“Lobi timbona dope sian bintang... (Higher than even the stars in the sky)" the voices of the soldiers rang out as they sang. Some of the boruniruma were even tearful as they stood at attention "...do manondangi panondang di ho (There shines upon you so brightly to your heart...)"

The aura of the open field was solemn as the allied army gathered to mourn the loss of a thousand souls. It was a Rumasilian tradition to have a mourning ceremony after a battle to commemorate the fallen soldiers as well as to ease the hearts of the ones left behind. Many of the soldiers were even family to each other as was usually the case in Rumasil.

Some of the female soldiers of the daughters of Ruma were crying for their lost loved ones. Many of the fallen soldiers were their lovers or brothers whilst some of them were even their parents.

Even in this sadness, the soldiers kept their discipline and ranks but specifically on occasions like this were they allowed to fully express their grief. As usual, the ceremony started with a song. It was a traditional song brought by the old Germanic missionaries during the time of King Soranius.

Vera was given the duty to lead the troops in song as she stood on a higher podium. In the middle of the field where the ceremony was being held were the thousand dead soldiers who had already been embalmed. After the ceremony, most of them would be cremated to be returned to Rumasil. Only a select few of the corpses would be sent back, mostly being the bodies of nobles or officers.

"Sabam disi ma, roham jala sonang! ( There where your soul will forever be in bliss!)" They sang with tears appearing on even the most veteran of soldiers "Arsak ni roha dang dais be tu ho! Arsak ni roha dang dais be tu ho! ( Sorrows of life can't get hold of you now!)"

“~Lobi timbona dope sian bintang! Nadang hahuaon ni musu be ho… Sahat tu ho ma nuaeng hasonangan! ( Higher than even the stars in the sky! No earthly foe shall bring end to your peace… Joy everlasting, forever be with thee!)” The tears from the soldiers were thickening as the song was more gently sang “Marolopolop tongtong nama ho! Marolopolop tongtong nama ho! ( Songs of the cheers forever shall ring, Songs of the greatest cheers forever shall ring!)”

After the song, King Valasaire stood up and faced the soldiers to begin his speech.

"O anak dohot boru ni Ruma! ni Almar! ni Debata Jahowa! (Oh sons and daughters of Ruma! Of Alamar! And of God Jahowa!" King Valasaire shouted so that the tens of thousands could hear him "We have won a great victory here today, dear brothers! The ilk of the Gissario has effectively been crushed under our righteous heel!"

The soldiers cheered and wailed loudly.

"But we do not forget the sacrifice these brave souls have made to achieve that great victory! They are heroes who put down their lives for the good of the nation, true patriots who embody the soul of the tiger! Heroes who we all know are now dwelling above in the abode of the great Lord of lords! Today we pray for the families that they left behind, the mothers who lost their children, the wives who lost their husbands, the children who lost their parents! But rest assured, for the Lord does not leave any of his faithful in helplessness! The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want! Sangap di Jahowa! Sangap di Jesus Kristus! Sangap di Tondi Parbadia!"

Valasaire looked to Vera with a nod and she immediately led the soldiers to sing again, the final verse of the song.

"Lobi timbona dope sian bintang!" The voices that sang were now more powerful than ever "Surusuruanna manomu ho! ( Angels on high come to greet thee in bless )"

"Endehononna ma ho ala monang! ( They sing of thee, all songs of greatest triumph!)"

"Sian sitaonon na porsuk ho ro! Sian sitaonon na porsuk ho ro! (From earthly grief and strife do you ascend!)"

***

After the ceremony, the soldiers who were family to the deceased were given their last chance to see the bodies of their loved ones before the corpses were cremated.

Many of the Boruniruma (Daughters of Ruma) went to the middle of the field to say their last goodbyes. Vera and Amara accompanied one of their comrades who was sitting down on her knees as she wept on the corpse of a young man. Her expression moved Amara who also became a little teary.

"Why did you have to leave me you big oaf!!" The girl wailed as she weakly hit the chest of the dead body "You promised at our wedding that we were going to retire... we were going to buy our own house in your hometown where we'll raise our children! Liar!"

There was an older looking man standing near the corpse with tears in his eyes as well. The man looked like a noble from the good dress he wore. King Valasaire was standing next to him with his hand on the old man's shoulders.

