“Did you say divorce?”Alicia repeated Ivan’s words inwardly.“Yes,” she nodded.“Though I am not quite sure why you want this.” A scowl formed on his lips. “You ask me to marry you, and now you want what, a divorce?”“It can be done, Your Majesty.”Coulson would have paid Ehrlich a great lump of money to take back their princess. But the moment Ivan spoke of a national marriage, another issue arose. Should he choose to give up on the princess and accept Coulson’s compensation, the public would call him despicable – that he only married the princess for her wealth. He’d be condemned.So, Alicia would intervene. She’d bring her assets. That and she needed to finish this solution as soon as possible without worries. She’ll only be married to him for a year-long anyways.“You need a marriage partner that can bring you and Ehrlich great benefits. It won’t be a great loss but a gain. Even after you divorce me, you’ll be left with masses of fortune.”Though Alicia could not say this proposa
Alicia and Ivan exchanged the documents they’d written and read through them before signing. Finally, when the storm was over, Alicia relaxed, her strength drained away. Dimitri’s life was saved and she, too, would gain complete freedom within a year.But suddenly, her face darkened soon as she remembered Dimitri. She worried for him, worried that he may try to escape.“Your Majesty, may I ask you one more favor?”***Basil quietly watched the boat carrying Alicia back to the port. Then he looked to Ivan who stood next to him. He’d been quiet as of late. Basil thought he’d be happy to finally meet his first love but he looks as if he’d explode at any minute.With this thought lingering in his mind, Basil backed away a little. He learned from past experience that it was best to avoid him at all times. Who knows what nonsense the black-haired beast would make him do. But the moment he moved out of his sight, Ivan broke the silence.“Basil.”“Ye… yes, Your Majesty!” Basil quickly ran to
The next day.In the early morning, the port was crowded with thousands of people. There, Alicia exchanged her last greetings with her uncle.“I still can’t believe I’m sending you off. What’s more… it’s all too sudden. I don’t know how I’ll explain this to Dimi,” the marquis lamented.Dimitri was still locked in prison and Alicia did not know when he would be released, only that after she leaves for Ehrlich will the royal family release him and only then would he learn of her departure.“I’ve put too much burden on you, uncle.” Alicia wore an apologetic look. She’s sure her uncle would bear Dimitri’s sorrows and fits of anger, hurling out harsh words upon learning of the sudden news. If there was any other way, then she would stay… but…“I left a letter saying it was my choice but I don’t think he’ll listen. I’m sorry…”“You’re talking nonsense. I know you did this for Dimitri, but…” He drew Alicia into his embrace and gave her a tight hug. “Don’t worry too much, alright? We’ll find
“Alice…!”Alicia could hear Helen’s sorrowful cries. She paused for a moment, bit her lips and moved on. If she turned around now, she’d lose all the composure she mustered.When she first became Helen’s companion, everyone looked at her in pity and said that she’d go through many troubles befriending the princess. But she thought otherwise. After arriving in Coulson, sickness and affliction hit her and she suffered from mild depression, something her uncle and Dimitri were unaware of. She hid it well, her sadness. They believed Alicia had adapted to the Coulson life thoroughly.But when she was alone deep in the night, when no one was there, Alicia often suffered from suicidal impulses, from suicidal thoughts… suffered from the unseen, the unheard, the silent killer… she suffered from pain that became too much to bear, too much to cope, too difficult to deal with. She could not escape it no matter how hard she tried. It followed her around like a black shadow that was slowly eating h
The man in question, Ivan, frowned at him.“What happened to the information I asked you to find out?” Ivan said.Basil wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and delightedly pulled out the letter and handed it to Ivan.“Here it is, Your Majesty. I was actually on my way to deliver it to you,” Basil laughed wholeheartedly.Ivan began to read the letter. His face darkened and he immediately crumpled the letter into a ball.“What is it about?” Basil asked.Ivan threw away the letter but Basil quickly picked it up and read through the contents. A moment later, he let out a dismal sigh.“The Coulsons locked the Countess’ cousin in jail and threatened her. The Crown Prince, along with the king’s approval, planned to kill him should she refuse to take the princess’s position. Is that why she asked for a moment of time alone with you to request that she choose you instead of the princess?” Basil spoke with a straight face rarely seen as Ivan looked at the port. “The Countess must have had a
After Basil excused himself, Alicia smoothed her wrinkled clothes. Induced with a need to do something, she sought to unpack her luggage. It was relaxing and did not take too much of her time. She barely packed. Finished, she stretched her arms and pulled the curtains back, looking at the blue sea and the deep azure. She could think of nothing than to waste her time watching the scenery that calmed her, but thereafter, her head throbbed and she proceeded to pull out the medicine bottle from her luggage. For the time being, she would have no choice but to rely on drugs.While opening the lid, the door suddenly burst open. She was taken aback as something struck her.“Ahh!!”She fell to the floor, struggling to stand as a heavy weight pressed on her body. Her wrists were locked tightly by a man that she was no stranger to.“…..Your Majesty?”Alicia noticed the identity of the assailant straightaway. It was Ivan, his countenance grave and disconcerting. While left awestruck, Ivan hardene
