Even inside the banquet hall, Annely could not hide her confusion.

Carlos kept her close as he greeted and conversed with each guest who approached them. As she returned their polite smiles, her thoughts drifted back to the past unbidden.

Nothing had changed.

The clothes were the same. The setting was the same.

The only difference was that the handkerchief embroidered with violets had replaced the rose.

And yet, one thing had undoubtedly changed: Carlos’s attitude.

The succession ceremony had never been like this before.

Apart from the night before, Annely had not seen Carlos for over a month. She had desperately longed to remain by his side.

But the nobles crowded around him, Annely included. No one was left alone that day — not the newly ascended young duke and not Annely, the Emperor’s and the Grand Duke’s cherished jewel.

Unable to get close to him, Annely suppressed her disappointment, telling herself that she would see him the next day.

Instead, she was refused.

“Annely, as you know, I’ve only just become a duke. And I still haven’t properly resolved the former duke’s affairs. You understand, don’t you?”

Upon hearing those words, Annely turned away. Out of consideration for how busy he was, she didn’t contact him afterwards.

It was only after a month had passed that she saw Carlos again.

And then it happened again.

For two years.

But this time, Carlos kept his arm firmly around her shoulders for hours on end.

Setting aside her confusion, Annely truly did not feel well. She wanted to rest.

“My love… I’d like to go back now.”

Carlos looked down at her.

Her face was noticeably paler than before.

He had wanted to show her around and demonstrate just how high he had climbed. But Annely just stood by his side, forcing a smile.

Unable to elicit the desired reaction, Carlos pretended not to notice her discomfort, even though he knew she was struggling.

As he looked at her, Carlos thought.

‘This really is the last time.’

His performance was truly over. Starting tomorrow, he had no intention of meeting her again, using busyness as his excuse.

‘If you knew that, how would you react?’

Would she try—even a little—to stay by his side?

The thought made him curious.

But Carlos was not a man who took such risks.

After watching Annely for a brief moment, Carlos loosened his grip.

“Then go.”

The arm that had been around her shoulders withdrew without hesitation.

As the warmth of his palm vanished, a chill seemed to rush in, and Annely shivered without realizing it.

Taking a step back, she looked at Carlos.

“…Do you have something to say?”

“My love.”

With a faint smile, Annely spoke—sincerely.

“Congratulations.”

His body was covered in countless large and small scars.

From what Annely knew, Carlos had come perilously close to losing his life on at least five occasions.

Carlos had climbed to this position at that cost, and Annely truly believed that this made him remarkable.

However, he had never had the chance to tell him in the past. As soon as the succession ceremony ended, Carlos stopped seeing her.

That was why Annely chose to speak now — if only this once.

“From now on, only good things will await you.”

‘Divorce me.’
‘Meet the one you love.’
‘Have a child.’

It hurt to know that the person by his side would not be her, but this was where their connection came to an end.

“I truly hope it will be so.”

Having said all she wished to say, Annely slowly turned and left the banquet hall.

‘Congratulations? With that expression?’

With a face that looked as though it wished for his misery more than anyone else’s? Carlos let out a scoff and turned his head away.

Yet it wasn’t long before his gaze drifted back to Annely’s retreating figure. With her hair tied high, the nape of her neck appeared even more slender than usual. In truth, she had lost a noticeable amount of weight over the past few days—and he had confirmed it with his own hands the night before.

Suddenly, Carlos remembered that night.

When pleasure powerful enough to drown all reason had surged over them like waves, Annely had parted her swollen lips—bitten and drawn on until they were flushed and red.

“…My love.”

The shape of her mouth had not been forming those words.

“Carl—”

Yes. She had been trying to call his name.

But she hadn’t.

Which meant she had been aware of it and had deliberately restrained herself.

For the first time, Carlos found himself wanting to pry into Annely’s true feelings.

‘Do you know?’
‘Do you… know everything?’

***

After returning to her room, Annely dismissed all the maids, including Amber and Emily, and lay down on the bed.

Her clothes felt uncomfortable, and her make-up made her skin feel suffocated. Yet she remained still with her eyes closed.

It was only after a long time that she got up and walked towards the window. When she opened it, a faintly cold breeze slipped inside and wrapped around her body.

She looked up at the large moon hanging high in the night sky.

Leaning against the window frame, she rested a hand on her abdomen and gazed at the moon. Since her miscarriage, her period pain had become particularly severe, and she could tell from the dull, familiar ache that it would start soon.

Annely hated this throbbing pain more than anything. Not just because it hurt, but also because it was proof that she had failed to conceive again.

More than anyone, Annely knew where the problem lay.

They had shared a bed countless times.

She herself had once been pregnant.

And that woman had conceived as well.

So it was not Carlos’s fault.

