“It’s a shame that such a beautiful woman has joined hands with the devil.”

King Pedro, seated in the VIP section, murmured bitterly to himself.

Before his eyes, Ertel and Icarus’s wedding ceremony was taking place.

Across from him sat the people posing as her parents, maintaining an air of dignity.

Ertel glanced at them and gave a bitter smile.

“Ertel.”

Icarus called her name gently as he held her hand.

“How are you feeling?”

“Happy.”

“……!”

Her unexpected answer caused Icarus’s pupils to dilate. A faint smile spread across his lips as well.

“Don’t be too nervous and enjoy today. After all, it’s your special day.”

“I will.”

Ertel gave him a benevolent smile.

Hand in hand, the two began their march toward the altar where the officiant stood.

Flower petals rained down from above, and the crowd cheered. Everyone was united in celebrating this wedding of the century.

“Come closer. O Goddess Artemis, pride of Tiamor, anchor your ship and hear our voices… May the blessings of the gods be upon these two…”

The hymn filled the hall, and the guests gazed at the couple with reverence, as if they were witnessing a divine union.

At last, the time for the sacred vows arrived.

With a charming smile, Icarus closed the distance between himself and the radiant Ertel. He caressed her cheek and tilted his head.

A kiss so tender it could melt anyone’s heart.

‘Clap, clap, clap, clap.’

The guests erupted into endless applause at the beautiful moment.

As more of Icarus’s breath entered her mouth, Ertel’s hand movements became quicker.

She subtly lifted the hem of her dress, careful not to let the guests see, to grip the dagger hidden beneath.

Before the kiss ended.

Before he noticed.

She would stab his heart.

‘Just as you aimed for mine.’

But Ertel, blinded by revenge, had underestimated one crucial fact.

Icarus was a man like a predator.

“!!”

Just as Ertel’s hand reached for the dagger’s hilt, Icarus grabbed her wrist and pulled it to his tuxedo.

Caught off guard, Ertel stumbled and instinctively bit down on her groom’s lower lip as he pressed closer.

From a distance, it looked like a passionate kiss, and the guests cheered even louder.

A man who had never been caught off guard, even on the battlefield. A man with animalistic instincts and an innate ability to sense danger and turn situations in his favor.

He had realized it—realized that she intended to take his life.

‘Damn it.’

The martial arts she had learned were useless against his raw strength.

While Ertel struggled in vain to free her captured hand, Icarus’s hand reached under the hem of her dress.

“…Ugh!”

Even in that situation, the kiss continued.

By now, the guests had forgotten to clap and simply stared at the couple.

Meanwhile, Icarus’s hand, which had slipped under her dress, unhesitatingly grasped the blade of the dagger.

Unlike Ertel, whose eyes were tightly shut, his gaze remained cold and unflinching.

‘Since when… did he know?’

As she stared at the man who had injured himself by gripping the blade, her confused eyes met his unblinking ones.

It was a disaster. She had thought her plan was flawless, without any tells.

Even as his blood stained the fabric of her dress, Icarus maintained his composure, as if nothing had happened.

He carried out the kiss to its conclusion, like an actor in a grand play.

‘Ha, what is this…?’

In the end, it was Ertel who was flustered.

Her slender body trembled.

The dagger was lodged deep in Icarus’s palm, making it impossible for her to retrieve it.

With no other choice, she withdrew her hand, leaving the weapon in his grasp.

The dagger was now his.

Ertel, her vision darkening, stared at him with a pale expression.

But Icarus smiled at her, his lips curling in a chilling manner.

“I love you, Ertel.”

There wasn’t a shred of affection in his cold, emotionless eyes, and Ertel felt her mind go blank.

“……Your Majesty, doesn’t something seem off?”

The only person to notice something amiss was the captain of the knights.

While the rest of the crowd was too busy cheering to notice, the red drops of blood dripping down stood out starkly.

With his keen senses, the captain immediately detected the scent of blood.

Positioned on the opposite side of the hall, he could clearly see the blood-soaked wedding dress and Icarus’s hand.

“If my eyes aren’t mistaken, that’s definitely blood.”

“What are you saying?”

Startled, Pedro turned to look at the bride and groom, and Henry whispered to him.

“It seems Icarus has been stabbed.”

“What?”

“It looks like the bride attacked him.”

When the tense procession finally ended, the groom’s face was grim as he headed to the waiting room.

Once they were out of sight from the crowd, Icarus quietly asked Ertel,

“Why did you do it?”

Even then, he couldn’t fathom the reason behind her sudden actions.

“……”

Ertel, her gaze unsettled, unlinked her arm from his.

“What a pity.”

“What?”

“…I should have stabbed your heart with that dagger.”

Because she hadn’t.

From her delicate, beautiful lips came words as sharp as blades.

Only when he saw her unwavering, piercing eyes did the Duke realize that her intent had been far from a mere playful provocation.

Even so, he furrowed his brows, unable to fully grasp the situation.

The persistent pain in his palm was the only thing grounding him in reality—reminding him of the harsh truth he had overlooked.

