As Arashi and Hiroshi went away for their discussion, I sat there before the fire, soaking the warmth of it. It was getting a little chilly but I felt my insides warming with the thought of what Arashi actually did. 

I had no clue I was married to a great man like him. 

A few moments later, I felt a presence beside me and I looked up. I saw it was Hiroshi. 

He said, "It is getting cold. Does Princess Bianka want warm clothes?"

I shook my head. "No, I am alright. The fire is enough."

He nodded and took a seat beside me at a distance. He said, "It must be overwhelming for you to learn all these but know that Arashi had never done anything to harm others. He learnt everything with a lot of struggle."

"Struggle?"

He nodded as he looked at his hands and said, "Arashi was a fragile boy. Well, he used to be one. And I was assigned by my father to watch over him."

A gap formed in my mouth. He was a fragile boy. He didn't look fragile at all.

"I am four years older than him but I used to hate it that I had to babysit him. He was clumsy and weak."

"He was?"

He chuckled. "Yes, he was. Once he even tripped on his own wooden sword and fell flat on his face. It was funny."

"But he doesn't look like he was." I said. 

He looked at me and said, "It is because he worked very hard. He underwent rigorous training under Lord An Hao who refused to take him."

"Why did he refuse?" Now I was curious because from what I had seen Arashi was a perfect man.

"Lord An Hao was a man with pride. He didn't want to teach a royal blood his methods. Because he hated them. He always believed that the superiors would exploit everything which he taught. The innocent people already are suffering from them for many many years and he didn't want to teach any person who had a powerful background." Hiroshi continued his story. "I went there to train as well but when he refused Arashi I was glad because I used to think he was an incapable boy."

"When did your views change about him?"

"When Arashi challenged him that he would do anything to learn from him. Lord An Hao said if he survived his poisons he would take him in." Hiroshi looked at me, "And he agreed."

My eyes bulged out from my sockets. "What?!"

Hiroshi nodded. "He might be the only one who ever survived every poison Lord An Hao gave him. His body is now almost resistant to any kind of poison."

A gasp left from my mouth. That was cruel.

He added, "The way every night he suffered from intense fever and pain, it made me so mad at Arashi. I used to think, why did he have to go through this when he could just go back to his beautiful palace and stay protected?" Hiroshi pursed his lips, "But each time he came back alive without the antidotes and it surprised me every time."

He looked at me and said, "Lord An Hao had to bend on Arashi's will and he finally acknowledged him. And the next I saw Arashi holding his wooden sword, he looked like the swords belonged to him."

"I didn't know why I was so proud at that moment even though I used to hate him. I felt like my little brother finally grew up." He chuckled shyly.

And I said, "Maybe you never hated him. Maybe you always believed in him without you noticing."

He nodded as he leaned back and supported his body on his two arms. "True. Even though he was clumsy he still managed to bend me to his will and I couldn't help but acknowledge him."

I chuckled. I was so glad that I came to know a part of him which I had never known. Arashi wasn't the person who would tell me anything but I always wanted to know about him and after his identity was revealed, maybe now I could learn about him. 

"I am glad that my father assigned me to him. He was only thirteen at that time but as he grew up, he surpassed me. And I was more than happy of that." Hiroshi said with a large grin and I could see the brotherly love in his eyes. 

Then I realized he mentioned Arashi was only thirteen. I asked, "He was thirteen?!"

He nodded. "Yes."

"That was too young!" I exclaimed. He took poison at that age!

"He was and he exceeded everyone's expectations. He used to be bullied by his cousins and everyone in his family despite being a crown prince's son. But when we went back to the palace, there was no one who could match his strength."

I listened to everything he said with a large mouth.

"When he was just seventeen, he formed a group to protect the innocent and I always followed him. Lord An Hao even started to help him train Arashi's soldiers because he always had something in him which made us all follow him."  Hiroshi looked at me and said, "His views were very different. It had always been different which made the people around him to make fun of him. Even I used to make fun of his views but..."