Ivan’s mouth dropped to the floor, dumbfounded that Basil would change his mind at immediate notice from Alicia’s simple request.Before going out, Basil left with his last word. “Miss, I’ll be standing right outside the door. If anything happens, don’t hesitate to call me.”As the door closed, the room grew reticently quiet.Alicia sighed and looked at Ivan. “What happened, Your Majesty? You almost broke my ribs.” She pointed her finger at the medicine glass bottle that fell on the floor. “…..Why did you do that?”“What medicine is that?” Ivan asked, his glance stealthy.Alicia picked up the glass bottle and put it on the table. “It’s the medicine I’ve been taking since I was a kid, a collection of herbs that helps ease my tension. What’s wrong with this?”“It’s a problem.”“Why?”“You’ll become Ehrlich’s queen soon. Everything you touch must be thoroughly tested, be it food or medicine. Don’t you know that?” Ivan said with a straight face.“That’s true, but….” She who remained reser
Basil entered Alicia’s cabin snappily and ready to drag the black-haired-beast by the foot if need be. This was the best opportune time to gain Alicia’s favor. She would become Ehrlich’s queen soon. Once this happens, well… then it was time to switch sides.Ivan, on the other hand, was not finished with Alicia. He grunted and parted his lips, but Basil quickly shouted, “Your Majesty, if you’re done with your business, let’s go!”Ivan’s sharp eyes immediately flashed a deathly glare towards Basil for his sudden interruption.At his resentful gaze, Basil clicked his tongue inwardly.‘I’m just helping you. It will only get worse for you if you stay here any longer, Your Majesty.’“Your Majesty, please come this way!” Basil said, his tone proud and ever so brave.At Basil’s repeated urging, Ivan was forced to back down. He gnashed his teeth and said to Alicia, “…..Rest well.”And so, Ivan was driven straight out of the cabin pitifully. As soon as Basil closed the door, Basil tried to quic
Epilogue (1) – DimitriTranslator – YueYears later.“…and Elheim truly loved his human woman. But he was a God, pure and divine, so he could not remain too much longer on earth. If he stayed in the human world for too long, he’d lose all his divine powers…”The man who was reading the book out loud paused for a while and looked at a particular direction in his audience. There, there was a little girl with the same hair color as him. He saw her yawning while little eyes narrowed with displeasure, as though wondering why he’d stopped. The man resumed reading the book.“In the end, Eiheim had no choice but to leave the woman he loved and to go back on earth. However, he wept for the love he had to leave behind on the human world and those tears turned into rain. At the same time, a baby was growing inside his woman’s womb, a baby created from their union. This baby was born strong and healthy, and she had an incredible power. She had the power to turn himself into a bird. In the human w
Translator – YueT/N: This is the end, so extra-long chapter for today?Ivan irrupted into the room, sword in hand and a murderous look in his eye… to see Alicia licking her fingers. In front of her there was a huge plate filled with food. There was an abundance of seafood. Next to her was a worker who looked at Ivan with widened eyes.“Ivan?”Alicia quickly took her finger out of her mouth and looked at him. She asked again, nervous.“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”The inn worker looked alternated glances between Ivan and the sword in his hand, his legs shaking.“Oh… it’s just… it looked like your wife was pregnant, so I was only asking if there was anything she disliked so I could bring something else…”Since Alicia had taken her robe and coat off, she was wearing a light dress that showed her bulging belly clearly. It seemed that the inn boy had noticed it and was only asking whether she liked the food.Ivan felt ridiculous for getting angry over something like this.No, more
Translator – Yue“Salerno Inn”Alicia read the old sign that was hanging atop a building. It was an inn, so it definitely offered food and shelter to travelers.“It would take us around two hours to reach your mother’s mansion. It might be faster if we rode my horse together, but you can’t while pregnant… if you don’t want to spend the night in a place like this, then I’ll find another way…”Ivan murmured while trying to assess Alicia’s reaction. He knew that the inn was old and gloomy. He’d spent some nights here before himself but he knew that it was different for Alicia, who’d only lived in mansions and palaces. She might even find this place repulsive.He did not want the news of them here to spread too much, which was why he’d chosen this place as he could keep their identities hidden. But… perhaps he should have thought of Alicia more. Maybe it would be best to go to someone else’s house and reveal their identity so they could spend the night somewhere more comfortable.As he ke
