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The King glanced to his right. His Queen was unusually quiet today.

"Ah, It's been a long time since we spent time taking a walk." He said, attempting to start a conversation. "And the weather is so nice today." 

Joy heard the King's voice and immediately realised that she had zoned out. She turned and gave the King a blanked look. 

"Something bothering you?" The King asked as they slowly walked around the palace. "What's with that long face?"

Joy shook her head. "Everything is alright."

The King held a worried expression but decided not to ask any further. He strongly believes that if Joy wants to tell him, she will. And if she doesn't, she had her reason. 

The King reached out for Joy's hand and held it. Joy turned and he gave her a big smile. 

They continued walking, holding each other's hand tightly. Somehow, as they walked the huge palace, Joy ended up walking past the Royal Library. Before, she doesn't really care about the Royal Library. But now, every time she walked past it, she will surely think of a certain someone. Someone whom she had no idea that she had missed him a lot. 

Joy avoided looking at the Royal Library and quickly walked past it. The King and Joy soon ended up walking inside the corridors to avoid the scorching sun. As they turned a corner, they noticed a group of attendants rushing somewhere. As the group of attendants passed by, they noticed the royal couple and stopped. They aligned themselves neatly and bowed to them. 

"What's going on?" The King asked. 

One eunuch stepped out and bowed again to the King before replying him. "Replying to Your Majesty, we are on our way to look for the Crown Prince. The East Palace had reported him missing and needed more manpower to find him." 

Joy gasped softly but quickly maintain her expression. The King looked unbothered and quickly dismissed the group of attendants. 

He turned to analyse Joy's expression. "Let's continue our walk, shall we?" He asked softly, as though afraid to anger her. 

Joy nodded absent-mindedly. In her head, she keeps thinking of Yun. 

What happened?  she thought. Why did he suddenly went missing?

But then, she quickly stopped herself. Wake up, Joy. He is not someone that you should care about.

The King glanced at Joy from time to time. Throughout their walk, they had not spoken much. 

"I think you are tired, should we head back now?" He asked. Joy nodded quietly. 

The King slowly walked Joy back to her quarters. They stood outside her quarters for a while. Joy looked at their held-hands and the King followed her gaze. 

"Head inside and rest." The King said, trying to somehow dismiss the awkwardness between them. He held up his other hand, attempting to touch Joy's head, but stopped himself mid-way. Slowly, he retracted his hand.

Joy looked up. "You too. Go back safely." She gave him a small smile before gently pulling her hand out from his. 

The King watched Joy enter her quarters. He stood outside for a short while even after she had disappeared inside. Letting out a tiny sigh, he turned his head and left. 

Joy slowly dragged her body inside her quarters. She passed through the first door and walked down the corridors to reach her study quarters. As she walked towards the end, Joy noticed a group of her female attendants had crowded around.