Smitten.

"Does that mean... you are... the... King?" She asked with wide eyes.

The king didn't answer, so she looked at Tyra, who nodded in confirmation. 

"Oh my! You all look so young, and I had no idea. What do you people eat here?!" She said the last part more to herself and quickly stood up. She raised both hands to her forehead and bent forward in a bow to the king and did the same facing the queen.

Damn it! Why did he have to be married?

The Queen's lips curved upward in a welcoming smile. "You're welcome to the royal family, and to the Moon Kingdom," she said with a nod and gestured with her hands for Alicia to sit down.

"Thank you, your majesty," Alicia said with a polite bow as she sat down, while wondering why only the queen was speaking to her. Was the handsome king perhaps dumb?

"You are welcome, sister-in-law. I am Prince Ivan, your husband's older brother," Prince Ivan introduced himself with a polite smile. "And this is my wife, Princess Luciana," he said, nodding to his wife, who also looked like a teenager. She knew that people in the middle ages married very early, but seeing it still felt strange, even though she had gotten married a few days ago. Princess Luciana smiled politely at her, which Alicia returned. 

Following that, every other person on the table introduced themselves, one after the other, telling her their names and position in the kingdom, and by the time it got to the last person's turn, Alicia's head was already beginning to ache. Didn't these people realize that there were too many of them and that this introduction was a waste of time? Was she expected to remember all their names? 

"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Alicia said with a small smile.

Thankfully, the conversations around the table moved from her and their marriage to other details concerning the kingdom, while Alicia waited for them to start eating. This was the first proper meal she had set her eyes on since she found herself in this strange era, and she couldn't wait to have a taste of it.

"When can we start eating?" She whispered to Harold, who glared at her without responding. She scoffed at him before directing her attention to Tyra. "Why aren't we eating yet?" She mouthed to Tyra, using her hands, and Tyra smiled at her.

 'We can't eat before the King,' 

Tyra explained, gesturing to the king, who was still seated with a stony expression on his face as he listened to the conversation going on between his brothers and his first son.

Surprisingly, Alicia caught it this time. She rolled her eyes irritably. What was the point in having such a nice meal if it was going to get cold even before she could eat it? She preferred her food hot, "Ahem!" She cleared her throat, and all eyes turned to her.

She flashed the king a polite smile, "The food is getting cold, your majesty," she reminded him, just in case he had so much worry concerning the kingdom on his mind and had forgotten that the food was not going to remain hot forever.

Tyra looked at her with alarm and shook her head.

"Prince Harold, what have you been doing? You haven't taught your bride about our culture?" The oldest uncle, who was seated at the end of the table closest to the Queen, asked as they all gazed at Alicia with disapproval.

Alicia sighed as she rested her back against the table. They still have rules for food?! What sort of stupid chauvinistic kingdom was this with their useless rules? At this rate, she was clearly going to die of hunger.

"Pardon my brother, uncle. I guess he hasn't found the time yet to educate his bride since they have only just arrived here." Prince Ivan said apologetically, even though Harold could tell that he was pleased by all that was happening.

"Pardon my bride, father, she will learn to do better," Harold finally spoke, as he turned to meet his father's gaze.

The King, who was a man of few words and was yet to say a word since his arrival at the table, dismissed all their apologies, "I suppose you are hungry. We should eat then," he said as he picked up his cutlery and took the first bite, giving everyone else the go-ahead to eat. The others were surprised he was very calm about the whole thing. Maybe he was lenient because she was human?

'His voice is also sexy.' Alicia thought to herself while looking at him with soft eyes. When the king looked in her direction again, she flashed him a smile and picked up her cutlery before she started eating with so much enthusiasm while the others watched her. She guessed the King was nice after all, and she had been wary for nothing. He was just like Harold. They appeared cold and spoke less, but they were not so bad. She hoped so.

The King raised a brow when he noticed how she ignored some of the dishes and only picked some, "Are you a picky eater?" King Eli asked, directing his question to her, and all movement on the table stopped as all eyes moved from the king to Alicia, who was still eating.

"I beg your pardon?" Alicia asked, and when the king just stared at her, she quickly looked down at her plate and got what he meant, "Sort of. Some of these dishes are not good for the health. So I avoid the dishes that are filled with fat," she explained meekly, and tucked a few strands of her hair behind her ear, while they all looked at her with interest.

Harold was surprised as he noticed that she wasn't scared of his father but was just talking to him as if she was talking to any ordinary man. She was even looking directly at him and her cheeks were red.

The King looked at her for only a brief moment, and then he gave her a nod before he returned his attention to his food. Once they were all finished eating and the servants were already clearing the table, the King looked at Harold and said, "Stay back and have a word with me, Harold."