"But?"

"But when his little group became a large army of men by the time he was 20, we were all stunned." Hiroshi was looking at a distance as if he was reminiscing his past and said, "It was almost around 100 thousand men working under him in secret."

I was in awe when I heard about Arashi but I could see Hiroshi was just so proud that his eyes sparkled in the dark as he was remembering everything. "When the war broke out and his father was killed, nobody knew how to handle the situation anymore."

"His father was—"

"Yes, the crown prince of Wansai got killed in the battle and there was just no one who was as tactical as he was." Hiroshi said, "And that was when Emperor Seiji, his grandfather, selected him as the commander to command the battle. He had acquired 200 thousands men by that time and he was only twenty one. A really young and inexperienced in battle which made others criticize him a lot."

Hiroshi's eyes moved toward me as a proud grin spread across his face. "And with 100 thousand Wansai soldiers and 200 thousand of his men, he finished the battle in three days." His chin went high as he added, "He made all of them stunned and won the war all by himself."

And I didn't know but I felt proud as well. "That were a lot of soldiers."

"Yes, but currently we have 900 thousand men and 100 thousand men are undergoing the training."

"Wha— 900 thousand!" I asked as my jaw smashed on the floor.

Hiroshi smirked at me as he said, "Princess Bianka, you have married the most strongest prince in the whole three nations. Which is why the Yamaguchi clan members were scared the moment they found out who he was and which is why the Kosaki emperor signed the treaty. He may haven't seen Arashi but even he was well aware of the name, Prince Rian of Wansai."

I nodded and gulped. He was... He was that powerful!

"Don't call me Princess Bianka. It doesn't sound good." I said, looking away in embarrassment.

Hiroshi laughed. "No wonder Arashi liked you the first time he saw you."

My face heated. "Err... What?"

"You both are the same." Hiroshi said with a big smile on his lips and added with a gentle voice, "I know he hid things but he never meant to harm you. He always stays quiet and doesn't let anyone know what he is doing but he does everything for others. I have always seen him carrying every responsibility on his shoulders all by himself, but I have never seen him complain. He is not a man who would complain." Hiroshi took a breath and added, "He never tells anyone if he is sad or hurt. When he liked you but decided not to marry you, I forced him to get married because he needed someone who would share his pain and the burdens with him side by side and I saw you were a good person."

He looked into my eyes and I could see he was requesting me. "So, always be by his side, Bianka. I am asking you as a big brother. He may never tell you in the face but he loves you."

I placed my hands on Brother Hiroshi and with a smile I promised him, "I will always stay by him, Brother Hiroshi. No matter what, I will never leave him."

He nodded as if he was relieved and added with a straight face, "Also, be sure to give us an heir in the next year."

My smile froze in the middle as I stepped back and looked at him with a pair of shocked eyes. "What!"

Brother Hiroshi's smile turned evil as he said, "Of course, you didn't think I selected you only because of that, did you?"

I gulped. "T—then why did you select me?"

"Fufufu. Of course, to have many heirs so we could have our next ruler." Now his true colors were coming out as I looked around for Arashi. 

"That's cruel!" 

"Eh? But as his right hand man, it is my duty to get him married so we get a lot of heirs and to think of his and his army's future." He said proudly and then added with a sigh, "And he didn't want to get married so I had to force him."

So, this was the real reason Arashi married me!!! Poor Arashi. My father and this evil man, both were forcing him. I felt bad for him. 

Arashi came in just at the right time and looked at both of us with narrowed eyes.

"What are you talking about?" He asked.

Brother Hiroshi smiled at him and said, "Nothing. I was just brainwashing your wife to give us many heirs!"

At that Arashi froze and his jaw clenched while I got flustered. 

He said through gritted teeth, "Hiroshi..."

"Yes, my Prince?"

"Go and die!"

"Never!" And Hiroshi vanished into the darkness as we only heard his evil laugh.

----
5th June, 2022
1762