"We can send him back in a coffin, Lord Hesron. As a son of the Sianakranu clan, he is more than rightful to that honor." King Valasaire suggested to which the older man shook his head weekly with a bitter smile

"He was but a common soldier, not of any notable rank or distinction. Cremate him according to the rules." Lord Hesron said as he then knelt and looked towards the weeping girl with a sympathetic expression "I hope you can forgive me for this, dear Sepania. But these are the rules of the army. Though I will allow you a few more moments."

The crying girl quickly tried her best to wipe the tears and regain her composure though she had difficulty doing so and still sounded like she was sobbing a little.

"It is of no matter, Lord General." Sepania said "As you said, my husband was not of rank and above all you are his father and head of the Sianakranu. I will do as you instruct!"

General Hesron smiled bitterly and nodded to his daughter-in-law.

"Well then, if you would allow me to excuse myself." Lord Hesron said as he bowed slightly towards Princess Vera and King Valasaire "I need to write a letter informing my wife... also to inform Lord Josua Silamen that his son-in-law has perished in battle."

Sepania only held in the tears that were welling up again as Vera rubbed her back to comfort her. As Lord Hesron excused himself, King Valasaire also prepared himself to take his leave. However, all of the sudden the wind blew a little wildly and made Amara's cloak fly a bit. King Valasaire was quite surprised when he saw Amara's stomach look slightly big, and not one likely caused by fat.

"Amara! May you please take off that cloak of yours." Valasaire asked in a slightly pressing tone

Amara was surprised as she heard the King ask her to take off her clothes. She had a look of worry as cold sweat started to appear on her temple.

"Excuse me, your majesty?" Amara asked with worry

"It is exactly as I said. I wish to confirm something, so would you please remove your cloak." Valasaire pressed on

Vera saw that her friend was beginning to look extremely worried so she tried her best to defend her.

"What nonsense are you talking about, father? It's cold outside so leave her be." Vera said trying to divert her father's intentions "Besides it isn't polite to ask that of a lady. What would mama say?"

Valasaire merely smiled bitterly as he flicked Vera's forehead.

"Don't go saying things that'll make people misunderstand. I am asking simply to confirm something. I'm not telling her to strip."

Seeing the King's determination, Amara couldn't help but swallow her pride as she did as she was told and took off her cloak. As she had feared, the king immediately put his gaze upon her stomach. Vera could see the color on Amara's skin turned pale. After inspecting it, the king told Amara to put her cloak back on.

"Who was it?" Valasaire asked in a calm tone to try and lessen Amara's fears

Just at that moment, Valantine who saw the king from afar came over as he intended to report some extra details on the logistics of the march to Valencei.

"Your majesty! I'm glad I found you! I'm happy to report that-..." As Valantine was about to make his report, he noticed Amara was looking at him with a distressed expression. As he turned towards King Valasaire, the king was instead oddly smiling at him while giving off a very eerie feeling "Is there something the matter?"

The king looked at Valaron who was standing beside him and asked, "Call Valamar and Cassandra as well as Vald to my tent but don't notify the elders who came with us." He then turned to Amara, Vera, and Valantine "You three are coming with me."

Valantine had glanced towards the stomach of his lover and then it dawned on him. They were clearly in trouble.

***

The atmosphere of the King's tent was severely tense as all the members of the Rumasilian Valamen family who were on the campaign were there. The King sat on his special seat whilst Amara and Valantine were on their knees as the center of attention as well as being the topic of discussion.

"Since when were you two in this relationship?" Valasaire had asked as he rubbed his temples

"...It's been about a year..." Valantine said as his head was dropped "Your majesty, I intend to take full responsibility!"

"Without you saying it, it is already required of you by the constitution..." Valasaire made a dry joke "Whether anyone likes it or not, by law of the Valamen clan, you two are required to be wed. The child that she bears will be of the Valamen clan. What I'm more interested to know is what exactly are you going to tell Lord Hesron? What is the currently grieving general going to say when he finds out his daughter's fiance has impregnated another woman?"

Instantly in a quick change of temper, King Valasaire slammed the sides of his chair which caused it to crack a little. Amara flinched slightly at the sight. Immediately, King Valasaire regained his composure. He then turned to Amara and smiled honestly to calm her down.

"None of this is your fault. The blame is entirely on this bloody oaf next to you. Don't worry, you and your child will be taken care of as full members of the house."

"Your majesty, thank you for your mercy!" Amara said while starting to sob in relief as she bowed till her head touched the ground

"You on the other hand..." Valasaire returned his gaze towards Valantine "When this campaign is over, I want you to go over to Lord Hesron and tell him personally that you wish to dissolve your engagement to Lady Rahel. I don't care if you have to beg or even lick his damned boots but I want you to do it."