Translator – YueAfter listening to Mrs. Cessly’s words, Ivan immediately hopped on a horse and sprang to port. This time there was no Basil by his side, it was just him. While he galloped top speed, the events from these past six years came to his mind.When he arrived, the ship had already sailed. He was too late, again.He felt an empty space in his heart. He got down his exhausted horse and slowly walked to the edge of the beach. He had a desperate expression on his face.He stood there looking at the horizon when he felt something hot. There were hot tears trailing down his face. All the tears he’d held back all this time suddenly broke free.Despair and desolation surged from inside him. He sobbed and cried.Six years ago, when he’d missed her just like this, he’d managed to hold back his tears since there was still hope of seeing her again in the future. Instead of desolation, he turned his back to this very sea with the hopes of seeing her again soon.However, this time it was
Translator – YueThe Port of Salerno remained unchanged. Tall, imposing walls surrounded the beach. There were numerous houses with scarlet-colored rooftops everywhere. A seemingly endless turquois-colored. Everything was as calm and beautiful as before.There was only one ship resting on the shores. A white, modern, elegant ship.When the Queen’s carriage arrived to port, the usually hectic port city suddenly turned tranquil. The carriage’s door opened and the Queen descended from her vehicle surrounded by her guards. She was wearing a thick coat, hat and gloves all made of silver fox fur, as though she was planning on going somewhere far colder than Ehrlich. A little while later, the ship’s captain approached her.He took out his cap and bowed to the Queen of Ehrlich.“Greetings to the most honorable woman in Ehrlich, Your Majesty the Queen. May Elheim’s light always shine upon you.”A smile came up to Alicia’s lips.“Greetings, captain. I’ll be under your care.”The captain pointed
Translator – YueT/N: The chapter we’ve been waiting for?Mrs. Cessly wailed and started savagely criticizing Ivan.“This is all Your Majesty’s fault. It’s because you allowed the Queen leave for Coulson. Why did you do that?”“All I did was give her a choice.”“A choice?”“I told her to choose. To stay here, or to leave with the baby.”“Why on earth did you tell her that?!”“There’s a reason behind my marriage to Alicia. I lied to her and forced her to come here.”“Ah, I remember the Queen told me something like that. That Your Majesty did not wish to marry her, but Princess Helen. Is it related to that?”Ivan nodded.“Yes. I had no choice. If I had proposed to Alicia, she would have run away from as fast as she could.”Mrs. Cessly looked at Ivan intently with a complex look in her eyes. Seeing that Mrs. Cessly’s head was spinning top speed to find out what could possibly make Alicia want to run away from Ivan, he added in a slow voice.“She definitely didn’t owe me money nor anythin
“Alright. Go ahead, do it. Call me if you need any help as well.”“I will.”When their conversation came to an end, Ivan slowly rose from his seat. Alicia got up as well. Just when he was about to turn around, Alicia spoke.“I wish for you to stop feeling guilty of all that’s happened to me.”Ivan’s eyes focused intently on Alicia. For some reason, she found it hard to look him back in the eye, so she averted her gaze.“I don’t dislike you anymore, Ivan. I’m grateful to you for letting me live my life again and leave this place with my baby.”“Grateful…uh.”While he bitterly mumbled to himself, Alicia nodded her head.“After all, you did put in a lot of effort in saving my life. I’ll make sure I do everything in my power to live a happy life from now on. I’m not completely alone anymore, after all.”Alicia placed a hand on her belly.“Once this baby is born, I’ll only let him see and listen to the most wonderful things. I know I can’t stop the darkness of this world to reach him, but
Translator – YueAlicia’s jaw slowly opened.“When you say, ‘a chance to end this marriage’…”“You never wanted to marry me in the first place. You were forced into it because the Crown Prince threatened to kill your cousin if you didn’t.”“But why are you giving me this? This marriage will automatically end in a year, anyways.”Their contractual marriage had a time period clearly stipulated. Alicia couldn’t understand why he was giving her a choice right now.“If you want to end this marriage, then you don’t need to wait for the time to be up to do so. I’ll make sure you leave this country safely first thing tomorrow if you so wish it.”“Then… what will happen to the baby I’m carrying…?”Alicia’s voice faded. Her eyes darted to the contract clauses. There, she herself agreed on leaving all rights concerning the child to Ivan if she were to get pregnant. With the opportunity he was giving her, she’d be able to flee and hide somewhere far, far away, and he’d never be able to claim his
Translator – YuePatricia’s execution took place the following morning.In spite of being very early, many people gathered around the execution place. People gathered there to insult her for killing her own father, her benefactor and even trying to assassinate her own sister and Queen. She was seen as a true villain, an evil rarely seen before.Patricia listeTed to their insults and taunts until her very last moment.Even though Alicia had said that she’d no longer show any consideration towards Patricia, she did make sure that the most skilled executioner was selected to carry out her punishment. She’d heard of previous rare cases in which the neck was not cleanly cut off in one single strike, forcing the executioner to hack at the neck, which caused lots of pain and anguish before dying.After Patricia’s death, Alicia passed her days in a state of continuous astonishment. She rarely went outside and spent most of her time in her room. However, she did make sure of eating and resting