46. A Lucky Day

Finally, the dawn that Ivan had been counting down to arrived. Two days felt like 20 years to him. Ivan waited for her by the west wing’s garden wall, as previously planned with Katya.

“Didn’t you say the Grand Duke’s party is staying in the west wing?”

“That’s why everyone moved to the east wing to avoid inconvenience, and unless they’re assigned work there, people rarely go to that side.”

“What if the Grand Duke catches you escaping?”

“That’s why we need to climb over the wall before His Highness comes out for morning training. The darkest place is under the lamp, after all.”

It was early dawn with a slight mist hanging in the purple sky. Usually, he would still be drifting in dreamland, but Ivan had actually been awake since last night. Too excited to sleep, he stayed up all night. He thought it worked out better this way. On such an important day, if he had overslept, their carefully crafted plan as a couple would have gone awry.

“Couple?”

After rolling the word around on his tongue and whispering it, Ivan scratched his head in embarrassment. He was really going to be a couple with Katya. Everything was truly perfect beyond measure. It was the perfect day for a wedding. He had worried that rain might cause problems when departing from Padovangrad to another city, but fortunately, luck was on his side.

Ivan wore men’s clothing he had purchased with his remaining money. Though he couldn’t prepare expensive wedding attire, Katya wasn’t materialistic like other women, so she would understand.

‘What does clothing matter? With a face like mine backing it up. I’m easily in the top 1% for looks.’

As he internally preened, or rather, showed off, Ivan adjusted his clothes with a satisfied expression. Dewdrops precariously clinging to the grass sprouting beneath the wall were falling to the ground drop by drop. The songs of birds fluttering their wings and chirping echoed in his ears. Ivan closed his eyes briefly and listened to these big and small sounds that he usually passed by without notice. It felt as though every sound in the world was celebrating his marriage.

‘Katya, now you’re my woman. Only I can touch you. I’m so glad I can have you before any other man gets their hands on you.’

While today’s groom was thoroughly intoxicated with his sense of conquest and victory, he heard movement above his head.

“Hey, move!”

Katya, who had climbed onto the wall, gave him a quick warning before jumping down. Not wanting to miss the chance to embrace her, Ivan quickly turned around to catch her falling form dramatically. Or rather, he tried to, but lacking core strength, he couldn’t support her weight and fell backward while holding her.

“Ugh!”

“Tsk tsk, that’s why I told you to move.”

Katya clicked her tongue at the physically weak new groom. Since Nikolai always lifted her like a feather, she had unknowingly thought that was normal, but seeing Ivan, it seemed that wasn’t the case.

Just then, a familiar voice came from beyond the wall.

“My lady! My lady!”

Alyona was searching for her with an urgent voice.

Ivan found himself pinned underneath, his mouth covered. Though his breath was stifled, he soon fell into ecstasy from the subtle fragrance emanating from her hand. It felt exciting, like playing hide and seek.

“Oh my. Where could she have gone at this hour?”

As she muttered with a voice full of worry, the Grand Duke’s knights appeared before her, stretching. They had come to the garden for their daily training.

“What brings you to the west wing at this hour?”

Nikolai asked upon discovering Alyona. As the Smirnov sisters’ lady’s maid, her movements had been restricted to the east wing even before the Grand Duke’s arrival, so her presence in the west wing was quite unusual.

“Well, Your Highness… Lady Katarina is nowhere to be found. At this time she should be sound asleep, but when I went in to change the flowerpot in the vase, her bed was empty!”

“What?”

The sword in his hand clattered onto the well-polished marble pavement in front of the building.

The knights beside him began to murmur at those words.

“Good heavens, what a shock!”

“How could this be so surprising? What in the world is happening?”

“Indeed. I feel like I might faint.”

“Right. I’m thinking it wouldn’t be strange if His Highness fainted right now.”

“Shouldn’t we all start searching right away?”

“Yes, let’s hurry!”

At the sound of boots rushing off somewhere, Katya quickly rose from atop Ivan.

She then leaped onto the horse they had prepared and extended her hand to him.

“Let’s hurry! They’ll catch up soon!”

“Oh, right!”

As soon as Ivan mounted behind her, Katya gripped the reins and spurred the horse forward.

The white horse carrying the two was the same fine steed Katya had chosen previously at the carriage shop.

Though displeased at some strange man riding along on its back, the horse was excited to run with Katya after so long and galloped at full speed.

Luckily, with no street vendors or passing carriages on the road today, they quickly reached their destination.

“I thought we were going to get caught.”

Katya whispered with a sigh of relief as she stood before the temple.

“Strange, Alyona usually sleeps in, why was she so diligent today? Sorry, Ivan. You must have been surprised too?”

