here. Usually, she only sleeps for half an hour. I will call you when she wakes up."

"Understood, Your Majesty." Ilma and Lorian both curtseyed and left the king's lounge. They would be notified by the servant if the king needed them. After they closed the door behind them, Mars wrapped his hands around Harlows's back and closed his eyes.

This was his sanctuary, the rare moments where he could feel at peace. When he was not with Harlow, he would think about Emmelyn and ways to avenge her tragic death. The Prestons must pay,  especially Ellena.

He was slowly building a good relationship with all the major houses in his kingdom and tried to pull them to his side if someday he would openly challenge Duke Preston for their crime.

Right now, he still had to pretend that he was not interested in politics and still mourning his wife's and mother's deaths. He made Athos take many roles in the government, alongside Duke Preston, and ask him to give him reports.

He just needed to wait for the right time.

"Your Majesty!!"

"OMG!!!"

"You should come out and see this!!"

"Your Majesty!!"

Mars's eyes opened instantly when he heard the two Athibaud girls screamed from outside his lounge. Before he could scold them, they suddenly opened the door and barged in.

Gosh... these women were just like Gewen, Mars thought in annoyance.

He sat up and looked at the two girls at the doorway with a murderous glare. "Didn't I tell you not to be so noisy??!

Ilma and Lorian were panting and out of breath. This made Mars feel confused. He knew they were not stupid that they would intentionally incite his anger like this.

Did something happen that made them act this way?

"What happened?" He finally asked them. "Tell me!"

Ilma pressed her lips in excitement, and her face lit up. "It's Lord Edgar!! He just returned!"

"Huh? What?" Mars thought he had misheard her. "Can you say  that again?"

"LORD EDGAR IS BACK!!! HE JUST LANDED WITH A DRAGON!!!"

This time, it was Lorian who couldn't hold back her excitement. She looked hysterical and after she shouted the news, her body trembled and she passed out.

"WHAT???"

Mars instantly got up from his chair and ran past the two girls with Harlow in his arms. He couldn't believe what he just heard, so he went out to see for himself.

With his sharp hearing, he heard voices and people shouting in the direction of the Grey Tower, so he went there. When Mars arrived in front of the tower, he saw a crowd of people flocking the yard and they were all pointing at the roof of the Grey Tower.

When he looked up to see what they were looking at, Mars gasped. There, on top of the tower, a gigantic blue animal with two big wings perched casually.

Sand was licking his claws and didn't even bother with the small creatures on the ground who all looked at him in awe. Mars had never seen a dragon before, but he knew what it looked like. He was very impressed.

Harlow opened her eyes, looking annoyed by the noise, but when she realized she was still in her father's arms, she became happy again.

"What the..."

Mars's eyes widen. He couldn't take his eyes off of the dragon.

What a majestic creature, he thought to himself.

"Your Majesty, you are here..." From among the crowd, John came to him with a big smile. "Lord Edgar has returned. He landed with that dragon on the rooftop. It was quite a sight when we saw them came. He is now taking the stairs to go down here."

"Oh... I was just about to ask about him," said Mars. He didn't see Edgar and was wondering where the man went if he had really returned.

"Ahh.. there he is!" John shouted excitedly. He pointed at the Grey Tower main door. "That's Lord Edgar."

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