It was the fourth day of the festival. The city focused on cleaning up, but the nobles were getting ready, bathing, dressing up, and trying their best to look pretty and handsome. Agnius, however, was struggling with the first part of that.

"Agnius, I understand, but you need to let the maids bathe you," Wania said, staring him down, slightly crouched, arms spread out. Agnius also crouched, glancing at the doors and windows.

"I can bathe myself. Properly," Agnius jerks towards the window, but Wania didn't fall for the faint. "Agnius, I believe you, just let them bathe you", she was trying to catch him to get the maids to bathe him. Still, as she mentioned it to him, for the first time he had an expression other than his regular blank expression, his face showed a mix of suspicion and unease, like she discovered a secret, the two were standing still, but then Agnius went for the window, passing behind one of the sofas. Wania followed her speed, letting her catch up instantly, but then he turned around and charged into the sofa, pushing it towards the door that the maids watched from. Wania had to stop her pursuit and rescue them. She caught the couch to see Agnius jump through the window.

"My lady, perhaps we should just let it be. He bathed himself well on all other days. My lady." Wania brushed aside Helga's words as she grabbed her winter robe, put it on, tightened the belt, and charged through the same window.

"Goodness gracious", Helga placed her hands on her head.

Wania chased Agnius out of the window. He landed already, but hearing something falling through the air, he felt a sensation of Déjà vu. he didn't look up but immediately started running. He was heading straight for the lake. As she landed, she gave chase again, the guards and servants saw the two running, Agnius while bear footed was still wearing his leather armor over his trunk and legs, Wania was in slippers, her night gown and a rob, when the lake came in view Agnius didn't slow down, he started stripping and jumped right in, Wania caught his jacket armor and followed him in. He tried to submerge himself under water, but Wanis still followed. When she reached him, she grabbed and tackled him to the ground; they crashed close to the shoreline.

Wania had mounted Agnius, she pined his hands down with hers and mounted him to hold him in place, the water just reached passed his ears, the two looked each in their eyes, Agnius was trying to keep her eyes in contact, but she started exploring his body and stopped at the sight of a black patches on the right side of his chest, they looked like glistening stone, she focused on it for a bit but noticed his other scars, scratches, knives and arrow wounds, bites and blunt forced scarring. She concluded that he didn't want the maids to see these; not everyone, especially women, is proud of their scars. She felt a connection to him, and standing up, she covered him with his jacket and forced him to his feet.

Walking him back to the room slowly "I'm sorry, I didn't know" he just followed in silence, they reached the room again and Wania went to the bathe with him, she collected the perfume and other suppliers from Helga, she joined him in the bathe, actually scrubbing him and washing him, he wore only his under cloth around his waist.

"Your scars are beautiful…could you tell me about them?" Agnius stayed silent, but he reached his hand out and held hers. She continued in silence, but his gesture made the situation less tense.

She came out first, looked for clothes for him to wear, and found different garments big enough to cover his scars. Still, she could only find blankets and towels, so she used them, wrapping him in them and tell him to come out and sit in front of the mirror, she brushed his hair, applied scented oils to his skin before telling him to wear the clothes the bought just yesterday, she went to bathe herself, maybe to escape the silence, there was no need to feel guilty. Still, what she did, as an employer, was wrong; she took the time to gather her thoughts before facing him again.

He couldn't figure out how to wear these clothes, so he waited for her. When she came out, she saw he had fallen asleep. The wraps around him came undone a little, and that black scar was visible again. "What could do this to a person?" she asked. She woke him up and instructed him on how to dress himself.

"I am rather sensitive about my scars, so I hid them, but it is a personal problem; it does not affect the job. I want to apologise for the commotion I caused earlier, it won't happen again" Agnius bowed his head and apologised to her, the words and sighted surprised her, he was always so neutral, nothing seemed to bother him, and of all things for him to be sensitive about it was his scars, she's only know women to act that way, so to see a man, one so large and tough made her head spin.

