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((The For-No-Reason-In-Particular Holiday Special -- page 6 of 8))
"That, er... sounds like an interesting encounter," said Hector.

"Indeed," said the King. "She made quite an impression on me. I'm surprised it took me this long to remember her."

"How old were the two of you at the time?"

"Hmm. I believe I was twelve or thirteen, and she looked to be a year or two younger than me."

Hector couldn't conceal his shock. "Twelve?! For a marriage interview?!"

For a moment, the King just looked at him. "Yes. The families often like to get a head start on such things. To be clear, however, I should mention that even if that meeting and everything thereafter had gone perfectly smoothly between Pauline and I, we would not have gotten married until the younger of us was eighteen. At the very earliest."

Hector settled down a little. "Oh... hmm."

The King lowered his voice. "...You are not very old as a servant at all, are you?"

Aw, shit.

Maybe he could still play it off as just being unfamiliar with royal customs?

Agh...

Hector elected not to say anything at all.

After a time, the King patted him on the shoulder. "You may not believe me, but I find that comforting, strangely enough."

Still, Hector didn't say anything. He merely eyed the man curiously.

"Though she may be almost three hundred years old now, I feel that Atreya is still quite a young nation at heart. Unlike certain others, she has not often been forced to fight to preserve her culture. Even during the Continental War, she was able to remain neutral. It is fitting that her national hero should be similarly young."

The man had been right: Hector didn't believe him. He decided to keep holding his tongue, though.

The King had more to say, though. "It seems that good fortune is finally being tested, however. I fear Atreya has entered an era of great difficulty."