Chapter 3

The door was shaking like it was going to break.

My heart also felt like it was shaking mercilessly.

“Berylia, I have something to tell you!”

Rixus’ urgent voice came from outside the door.

I cleared my throat and answered.

“…It’s already late, so I’ll talk to you alone tomorrow.”

But then, the door mercilessly opened wide. There was no hesitation in his actions befitting that of a psychopath protagonist of a mass-produced fantasy novel.

Behind him were the restless maids. He walked in without hesitation. Like a beast that rushed terrifyingly in anger.

When I saw his outfit, I took a deep breath and inhaled.

Rixus had his shirt opened, casually exposing his chest.

A strong chest with muscles, and a sharp sword drawn in a diagonal line from his left side moved with each step. He stopped in front of me and said,

“Let’s talk for a second.”

Just before he came in, I managed to lie on the bed and covered myself with a blanket.

“Cough, I have a cold today, so it’s difficult to talk.”

Rixus’s well-groomed eyebrows became crooked as if he thought it was absurd. He exhaled a long breath, and his muscular abdomen twitched slightly.

“You were fine before, but now you caught a cold…?”

“Yes.”

“It sounds like you’re lying because you don’t want to marry me.”

From his point of view, it deserved to be seen as an insult.

Looking at his outfit, it was clear that he had been about to go to bed, but ran all the way here after hearing the news of ‘rejection of the marriage proposal’.

Either way, I was stuck in bed.

“…….”

He glared at me and bit his red lips that seemed voluminous. and opened his mouth.

“Berylia.”

…Since when did my name sound so nice?

Rixus languidly threatened me with a soft voice that seemed to trap me in his arms and whisper in my ear.

“Get up. Before I lay down next to you.”

“!”

Blood circulated from head to toe. How could he say something like that in that outfit?

“…Rixus, how can you say such rude things!”

“Is it polite to lie down while greeting a guest? If we were to be polite to each other, we should have used honorifics first, Queen.”

“It doesn’t seem like you have any intentions of using honorifics with me, so leave it out of the discussion. And guests who have never been invited are just uninvited guests.”

We clashed one word at a time, and I was still lying in bed.

Rixus quickly grabbed the blanket.

“Then I can’t help it.”

“……”

“I have no choice but to raise you up from the bed myself.”

“!”

I grabbed the blanket with both hands and hung on.

‘You idiot, please leave me alone!’

Not the blanket! Only the blanket!

There was a brief battle of nerves between me, who was desperately trying to hold on, and him, who was desperately trying to take it away.

I cried urgently to calm the angry beast.

“Okay, I’ll give you a chance!”

Rixus stopped moving and narrowed his eyebrows.

Meanwhile, I leaned on the backrest and stared at him fiercely. My eyes shone with ease.

“I will listen to the reason why we should get married, and if I understand, I’ll accept the proposal. But if you can’t convince me…”

“…….”

“Go back to Aktoum immediately, and never appear before me again.”

I raised my hand, saying it was okay to the guards who arrived late, and sent them back. I nodded to the maids, saying they could go as well.

Through the gap in the closing door, I could see a lot of guards lying around, who were already beaten down by Rixus with his bare hands.

‘Why does he want this marriage so desperately?’

At this point, I was very curious.

Eventually, everyone left and my bedroom became quiet.

Only Rixus and I were focused on each other.

Rixus opened his mouth with dark eyes.

“I received an anonymous letter.”

He spoke slowly.

“It was written that the nobles who opposed the peace with Spinel were preparing for a war of conquest.”

…Aktoum, preparing for war?

“If I had the right to be the emperor, I would have stopped them. As you know…”

“……”

“I’m only half of it.”

My heart throbbed at the sound of his helpless voice.

Rixus’ eyes were calm, but he could not hide his deep despair, anger, and sorrow.

I knew the source of that sadness. Because I knew very well what kind of life he had.

Rixus was orphaned at the age of seven.

The night before his parents went abroad by boat.

The empress greeted her son on the cheek and said goodbye, but it turned out to be a kiss of farewell.

The ruthless waves shattered the ship that Rixus’ parents were on. And the body of the empress couldn’t even be found…… Miraculously, the emperor’s life was saved, but he couldn’t get out of bed or come to his senses.

An unconscious emperor. A deceased empress.

In the end, young Rixus was left alone.

From then on, he struggled desperately to survive in the Imperial Palace infested with snakes seeking power.

Everyday, there was a threat to his life.

Everyone he believed to be a friend betrayed him, and even his meals were poisoned. It was also common to be strangled while sleeping. So every time he swallowed, it felt like he was swallowing a nail, and when he laid down to sleep, his heart pounded against the pillow.

He lost his expression and vitality day by day.

Even when he came of age by enduring such a fierce life, Rixus could not even succeed his rightful throne.

The emperor was unconscious, but he was still alive.

In the end, an unprecedented situation occurs in which Rixius and his uncle each have half of the sleeping emperor’s power.

All of Aktoum’s agendas were passed only when both of their seals were stamped.

Half a crown.

A prince who cannot ascend to the throne immediately.

