_______'s POV

"Your majesty, it is Hondo's Law. You have to marry in order to inherit the throne. It's in the law."
"Does the law indicate that I should marry someone of royal blood?"
"But your majesty, it has been royal tradition to--"
"Does the law indicate that I should marry someone of royal blood?"
"No."
"Then tell me why I have to marry this prince that I have no idea of?"
"It's the word of the council. You parents, the king and queen--"
"My mother wasn't of royal descent."
"But she was of high reputation, your majesty."
"The marriage wasn't arranged, was it?"
"No."
"Then why are we having this argument? I'll have a word with my parents in an hour. You can leave."

The royal chancellor left my study. Finally. Another day of reminders of my duties as princess. I am really sick of hearing the same thing over and over. I am aware that I am the only heir to the throne. I am aware that I have duties for my kingdom. I am aware that I do have to marry in order to acquire the throne. But I read the books. I studied the law. No article, amendment, or clause contains anything about marrying someone of royal blood. The last thing that I want would be an arranged marriage. I closed my book and unlocked my phone. I checked the time, it's a bit past four. I guess an hour means I would be talking to my parents over dinner.

"Mark, how would you feel if you're being forced to love someone?"
"Excuse me, your majesty?" He asked. I gave him a look and he shook his head.
"I mean, _______." He laughed.
"Sit with me." I told him as I scooted to give him space to sit beside me on the couch.
"Uhm."
"Come on." I said and he gave in, sitting beside me.
"Well, you want something straightfoward?" He asked and I nodded.
"You can't really force love. It's not love if you just keep on telling yourself that it is even though it's not there. Somehow, I see it as a sign of weakness that you resort to giving into forcing yourself. Though giving into love is somehow strong because that's when you give yourself wholly to the person. When you love, it just happens. Most of the time, you never expect it but it happens." He said, smiling at me.
"You haven't answered my question yet." I laughed.
"I'd feel annoyed or sad." He laughed.
"Have you ever loved someone?" I asked him.
"Yes, princess. I have." He told me.
"Ohh. She must be lucky then." I told him.
"I'd like to think otherwise. Even without my love, she's already pretty blessed. I don't think it even matters to her that I do." He said, looking down at his hands.
"Well, it should." I put my hand over his, giving him a smile.
"Uhm. Well, princess, that was a good talk. You have an appointment at the dentist in thirty minutes. We have to get going." He stood up, dusting himself off.
"Right."

Mark escorted me to my car and like always, sat with me at the back. He is my personal body guard. For three years already. In this place, he's the only one I could talk to; the person I could tell everything to. He was the comfort that I need whenever the pressure of royalty gets to me. I guess, he's the person that I trust the most. Most of all, he's really someone special to me. Maybe the only reason why I didn't want to be forced into marriage was the fact that I fell in love with him. He wasn't royal nor of respectable status but that shouldn't matter, right? That's why I read the books. That's why I learned the law. I needed to defend this. I'm old enough to know; old enough to know what love is. And if this really is, shouldn't that be enough?

"How's your dad?" I asked, initiating a conversation with Mark.
"He's doing well. Getting better." He smiled.
"That's great. Just tell me if you need anything." I told him.
"It's already too much, your highness." He said.
"It's fine. As long as Mr. Lee gets better, I'm happy to help." His father was a body guard too before he retired. He was my body guard before Mark replaced him. Mark wanted to help his father who had a . It's the only way he could think of; take his job and earn the money for his treatment. He says it's the least he can do for the person who adopted him and took care of him. I wanted to help him in the best way that I can but Mark wouldn't let me. He wanted to earn it fairly but I insisted. I declare bonus hours for him so he would get paid more; so he could use the money for Mr. Lee's treatment. The most I know about his story was that Mr. Lee adopted him when he was just a little baby. As cliche as stories can get, someone just handed Mr. Lee the baby Mark and he couldn't just turn him away. He raised him with all that he can and Mark's forever grateful for him. He never knew who his parents was. All that was with him was a nametag that had his birth name and birthday although he carried 'Lee' as his last name. I asked him if he would try to look for his real parents but he says that he already has his family. He never really longed for his real parents because Mr. Lee was all that he needed.

