When her carriage reached the castle gate, they ran straight into Jade’s group, who had just come down after subjugating monsters.

The first to see Jade’s appearance were Fel and his knight members. Rosana waited inside the carriage to arrive at the imperial palace, so she couldn’t imagine the Emperor of Diovaha was nearby. Fel squeezed his eyes shut at Jade’s appearance.

“Your Majesty… that outfit…”

Fel couldn’t hide his dismay. The person coming to meet his wife was covered in monster fl*ids.

He ran his hand down his face at the sight of the black liquid—monster blood—splattered here and there, the dirt caked on their clothes from rolling on the ground, and the shabby appearance of the knights. 

There were even injured people in the Emperor’s group, giving off a faint smell of blood.

He thought it was a difficult scene for a ducal family’s young lady to face. Fel was a typical knight who thought one should display chivalry and maintain courtesy toward women. But Jade approached without a care, surveying Rosana’s carriage with eyes full of curiosity.

“My wife has arrived.”

He calmly brushed off Fel’s restraint, dismounted his horse, and walked boldly to the side of the carriage. Then he knocked on the window as though telling her to look here. 

At that sound, Rosana looked outside the window and immediately met golden eyes. The golden eyes curved beautifully, but they made Rosana’s spine tingle.

Through the window, golden eyes and blue eyes met. Jade lifted the corners of his mouth refreshingly.

“Lady Rosana Arcadi, pleased to meet you.”

Unlike his words of pleasure, his expression and tone were the complete opposite. Rosana could immediately tell who he was. She drew in a short breath at his appearance. Blue hair and golden eyes—he was Jade, the Emperor of Diovaha.

At Jade’s behavior, picking a fight no different from a thug, Fel pressed his forehead. Still, they were going to be a married couple, and he’d completely ruined the first impression.

“Your Majesty… a little courtesy…”

“Why no answer? Can’t you hear me?”

Jade tilted his head to the side and flung open the carriage door. Rosana stared blankly at the man standing tall outside the door.

‘This person will become my husband…’

He stood there tapping his foot like a hoodlum. But knowing how to escort, he extended his hand toward her, telling her to come down. 

It was a courteous appearance different from just before. Rosana thought to herself that it was fascinating how one gesture could change an impression.

She hesitated whether to take the hand thr*st out suddenly. Where they’d stopped was outside the castle gate. They hadn’t even entered the castle yet. 

But at Jade’s unyielding appearance, Rosana placed her hand and descended from the carriage holding his hand.

His outfit was messy, announcing that a battle had just taken place. But rather, Jade’s appearance showing himself as he was without pretense put Rosana’s heart at ease. And his rough hand with calluses. She’d only lightly placed her hand, but she could see his effort.

‘He’s different from me.’

His martial arts were known to be very excellent. His hand was like a medal for his effort. A world of difference from herself, who had collapsed helplessly. And his spirited gaze and broadly spread shoulders were confident. An attitude that rumors surrounding him were no match.

Though there was much talk about Jade in Astrot too—murderer, monster—unlike herself, he didn’t seem intimidated at all. He wasn’t consumed by the surrounding rumors. Rather, his confident appearance seemed indifferent to the rumors people whispered.

An inexplicable longing she couldn’t understand arose. But the next moment, Rosana couldn’t escape from his gaze. He was thoroughly examining her like a beast of prey eyeing its target.

Rosana stopped breathing. An atmosphere where he seemed ready to bite her throat if she showed even the slightest opening. He was a beast of prey. A beast that would end one’s breath in one go without a shred of mercy.

If she avoided his gaze, it felt like he’d immediately slip through the gap and threaten her. Rosana’s eyes stared directly at his without moving.

Rosana’s body stiffened from tension. It was simply that she was frozen and couldn’t avoid his gaze, but Jade lifted the corners of his mouth wickedly at her appearance, boldly meeting his eyes, thinking ‘well, well.’

It was a marriage he didn’t like from the start. When he heard the target was the famous Rosana Arcadi, he thought to the point of wondering if these people were screwing with him.

But considering status, she was the only one he could marry. 

As the situation of them staring at each other continued, the surrounding knights exchanged glances, and finally Jade clicked his tongue.

‘Unlike the rumors, she’s quiet.’

She only quietly met his eyes without even a small reaction. Jade was the first to turn his eyes away. He lowered his eyes and surveyed the dress Rosana was wearing. Not only gold chains but small jewels were attached here and there. 

Derision came naturally.

“Ha… A dress as splendid as the rumors say. Does she even know her situation?”

The color was even purple. A bride coming to meet her husband wearing a dark-toned dress? 

It was showing with her body that she didn’t want the marriage. Jade sneered. He sharply rebuked Rosana.

Jade mocked her, asking if she knew her situation. Rosana wanted to open her mouth to make excuses, but her lips wouldn’t follow her will. 

Because she’d lost the will to deny and make excuses for too long. She didn’t expect much from him. In the first place,

‘It’s as I expected…’

As expected, my existence was bothersome rather than worthy of celebration. You could tell from the look of displeasure. Even on the way here, she could guess from seeing the Imperial Knights’ furrowed brows.

‘Even if I say no, they won’t believe me.’

The only sound coming through her throat was a small breath. Rosana looked at her own outfit following Jade’s gaze. The splendid dress shining purple that Mother had prepared. Even to her own eyes, it was a dress that didn’t suit the situation.

