A sweet fragrance, like fruit ripened to the point of bursting, brushed past Kailen’s nose. Adeline, not even catching her breath, sought his lips.

“Mm, mmh…”

Her small tongue traced his lips, found the gap, and slipped inside to explore him. Just like before, like it held honey.

A d*mn sweet, soft tongue.

Kailen parted his lips wider and wrapped his arm around her trembling back.

Then he slowly, persistently took control of that wet, soft mouth. 

He swept his tongue over her neat, pearl-like teeth and hot mucous membranes, pressed down, and pushed the saliva pooled from the sweet scent deep into her mouth, making sure she couldn’t refuse and had to swallow it all.

“…Mmh.”

At the satisfying sound of saliva sliding down her throat, he sucked on her flustered tongue tip and released it. Adeline, seemingly breathless, pulled her lips away and panted.

“Ah, uh, hah…”

Even though this was their wedding with many people gathered, despite boldly kissing him first, Adeline apparently hadn’t expected to be devoured this thoroughly. Her green eyes, clouded with heat, looked at him like tears would spill at any moment.

Pretending to be innocent, detestably, yet hard to refuse. Kailen lightly bit Adeline’s glistening red lower lip with his teeth and whispered.

“…What, you don’t like it?”

Instead of answering, Adeline, who’d been panting shallowly, shook her head and soon opened her mouth wide. Kailen swept her disheveled hair behind her flushed ear like praising an obedient child. Though he’d asked if she disliked it, her answer didn’t matter.

It’s different from back then now, Princess.

From now on, everything between them depended on him.

He would control everything before them.

Kailen bit hard into the soft cheek of the dazed-looking Adeline and pushed his tongue back between her parted teeth like swimming.

“…ilen. Mmh.”

Delicate m*ans and the lewd sound of wet tongues mixing filled the quiet reception room with indescribable eroticism.

* * *

Everyone says not to obsess over things that have passed or times you can’t return to. Of course, she agreed with those words too.

But not anymore.

Unlike back then when she could only burn with longing knowing it couldn’t come true, hadn’t he appeared before her like a miracle?

Of course, she knew the one who placed Kailen beside her was her uncle, and that he hadn’t joined her with him out of righteous intentions. But right now, she didn’t want to dwell on such things.

I don’t care if I’m punished by heaven. I can pretend to grovel as much as needed. Haven’t I always done that? I’ve always lived that kind of life.

That day, watching him sign the utterly unfair prenuptial contract with elegant handwriting, Adeline strengthened her resolve again.

So I’m not afraid. Because that person is here.

The day before, the air after the rain stopped was clear like glass.

Dong, dong.

The low bell sound announcing the hour spread through the grand cathedral. Between the arched pillars lined along the soaring ceiling, light passing through the stained glass windows lingered on Kailen’s handsome profile.

Adeline, who’d been staring at it entranced, came to her senses and straightened her gaze. She wanted to keep looking at that straight nose bridge, those delicate lips drawn like with a fine brush, but she really had to stop stealing glances at him now.

The bishop’s clear voice spread out from before the two standing side by side, echoing off the cathedral ceiling.

“You two must rely on each other and stay together not only on joyful and peaceful days, but also when confusion and crisis come.”

The anxious heart that worried the situation might flip at the last moment before the wedding flew far away, and she kept wanting to laugh.

It took them so long to get here.

On this sacred and solemn wedding day, Adeline’s eyelashes in her pure white dress and borrowed tiara passed down through the royal family settled neatly.

She firmly suppressed her laughter to play the role of an elegant and proper bride. The archbishop giving the blessing was clearly looking at her.

“Ahem…”

Moreover, behind the archbishop officiating the wedding, on the balcony-style platform half a level higher, several royal family members excluding her mother were looking down at her and Kailen.

“Now, before God and many witnesses…”

Finally the tedious blessing ended. After exchanging rings and kissing, the bishop would declare the marriage established.

After that, Kailen Belliche would become her man.

The bishop’s words ended, and the most nerve-wracking moment approached.

The two placed rings proving their marriage on each other’s ring fingers. At that moment, she felt the world surrounding her change.

“…”

She waited with an overflowing heart for his large hand to lift the veil and kiss her.

Now, I’ll become the happiest bride in the world.

The pounding sound of her heart reached its peak.

Kailen turned to look at her. Those deep blue eyes turned toward his veiled bride, and his neat hand reached out.

And the moment his hand lifting the veil stopped ever so slightly.

Bang!

A sound of air tearing crossed through the chapel.

It was a short, sharp explosive sound.

Before Adeline could even recognize that sound as a gunshot, the archbishop standing right in front fell backward. Without a word. Without even a groan.

All the collapsing body left when it hit the floor was a single heavy thud.

‘What…’

Adeline still hadn’t fully grasped the situation. Her dazed mind couldn’t interpret the sight of the archbishop falling backward.

While Adeline just stood there with wide eyes, belated screams of horror burst out from people.

“Aaaah!”

“A gun! The, the archbishop…!”

“Aaah!”

Chairs scraped, skirt hems were stepped on, someone fell. They tangled together pushing each other aside looking for places to hide, and in that chaos someone called for the king.

“Your Majesty!”

“Protect His Majesty!”

But no sound reached Adeline’s ears.

“…lin.”

What had fallen before her eyes, what this lukewarm and sticky thing flowing down her veil and face was—the moment she thought about it, her mind went blank.

No.

This wasn’t white. It was red.

Blood…

It was blood.

Wearing the pure white veil splattered with red dots, she couldn’t even breathe properly from the smell of blood. She couldn’t easily recognize what situation this even was.

Why on earth did I end up like this…

“…”

But suddenly Adeline’s completely red vision darkened. A large hand reached out from somewhere and snatched her waist with strong force.

“Adeline!”

Kailen’s firm arm wrapped around her back and side. Trapped in his embrace that gave off a cool, bitter scent erasing the smell of blood filling her nose, Adeline in her panicked state didn’t recognize him. What froze in this terrible situation wasn’t her heart, but her thought process.

“Snap out of it!”

Though this was clearly the first time seeing bullets flying before her eyes, this cruel scene where bright red blood seemed to form an ocean wasn’t completely unfamiliar to her eyes.

She felt like she’d seen someone collapse like this, spilling bright red blood right before her eyes before.

At that moment another gunshot rang out.

Bang!

This time from above. From the platform where several royal family members sat, the sound of a railing grazed by a bullet shattering rang out sharply.

“Ugh. …Your…”

The body of the chamberlain, who’d always worn the brooch the king bestowed on his chest cherishing it dearly, twisted sideways. Because before the first gunshot even settled, the king had pulled him in front as a shield.

Bang!

The royal guard commander and court minister shouted at each other about whether to fire or not. The gun barrel aimed below the platform couldn’t figure out who to shoot at all.

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!”

“Wait! Don’t fire! His Majesty’s safety comes first!”

Not caring at all about the chamberlain falling to the first floor, the king was busy escaping his position surrounded layer upon layer by guards.

“Take him alive!”

Among the people gathered at the chapel entrance frozen in terror, screams and curses burst out.

And before long, after the chamberlain who was the second stray bullet victim, the man who stained this wedding with blood was bound and dragged out by the guards.