"Do you know why I want to marry you?"
Barcas stared at me silently. I pressed it against his expressionless face.
"I want to see you become unhappy. That's why I'm going to marry you."
"..."
"I want you to be sick. A lot of much."
His eyes sank deeply.
I held my breath and waited for his answer. I hoped that the indifferent face would collapse, that he would get angry and tired and shake me off.
Say no.
They say that a woman like me can never be your wife.
Even though our hearts will crumble without a shape, we may at least be able to save the rest of each other's lives.
But, as always, he betrayed my expectations.
With a short sigh as if he had heard something insignificant, Barcas pulled my hand away from his robe, straightening himself upright.
"The wedding will take place as soon as possible."
Then he walked to the window and opened the window.
The wind blew against him and spilled over my face.
I quietly caught his eyes in the sunset. I could hear a heavy bass sound.
"It will be better for me and for you."
What does he mean?
Does it mean that it is better to get rid of troublesome things quickly?
I looked into his eyes as if looking for an answer, but then I felt a deep sense of fatigue and lowered my eyelids.
It didn't matter. I will no longer try to find out what he is thinking.
If he accepted me out of a sense of responsibility, I chose to sit next to him to return the hurt. So, I wouldn't be stupid enough to expect something from him.
I repeated ny pledge thousands of times.
Tonight is the last time I'm going to put an end to this cursed love.
However, I knew.
The love that killed me today will come back to me tomorrow...
***
The whole palace was excited by the wedding of the Second Princess that would be held soon.
Under the leadership of the Empress, the courtiers began to decorate the wedding hall with splendor, and the servants were constantly moving between the food warehouse and the kitchen to prepare wine and food for the guests.
However, despite such bustle, there was a heavy and chaotic aura in the palace.
As he was exiting the logistics base, Edrick spotted the apprentices in a group in a corner of the theater hall and narrowed his eyebrows. An unpleasant story penetrated into his ears.
"In the end, the mother and daughter have been robbed of men for generations."
He watched the boy giggle frivolously. He was the son of Viscount Kendon, and he was a troubled child who formed a faction among apprentice knights.
The boy put his training weapon on the rack.
"I heard that the 2nd Princess is the version of Her Majesty Empress? With that face, it's no wonder that Lord Sheerkan has passed over."
"Do you think our leader likes that?"
The big boy shook his head.
"If it wasn't for His Majesty's order in the first place, the marriage wouldn't have taken place. Her Highness the Princess was not enough."
"Ugh, you naive bastard. What kind of family is Sheerkhan, who would change his fiancée at the behest of His Majesty?"
The boy kicked his tongue.
"Ha, she accepted it because she had the heart to do it! Moreover, Lord Sheerkan was a knight of the guard of the 2nd Princess? Didn't they see eye to eye a long time ago? If you listen to the people who participated in this pilgrimage, they said that the two of them were a bit strange..."
"Don't know, do you know how much the 2nd Princess used to stir-fry the leader during the Guard? I watched her temper from the side, and I guess we made eye contact."
The apprentice who was arranging the arrows for shooting training snorted loudly.
"Moreover, the Second Princess was crippled in this accident. If you leave someone like her, who would marry such a woman? There must have been some kind of wicked trick behind the scenes..."
"It seems that training is done by mouth these days."
Edrick, who didn't hear it, interrupted him, and the apprentice knights were surprised and straightened their posture.
He glanced down at the boys with a cold look.
"Do you know that the conversation you just had was something that could be considered an insult to the royal family?"
The boys' faces turned pale.
Edrick, who had carefully studied each of their faces, added sternly.
"The Roem Knights are a group organized to protect the imperial family. If you are going to be a part of it, you should at least be aware that you should not talk about the royal family in public."
"Sorry, sorry Lord Rubon."
The boys bowed down with stiff faces.
After staring down in silence for a while, Edrick slowly turned and walked toward the Templars' quarters.
At that moment, his heavy forearms slumped on his shoulders.
Edrick turned his head and saw his senior knight, Sir Theoric Hardt, and his eyes widened.
He grinned.
"You're very tired."
"At this time, what is wrong with the theater?"
Edrick looked up at the bell tower with a puzzled face.
It was not yet noon. Isn't it the busiest time for all the senior knights to do their work in the main palace?
Sir Hardt smiled with a curious look and messed up his hair with his large hands.
"I have good news, so I rushed to tell you about it. Finally, your work is relieved. Tomorrow, you'll be back in my immediate unit."
Edrick paused and looked up at him. Even though the good news was clear, mixed emotions flooded in.
He asked hesitantly.
"Then, who will be in charge of escorting His Royal Highness the Second Princess?"
His eyes narrowed slightly.
He let out a heavy sigh as he untied his arm from his shoulder.
"Roem Knights was completely excluded from the escort of the 2nd Princess. Her Majesty Empress raised the issue of whether we had deliberately neglected to escort Her Royal Highness the Second Princess. She even nailed down the fact that she would not leave His Highness the Second Prince's escort to Roem Knights."
Edrick's face hardened. It was tantamount to putting the honor of the Roem Knights on the ground.
Since the founding of the Empire, the Knights of Roem have been the guardians of the royal family. Their identity was denied.
Edrick lowered his head helplessly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't fulfill my role, so the Knights Templar... such humiliation."
"It's not your fault. This was an accident that no one expected. So you don't have to beat yourself up."
Theoric patted him on the shoulder and comforted him.
When his face still didn't straighten out, Theoric, who had been caressing the nape of his neck as if he was thinking about something, suddenly led his men out of the theater. Edrick followed him, puzzled.
He walked silently for a while, and only then did he speak when he reached a deserted clearing.
"I know you're a responsible guy. But this is really not your responsibility, so don't worry about it."
Edrick furrowed his brows.
"I was her guard knight. After all, I am primarily responsible for the failure of the escort. But how can I...!"
"The attack was the result of the Empress's scheming."
Edrick stopped moving and stared blankly at his superior's face.
Theoric, who was looking down at the floor with a dark expression, continued in a calm tone.
"Don't you think it's strange? At that time, the wyverns attacked the army in groups... Normally, large monsters like the Wyvern do not attack armed armies unless their habitat is invaded. Besides, our camp was far away from their habitat."
"Well, I thought it was weird too... Even so, we can't conclude that it was a plot by the Empress..."
"Before the raid, there were reports of suspicious movements by the Second Princess's retinues."
His tone hardened.
"In addition, traces of high-level magic were found in the area near the accident. Someone must have deliberately disturbed the Wyvern habitat."
Edrick opened his mouth blankly.
When it became clear what his superiors meant, cold sweat formed down his spine.
"However, the Second Princess was also participating in this pilgrimage. How could she do such a thing when her daughter could be wrong..."
"That made it easier for her to avoid suspicion."
Edrick looked at him with blood-stained faces, speechless.
He continued in a gloomy tone.
"The Empress is a frighteningly thorough person. They conducted a secret Investigation immediately after the accident, but they did not leave any conclusive evidence other than a few circumstantial pieces of evidence. Moreover, the biggest victim in this case is the Empress's own daughter. In such a situation, who would dare to question it?"
Edrick slowly lowered his gaze.
The Image of the Princess buried in a pile of rocks and shedding tears came to mind.
He also remembered how she writhed in pain throughout the first aid.
She had been made like that by her own mother.
He felt like his stomach was turning upside down.
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