"I will marry the Crown Prince of Qalagon."

Silence fell upon the royal court of Jerivia Kingdom when a young woman declared her decision with confidence. The only two Ministers present in the room glanced at her as if she was going crazy.

She was the Commander of Alewine Army, this Kingdom's most capable General! The Alewine Army was also this Kingdom's most reputable and prestigious army! Why did she offer to marry in the Princess's place?!

"No." The opposition came faster than expected. The young man who was sitting beside the King rose from his seat and walked to the female Commander and stood in front of her. He turned to the King of Jerivia who was sitting on his throne. "I strongly opposed to this absurd idea."

He was the Crown Prince of Jerivia, Zaro Aventine.

"Your Highness." The female Commander named Iria Alewine, called her childhood friend. "This is for the Kingdom and the people." She firmly stated. Unfazed by the Crown Prince's opposition, she glanced at the King with determination.

"Iria!" Crown Prince Zaro snapped and turned around to faced his friend. "You are only 20 yet you already sacrifice almost a decade for the Kingdom and the people. Now, we are talking about an alliance marriage, not a mere war! Have you lost your mind? I will never allow this."

"Enough!" King Tobias Aventine snapped as he rose from his seat. He glanced down at his eldest son with disappointment. "This is the royal court. Mind your manners, Crown Prince."

"Father - "

King Tobias made a dismissive gesture and the Crown Prince fell silent. Then he steps away, standing beside Iria.

"This is not a trivial matter, Commander Iria. You shouldn't make decisions in a rash. Do you expect me to allow my most capable General to marry away to our rival Kingdom?" The King's voice was stern and full of authority.

If Iria hadn't known the King ever since she was born, she won't be able to say anything due to fear. However, King Tobias was her late father's best friend and he watched her grew up. He was like an uncle to her.

"Your Majesty, you told me yourself that the real intention of the Qalagons is not peace by marriage. They only want to stall time and strengthened their army to wage a war against us. This alliance marriage is just a cover." Iria Alewine started.

"Our situation is not that much different. We just won a war against Helsia a week ago. Right now, we can't afford another war and we will need a few months to strengthen and mobilize our soldiers again. We also need to stall time, so we can't cancel this alliance marriage right now." She added.

"There are many ladies who can replace the Princess in our Kingdom. Why must it be you?" Crown Prince Zaro uttered yet he kept his voice low not to angered his father again.

Commander Iria turned to the King and the King nodded. He also wanted to hear her response.

"I grew up with the Princess. What's more, we even have the same name. No one knows her better than me and right now, she's in a coma. It's my duty to fill in her shoes." Iria made a deliberate pause and continued by saying, "No one from Qalagon knows the Princess's face. They don't know my face either as I always wear a mask whenever I go to war."

Then she turned to the King and his two trusted Ministers. "Your Majesty, this is a dangerous and risky move. So, an average noble lady would be in danger if anything goes wrong but I'm different. I was trained since I was young and I can handle such a situation. Please trust me."

The King glanced at his two Ministers and when they nodded, he turned back to Commander Iria. "Are you sure of this, Iria? Rather than losing my most capable General, I will issue an order to cancel the alliance marriage right now."

Iria Alewine lowered her head and kneeled before the King. "I won't fail you, Your Majesty. I promise that after a few months, I will return safe and sound."

After thinking about it for a while, King Tobias finally nodded in approval. "I will trust you. So, keep this in mind." He paused and said, "No less than three months and no more than six months. We need just that, Commander Iria. Stay at Qalagon as the Crown Prince's wife during that and when you come back, you will lead the soldiers to fight the Qalagons."

"I understand, Your Majesty." Commander Iria firmly replied.

"Rise now." The King calmly said.

Iria stood up and briefly glanced at her friend the Crown Prince, who was staring at her with disappointment. She chose to remain quiet for now and deal with him later but... Crown Prince Zaro stormed out of the courtroom. He's really angry!

King Tobias let out a sigh when he saw his son's behaviour. "You should talk to him later." He said to Iria.

Iria nodded and though she didn't say anything, she was feeling anxious. Zaro was her best friend, the one who was always there for her since her childhood. Will he listen to her this time?!

*

After chatting with the King about the war with Helsia that she just wrapped up, Iria Alewine left the courtroom and then went to the Crown Prince palace.

When she reached there, she saw some servants standing near the door and even the Crown Prince's right-hand man, Derin was also there. When Derin saw her, he quickly ran to her and bowed. "I'm so glad that you came, Commander. Please go and take a look at His Highness. He was very angry when he returned. He won't let anyone in either."

"Alright. Take the servants and leave now." Iria said and Derin quickly did as she said. Then she slowly made her way towards the room.

When she walked inside the room, she noticed what a mess it was! Scrolls, reports, broken vases and many other things were lying on the floor. Did he smash all these? He never behaved that way!

Without saying anything, Iria calmly picked up the scrolls and placed them back on the table. She knew that the Crown Prince would surely know her presence as he had a good sense of hearing but he stood there, standing near the window. He completely ignored her!

While she picked up the broken pieces of the vase, she noticed the blood on his right hand. Losing no time, she quickly ran to him and grabbed his hand. "You're bleeding! You shouldn't hurt yourself!"

Crown Prince Zaro brushed away her hands and turned back to the window. "Why do you even care? You don't care about my opinion when you make that decision."