The man must have regretted it after proposing dinner.

He probably kept worrying until the last moment. Perhaps he had been agonizing over how to avoid going, whether there was another way to cancel, until finally his heart simply wouldn’t cooperate and he decided not to come.

If asked whether she was angry, no. She wasn’t. Though standing someone up after making an appointment was a serious discourtesy in social circles, it wasn’t unheard of.

It was often used as a method to cut ties with someone you no longer wished to maintain a relationship with.

“Shall I bring out the meal?”

Melissa shook her head at the servant’s words.

“…That’s alright.”

Her appetite had completely vanished.

***

The next day, a letter arrived.

Though it was a letter personally handwritten by Reizen, nowhere in its polite phrasing could sincerity be found. The handwriting was elegant, but it was an all too common apology.

He said he couldn’t come because he wasn’t feeling well yesterday.

That he was sorry.

However, there was nothing about making another appointment or meeting to talk. At this point, it was clear he was avoiding her.

A few days later.

“Is His Highness still not…?”

The spy who came to check on Melissa’s health clicked their tongue.

“You’ve gotten so thin, perhaps that’s why His Highness isn’t moved? You should eat more.”

In Sorbet prison, only one meal was provided per day. Even that was just moldy, dry bread or spoiled soup.

She hadn’t eaten since she was planning to die anyway. When she became so thin that her stomach clung to her spine and she couldn’t move, the guards would force bread into her mouth.

Horrux was the same way.

“Don’t take a single step until you finish eating. No walks allowed.”

Shouldn’t she regain her health and put on weight before she could have a child? If she got pregnant in this state, her body wouldn’t be able to handle it. Both she and the child would die before birth.

The diet was better than when she was in prison.

At least it was soup made with meat and tomatoes, and soft bread that was easy to digest.

“Madam. You must eat.”

Not just Horrux, but Nora and Laila said the same thing. Unlike Horrux, who seemed to make tormenting her his life’s purpose, the two maids’ voices were full of worry.

“I’ll try.”

Melissa, who had been lying down without energy, struggled to sit up with Nora’s support. She brought spoonfuls of soup to her mouth, but three spoonfuls was her limit.

She couldn’t eat anymore as her stomach churned.

Horrux picked up the soup Melissa had left and threw it at the maids. A young maid who had just brought up freshly cooked soup from the kitchen screamed when the bowl hit her.

“Physician Horrux!”

Melissa tried to stop him but her voice came out weak from lack of strength. Horrux grabbed Laila by the hair.

“How dare a commoner raise their voice like this?”

“Stop it!”

Melissa tried to get up from the bed. Her body had become even weaker from not eating properly for several days.

This wasn’t what she had wanted.

Bang! Melissa fell from the bed. She tried to push herself up from the floor but her legs wouldn’t move. Her bandaged ankle was more swollen than before.

Horrux was about to strike Laila’s cheek. Melissa’s shrill scream echoed through the room.

And at the same time, the commotion went quiet. Instead, a heavy thud was heard, and when she opened her eyes, Horrux was lying on the floor.

“Y-Your Highness!”

Holding one cheek in his hand, Horrux looked up at him with an indignant expression. His voice trembled greatly.

“How could you do this to me!”

Reizen had struck Horrux’s cheek as he was about to hit the maid.

“So then.”

The man who responded to Horrux’s words surveyed the messy room. In that time, he also took in Melissa Grey who sat awkwardly on the floor. Contempt was layered in his fierce gaze. It was a look at his incompetent wife, as if asking how she couldn’t handle even this kind of situation on her own.

“How dare you, a mere baron, act this way towards me.”

His eyes glared at Melissa while his lips curved into an arc. The gaze didn’t linger long. Soon his attention fell away and landed on Horrux.

“Do you think His Majesty will stay quiet about this? You’re not consummating the marriage yet and not following orders…!”

While Horrux was rambling, Reizen slowly bent his knee to sit in front of him.

When Horrux met Reizen’s fierce eyes, his cheek twitched slightly. But even while afraid, the physician forced himself to raise his voice as he recalled the Emperor’s orders.

“His Majesty clearly said there wouldn’t be a second decree…!”

“I know.”

At Reizen’s single word, Horrux was cowed. Though he trembled pathetically, he tried to pretend he wasn’t scared by raising his eyes.

“If you know that…!”

“I’ll do it, the consummation.”

Horrux’s eyes widened as the prince, who he thought would resist and hold out longer, readily gave the answer he wanted. Still holding both hands to his cheek, the physician asked.

“From when…”

“Starting today.”

Hearing those words, Horrux’s mouth clamped shut. Though he was frustrated, he had nothing more to say since the prince said he would follow orders.

Reizen lowered his gaze hazily, as if amused, while looking at Horrux who showed open hostility.

***

She felt useless.

Just as everything she had polished her whole life to become the Crown Princess had crumbled in an instant, it seemed this time would be the same.

She wanted to stay by Reizen’s side.

But to do that, she needed to prove her worth, and who would like a dim-witted wife who couldn’t even resist someone like Horrux?

Dinner was in the same place as last time.

“…”

The prince appeared on time. Melissa, who had been waiting beforehand, lifted one side of her dress and curtsied gracefully. The meal began with his word to sit, and remained quiet for a while.

Part of it was because the distance between them was too far for conversation. The man and woman seated at opposite ends of the long rectangular table continued their meal in silence.

Melissa cut her steak, put it in her mouth, and chewed for a long time. She needed to see the other’s plate to match their eating pace, but the candlesticks in the middle blocked her view.

“Are you finished?”

Reizen’s voice echoed in the space.

Though they were far apart, she knew there was no problem hearing since the surroundings were quiet. Only when the meal was almost over…

“…Yes.”

Melissa put down her cutlery while looking at her plate that was still more than half full.

“I’m not yet.”

At the man’s gesture, a servant approached and set down some sauce. And on their way, they removed two candlesticks placed between the table. Thanks to this, she could see the man’s face for the first time during the meal.

“You heard earlier.”

She silently bit her lip.

“It’s not like you didn’t know. I suggested having meals together so things wouldn’t be awkward from the first day.”

The man said with a hint of a smile while elegantly cutting his meat. Every time the soft candlelight flickered, the man’s platinum hair changed colors.

Seeing that made Melissa’s heart grow heavy.

“Um.”

The first night was a couple’s duty. Perhaps that’s why everyone talked about it as a matter of course, but she had a problem. A very fatal problem at that.

“Actually, I have something to tell you.”

Just imagining what would happen in bed made her hands start sweating from tension. The woman tightly clasped her hands under the table and bit her lip with clouded eyes.

“I… that is.”

She needed to say it, but it felt like there was fruit stuck in her throat. Countless memories from the past painted her mind black. Even when she gathered courage to open her mouth to speak, memories of being laughed at in the past made it hard to breathe.

“Please give me time to prepare mentally.”

Her ex-husbands had burst into laughter and ignored her as soon as they heard those words. Though she knew it was an unreasonable request, she was afraid to speak carelessly.

She had already refused him on their first night.

Perhaps that was why the prince had distanced himself from her, she thought. Once might be a mistake, but if the refusals continued two, three times, the prince would misunderstand.

That she disliked him.

Then things between them would become even worse than now, and daily life would flow in a completely different way from the life she had dreamed of here. Staying by Reizen’s side didn’t simply mean existing near him.

So she had to speak. She tried to explain her situation completely as he had taught her, and seek understanding. It took great courage to do so.

“I…”