King Chanyeol was in a horrified state when his uncle continued the talk about his supposedly third wedding with Seulgi who came from a far away province of his kingdom.

" Uncle Kim, why did you bring her to the capital city? " Chanyeol questioned authoritatively.

" I need to ask for your permission?" Junmyeon scoffed.

'Yes!! Because I'm the King, for sun's sake' Chanyeol answered in his own mind.
 
" Don't forget that I'm a royal minister of this court. For matters like these I don't need your approval ", Junmyeon stood up from his place.

" I don't want to marry her..." Chanyeol trailed off.

" You want to marry someone else??" Official Kim smirked.

" That's not what I meant. I don't want to marry anyone", Chanyeol finally snapped.

"I'm afraid my King, you cannot decline this proposal. This was arranged by your own grandfather. He promised his friend and now you must fulfill his wishes".

Chanyeol needed some time to come up with excuses to avoid his third marriage.

"To fulfill my grandfather's promise, one of my brothers can marry her, instead of me. Prince Sehun or Prince Jaehyun are suitable grooms. Atleast she will get to be the wife of a prince".

Kim Junmyeon already expected that.

"Your highness, I knew you would say something like that. But according to the promise, the first favourite grandson was supposed to marry Seulgi", Junmyeon pointed it out.

"Aren't you his first favourite??"

"Oh well...my grandfather's favorite grandson is Me" Chanyeol nodded.

'God! He is so gullible'. Jongdae face-palmed.

'He is just digging his own grave. Well done Chanyeol!' Baekhyun pitied his friend.

Junmyeon let out triumphant chuckle and looked at Minseok.

"Lord Minseok let's get going...The king has given his consent to marry your niece" .They stood up and Chanyeol was surprised.

" I didn't give any sort of consent",he widened his big eyes.

"My King you just acknowledged that you are the favourite grandson. So it means you will fulfill your grandfather's promise", Junmyeon explained.

Chanyeol was perplexed and mentally slapped himself for being so gullible.

" I apologize General Kim but I cannot marry your niece ", Chanyeol avoided Junmyeon's percing gaze.

Junmyeon was frustrated at the stubborn king. He walked towards the throne to twist his ears. That's what he always did when he wanted to punish Chanyeol.

King Chanyeol quickly closed his ears when he saw Junmyeon's scary gaze. His gaze sometimes reminded him about his step-brother Kyungsoo.

General Minseok suddenly spoke up.

"Your highness, You may not know about this but few decades ago the Kang clan was a powerful and well-distinguished clan and had a prominent part in restoring this kingdom. Their ancestors are loyal warriors to your family since generations. That's the main reason why your grandfather's close friend belonged to Kang family", Minseok continued.

" But two decades ago the whole clan was massacred to death by their enemies".

Chanyeol gulped. 'A whole clan was killed!!!'

"The only survivors are Kang Sungmin and his granddaughter Seulgi. But unfortunately he died ten years ago due to sickness".

'She was an orphan??!' Baekhyun was sad.

" As Seulgi was my friend's daughter, I took her under my care. Now it's my responsibility to fulfill her grandfather's last wish. And you need to respect your grandfather's wish too".

General Minseok's words seemed like an order to Chanyeol.

Before leaving the court, Junmyeon once again warned the king that if he wouldn't agree, he would arrange a meeting with royal ministers to compel him for the marriage.

King Chanyeol felt bad for the Kang clan and pitied her for being the only living member of her clan. And he loved and respected his grandfather.

But he felt that it was unfair as he was forced to marry again.

Chanyeol's last option and his only hope was his mother.If he could possibly persuade the former queen, he could easily turn the tables in court and stop his forthcoming marriage.

"My king, if you are here to talk about your marriage you may leave", His mother shifted her focus on sewing work.

"Mother!!! Atleast listen to me first. I don't want to get married. I already have two wives..." He whined.

" You complained and whined just like this when we fixed your previous marriages", Yuri rolled her eyes.