‘Me wearing it. Even if I make excuses, will they listen? What should I say? That I didn’t want to wear the dress? That it wasn’t my intention?’

No one else believed her, and she didn’t believe herself, so there was no way this person before her would believe her. This kind of gaze was familiar. A gaze that found even one small action irritating.

It had always been that way.

At the sharp criticism flying to her face, Rosana smiled with the corners of her mouth lifted crookedly. It wasn’t a smile but a sneer. A laugh at her own pitiful situation, but at a glance, it was a smile looking down on others.

The smiles she intentionally made were predetermined. Rosana drew in a short breath, gently lifted the dress she held with both hands, bowed at the waist in greeting. Then after releasing the dress, she recited calmly.

“Of course I know my situation well. Your Majesty.”

It was Rosana’s greeting to get along well, but seeing her smile, Jade thought she was striking back with the same sarcasm. Jade raised his eyebrow crookedly at Rosana’s smile. He pressed down on her with a “ho.”

Rosana tried hard to ignore the sweat trickling down her spine. Her fine hairs stood on end at the languid laugh wrapping around her ears. 

Jade’s momentum was at a level that would make even regular knights nervous, so it was too much for Rosana to endure. Fel, who was waiting beside them, called him quietly in surprise.

“Your Majesty.”

Jade clicked his tongue briefly, saying it was just a warning, and took his gaze off Rosana. 

Rosana pressed down hard on her heart pounding like it would burst. Emma, who stood close to Rosana, was on the verge of fainting.

“More than that, where’s Malek?”

As soon as Jade finished speaking, a man could be seen approaching with quick steps from afar. His face was so calm and refined that you wouldn’t know he was walking quickly unless you looked down. 

He was the person Jade had been looking for—the head chamberlain of the imperial palace, the closest aide assisting the Emperor. Malek bowed his head toward Jade and called him slowly.

“Your Majesty. You’ve just arrived?”

“Yes.”

Jade answered calmly. Malek’s eyebrows, still bowed, trembled. Having witnessed the situation from afar just moments ago, Malek quickly turned to Rosana and greeted her, worried that she might have been offended.

“Lady Arcadi. Welcome to Diovaha.”

Rosana nodded lightly. Relieved at the fortunately positive reaction, he let out a sigh of relief alone. Jade asked Malek, saying he wouldn’t dawdle any longer.

“The preparations are done, right?”

Then Malek’s complexion became slightly pale, but he quietly nodded. Jade, who said “good,” looked at Rosana and spoke.

“It’s unseemly to talk outside the castle gate like this, so let’s enter the castle. It’s the place you’ll have to live from now on.”

Jade, who delivered the notice with informal speech as though deliberately trying to offend her, stood before Rosana, grabbed her waist, and suddenly lifted her up. No one had foreseen his sudden action, carried out naturally like lifting luggage.

Rosana’s eyes widened and Emma gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. Touching a woman’s body without asking was a great rudeness in aristocratic society, even as a courtesy. 

Whether it was the same in the Diovaha Empire, Malek called out loudly, “Your Majesty!” Emma also came to her senses and made a fuss.

“M-my lady!!”

Rosana, suddenly lifted like a child, was bewildered. She knew from seeing Jade’s muscles that he had a trained body, but she didn’t know he’d suddenly lift her with an expression showing no effort at all. Rosana’s feet left the ground and dangled.

Jade frowned at the chattering sounds from all directions and placed Rosana on the horse. 

Rosana stared at him blankly in confusion. Then she had no choice but to grab the horse’s mane to maintain balance.

“Wh-what is this…”

“What am I doing? Then are you going to walk through this vast castle?”

They were outside the castle gate, and there was considerable distance to the palace. But Rosana had the carriage she’d ridden in. Rosana spoke somewhat sharply in her flustered state.

“I have my carriage. Please put me down. Even between spouses, this behavior is rude.”

Surprised, Rosana glared at him boldly. Jade snorted at her fiercer expression. She’d raised her eyes as much as possible trying to look fierce in her own way, but to him, it wasn’t threatening at all.

He’d planned from the beginning to only let Rosana, the bride, into the imperial palace. That’s why he’d separated the knights too. Who would give wings to an enemy? 

He planned to cut off hands and feet in advance. So she couldn’t pull any tricks. Jade completely ignored Rosana’s words and boldly mounted the horse, sticking close behind her.

“What on earth…!”

A death cry came out and her body stiffened. She’d never been in such close contact with another man. She calmed her pounding heart in surprise and faced him directly. Rosana gradually stiffened at the approaching face, but he wore a leisurely smile.

“A carriage… I’m sorry, but no objects related to Astrot can enter my castle. What if there’s a person… or object targeting me?”

At his words, cold like frost, the surrounding people flinched and trembled. And he looked down from atop the horse, glaring at the coachman who’d led the carriage and the maids the Duchess had attached.

They trembled at Jade’s insult, but their shoulders were crushed by the icy atmosphere and they couldn’t open their mouths. They quietly lowered their tails.

Jade completely ignored Malek’s voice saying “Your Majesty, what is the meaning of this?” from behind.

“So you alone will come.”

Jade lifted Rosana’s chin with his hand, right in front of him. He spoke with his lips firmly set. 

Rosana’s body stiffened at his cold words, and she couldn’t avoid the golden eyes that seemed to pull her in.

Her mouth fell open blankly. Jade had said it to break Rosana’s spirit.