In that difficult position, Rixus was struggling to carry on the will of the emperor.

That is, peace with Spinel.

In such a state, when he received a letter that war was about to take place, his despair was fully understood.

I opened my mouth to calm his anxious heart, even a little.

“Rixus, the war between the two countries is destined to never happen.”

“Are you going to call it fate that I came to propose to the Queen of an enemy country?”

I was speechless for a moment.

What I called fate was actually a story I went through, and his proposal was an event that deviated from that story.

“Berylia. Destiny always changes.”

“……”

“By human will.”

I bit my lips slowly.

Then really… Could there really be a war?

Although I was a notorious monarch, I truly loved my people.

I deeply cared for Andions, the beautiful land that had abandoned me.

A beautiful mountain covered in white snow. The miners scooping colorful magic stones from the mountain.

The pure eyes of the children looking at me with all their laughter.

Precious and mysterious green plants, and white bears and reindeers who roll around and play next to them.

‘You mean I could lose them all?’

It felt like my heart was burning for my home. It was absolutely impossible.

It was understandable that Rixius chose marriage as a way to prevent war.

If only I could protect Spinel…

I loved my country enough to decide to marry a man I did not love.

For the first time, the wills of Rixus and mine matched.

But shouldn’t it be a more careful decision?

It was nothing else, but a marriage to a man who would end my life.

I put a hand on my throbbing head and shook my head to shake off the complicated thoughts. Then, suddenly, I looked up at the quiet Rixus.

Oddly enough, he didn’t say anything the whole time. Besides, he was looking to the side instead of looking at me.

‘What is he staring at?’

I turned my gaze to the same place.

On a chair with an antique red rug, women’s underwear, which was light and airy with white lace, was draped over it. And a dress that was laid out as if stripped away.

I had just taken them off.

“!”

What the hell was he looking at?!

For a moment, it felt like my heart was about to explode.

Rixus looked at me as if in bewilderment. Then with narrowed brows, he stared at me, who was holding onto the blanket tightly like a lifeline.

He seemed to finally understand why I couldn’t get out of bed.

An awkward silence passed between us.

“…….”

“…….”

Rixus gently patted his red ears and muttered while looking elsewhere.

“……morning.”

“…Uh-huh, what?”

“I hope we can have breakfast together tomorrow morning.”

He said, looking far away, on a vine outside the window.

My face was completely red and on the verge of bursting, but I kept my dignity and spoke calmly.

“Let’s do that.”

Without answering, Rixus turned his broad back and strode out as it was.

I grabbed the blanket tightly at the sound of the door closing heavily.

“Hah…”

I sank into the bed with the embarrassment and shame that rushed in.

* * *

The next morning.

An awkward breakfast began.

On the table was a huge array of specialties of Andions.

A soft goose dish with fragrant, soft bread and various medicinal herbs grown in snowy fields.

Salad topped with edible flowers with strong colors, and fruits with high sugar content that survived the harsh cold.

Even the light on the table was not a candlestick, but a magic stone.

‘It’s an incredibly luxurious light. Why is it so fancy…?’

It was something I didn’t usually use.

From the overall appearance, I read a strong message: ‘You will never be able to dishearten Our Majesty’.

I was grateful for their hearts and it was cute. Still, I guess they didn’t want to be dispirited by the crown prince of the enemy.

“…….”

“…….”

Rixus was slicing meat across from me.

He looked slightly embarrassed yesterday, but he now had a calm and indifferent face as usual.

He cut and chewed pieces of meat in a very elegant and formal manner.

Then, slowly, I took off my luck.

“Berylia. Let me apologize for yesterday.”

“……”

“It was rude of me to go to the bedroom at will.”

Just thinking about yesterday made me feel embarrassed, but my expression was also very calm and cold.

I responded gracefully with a queenly attitude.

“It was rude enough to cut off your head. If you commit such disrespect, then do not expect mercy from me.”

While maintaining elegance, I cut the meat into small pieces and popped them into my mouth.

Then I criticized him with a face so hard that a needle could not go in.

“And dress properly in my castle. In such a savage outfit, you expose your chest.”

“Did you look at my chest in the meantime?”

“!”

I had never stared at that strong muscular chest with sexy cuts?

‘What the heck.’

When I stared at him with bewildered eyes, Rixus took a sip of wine and calmly answered.

“If you like it, take it. I’ll give it to you when we get married.”

“…I don’t want to have it!”

I wanted to intimidate him even more, but I couldn’t find anything.

After that, we didn’t provoke each other and just ate quietly.

There were no major events except for the fact that I called the terrified chef in the middle and praised him, saying, “The food is so delicious.”

Eventually, after the entire meal, I declared neatly.

“I accept the proposal.”

Rixus’s eyes widened slightly.

At the same time, everyone in the room, including Duke Orléans, opened their mouths in visible surprise.

I was the only one who kept calm and ordered.

“Clear the table and bring the ‘Holy Marriage Agreement’ right away.”

To protect my precious things… In the end, I chose to sleep with my natural enemy.

‘Will Rixus and I be able to change our fates through our wills?’