Doctor Chris patted her arm gently, "This is only temporary, Natalie. You can try again periodically."
Inwardly, Arion groaned loudly in shame, 'Please don't.'
Natalie instantly perked up again, "I understand."
Arion felt like banging his head hard against the wall. Why was his new mother so stubborn about breastfeeding him? He didn't know what the big deal was. Drinking from a bottle was no different than breastfeeding directly. Why make it seem like such a big deal?
He let out a tired sigh, 'I don't understand how a woman's mind works.'
But for the moment, he was relieved not to have to deal with any more embarrassing situations, even if only for a while.
'All this adrenaline cost me more than half my life. Am I going to die of embarrassment now?'
Natalie repositioned Arion in the sling before saying goodbye to the doctor in front of her, "I'll be going now. Thank you for your help, Uncle."
The doctor shook his head gently, "I'm glad I could help. I'll tell Nova to prepare a bottle of milk for the prince."
Before Natalie could open the door, Doctor Chris stopped her, "One more thing. If you need me, just call me and I will come. There is no need for you to come here yourself, Your Majesty."
She just laughed at his frequent nagging, "I just want to get some fresh air with Arion, Uncle. That is no problem for me."
Doctor Chris resigned himself to the answer he had often heard from his queen, "Just get some more rest, my dear. You're still weak from the birth. Don't move around too much yet."
Natalie smiled gently and bowed slightly to him, "I understand."
Before her uncle could reprimand her for bowing to him and start lecturing her again about her status as a queen, she quickly ran away after saying a quick greeting, "See you, Uncle!"
Doctor Chris let out an exasperated sigh. There had been many times when he had scolded her for bowing to him, who had a lower status than her.
But his queen just laughed innocently at each of his nagging sessions. She never really listened to his nagging and always retorted with the same words.
"I only bow to people I respect and who deserve it, no matter if my status is that of a queen."
He chuckled amusedly as he sat back down at his desk. With a small smile that had not yet disappeared, he tried to concentrate on his work.
"Cheerful as ever, my queen."
In the corridors of the palace, Natalie walked happily with some small humming sounds. Arion, who had recovered from his depression, just stared in confusion at his mother, who looked very energetic.
'I thought the doctor said she was supposed to be weak after giving birth? She doesn't look weak and tired at all to me.'
"Natalie?"
The deep call instantly stopped her. She turned her head to see her dashing husband walking toward her.
The sunlight made his golden eyes look even more beautiful than before. The wind ruffled his black hair. His calm expression made him look even more handsome.
Arion looked at him dumbfounded, 'He looks stunning. I wouldn't be surprised if someone called him a god.'
"Hello, Daddy." She greeted back while gently shaking Arion's right hand. Arion made a small mumbling sound of support.
A small smile formed on his lips when he heard the call. His stern eyes softened as he looked at his wife and their youngest son.
He kissed his son's forehead before briefly kissing his wife's lips. Arion winced in disgust and embarrassment as he saw the loving scene before him.
'I've always hated romantic movies and here they are showing me the scene live? Aren't they embarrassed to be doing it in front of a baby?'
Natalie laughed after her husband kissed her, "Aren't you ashamed to do it in front of Arion? It's not a good show for small children, Arsen."
'Yes! That's what I meant!' Arion was so distracted that he almost missed his mother mentioning his new father's name.
He blinked in surprise, 'Oh! I got my new father's name too. '
Then he frowned in confusion, 'I'm not usually this distracted. Strange.'
Arsen ignored his wife's comment as he hugged her shoulder, "What are you doing here? I think it's time Arion had some milk."
Arion wanted to let out a long groan, 'Don't change the subject!'
Natalie chuckled when she saw her husband not answering, "Just a small problem. I asked the doctor for help and advice."
Arsen's eyebrows raised in curiosity, but he did not ask further. He believed that whatever the problem was, it had already been solved, as his wife looked very cheerful now.
