Seraphina doubted her own ears for a moment.

Damian’s voice was drifting faintly to her on the air. It came in broken fragments, barely audible. It wasn’t proper speech.

If she had to describe it—

It sounded like a moan.

…A moan?

Seraphina’s face stiffened as she tried to identify the source of the sound. A moan—surely not. Was Damian… having an affair?

If that were the case—

She held her breath and waited, straining to hear his voice again.

Then it came once more.

“…Kh—!”

When Seraphina heard her husband groan, her fingertips began to tremble. It felt as though all the blood had drained from her body. Her breathing became shallow and her senses sharpened as she focused on the sound.

With a stiff expression, she searched for its source.

In such a vast sitting room, locating a faint noise was no easy task. However, it did not take her long to locate the source of Damian’s low moans.

They were coming from a small door adjoining the bedroom.

Judging by its position, it could only be the bathroom.

Damian was in there.

Seraphina’s heart beat so loudly against her ribs that she felt as though she could hear it echoing in her ears. Drawing in a deep breath, she moved towards the door. Then, holding herself utterly still, she carefully pressed her ear against the door, suppressing even the slightest sound.

The moment she pressed her ear against the walnut door, the faint sounds from the sitting room became unmistakably clear. The bathroom’s natural acoustics amplified every noise, making them sharp and vivid.

The damp sound of bodies brushing together.

The soft shhh of fabric sliding against skin.

Ragged breaths spilling from parted lips.

And then—

“Ugh… ngh!”

Damian moaned.

Hearing the sounds coming from the bathroom, Seraphina’s entire body went rigid. Her jaw trembled uncontrollably. Then, through the narrow crack in the door, Damian’s pheromones began to seep out, saturated with desire that he had suppressed for so long. They were so potent that they tempted the senses like an aphrodisiac, clouding the mind.

Seraphina shook her head, trying desperately to ward them off. Breathing in pheromones steeped in such intense l*st left her feeling unbearably unsettled. This meant that Damian had waited until his pheromones had become this intense.

The very scent that she had once longed for from her husband now made her miserable. Hearing the strain in his suppressed voice, her eyes burned.

Damian was kind — a good husband. He showered her with gifts and treated her with respect.

But he did not love her.

He had married Seraphina out of a sense of responsibility. The proof was undeniable — he no longer touched her. He avoided conversation and slept in a separate bed.

Seraphina did not resent Damian for keeping his distance. After all, as the Empress had said, she was an unsuitable wife for him.

Nothing about her family background, traits or status made her worthy of becoming Crown Princess.

Had she not manifested as an omega and crossed paths with Damian that night, she would never have become Crown Princess.

In fact, she would never have become Crown Princess at all.

Seraphina blamed her own inadequacy and tried to be grateful to Damian. For his sake, she resolved to try harder and endure more.

And yet—

Her husband, who had rejected her, was secretly hiding away and being intimate with another woman.

“Ng—Sephi… haah, Se—phi!”

Damian’s voice pierced Seraphina’s ears as she trembled with betrayal. At his words, her pupils dilated sharply.

‘What did he just say?’

Seraphina froze, forgetting even how to breathe.

“Sephi, Sephi…!”

Damian was calling her.

He was calling her name, Sephi, desperately, as he rushed towards his climax.

There was only one thing this could mean.

Damian was not having an affair.

He was alone, m*sturbating while thinking of Seraphina.

As she processed the situation, a deep furrow formed between her brows.

‘Why…?’

Damian had avoided her. He had refused her requests to be intimate.

And yet behind her back, he was relieving himself while thinking of her.

‘Why?’

Unable to comprehend, Seraphina clenched her teeth tightly. Damian continued to call her name, his desire spilling out uncontrollably from somewhere deep within him.

“Se— ngh, kh—!”

It sounded as though he had reached his peak; his voice grew louder, accompanied by the unmistakable sounds of him touching himself.

Seraphina could not bear to listen any longer, so she stepped away from the door. Holding the hem of her skirt, she stumbled across the sitting room and out of the door.

“Your Highness? Are you all right? Your complexion—”

When Seraphina appeared, Arno jumped up and asked, alarmed, what was wrong. Unconsciously, Seraphina touched her cheek. Her hand felt ice-cold against her skin.

“I—I just remembered something urgent… so Damian—the Crown Prince—His Highness…”

Seraphina trailed off incoherently, clenching her teeth. Taking a deep breath, she looked straight at Arno and spoke intensely.

“Don’t tell His Highness that I came by.”

“…Pardon?”

“I was never here. Understood?”

“Y-yes. Understood.”

Arno replied, still bewildered. Hearing his answer, Seraphina left the office.

“Your Highness! What’s wrong?”

Seraphina flinched and blinked.

She thought she had just left Damian’s office. Yet somehow, she was already back in her own bedchamber.

She had no idea how she had got there.

Her memory of what had happened in between was completely absent.

“……”

“Your Highness?”

Rosalynde asked again, studying the dazed Seraphina. At the sound of her voice, the tension drained from Seraphina’s face, and she slumped onto the sofa. She stared blankly out of the window.

How was Rosalynde supposed to take this?

One way or another, Damian was not having an affair. In fact, he was thinking of no one but her.

It was only natural for a husband to desire his wife. Married couples loved one another.

But did Damian love Seraphina?

These days, he wouldn’t even hold her, let alone touch her.

“Why…?”

A trembling voice slipped through Seraphina’s lips as she gazed at the clear sky. The hand resting on the armrest shook violently.

Seeing Rosalynde fidget beside her, Seraphina parted her lips.

“Rosie… I really don’t know anymore…”

At her words, Rosalynde’s brows drew together. Concerned, she took Seraphina’s hand.

“What is it? Tell me.”

Seraphina pressed her lips together tightly. It was something she could not bring herself to confide in even her closest friend.

She had to make sense of it alone.

But she couldn’t.

Damian’s actions and intentions did not align. She could not tell what he truly thought of her.

She wished she had never married him.

If only she had never met him on the day she became an Omega.

Then she would never have become Crown Princess and found herself in such a maddening situation. Instead, she could have found the child and lived a quiet, happy life.

But there was no turning back.

She was already part of the imperial family. Until the day she was cast out of the palace, there was nothing she could do but endure in silence.

‘Everything is a mess.’

Seraphina clutched her throbbing head.

The weather was absurdly fine, even then. As if mocking her, it was a perfectly beautiful day.

No sooner had her ‘good day’ come to an end than good news arrived.