"There is no need for that; let's just get ready for tonight." Wania left the room. She hadn't shaken the scene that had just played out. Part of her wanted to laugh at him for how far he went to hide it, but some parts couldn't sympathise because she had no scars of her own.

The two got ready and headed for the palace. Inside the carriage, they kept a businesslike tone when discussing plans. Their plan was simple: They entered the palace, walked around briefly, and went to a parlour for privacy. Then Agnius would leave and search for information on the guest, return, and then they would leave. There would be no reason for them to stay longer.

Upon reaching the venue, the staff announced their arrival, and the whole room turned to watch them descend the stairs. The married couple redefined elegance in matching tailored trousers. Wania wore high-waisted black pants with a sleek emerald blouse, accented by subtle blue jewellery and bold orange heels. Agnius complemented her in navy slacks, a crisp green shirt, and a striking orange blazer. Their coordinated yet unconventional style stood out among the crowd. Colleagues turned heads, murmuring admiration as the couple blended professionalism with flair, becoming the evening's most talked-about presence. Diamonds decorate Wania's slender neck and wrist, but she wears no ring.

Gliding through the ballroom with all eyes on them, they steadied their breathing and pushed all others out of their minds. Holding his hand, she felt Agnius' pulse race. Was he anxious, or was he on guard for the worst? She would have to wait for the events of the evening to unfold. He steadied his gaze, with his eyes darting about the room. Wania stroked his arm and whispered.

"Calm down, we've just got here, focus on me. Don't speak, nod," Agnius did. He turned his eyes to look at her and focused only on her. They were cold, but a hint of grievance. She looked away and focused on the evening. The hall was filled with every rank of nobility, and even the empress, prince, and two imperial consorts were present. Everyone was already rubbing shoulders together.

Finally, the emperor came in. All eyes were turned to him. He wore a white military uniform with golden accessories, but his sunken eyes didn't help his appearance. From the raised platform, he raised a glass.

"Thank you all for attending. Today, we gather to celebrate the anniversary of our empire's formation. Let us cheer to a brighter future ahead"

The audience hailed and cheered. The room was rowdy for a moment before settling back to chatter. Wania and Agnius sipped on wine first. They avoided others as they went to a vacant parlour, but a loud voice called out to Wania.

"Aunt Wania, aunt Wania, I've missed you," the young prince called out to her. He ran towards her with a guard and his mother behind him.

"Shit," Wania swore and turned to face her nephew, who was running at her. She walked up to him and picked him up. "You shouldn't run in a banquet hall; it's unbecoming of a prince," the little child cheered in his aunt's arms, making promises he wouldn't keep until his mother drew near.

"Pidaras, why would you run like that? I know you missed your aunt, but that is no excuse" Rosa had arrived, she avoided eye contact with Wania, she was hesitating to approach, so Wania put Pidaras down and walked up to her "I apologise for my outburst, sister. It was wrong of me to do that"

"I am willing to forgive you. As your elder sister I must forgive you for the sake of our family" She embraced Rosa and Rosa returned her affection, "mother, mother can I ask my question now?" the two turned to the child with excitement in his eyes, Wania squatted down the child's level "What is it?" he leaned to her ear and whispered "I want to meet my uncle" she looked towards Agnius shocked by his words and picked him up again, gesturing Agnius to come closer "Agnius this is my nephew Pidaras, the imperial prince of the Cominius empire, Pidaras this is your uncle Agnius Sapphire, archduke of the empire"

"You were so cool during your fights. How did you not get hurt when that man set you on fire?" Agnius looked to Wania. She just turned her head away, the little child staring at him with eyes that grew bigger by the second. "My clothes have fire resistance that protects me from flames," he said, giving a simple answer that only fueled the boy's curiosity. But before he could ask another question, his mother came to take him away.

