"Yes, I am Aphrodite... who are you?"
When I encountered Aphrodite's shy demeanor, my smile didn't fade from my face. I took a step towards her and replied gently, "I'm Leonardo, nice to meet you Aphrodite." At that moment, a smile appeared on the girl's face as she scrutinized me more closely. I decided to tell her my real name because it could cause some trouble.
I sat down in a comfortable corner. Curiously, I asked, "What are you doing with the books? Do you love them?" Her eyes lit up as she pointed to the books and eagerly replied, "Yes, I love living with books! Exploring worlds filled with stories makes me happy. How about you?" I could sense the sparkle in her eyes.
"Diving into a magical world with them would be really great. But I prefer exploring outside more, embarking on new adventures and seeing different places," I said. Aphrodite was looking at me with curiosity upon hearing these words.
Our conversation about books and my adventures with Aphrodite helped us understand each other better. We enjoyed our time together and initiated a new friendship.
About half an hour later, Mary was approaching us. "It's time to go," she said. When Aphrodite heard this, disappointment filled her eyes as she looked at me, and I reassured her, "If you want, I can come by again later." Her smile widened immediately, and she said, "Really? I'd be very happy." After promising Aphrodite that I would visit her again, we set off for the palace. Since then, we started visiting Aphrodite's shop at least once a week, and during this time, both of us became closer friends.
---
In the southern part of the Asina Kingdom, far away in the Altak Forests, in a vast plain where hundreds of military tents were pitched, four men were gathered around a table inside the largest tent. At the back of the tent, a young man sat lost in thought on a wide chair.
The burly man among them said, "First, let's conquer the independent cities in the north, then we'll move on to the Island Federation."
Upon this, the short, skinny man interjected, "But if we advance north to the islands, the Island Federation will raid the southern ports, which would be quite troublesome for us."
An older man beside them spoke up, "I think it's best for us to do nothing for a while, gather our strength, and then attack either north or the Island Federation."
The last man at the table said, "I suggest we make peace with the north for now. The cities there have strained relationships with each other, and during this time, we can attack the Island Federation first and then deal with the north."
After each man at the table put forth different ideas, they couldn't come to an agreement after a while of debating. Eventually, the arguments heated up, and upon this, the young man sitting in the chair stood up and said, "Enough arguing, I will now announce my decision." He had an indifferent demeanor. The man was tall, with red hair and black eyes, and had a good physique. It could be said that he was no more than 20 years old from his appearance.
When the red-haired man spoke, the others at the table fell silent. He began, "Our plan is to trap the Island Federation. For now, we'll move north, but since the north is forested, we'll lose our trail after a while. The most important thing in this plan is to capture some spies among us," he said, and added, "We've already captured one," looking at the men at the table. As he looked at the rather ordinary-looking man sitting at the table, beads of sweat formed on his face and fear filled his eyes as he looked at the red-haired man. Of course, he had managed to hide this fearful look quite well, but the red-haired man noticed it and drew his sword, beheading the man with a single stroke. He spoke again, "Check Samuel's tent," and left the tent. When the other men at the table recovered from their shock, they noticed the blood on themselves and in the tent, both on the ceiling and the floor. They went out to call a slave to deal with it and went to check Samuel's tent.
In a hidden compartment in Samuel's tent, they found many pieces of evidence indicating that he was indeed a spy, and the red-haired man gained even more respect and fear from them.
The photo of the red-haired man (Alpshar) is in the comments--
---
Meanwhile, Ethan was attending his daily lessons. Recently, Mary had taken on the role of a sort of mentor for him, and they often chatted about various things. Mary said to Ethan, "I heard you went to that shop again this week. Do you have a crush on that girl? What attracts you to her?"
Ethan replied, "She's just a friend. As you know, I don't have many friends, and besides, Aphrodite is a quality friend."
Mary muttered, "That's good," with a thoughtful expression, then asked seriously, "Ethan, what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Ethan, seeing the serious expression on Mary's face, hesitated, but wanted to trust her. "I want to be a king," he said.
Mary wasn't surprised by this; after all, Ethan was still a child, but an important child to her. "Do you know what it means to be a king? What you have to sacrifice for it? Or the people you may have to kill to become king? Have you thought about these things before?" she asked, with a slightly angry expression.
"Yes, I've thought about all of it, and I'm ready for it," Ethan said.
Seeing Ethan's determined look, Mary thought he resembled her own childhood. Mary had big dreams, too, but being a commoner had made her give up on them. But looking at Ethan, she smiled because his determined expression looked quite cute to her right now. Then she got up from her chair and bent down in front of Ethan. Ethan looked at her in surprise. "Master, what are you doing? Get up," he said.
Mary looked at Ethan with a serious expression and said, "From now on, I will see you as my lord, and I will do everything to help you achieve your goals. Please accept this servant's request."
Ethan had often been a selfish person, but when it came to his loved ones, he set this habit aside. But now, he didn't want to disappoint Mary, and he also knew that Mary was quite powerful; if she became his subordinate, it would be quite useful for him. So he gladly accepted, "I accept you. From now on, you, Master Mary, are my subordinate," he said and helped her up, then the two of them went outside for training.