"I see."
Natalie looked around curiously, "Where are our two storms?"
'Storms?'
Before Arsen could answer, a loud scream echoed, accompanied by rapid footsteps.
"Mom!" The scream came from the twins, who ran excitedly towards their parents. Behind them, several servants and knights could be seen running after them.
Now Arion looked confused, 'Does that mean the storms are them?'
Arsen was ready to hold Natalie's back from falling with Arion when the twins crashed into their mother's legs with full force.
Arion felt his little heart almost jump out, '...Okay. Now I understand why they're called storms. They hit her so hard that I thought I was going to fall down and die again.'
Natalie laughed cheerfully as she tried to return their hug with a free hand, "Hi, dear. Did you have fun with Daddy?"
The twin girls nodded so energetically that Arion was afraid her neck would break. The male twin tried to nod seriously, but looked cute to all the adults there, especially with his chubby cheeks.
'Wait. Do I know their names?'
Arion tried to remember if their names had been mentioned before. It seemed like the two of them had mentioned their names when he had just woken up in this world.
'Oh right, their names are Eric and Hana. I almost forgot because I was busy observing the situation and crying hard. How embarrassing!' His cheeks almost turned red if his father's voice didn't interrupt his reverie.
"Don't bump into your mother again when she's holding Arion. They could fall." His rebuke was firm, but without frightening them.
The twins were stunned, as if they had just realized something in their mother's arms, "Sorry, Mom!"
Natalie just laughed lightly, "No problem, my dear. Just be careful next time." They nodded seriously, remembering their parent's advice.
"Where are you going with Arion, Mom?" Hana asked with undiminished enthusiasm. Eric just looked at his mother calmly.
'The girl is the hyperactive type and the boy is the quiet type. Completely opposite characters.'
Natalie patted her head gently, "It's lunchtime for Arion. Are you both hungry?"
"Yes!"
"How about we have lunch together? Of course, Arion will come too." Her words were met with Hana's enthusiastic call and Eric's small smile.
"Then let's go!" Hana said excitedly as she started to pull her twin brother's hand towards the dining room.
"Don't pull me!" Protested Eric who was ignored by Hana who started to run by pulling him.
He tried to loosen his twin sister's grip, but it was too tight to let go. So he decided to take revenge by taunting her after he failed to free himself.
"Your strength is equal to that of a full-grown horse."
"You're calling me equal to a horse?!"
Arion looked at them flatly, 'I have a feeling they fight a lot, anytime, anywhere.' He sighed resignedly.
Arsen just stared at the twins, unperturbed by their daily bickering. Somehow, they always found a way to argue. It could have gone on all day if he or Natalie hadn't intervened sooner.
They only got along when they were planning something that would give everyone, especially the servants and knights guarding them, a heart attack. The only ones who weren't targeted were their parents. Even the king's right-hand man became their target.
Instead of trying to stop their behavior, Arsen just let it go because he felt entertained. Especially when it was his assistant who was targeted.
He turned to his wife who was looking at the twins with an amused smile, "Maybe you can leave Arion with Nova for a while so you can come and eat, Natalie."
She was seen thinking hard before shaking her head, "No, I want to hold him longer."
Arion looked at his father, who immediately agreed to his mother's request, "Alright, we can take turns. If you get hungry, let me know."
"Okay!"
Arion blinked confusedly, 'I thought he would forbid it. She'll only give me milk anyway. She could have just handed me over to a servant.'
When they arrived in the dining room, the twins were already sitting on the chairs, patiently waiting for their parents to join them.
Arion himself was more preoccupied with noticing the overly luxurious appearance of the dining room than paying attention to them.
'Even a dining room this luxurious? Isn't it too much? Or are all palaces like this? The previous king must have liked to spend money on trivial things like this.'
Arion frowned, 'Now I'm starting to sound like an old man. Is that a side effect of not having any money since childhood?'