‘This is… troublesome.’

In truth, the moment he saw her fallen at his feet, Murad fell in love at first sight. And at that very instant, he made up his mind.

He must take this woman as his bride of the desert.

The second son of King Ahmed I of the desert kingdom, the most handsome man in Sepia. A notorious playboy, yet one who had never truly settled with any woman. That very Prince Murad had fallen for the Grand Duchess of Cliff.

This year, having just turned twenty, the prince resolved:

He would not let slip the greatest chance of his life in these short—if long—twenty years.

He knew well what kind of uproar might arise if he dared to lay hands on the Grand Duchess of Cliff. But Murad was not the sort to calculate each consequence before acting.

‘If I take her away where no one knows, that will be enough. A man who loses such a beautiful wife has no right to her anyway.’

Even if he could not take the lawful route of proposing and marrying her, there were other ways. Countless ways.

Murad decided then and there to abduct the beautiful lady before him. For a man of the desert, abduction marriage was no rare thing.

Had not the Grand Duke of Croatan himself abducted her to wed? There was no law saying a bride could not be abducted twice, Murad concluded arbitrarily.

‘In return, I will lay everything at your feet. Wealth, honor, and a heart that will never change for all eternity. I can swear before the desert gods to give you forever. I will make you happy… only, I ask that you resent me but a little.’

A kidnapped bride usually lived in grief and fear. But as time passed, they adapted to the desert.

Soon, with laughter and tears, they became part of it.

So it had been with Murad’s mother.

She was a princess of the Duchy of Bliss, taken by his father, Ahmed, and brought into his harem. For nearly three years after her abduction—until she bore her son, Prince Murad—she had lived a desolate life.

She cried and screamed every day, blaming the king, but in the end, after giving birth to her son Murad, she was reborn as a true woman of the desert.

‘Yes, if it’s the harem…….’

If he placed this woman in the harem where his mother was, then no matter that she was the Grand Duchess of Cliff, she would not be able to storm the harem and overturn it. Not unless she was prepared to wage war against the desert army.

Of course, Murad intended to secretly spirit Astrid away so that no such opportunity would even arise.

“Ugh……!”

Murad suddenly clutched his chest as if in pain and began to gasp for breath.

Startled, Astrid looked around, but not a single person showed any concern. Everyone was too absorbed in the sl*ve auction, and ever since Caleb’s appearance, the atmosphere had grown even more heated.

“Are you all right? Your Highness, Your Highness?”

Even though he was traveling in disguise, if anything happened to a prince, it would be serious. This could escalate into a diplomatic issue.

Alarmed, Astrid supported Murad and studied his complexion.

“Your Highness!”

Did he have a chronic illness?

Astrid’s mind went blank. The only thought that remained was that she must fetch Caleb at once to resolve this.

“Just wait a moment! I’ll bring the Grand Duke immediately……”

“Mmm……”

“Are you conscious again?”

Before she realized it, Murad had laid his head upon Astrid’s slender arm and slowly lifted his eyelids.

‘So it’s true what they say—that desert people have eyelashes as long as camels…….’

Even in her shock, Astrid marveled at the long, beautiful lashes, when suddenly she felt a sharp sting near her nape.

“Ugh……!”

She lost consciousness in the blink of an eye.

The moment Astrid’s body went limp, Murad sprang up with lightning speed. He swiftly took off his outer garment, wrapping her tightly from head to toe, then lifted her into his arms.

Whiiistle—!

As Murad passed, the men around him whistled and shouted in delight. It was the festival night. They thought he had chosen his partner for the long night ahead.

“I fell for her at first sight. I intend to take her home and make her happy!”

His glib answer drew even louder cheers.

“Well then, I’ll be off. May you all enjoy your night!”

Just as Murad was about to leave the grounds behind the jeers and cheers,

“Wait.”

“……?”

Feeling a chilling aura at the back of his neck, Murad froze in his tracks.

***

“……Ha. What am I even doing here?”

“And what about you, Commander. What on earth are you doing here?”

At the scornful eyes that swept him up and down, Caleb ground his teeth in anger.

He hadn’t realized from afar, but now it was clear.

A man clad in ridiculously tight clothes, flaunting his muscles. This was none other than Candidate No. 1, Helman. Dragged into standing beside him, Caleb was in fierce turmoil.

Should he overturn this nonsense and rush to Astrid right now, or not?

In truth, he wanted nothing more than to leap from the platform and go to her, festival be damned. But burly men—no one knew from where they had appeared—stood guard below the stage. On top of that, the crowd’s excited gazes were fixed solely upon him.

It would be easy enough to overpower them by force, but then the festival would be thrown into chaos. And his true identity would be revealed in an instant.

“D*mn it. Do something, will you? If I end up losing Astrid over this……”

Grumbling with frustration, Caleb’s eyes still searched the crowd beyond for Astrid.

“I was dragged here as my village’s representative when I stopped by my family home. But what about you, bringing even Her Grace here……? Is this proper? Married men should be disqualified from candidacy.”

“……Ha. Exactly. I have a wife, don’t I? You could at least tell them that much. No matter what I say, they don’t listen anyway. What on earth is this……”

Before Caleb could finish, Helman cut him off in his gruff voice, calling out to the host.

“Hey, you there!”

“Oh! Candidate No. 1 wishes to speak! Everyone, focus!”

“I withdraw. Something urgent has come up.”

“What? That’s not all—”

“Not all what? I said it’s here!”

Scowling fiercely, his tone a growl, Helman’s words made the host falter and step back.

“……Er, r-right.”

“My brother has come as our village’s representative in my stead, so that should suffice, shouldn’t it? If anyone has a problem, send him down instead. No village needs two representatives.”

Caleb, glaring at Helman, seized the chance to interject.

“Then I’ll step down! I’m already married……”

But the host cut him off at once.

“Ha, ha, ha. Excellent! Then we shall switch candidates! Do you all agree?”

Roused by the host, the people’s thunderous applause drowned out Caleb’s words entirely. Taking advantage of the commotion, Helman leapt down from the stage.

Leaving behind Caleb, whose expression looked ready to draw his sword at any moment, he spoke only one line.

“I’ll escort Her Grace back to the castle, so don’t worry. Take this chance to consider it a tour and look into the people’s hearts, Grand Duke.”

The moment those words reached his ears, a curse slipped from Caleb’s lips. But amid the chaos of cheers, applause, and jeers, no one heard a word he said.