“No, it’s fine. By the way, you look incredibly beautiful today.”

Ivan grinned while scratching the back of his head, his face bright red.

Unable to prepare a wedding dress, she wore a pure white dress from home, looking like an angel from a mural.

Seeing the groom so excited he didn’t know what to do with himself, Katya took his hand and whispered shyly.

“You look handsome today too… darling.”

“…Darling?”

“Isn’t that what you are?”

He felt an urge to take her straight to bed right then and there.

How could there be such an adorable woman?

“No! Yes, darling! It’s just different from usual.”

“You said you wanted affection and obedience. Now that we’re getting married, I can’t keep acting like your nemesis forever, right? Besides, you’re the head of the household now, and as your wife, I don’t want to hurt you with a frown and nagging when you come home tired from working hard outside.”

“Katya…”

“You said before that the husband is the sovereign and the wife is the subject. I thought about what that meant when I got home, and now I understand. If I defy your commands, I become a traitor. I’ve been too arrogant, haven’t I? I promise to always treat you kindly and obey your words from now on.”

The once wild filly showed signs of submission.

A wave of emotional tremors washed over Ivan’s body.

His heart trembled as if an earthquake had struck amid his excitement.

‘I’ve really tamed this tomboy properly.’

He wanted to shout it proudly to all the men in the world.

His victory and precious achievement won through bitter struggle.

Now that he thought about it, the Grand Duke seemed laughable.

For all his pompous airs of having everything, he ultimately couldn’t have Katya.

‘Katya chose me.’

That alone made him feel superior to the Grand Duke.

The two joined hands and entered the chapel.

A priest Ivan had requested waited before the altar.

The wedding began without delay, as the Grand Duke could burst in at any moment.

“…Katarina Smirnov, lamb of the gods, has now taken Ivan Petrovsky as her husband and become Katarina Petrovsky. I hereby declare before the gods that these two are officially husband and wife.”

In Hersen, a nation built upon religion, a marriage ceremony before a priest was enough to make the marriage valid.

Thinking it was all over now, Ivan’s eyes welled up with tears of joy.

He held his now-wife Katya’s hand and rubbed his eyes while sniffling like a child.

“Ivan, why are you crying on such a happy day?”

“I can’t believe it, sniff… This isn’t a dream, right?”

“It’s not a dream.”

She gently wiped her husband’s wet cheeks.

“Do you like me that much?”

“Yes. I like you so much I might go crazy. I love you, Katya.”

“Still, darling, I was really hurt when you first threatened to expose my secret to push for marriage and accused me of marriage fraud.”

Katya said with a pouty expression and cuteness in her voice.

His heart tingled.

“I’m sorry, darling. I had to lie because I wanted you so badly.”

“Why did you do something so dangerous when you could face severe punishment if caught filing a false lawsuit?”

“It was worth the risk. I got to marry my darling, didn’t I? And don’t worry about the lawsuit. Since it’s the weekend, I’ll withdraw it first thing tomorrow.”

“Really? Thank you, Ivan.”

Smiling as brightly as sunshine, Katya slowly released his hand and climbed onto the platform.

“Where are you going?”

“Actually, I have a surprise gift prepared for you today, Ivan.”

“A surprise gift?”

“Yes, you can look forward to it. You’ll be really surprised. Don’t faint from shock, okay?”

Katya winked and tried to pull back the curtain behind the priest.

“Oh my, it’s too heavy to open properly.”

“Shall I help you, Your Highness?”

The priest, whom she had just met today, suddenly spoke to her as if they were already acquainted.

‘And Your Highness? Why is he calling Katya Your Highness?’

Ivan felt slightly uncomfortable, but his mind was so full of flowers that it didn’t bother him too much.

“Yes, please help.”

At those words, the priest stood beside her and grabbed the other end of the curtain.

Despite her earlier struggles, Katya pulled back the curtain together with him in one smooth motion.

The hidden space beyond the curtain was revealed.

The space, about half the size of the third chapel, had been divided in two by a curtain acting as a partition wall.

Ivan was horrified by the scene that unfolded next.

The audience seated in the opposite section all stared in his direction, including Katya’s family and Nikolai.

And at the back of the seating area sat a judge in his robes on the judge’s bench.

“Welcome, Ivan, to the first outdoor demonstration trial in Hersen’s history, approved by His Highness the Grand Duke.”

Katya smiled broadly as she said this in the makeshift courtroom set up inside the chapel rather than a courthouse.

Ivan heard the sound of his dreams crumbling.

He felt like he was slowly sinking into the deep sea, gurgling and bubbling.

Ah, it was so strange! Today seemed like such a lucky day…