After my dentist appointment, I returned back to the palace (or more like an estate) to have dinner with my parents. I excused Mark for the night so he could have dinner with his father. I entered the dining hall and bowed to my parents before sitting down at the table.
"How was your day?" My mom asked.
"Other than having the same conversation with the chancellor, it went well." I told her. She sighed and put down her utensils.
"Dad, you met mom during college, right?" I asked dad and he nodded.
"And you loved her from then on, right?" I asked.
"Of course, more than anything." He smiled as he held mom's hand. Gag.
"Ew." I laughed.
"I know that what the council is asking for is too much and as much as we wouldn't want to force you into this, we are running out of time. It is in the law that if the next in line is a princess, she must be betrothed by the age of twenty one to be considered as eligible to inherit the crown."
"Why is our law so ist. You're the king, aren't there any exceptions?" I groaned and my dad put his hand on my shoulder.
"The council protects and enforces the law. Even if I'm the king, I can't do anything about it since I too am bound by law. Nobody is--"
"Above the law. I know. But do they really have to tell me who I have to marry? Can't I choose?" I asked him.
"We don't have time, _______. I'll see what I can do. I'll talk to the council tonight." He told me.
"Thanks dad." I just hope they would chill for a while and let loose with all this tradition .

The next day, I spent my morning in my study again. I found movies I could binge watch on since I don't really have anything scheduled for today. Well, according to Mark I don't. I take his word. He stood beside my desk as I watched my movies. I put it on speakers and had him move a bit so he could watch too. It would really be boring if he just stood there in silence, right?
"Okay. I will let her majesty know." I heard Mark say on his radio. I paused my movie and looked at him.
"The royal chancellor is here to see you." He told me.
"Let him in." I told him and he relayed the message to those outside. I closed my laptop and fixed myself, ready to meet with the royal chancellor and have the same talk again.

"Good afternoon, your highness" He bowed as he entered.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Choi." I stood up and greeted him. I motioned him to sit on the chair in front of my desk and asked Mark to get in some refreshments for the chancellor.
"So, what are we going to talk about today?" I asked him.
"His highness, the king, had a meeting with the council last night regarding your betrothal." He started and I just sat there, listening to what he has to say.
"The council agreed to giving you pocket months to find an eligible bachelor of your own. If you pass the deadline, the council will take over in looking for a possible husband." He told me. I sighed in relief, knowing that I still have some say in this.
"How long do I have?" I asked him.
"Three months was the most that we could give you." He told me.
"Alright. I'll take the three months." I told him with a smile. Better than nothing, right?

Mark came back with the maids who had tea for the chancellor and I.
"Would you want me to stay outside, your majesty?" Mark asked me and I shook my head.
"Stay." I told him and he gave me a nod. He stood at his position earlier and I resumed my conversation with the chancellor.

"Would it still have to be of the required social status?" I asked him.
"Unfortunately, the most that the council would allow are those belonging in the border of the elite and upper middle class and those with exemplary education and career backgrounds. The latter is still subject to the review of the council." He told me and I sighed.
"I understand." I told him. There is nothing more that I can do. My dad already intervened and they already gave me the most that they could.
"Chancellor Choi, can I ask you something?" I told him.
"What is it, your highness?"
"Would it... Would it be allowable if the person I choose would be the person I love?" I asked him.
"If he meets the requirements of the council, it is more than allowable. If not, love wouldn't be enough to sway the council." He told me. "There's really nothing more that we can do, your highness." He told me.
"Alright. I understand." I told him, putting on a smile.

"What else do we have to discuss?" I asked him.
"The King and Queen of the kingdom of Chang Ho would be visiting us in two months. They would be staying in the palace as guests for a week."
"And, as always, I have everything about them in this envelope. I am sure you would want to know more about them and their kingdom before their arrival." He said as he placed an envelope on my desk.
"Thank you Mr. Choi." I told him.
"My pleasure, your highness." He smiled.

I ended my meeting with the chancellor and calendared my schedule with Mark. The more that I think about it, the more I come to realize that what the council had given me is of no use. Even with the three months given and the loosened standards, there's no use; I won't end up with the man I came to love.
"Are you okay?" Mark asked me.
"Yeah. Just drained from the meeting with the chancellor." I smiled at him.

Will it still matter if I tell him about how I feel?

Mark's POV

Almost two months passed since _______'s conversation with the royal chancellor regarding her marriage. She told me all about it. The three months allowance and their 'loosened' standards. She has one more month to