" I was just a crown Prince then. Now I'm a king. I can decide things on my own. So why am I obliged to marry again?" He groaned.

" You have to marry because you are the king. Your grandfather's letter stated particularly about it", Yuri said the same thing as Junmyeon.

' Mother thinks and talks just like her brother', Chanyeol cursed Junmyeon for ruining his peacful mind.

"I knew about this marriage beforehand. Your grandfather had informed about this ten years ago. I was just waiting for Lady Kang to turn twenty", Yuri confessed.

"Unbelievable!!! This is really shocking that you knew about this all along!!!" He rubbed his temples.

​​​​​​"Mother... I know you are doing this for an heir. But Seungwan is getting better. Just give me one more year", he pleaded.

" I'd love to have a grandchild but this marriage is arranged because of your grandfather's promise. We are a royal family and we tend to keep our promises". The former queen went on.

"Also lady Seulgi is the only descendent left from the Kang clan. Their families had greatly served us. So with this marriage we can honour and repay what we owe them."
 
Chanyeol already gave up at this point. He heaved a long sigh and helplessly looked at his mother.

"Even your father, the former king had to marry so many times".

"Father has seven wives and god knows how many concubines he have had... But I don't want to marry like him... " He groaned. 

Yuri doesn't like her husband's other wives and concubines, but she never objected. Being a first queen she always had an upper hand in the palace affairs and she dearly loved her husband.

But when her only son accused his father for polygamy she piqued.

"Being a king, your father had to marry the diplomats daughters to strengthen his position. Don't you dare disrespect your father Chanyeol!!!", The former queen glared in vexation.

Chanyeol was frustrated too. He had always adored his father and looked up to his great achievements as a king. But except for his multiple marriages.

"Mother! I love and respect him and you knew that too", he sat beside Yuri.

"But... sometimes I feel that father was wrong in marrying so many women. It was always unfair to his other children".

"When he died all of his concubines and most of his wives had to leave the palace along with their children. Although we have provided them with everything, I feel unjust...", Chanyeol continued.

Except for Yuri and Haeyeon, all other women that belonged to the former king were forced out and some queens left the palace voluntarily. 

Like Prince Sehun's and Jaehyun's mother, the former third Queen. When the king died, she was so sad and depressed that she decided to live out of the palace.
 
Queen Yuri was aware of the fact that Chanyeol was displeased when his siblings left the palace. His kind heart liked them even though they are not his own brothers and sisters.

"But your father loved all of them. Although he looked grumpy and stoic he had a kind heart towards them", Yuri assured. 

 Chanyeol didn't give in to his mother. He knew his father was biased towards his sons. 

"Remember when Kyungsoo's mother died? On her death bed, his mother longed to get a glimpse of father. But he was so busy that he never showed up till her end And she died without seeing him." Chanyeol spoke with a sad frown.

"When Kyungsoo decided to leave the palace, father didn't even stop him..!!"

King Chanyeol fumed up when he thought about the injustice done to Kyungsoo. The former king asked him to renounce his title as a prince when he wanted to leave.

" I don't want my wives and my children shouldn't suffer such mental pain." Chanyeol tried to make his reason crystal clear.

"All the loving family imagination you have might be possible if you were born in a different family. In this reality you are a king." He was low-spirited at her words.

" Atleast you can try to be fair with your wives and children who are yet to be born."

He disregarded the future children's subject. Yuri gently placed her hand on his shoulder. 

"My dear, I'm sorry but this marriage is bound to happen".

Yuri's words sinked down his heart. Chanyeol came back to his chambers with a disappointed look plastered on his face.

Chanyeol couldn't sleep properly that night. And when he did, he dreamed about a girl who had a silky black hair tinged with orange hue.

'Now that was some weird dream with weird haired girl !!! But she seem so familiar!' He woke up forgetting that dream in next morning.

Prince sehun visited Kai. Both sat together for a drink. Sehun was not interested in political issues of the palace but he was always curious when it comes to Chanyeol.

When he