Arabella gave Ferdinand a heads-up so that her brother would not be disappointed.

It would be rude for Ferdinand to go empty-handed even if they would go there for just a day.

"Oh, right. I must ask them to prepare something grand," Ferdinand said.

Arabella reminded Ferdinand that her parents were in Medeus so he would not be nervous, and yet he seemed even more alarmed that her brother Benjamin was the one in Lobelius Palace.

[Her brother would likely be crowned soon so any gift to him should be something worthy of a king. What would be best for him? Should we look in the treasury?]

"The treasury? No, it does not have to be something that important. Save something like that for his coronation day. You do not have to prepare something too grand for our short visit. Just goods from here and a few gifts will do," Arabella said when she heard his thoughts.

Ferdinand might overdo it and her brother might end up thinking that her husband was just showing off.

"Oh, right! For your brother’s coronation, I should get him something from my collections in Estrella," Ferdinand took her suggestion. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Your collection?" Arabella tilted her head. She would love to see his collections. If it was things he collected from ancient times, they must be something magical and mysterious. She would love to see them.

[Her eyes are shining.]

"I’ll show them to you once you get more used to mana. Those things were from more than 16,000 years ago so they contain a lot of mana from the world back then," Ferdinand clarified.

"Eh? Then, won’t it be dangerous for my brother?" Arabella frowned.

"I will look for something that a human can accept. If it still has a lot of mana, I’ll ensure to drain it first before giving it to your brother," Ferdinand clarified.

"I see," Arabella was relieved. Ferdinand and Benjamin were not close so she was worried a bit that Ferdinand might be forgetting to be careful. Thankfully, he was not.

"Still, for his gift when we visit, I should find something here that would impress him," Ferdinand continued.

"It doesn’t have to be something from the treasury," Arabella reminded.

"But your brother doesn’t seem to like me. I must prepare something that he would think was good enough. What if I gave a simple gift and he would mistake that was how I was thinking of you? I have to give something of value so he would not think I am looking down on you or Lobelius," Ferdinand pointed out.

[Raymond drilled so many lessons about this and kept reminding me how nobles value these things. Moreover, her brother clearly prefers Icarus as a brother-in-law. Icarus is strong but I’m stronger. How will I show her brother that I am much better?]

Arabella sweatdropped when she heard that. Ferdinand might overdo things indeed if she let it be.

"My brother only thought badly of you because of your terrible reputation. But after he knew you were treating me well, he also approved of you. You do not have to fret too much. I’ll help you choose gifts for him tomorrow since I know what he likes," Arabella offered and Ferdinand brightened up.

"Alright, let’s do that then."

Ferdinand was visibly delighted she was helping him get her brother on his side. After all, it meant she liked him that much.

"Alright, it’s time to sleep now. We still have a whole day of court session tomorrow," Arabella said since their misunderstanding was finally cleared up.

They should rest for tomorrow.

Ferdinand did not think the same though. The disappointment on his face when she said it was time to sleep was evident.

"Sleep?" he asked her as if she said a very offensive word.

His arm around her waist tightened again as if saying he did not want to allow her to go to sleep yet.

"Why? Is there something else we should do?" Arabella pretended not to understand what he wanted.

[She doesn’t understand? How could she not want to do it when she’s in my arms and lap like this on her bed? Is she not in the mood because of earlier? Or is she teasing me?]

Ferdinand eyed her suspiciously.

Arabella pretended to be innocent and tilted her head. Her husband further pouted and cupped her face.

"You are teasing me, aren’t you?" Ferdinand asked as his face drew so close to her.

"What do you mean?" Arabella continued unable to stop smiling at the look on her husband’s face.

"Yes, you are," Ferdinand said.

Arabella chuckled admittedly.

"Alright. I was. What will you do about it?"

"Hmm? Who knows? Punish you?"

Ferdinand caressed her lower lip and gazed into her eyes deeply. The look on his face made it clear that he wanted to do it tonight. Again.

Not that it was new to her. She was fine with doing it, especially with all the misunderstanding earlier. It was just fun to tease him a bit.

Ferdinand caressed her lips one more time and gulped.

"Can we?" he inquired.

But before Arabella could reply, he closed the remaining distance between them and captured her lips, not wanting to accept a no for an answer.

Her heartbeat was caught on her chest as she felt heat spread all over her body.

His lips were softer than they looked and it felt so good against hers, especially after everything they talked about earlier.

Arabella could not resist the temptation he initiated, nor did she need to. She welcomed it, wrapped her arms around his neck, and responded to his kiss.

As Ferdinand deepened their kiss, she knew it would be another steamy night.

[We were busy for the whole day and barely talked with each other even during lunch and dinner. I want all her attention to me, now that we are finally alone.]

Ferdinand carried her and settled her on the center of the bed. He hovered over and he was everything she could see. He truly did want to be her only focus now.

Arabella smiled and reached out to him. She pulled him in for a kiss. She also wanted to be his only focus for now.

They could think about work again tomorrow morning.

They should also cultivate their relationship especially since they had been apart for a while.