"I will do as commanded, your majesty!" Valantine immediately answered in stout resolve

"I'm not done yet. After we return to Rumasil, I want you to personally go and see Lady Rahel and tell her yourself that you wish to break your engagement. I don't care if she slaps you, maims you, or halfway murders you, I will not take it as an offense to the Valamen royal family. I will also be cutting off your payment for this campaign and instead give it to the Sianakranu clan as ammends to mend the broken oath. Oh, and also Lord Valahan will be duly notified."

Valantine had a bitter expression on his face, but when he looked to Amara who had relief on her face, he nodded and bowed to the ground towards King Valasaire.

"I understand." Valantine said resolutely

"Good." Valasaire said "Now then. Guards, get the priest in here. These two need to be formally married as quickly as possible so that the child won't be born a bastard."

The army chaplain soon entered the tent after that and a small ceremony started with only the people there and a few others knowing about it. King Valasaire had also asked for King Esteban and Prince Miguel to come as they were also Valamen even though from a foreign branch. A rough draft was quickly written to officiate the marriage and the ones who signed it were King Valasaire, representing Valantine as his guardian and Valaron as the witness from the Valamen's side.

From Amara's side, because of a lack of any surviving family members, Valasaire had called in Lady Tania Sitoba - one of the commanding officers of the Boruniruma under the grandmaster of the order - to sign the charter as the guardian of Amara and Vera as her witness.

After saying their rites, and singing a few Almarian Martinite hymns, the private wedding was concluded with a kiss between the bride and groom. Although the ceremony was brief and suddenly put-together, Amara still managed to cry in joy as she was now officialy the wife of her beloved and a member of the Valamen family. Vera also cried and hugged her best friend as she felt happy for the two.

"I'm sorry if this wasn't the wedding you had in mind." Valantine apologised to his bride

"It's no matter... I'm just so happy that I can finally be with you officially!" Amara said as she shook her head and embraced her new husband

Valantine chuckled and patted her head. "Don't worry, dear. When we get home, I'll make sure to give you the traditional ceremony that would be fit for us! We may be married in the eyes of the church..."

"That's a problem for another day." Amara said "It doesn't matter as long as I get to be happy with you."

"Ahem." Valasaire pretended to cough as he interrupted the two "I understand that you two are currently experiencing the bliss of newlyweds, but I would like to remind you that we are still on a military campaign. We all best get some rest as we march on to Valencei first thing in the morning. And you two would still be sleeping in your own tents. Just because you're married doesn't mean you get any special considerations."

"We understand, Your Majesty." Valantine said as he and Amara bowed respectfully to their king

Valasaire smirked as he lightly smacked the back of Valantine's head.

"What was that for?!" Valantine asked in confusion

"This is still technically your wedding, no need to be overly formal. Besides, technically I'm your nephew so you call me by my name or at least abang here." Valasaire said

"It'd be awkward because Valamar and Vald call me abang. So I'll just stick to Your Majesty... But can I get special dispensation to spend time with my wife?"

"Do you even have to ask? You'd do it in secret anyways even if I forced you all to sleep." Valasaire chuckled as he then hugged Valantine "Look at you... all grown up, married and expecting a child... your father would've been proud. I'll be writing a letter to your grandfather, though."

"Of course you would." Valantine said in an expression that looked like he was giving up trying to retort the king

"But before you all go, why don't we have a small feast to celebrate this event?" Valaron said as he quickly rummaged through Valasaire's things "We do have some wine here that we were saving for after the campaign."

"No! Not my special 1401 Lusinian wine...!" Valasaire said

("Oh, my uncle brought me that when I was little. It's very delicious!" Cassandra whispered to Valamar "The wines of Lusinia are the best in all of Ayros regardless of what the Parisians would tell you." )

"Abang, it's a special occasion." Valaron said with puppy dog eyes

"Fine..." Valasaire gave up as he secretly wanted to taste the wine as well

"Mother always said being stingy is not good." Valaron said in victory to which Valasaire gave a bitter smile

As everyone there was sitting down getting ready to taste the wine, someone barged into the king's tent, bypassing the guards with sheer brute strength.

"What is the meaning of this?!!" He shouted in outrage

It was Lord Hesron and he looked none too pleased.

"Ah shit..." Valasaire silently muttered