Heightened security

Zen and Aquarius were shocked and speechless for a while. Then, with a grave expression, they called their own trusted aide and gave a series of commands.

"Isaiah, pass on my decree! Deploy all the Warriors of Light throughout the entire realm. Checkpoints must be placed every 200 meters. Inspect anyone who will go in and out of Lumine and no exemptions shall be made. Inform the gatekeepers to open the Gates of the Underworld and the Gates of Neptune," Zen hurriedly roared.

Isiah bowed deeply and received the command before moving swiftly to take care of his King's orders with ease.

Aquarius fished out a small blue crystal marble from his pocket and chanted a spell. For the first time, he finally called out his trusted aide. "Eva," he whispered.

The crystal marble turned into water and formed the shape of a woman. When the silhouette became clearer, an alluring *Undine appeared in front of them.

"Your Majesty, King Aquarius, I am ready at your behest," Eva spoke straight to the point. If her King called her out to Lumine, then it only means one thing -- trouble.

Despite the pressing concern, Aquarius still displayed his level headed temperament by analytically enumerating his orders with finesse. "Call the magical beasts and *Elves to come here in Lumine through the Gates of Neptune. We need experts in water, protection and healing magic. Inform General Triton that there will be chaos and I need the *Mermen to block all flood gates and water passages that may be used as an entryway by the enemy. I am only giving you one hour to accomplish everything."

"Consider it done, my King." Eva's body turned back into water before she vanished into thin air.

Fang suddenly appeared from the shadow and gave his report to Adis. "Your Majesty, Graves and the Imperial Knights are marching their way through the gates as you desire. The Grim Reapers are right behind them."

"Very good. Once they arrived, bring Graves to me and send some of the Reapers to the Central Plaza to monitor the situation," Adis gave his final order then looked at his brothers. "Now, since those fools dared to plot against my Queen, it's time to end their worthless lives."

Zen spoke up, "Are you not going to tell sister-in-law the truth? That she is the true oracle and you just sealed the power of seer inside her--"

"It's enough that the elders only know about her power as a spring maiden. Once they discovered that she possesses another rare and powerful ability, they will do anything to take her away from me. Of course, I can make them disappear from this world with just a snap of my fingers, but I know my kind wife would want to settle things as peaceful as possible. That's why I'm fucking enduring not to bite those geezers' heads off." He sat on the elegant chair and propped his jaw on his fist while he coldly exclaimed his litany.

"She will find it out soon enough. Her visions are getting more frequent recently," Aquarius stated the obvious. "You were able to mislead her by saying that it was all just a dream and silently took care of the work. But you know that there is no spell powerful enough to seal the visions forever."

Adis just closed his eyes and did not respond. The two other Kings looked at each other and helplessly shook their heads at their big brother's stubbornness.

*************************************

Haru finally woke up before noon. She unconsciously smiled when she looked around and found a handsome devil seated on the chair near the balcony while reading silently. She completely forgot her nightmare at the sight of her beloved.

Adis felt her small movements and raised his head to look at her. He gave her his most captivating smile as he approached her gently.

"Good morning, my love," he softly greeted as he kissed her forehead, and then her lips.

Haru dreamily closed her eyes upon the sound of his sultry voice. "Good morning, my Adis. What time is it?"

"Hmm..." Adis looked outside the window to check for the time. "I think it's almost noon. I'll prepare your meal for you--"

"What?!" Haru jolted from the bed and immediately panicked. "Why did you not wake me up earlier? I'm supposed to visit the church for my duty as a spring maiden before noon. I also promised the kids at the orphanage that I will have lunch with them today. Geez!"

Adis blinked twice and tilted his head innocently as though he did nothing wrong. "You know that I will never disturb your sleep, Haru. Furthermore, I already sent a messenger to move your appointments at a later time today. As my Queen, it is your right to make other people wait for you."

"What kind of wicked reasoning is that?" She looked appalled then hurriedly ran towards the bathroom to freshen up.

Adis shrugged and walked into their spacious walk-in closet to choose her outfit for the day. Haru's side of the closet was all in shades of white and gold, while his side was all in different shades of dark colors. It was the same arrangements in their closet at Atlantis and Umbra.

Adis, as a possessive lover as he was, chose a very conservative style of a long dress. He would like it even further if no one would notice her, but it was impossible considering his beloved's delicate beauty.

