CHAPTER 389: THE KING’S ARCHERY LESSON (II)

She narrowed her eyes, trying to focus, her fingers tightening around the bowstring as she adjusted her aim the way he’d shown her.

"Steady your breathing," he murmured. "Don’t think too much. Just feel the rhythm."

Primrose exhaled slowly, feeling the tension in her arms, the weight of the bow, and the warmth of his hands still guiding hers.

"Now," Edmund said softly. "Release."

She released the string, and the arrow shot forward.

A satisfying thud echoed through the hall as it landed right in the middle of the red dot.

Primrose blinked in disbelief for a moment before her eyes widened in pure excitement. "I hit it!" she exclaimed. She even bounced a few times to express her excitement and joy. "I hit the target!"

Edmund smiled, clearly proud. "You did." He said, "My wife is a talented archer."

She clapped her hands a few times and asked, "Can I do it again? By myself?"

Edmund nodded and handed her a new arrow. "Be careful. Don’t hurt yourself."

Her hands were still trembling a little, but she managed to hold her stance. Even though she said she wanted to try it alone, Edmund’s hands hovered close, ready to catch her if anything went wrong.

After aiming at her target for a while, Primrose finally released the arrow in her hand.

Thud!

The arrow didn’t hit the red dot exactly, but it landed close enough to make her face light up.

Primrose bounced on her toes, pointing at the target. "Husband, husband! I hit it again!" She grabbed his arm and shook it excitedly. "Do you think I have talent in archery?"

"You do." Edmund chuckled, gently patting her head. "You’re even better than most of my new recruits."

In the corner of the building, the soldiers who overheard that could only bite their lips and cry quietly.

[Your Majesty, why are you so easy to please when it comes to your wife?]

[You’ve never praised me, even when my fingers bled from shooting too many arrows!]

Primrose ignored their silent cries and continued her practice with Edmund. After an hour, her arms started to ache, and she finally dropped her bow.

"Husband, my hands hurt." She lifted her hands toward his face, pouting. "You have to kiss them."

Without hesitation, Edmund took her hands gently. "Where does it hurt? Here?" He kissed her wrists and slowly trailed his lips down to her fingers.

Good thing all the soldiers had already left the training building, or their eyes might’ve burned from watching the king and queen flaunt their affection for so long.

"Does it still hurt?" Edmund murmured, kissing her wrist again, then pressing soft kisses on her palm.

Primrose giggled, her heart fluttering. The way he treated her—so gentle, so warm—made her stomach feel full of butterflies. "I feel much better now," she whispered. Then she smiled playfully. "But ... I’m tired. Maybe I need a kiss from you too."

She had spent the whole time trying not to get distracted by how handsome he looked while training, and now she couldn’t resist anymore. Primrose truly needed that kiss! She was so desperate, she couldn’t even pretend it was a joke at all.

On the other hand, Edmund fell silent for a moment as he looked at his wife’s adoring gaze.

A thought slipped into his mind:

[Why is my wife getting even cuter like this?! My heart can’t take it, it’s going to explode!!]

He immediately lifted her into his arms, holding her close so she wouldn’t have to tilt her head up to kiss him.

"But don’t just kiss me once," Primrose murmured softly. "I want more than one."

Edmund had probably kissed her many times while she was asleep, but since she’d never felt it, it secretly bothered her.

Now, she wanted him to kiss her again and again to make up for it. Unfortunately for Edmund, that request almost drove him insane.

"My wife ... why are you so adorable?" he muttered. He didn’t even bother to keep the thought to himself this time. Without waiting for her reply, he pressed his lips against hers, kissing her again and again until she felt like her heart was melting in his arms.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, he playfully bit her cheek like she was a sweet dessert. "Your cheeks are getting rounder," he teased.

"What?!" Primrose pulled back, her eyes wide with shock. "Are you saying I’m getting fat?!"

Honestly, it wasn’t impossible. She had been eating more lately, sometimes to build stamina, and sometimes simply because she felt like it. More than that, she’d been spending more time napping than moving around.

Still, that didn’t mean she wanted her husband to say it out loud!

"Does it matter?" Edmund swayed her gently in his arms, smiling. "It just means you’ve been eating well ... and that you’re loved."

The way he said it instantly melted all her irritation away. It was the first time a man had ever mentioned her weight and somehow made it sound sweet. If her father had said that, she’d probably have hit him with a broom. But when Edmund said it, her heart just turned to mush.

"It’s ... it’s just because of the pregnancy!" Primrose said quickly, turning her head away, still pouting but clearly no longer mad. "I’ll lose all this weight after I give birth."

[What does she mean by that? She’s only gained a few pounds,] Edmund thought to himself, trying not to laugh.

Primrose’s cheeks turned red. "A few pounds are still weight," she mumbled shyly. "What if I get too heavy and you can’t lift me anymore?"

She never expected the day when her husband would laugh. Not a small chuckle or a soft smile, but a real, loud laugh.

Holy shit. He could actually laugh!

"My wife, my love," Edmund said between laughs, "I don’t think that day will ever come. Your husband is strong enough to carry you forever."

Primrose didn’t even process his words. Her eyes were glued to his face, to that rare, breathtaking smile that lit him up.

She still couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

"Husband!" Primrose suddenly threw her arms around his neck, her voice full of joy. "Your face numbness is finally gone!"

Edmund was completely stunned when he heard that. [Face numbness? What face numbness?]

Of course, as the one who had suffered from it, he wouldn’t notice. But for Primrose, who had watched every bit of his progress since the beginning, it warmed her heart more than words could describe.

In the beginning, it was nearly impossible to make him smile. Whenever he tried, it looked stiff ... sometimes even a little creepy or awkward. But slowly, over time, he began to smile more naturally, even if it still looked a bit shy at times.

Little by little, he also began to laugh. At first, just soft chuckles or faint laughter. But today, for the first time, he finally laughed loudly!

The face that once looked frozen and emotionless was now glowing with life, smiling and laughing like it had never known how to before.

Her husband had truly recovered from that long, painful numbness!

Maybe it was because of pregnancy hormones or something, but she felt like she was about to cry.

"Husband ... I really like it when you laugh." Primrose looked at Edmund with teary eyes. "Our baby also said that they like it."

Edmund chuckled softly. "I don’t think you can hear our baby’s thoughts yet, my love."

Primrose pouted, her lips curving into a playful smile. "Of course I can. Our baby and I have a secret connection."

Edmund laughed again, his voice low and warm. "Oh really? Then what did our little one say this time?"

She pressed her hand gently against her stomach, pretending to listen closely. "They said they love Papa’s laugh," she said proudly. "And they want him to laugh more often."

Edmund’s eyes softened as he looked at her. "Then Papa will try his best," he whispered, brushing his thumb across her cheek.

Primrose was about to say something when, suddenly, a soldier rushed into the training hall and bowed deeply.

"Your Majesties! You’ve just received a letter from the King of Elandria!"

Edmund gently set Primrose down, his expression shifting from tender to serious in an instant. "From the King of Elandria?" he asked, taking the sealed letter from the soldier’s hand.

"Yes, Your Majesty," the soldier replied, still slightly out of breath. "It was delivered by your pheonix."

Primrose was taken aback because she truly hadn’t expected Rowena—or even better, the King of Elandria himself—to reply to their message this quickly!

She had told the phoenix messenger to wait for their response, but she had clearly stated in her letter that they could take a few days to think it over first.

"Hurry up, husband, read it now!" she said eagerly.

Edmund immediately opened the letter, quickly scanning through its contents before a smile formed on his face. "My wife," he said, turning toward her. "I think your friendliness has saved us from starvation."