This woman, whom he had underestimated, was trying to kill him.

Now that her purpose was exposed, Ertel had only one path left.

She glanced at him with equally turbulent emotions before making her move.

Before Icarus could fully comprehend the situation, she lifted her skirt and leaped out of the waiting room window in the blink of an eye.

“Ertel!”

She quickly distanced herself from Icarus.

“Stop her!”

Though he wanted to chase after her, blood was still pouring from his hand.

Even for someone as stoic as him, tending to his injury had to come first.

“Phew.”

Letting out a sigh, Icarus slammed his uninjured hand against the wall in frustration and headed to the infirmary.

When he pulled the dagger from his hand, the blood spurted even more violently. Clenching his teeth, he retrieved bandages and medicine from a drawer and wrapped his hand himself.

In that critical moment, his instincts had picked up on a faint chill.

The kiss had started sweetly, but as it went on, something had felt off.

Watching her fidget anxiously, he had followed her hand with his eyes.

And then he had seen it—a sharp glint beneath her dress that he wouldn’t have noticed if he hadn’t tilted his head.

Without thinking, he had grabbed her hand and pulled it to his tuxedo.

‘If I had been even a little slower, this would have been a funeral, not a wedding.’

After bandaging his hand, he looked around at the blood pooling on the floor.

No one could see this scene. He quickly cleaned up the evidence.

Moments later, he heard footsteps approaching.

“Icarus?”

It was the king’s voice, searching the hallway.

Pedro had come looking for him with Henry in tow.

“Your Majesty.”

Though startled, Icarus immediately composed himself and greeted Pedro with proper etiquette.

“Hm?”

Pedro glanced around, sensing something was off.

The bride was nowhere to be seen.

Hadn’t they just been together?

“Icarus, I was very pleased watching your procession. You seemed truly happy. Now that you’re officially a husband, this marks a new chapter in your life. Congratulations on your marriage.”

“Thank you for your kind words, Your Majesty. I am deeply honored.”

“I’d like to greet the bride as well. Where is she?”

Though clearly troubled, Icarus forced a calm expression and replied smoothly.

“She stepped out for a moment.”

“Stepped out? Right after the procession? There must still be many people waiting to congratulate her.”

“Is there a message you’d like me to deliver to her on your behalf?”

“Hmm…”

Pedro narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Icarus’s demeanor.

Something about the atmosphere had shifted, and it was clear Icarus was trying hard to conceal it.

At that moment, the captain of the knights focused on Icarus’s hand.

“Why is your hand bandaged?”

At those words, Icarus hastily hid his hand behind his back, but he knew it was already too late.

He needed to come up with a plausible excuse quickly.

“I cut myself by accident yesterday. The bleeding hasn’t stopped yet. It’s nothing to worry about.”

For an injury from “yesterday,” the bloodstains on the bandage looked far too fresh.

“…I see.”

Though Pedro and the knight captain found him suspicious, they refrained from pressing further.

It was, after all, a wedding.

Pedro quickly changed the subject, asking,

“Will the reception begin soon?”

“It should, as long as there are no unforeseen circumstances.”

Was he implying that something unforeseen had already occurred? Or that something might?

Whatever the case, Pedro found his words unsettling and gave a slight nod.

“Very well. I’ll return to the audience chamber.”

“Please do, Your Majesty. Thank you again for attending today.”

As they left the chapel, Henry spoke to the king.

“Your Majesty, Icarus is definitely hiding something. Don’t you think so?”

“Yes. And it’s strange that Ertel disappeared so suddenly.”

Thus, their suspicions began to take root.

>><<

Ertel stood on the rooftop of the chapel.

“The bride has disappeared!”

“What? Why? She was just there during the procession!”

“Is she skipping the reception? What’s going on?”

She watched the commotion below with a calm demeanor.

While the crowd was in turmoil, Ertel remained composed. Her hair fluttered in the wind, her eyes devoid of emotion.

She had utterly failed at the most important goal of this life.

She should have ended his life in one swift move. She should have killed him.

Staring down at her empty hands, Ertel bit her lip.

She had thought it would be easy to kill him.

“What should I do now?”

Even though she had failed today, she had no intention of giving up.

As long as she was alive, there would always be another chance for revenge.

“I’ll wait for the next opportunity.”

Feeling a sharp pain in her left chest, Ertel pressed her hand against her heart.

Inside her chest was the Kaiya Stone.

A jewel that contained a powerful source of energy.

Because of it, Icarus would undoubtedly try to capture her again.

‘I’m not the same person I was before my regression. I won’t let you catch me.’

Leaving behind the chaos of the chapel, Ertel began walking again.

The wedding dress, once dazzling under the lights, now rustled through the bushes of the forested hills.

Though her attire was still cumbersome, she felt a sense of freedom. The more she ran, the more adrenaline surged through her.

‘Goodbye, Icarus.’

For a brief moment, she had been able to recall the memories of their past. That was enough.

She hailed a carriage and left for an unknown destination.

‘I’ll find myself again.’

And the family she had lost.