Haru nonchalantly walked towards him in her naked glory and reached out for her lacy underwear beside him.

Adis gulped as his eyes narrowed at the tantalizing sight. He snatched the underwear in her hands as he hugged her small waist.

"Silly wife, are you seducing me?" He asked dangerously then licked the sensitive part on her ear.

Haru gasped at the feel of his cold large hand on her abdomen and a delicious shiver suddenly ran down her spine. "You... I don't have time for this, idiot husband. I'm running late... Ahh, stop biting my ears... it tickles."

"You dare to show this delicious body to this idiot husband. What am I supposed to do, then? I promise it will be quick," Adis coaxed her with his sultry voice.

She turned around and push his chest away. Her cheeks were burning. "No means no!" She stubbornly answered. She then stood on her tippy toes and gave his lips a lingering kiss. "My King, be obedient and I shall reward you tonight."

Adis grinned in anticipation. "Very well, this wife slave will concede for now, but you must not forget this debt. After all, this King loves to charge interest when it comes to you."

She giggled and gave him a peck on his cheek before going back to her initial business. Adis helped her to dress up and even took the liberty to do her hairstyle. He looked very satisfied at the sight of his masterpiece.

Since Adis did not allow her to go out of the Light Palace alone, he personally escorted her throughout her duty at Lumine. They were simply inseparable the entire day.

"Looks like the Light Palace and the church are giving their everything in this year's spring festival. The security at the palace and the Central Plaza is so crazy." Haru said while recalling what she saw during her visit to the church.

Adis did not comment but pulled her towards his chest and kissed the top of her head. They were currently inside their royal carriage and on their way to the orphanage.

Unbeknownst to her, the heightened security she witnessed was because of her. Even her own personal security was ten times as intense as it ever was. Now, there were ten Grim Reapers in the shadow following her every move.

Haru and her entourage passed by a huge lake near the orphanage. As she looked outside the window, her eyes grew wide upon seeing someone familiar.

She abruptly stood up inside the carriage while it's still running, earning a disapproving look from Adis. His hands instinctively held her hips and hand to steady her stance.

"Stop the carriage right now!" Haru commanded with a loud voice.

The two coachmen in front panicked at the sudden command from her but halted the vehicle, nonetheless.

"What--?!"

Adis was unable to finish his statement when Haru unceremoniously opened the carriage door in her excitement and didn't even wait for the carriage to fully stop. She jumped out of the door and almost stumbled on the ground if not for Adis' swift call of his dark wind to prevent her fall.

"You silly wife! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" He gruffed in nervousness.

But Haru totally ignored him and ran towards the lake without looking back. Graves and all the Imperial Knights and Grim Reapers were on guard and surrounded the area.

"Old man!" Haru squealed.

A merman with white long hair and ripped tan body turned around. His eyes widened and sparkled in delight.

"Haru, my child!" He exclaimed and opened his arms to welcome her.

She jumped high and landed in his embrace. Both the maiden and the merman laughed happily.

The merman was Triton Libra, a retired General of Atlantis. He looked around 50 years old, but in reality, he's already more than five centuries old. He used to be the late Queen's personal knight. According to the rumors, he was the one and only true love of the late Queen before she married Adis' father. After the late Queen got married, Triton dedicated his whole life to serve the Royal Family. And when the previous King and Queen died, he retired to Atlantis.

He was the father figure of the three Kings and they deeply respected him. When their true father was on a rampage and creating chaos left and right, Triton was the one who hid them and took care of them. He treated the three Kings like his own sons.

Sometimes he was helping Aquarius in governing Atlantis, but most of the time he would lock himself inside the late Queen's palace in Atlantis and spent years reminiscing about their memories together.

Now, Haru became really close to the merman and they had a father-daughter relationship.

Triton gently put Haru down on the ground while half of his huge body was in the water. He ruffled her hair roughly as he said, "You brat, you must be giving Adis endless headache again, huh? Hahaha, that's fine, at least that stone-cold demon would show emotion when you're around."

Haru pouted as she combed her hair and arranged her hair accessories. They turned around when they heard incoming footsteps from Adis.

"It's been a while, General. I'm glad to see you again." Adis greeted with a cold expression on his face.

And then, Adis did the unexpected; he bowed deeply in front of the Merman, something that he would never do to just anyone.