It was hers.

Annely closed her eyes and took a slow, steady breath. Seeing Carlos made it difficult to suppress the feelings she still had for him.

She had intended to demand a divorce from him immediately. However, she knew that, in her current state, even a slightly deeper conversation would cause her emotions to spiral out of control.

Besides, Carlos would soon stop putting on this act and distance himself from her. In that sense, the timing was perfect.

Annely closed the window and summoned the maids. After undressing and removing her makeup, she lowered herself into the bath, blinking languidly as the water enveloped her.

“…Where’s Emily?”

“Emily went to fetch fresh towels. One of the new maids dropped one.”

As Amber spoke, she worked her hands over Annely’s tense muscles.

“Milady, you’ve truly become a duchess now.”

At Amber’s beaming remark, Annely looked at her.

“Is it really that good, me becoming a duchess?”

“Of course it is. You’re more than worthy of the position. Honestly, I never realized the Duke was such a lucky man.”

Annely recalled how displeased Amber had been when she insisted on marrying Carlos. Amber was no ordinary maid; she was of noble birth.

The youngest daughter of one of Grand Duke Chabette’s lifelong vassal families, she had been assigned as Annely’s attendant from birth, growing up with her in the imperial palace.

Because of this, Amber’s loyalty to Annely was unwavering.

“Lucky…”

He was not lucky.

In fact, he had been unlucky.

Despite his talent and qualifications, he was disregarded solely because he was illegitimate. If bloodline had not been an issue, Carlos would never have needed to risk his life earning merit on the battlefield.

Annely was certain that, even without the shortcut of marrying the daughter of House Chabette, Carlos would have become duke someday.

“Amber, watch what you say from now on. I may find it endearing, but others won’t.”

Amber’s only flaw was her careless tongue.

Annely flicked her nose playfully.

“Especially… don’t speak so freely in front of Emily.”

“Emily? Why?”

Annely merely smiled at Amber’s puzzled expression.

Although curiosity flickered in her eyes, Amber remained silent when Emily entered, quietly resuming her duties as Annely’s bath attendant.

After finishing her bath, Annely realized that her period had started. She drank a cup of hot milk and lay down on the bed.

Perhaps because the two of them had shared it only yesterday, the bed felt strangely wide.

Curling up, Annely slowly drifted off to sleep.

The last thing she saw was a figure standing motionless at the foot of the bed.

***

Having been the center of attention at that day’s banquet, Carlos had drunk heavily. Still half intoxicated, he received Knox’s report.

According to Emily, Annely had been alone in her room for about an hour after returning to it — and during that time, she had left the window open.

Ever since her miscarriage, Annely’s health had deteriorated considerably. If she was exposed to cold air, she would catch a chill almost immediately.

After clicking his tongue at the report, Carlos began to walk and, before he knew it, he had arrived at Annely’s door.

On nights like this, if she had been exposed to the cold, he would sleep beside her, watching carefully to see if she developed a fever.

‘Three years… I’ve been trained well.’

Carlos mocked himself, but he couldn’t bring himself to turn back.

Annely’s final words still lingered in his mind. Even after she had left, they continued to gnaw at his nerves, refusing to fade away.

If she was awake, he decided, he would ask her what she meant.

With that thought, he turned the doorknob and entered the bedroom.

On the bedside table was a glass of milk, still half full.

Carefully lifting the blanket, he saw Annely curled up tightly, like a shrimp. He calculated the date.

It was exactly that time of the month.

“Hng…”

At that moment, Annely groaned faintly and pulled the blanket up around her more tightly. The rush of cold air when Carlos lifted the blanket seemed to exacerbate her pain.

Carlos knew this, yet he remained still for a long moment. Then, with a quiet sigh, he took off his outer coat and got into bed behind her.

Lying close behind her, he pulled Annely fully into his arms and placed a hand over her lower abdomen.

Instinctively, Annely sought his warmth, burrowing into him and clutching his large hand on her belly as though it were a lifeline.

She would never know, but whenever her period started, Carlos came to her every night and held her like this, his hand resting on her abdomen.

At first, it had been a coincidence. But once he realized it eased her pain, it became a habit.

At some point, Carlos became aware of what he was doing and tried to stop.

Yet the reason he had continued for nearly three years was simple.

At moments like this, Annely clung to him with genuine desperation.

Carlos wanted to condemn her for it.

‘If you’re harboring feelings for someone else while pretending to love me, then why cling to me like this?’

But for three years, he had never asked.

Without him, Annely would be left drenched in cold sweat, writhing in pain.

“Annely.”

Just as always, holding her in his arms, Carlos asked the one question he could only ask at moments like this.

“Was there… even a single moment when you were truly sincere with me?”

No answer came.

As always.