Ivan flinched and hid his hands behind his back noticing Alicia’s lingering gaze planted on his fingers.Alicia looked away, deciding not to point out what she had seen.“….I had never thought to bring a bouquet of flowers,” she said.Heavy silence scattered all around thereafter. One could hear the steady rhythm of their heart. The series of incidents in the ship left the two parties, Alicia and Ivan, in a sour mood. They could not face each other properly, let alone talk. Though in truth it was Alicia’s doing. She chose to avoid him on purpose.Unable to bear the still sullenness, Alicia opened her lips and broke the quietness. “But mother had always loved flowers, especially flowers commonly found in the road rather than the large, exotic flowers in the garden. Thank you. I’m sure she’s happy.”“…..” Ivan’s eyes quivered and looked away.Alicia looked down, fingers wiggling. She had nothing to say thereafter.Then Ivan looked at the grave next to the countess coldly. “The count was
Alicia’s gaze turned downcast. Whenever Ivan called her name with slightly raised lips, a sort of welling sadness formed in her caged heart.He rarely called her by her name, if ever…“I want you to call me by my name too, Alicia. Ivan. Call me that. Is this okay with you?”Tears had fallen, almost. His carefree smile brought her back to their first meeting. The painful memories had been wiped out and only the memory of that boy in the garden remained. She hoped this could last.“Yes,” Alicia bit her lips and answered.“Alicia, I know you’re in a difficult position and I can’t imagine how you feel, but I’d like to make it clear to you that I’ve no intention of treating you like a hostage. You’re my wife. I’ll protect you from any danger. Don’t be nervous, please…”His voice was gentle.Alicia nodded her head. It would have been nice if he was like this in their past life, but she was satisfied. This, too, was enough.She never had any thoughts of getting back at him when given a secon
My wife doesn’t love me.This was the only thing I know.***“Your Majesty, where are you? Your Majesty, the Queen is looking for you.”The servant was looking for me. I had no intention to be seen and so, I hid behind the tall pillars and kept quiet. Troublesome and uncomfortable things await me; this I know well.“Your Majesty! Oh… Your Majesty! I know you’re listening to me. Your Majesty…!”Watching the servant’s movement, I slowly walked toward the opposite direction and arrived in the deserted garden. I laid there, resting, for the time being, hoping to avoid that slow-witted but determined servant.I sighed and looked up the blue sky, staring relentlessly at the glaring sun and the drifting clouds. But as somber thoughts came to mind, I covered my eyes with my arms and bit my lips tightly.“The throne was originally mine.”Mother used to hold onto me… I’d sit on her lap while she whispered words I never understood. Each time she said those words, the guilt that I’d taken away he
The book reverts back to third person.“…..I need to be stronger…” Ivan said, his heart bitter and disheartened. Greed had never controlled him. He hoped to be a king neither horrid nor incompetent but a king able to manage his kingdom well and to live a happy life with his wife, one whom he could respect as a human being, if not love.But… did he hope for too much?A soft hiccup snapped Ivan from his whimsical thoughts. He turned his head and saw a little girl. Tears fell from her cheek and she wiped it roughly with her sleeves. She looked distracted, thus failing to take notice of his presence.Ivan moved, not wanting to have his presence known. Though he unconsciously watched her from afar. She was pleasant to look at, cute like a doll. She had porcelain skin too puerile and silver hair too innocent. She was younger than Ivan, it looked like. Her beauty could not be disguised from the pearl-shaped tears rolling down her cheeks from her wide luminous eyes.“…..Huh?”Ivan followed he
Ivan clenched his fist and eventually, he climbed up the trunk in one fell swoop. He’d rather save the bird’s demise than to watch those falling tears helplessly. As he climbed, the cat was ready to pounce on the bird and bite its neck. He needed to hurry else the bird would end up someone’s food.Chirp, chirp!Swoosh!“Ahhhh!”Boom!He fell to the ground with the small bird wrapped safely in his hand. Fortunately, he had not injured himself as he had used a landing technique he learned during fencing. But it did hurt like hell like his bones would break in pieces.‘What am I doing…?’“Are you all right?”Ivan looked at her with fiery eyes and wanted to say, “No, it’s not okay!” but he held it in. It was best he checks the bird’s status first. As he opened his hand, the girl held the bird. At that moment, the bird screeched, flapped its wings, and soared into the deep, blue sky.“Ah…”While the girl looked up, eyes expressing unknown admiration, Ivan patted his sore shoulder and back
“Your Majesty, you were with my daughter… perhaps Alicia’s caused you trouble.” The lady, a countess, greeted Ivan hurriedly while the girl hid behind her with a look of embarrassment as she realized his true identity.“….It’s been a long time, Countess Kenboe.”“Ivan, Alicia, I had plans for you two to meet someday, but this is great too. What were you two doing?”“It’s nothing, I was just talking to this child,” Ivan said lowly and continued, “I was just free and bored. I unknowingly rolled on the floor by myself. It’s no big deal. No need to bother about it, Mother.”Ivan felt a sense of shame hearing his mother’s pleased voice. The thought that he had been caught and trapped in her wicked plan upset him. He did not want to play with her games, so he hurried away and hoped to never see the girl again.However, his mother had other plans. She had marked the girl as her target as the next Queen of Ehrlich and called her to the royal palace now and then. Every time he saw her, she was
Ivan’s brows tightened and he scoffed. He wished his mother would reveal her true intentions. Maybe he’ll not despise her this much. He despised it so, despised the false image she gave – a mother who refused evil and gave up her throne so her son could live. This was her image. But it was false. It was her ambition. The world was her theatre and she the main lead in the play.Ivan and the woman he’s to marry would become prey in the palm of her hands.“Are you satisfied, mother? You’ve managed to keep my limbs, my hands, and feet all tied down. Are you musing in your own enjoyment?”“What do you mean? Alicia is a good girl. She’s the best match for you, Ivan. I don’t know why you keep distorting my words.”“That’s exactly what I thought my mother would say.”Ivan scoffed and clicked his tongue, swiveling his feet and walking toward the door. And then he saw her… he saw Alicia standing at the front door, her face a pale white. He surmised that she had heard their conversation and he w
Ivan realized then that she was real, that he liked her. No matter what others will think of her, she would be his wife and he would protect her, They’d become two people sharing their bodies and minds their whole lives.They did not have the best start as a couple, but he’s sure that they could spend the rest of their life amending their mistakes, right? What does it matter that she came here under his mother’s own malevolent strings? She only needs to choose him, not the queen. Ivan thought she would too, but… to think she’d chosen a life of antagonizing her husband… that, he never saw coming.Suddenly, he remembered that they’d never kissed properly. Their only shared kisses were the formal kiss during the wedding ceremony. So he leaned in closer, but she coldly turned away from him. He saw no excitement to consummate their marriage on her face. Rather, her expression was close to displeasure as she shed tears.He was rejected.At that moment, Ivan came to his senses while the trut
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