"We love to stay, but the emperor is about to make the rounds, and we must join him" They left as they came with the little boy running to his father's side "Let's quickly hurry before something else delays us"

Making their way to the parlor, Duke Daigo came looking for her, General Wania, I must speak with you, turning around to see the Duke Daigo and his son Dimitri walking up to them, Wania sighed out of annoyance, when they got closer she whispered to him "Duke Daigo, I am preoccupied address your grievances with me some other time" the man shouted for everyone to hear "My grievances are with your barbarian of a husband" a crowded seamlessly formed around them, Dimitri prepared ahead of time "Your husband assaulted my boy in public, I demand recompence" the chattering whispers around them volumed, this was a set-up, but for what? Money? Land? Property? Or were they trying to insult her via Agnius indirectly?

"Recompence in what form?" she asked "There is hardly anything of value he could give me, and as he is currently the archduke I would take an apology, what is a little humility among nobles" Dimitri smirked, everyone was watching slowly waiting for the General response, asking her for an apology would be insane on their part but a chance came with Agnius, he had no absolute authority to them, so they wanted to put him in his place before, he could act out but while Wania prepared a response Agnius replied Doke Daigo "Only if he could beat me a dual"

Wania was stunned. It was a smart move; there was no need to force her influence or threaten them to let it go. A duel would make things easier. This situation did not require a duel; requesting one would only escalate the problem, but Duke Daigo had no reason to refuse. It would cause his supporters to turn on him.

"Just because you defeated some newly appointed knights you think, you stand a chance against me, I'll enjoy demolishing your ego" Dimitri spoke up, stepping out from behind his father "We'll accept on the condition the head of the losing house publicly bows their head and apologise" Duke Daigo was now coming after Wania directly, the two Daigo members smiles expanded "Do you accept?" Wania began to glare at them, she recalled how the emperor stated that other noble houses supported his decision to remove her from her post, Daigo must be one of them, he was to intimidate her now that she's lost her position as general, "We accept" Agnius accepted for her, he wasn't suppose to, he wasn't the head of the house, "Then considered your challenge accepted, I'll take you on anytime anywhere" as the on-lookers began to gossip, he reached out and grabbed Dimitri by his skull and slammed him into the ground, the sound completely silenced the hall, drawing everyone's attention to the crowd but with that their bodies moved closer to see what was happening.

Agnius placed his foot on Dimitri's head, grinding it into the floor. "I believe that's my victory" Everyone was wide-eyed. The man had just attacked a person in the imperial palace. Witnesses were all around them; they weren't lying their way out of this. Seeing this, Wania began laughing hysterically. They turned to her, "Well, I believe my husband just won the duel. Duke Daigo!" The laughter stopped, replaced with a piercing stare straight into his eyes "Bow your head."

The man was still trying to gather himself, his son was on the floor, looking like his head was about to be squashed under Agnius new shoes, the imperial family had entered the crowd and was waiting for an explanation, his supporters had abandoned him to dig himself out of this hole, "Why so silent? Do you need more proof of your defeat" her words were his signal to press his foot down hard, his son let out more screams as a sign of life "What is going on here?" Sir Tushar asked. Emperor Rasputin stood beside him, and Tushar was told to investigate the matter. Seeing the chance, Duke Daigo went for it.

"Your majesty, General Wania and her husband assaulted my son just yesterday in the shopping district. Today, I came to demand recompense in the form of an apology, and the man challenged my son to a duel. As soon as we accepted, he attacked my son"

"My husband asked for a duel, and he said he could take him anywhere and anytime. Isn't that right, people?" Wania smiled. The witness started agreeing with Wania's narrative, saying the duke came up to her unprovoked and that they started the entire thing.

"Wania, tell your husband to let the duke's son go", she nodded, and Agnius lifted his foot. "Normally, fighting or drawing weapons in the palace is punishable by imprisonment or death, but seeing as the situation was an agreed-upon duel, I'll let this pass"

The crowd dispersed, leaving Wania and Agnius to continue as planned.