“What do you mean…?”

Ines’s eyes widened as if she had misheard him. Her gaze at Carlos was filled with doubt and shock, as if she hoped her ears had deceived her.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Carlos asked, frowning in displeasure.

“When have I ever lied to you?”

Indeed, he had never lied to Ines. He had always kept his promises to her.

Even now, he had fulfilled the old promise of marrying Ines if he returned alive from the war, albeit belatedly.

Carlos’s eyes, as he looked at Ines, burned with intensity. They were the eyes of a hunter who had finally captured the prey he had long desired.

His fingers, which cupped her pale cheek, slowly trailed down, leaving a red line on her porcelain-like skin.

His rough fingers brushed her chin and touched her slender neck, which seemed fragile enough to break if held too tightly.

The fingers, moving coolly as if to cut her throat, gradually descended.

By the time the red line, tinged with a metallic scent, reached her collarbone, his gaze fell upon Ines’s chest.

Drip, drip. Red droplets of blood fell one by one onto the carpet. White flesh peeked out from the dress that had been torn apart.

Only then did a spark of life appear in her previously empty eyes. Ines quickly slapped Carlos’s hand away and glared at him as she backed away, a clear sign of rejection.

Carlos, watching her, let out a small laugh.

“Oh right, come to think of it, you’re not my sister-in-law.”

He shook his head as if realizing he had misspoken.

“We didn’t even have a wedding, so how could you be my sister-in-law?”

“……”

“Unless you had already rolled in bed with my brother.”

He referred to the rumors that she and Joseph had slept together before they were even married. Failing to remain chaste before marriage was considered shameful for a woman, and the rumors had severely damaged Ines’s reputation. Carlos continued to speak, mocking her situation.

“So I should call you Lady Claudia. Ah, but since the Claudia family was wiped out today, I suppose I shouldn’t call you that either.”

He twisted his lips, highlighting her sudden downfall.

“Carlos.”

But she didn’t hear Carlos’s sarcasm. Such things weren’t important to Ines right now.

“What do you mean by saying I’ll become your wife? Surely, you don’t mean to…”

Her eyes trembled slightly as she asked this. It seemed she hoped he would deny her question. But his answer crushed her fragile hope.

“I will make you my queen.”

Ines gasped. It was a thunderbolt for her, who had been calmly awaiting death. No one in this kingdom would accept her as queen. Everyone was waiting for her downfall, hoping to see her head roll on the execution block. But to be queen… if that were to happen…

Ines gathered her scattered skirts and lifted her head.

“Are you insane? Do you think people will just stand by and watch me become queen? More importantly, I am not fit to be a queen…!”

Her once calm voice began to rise in agitation.

“Why.”

An icy voice cut off her words.

“Do you not want to be my wife?”

He still used formal speech with her, maintaining politeness, but his eyes and actions were not so courteous. Suddenly, sparks flew in his eyes as he grasped Ines’s chin.

“You said it yourself before. That you wanted to be my wife.”

‘I want to be your wife.’

The echo of those words from the past, now like a fleeting wind, resounded in his ears.

Carlos Ivan, who had once heard those futile words, clenched his teeth.

Being Carlos’s wife—yes, it was a future Ines had once dreamed of as well. But not anymore.

“I…”

Just as Ines was about to speak, the sound of clashing metal and the strong scent of blood invaded the room. Realizing someone was about to enter, Carlos stood up.

He quickly removed his cloak and draped it over Ines’s face. In an instant, her small body was hidden beneath the large cloak.

At that moment, knights entered the room, and the smell of blood grew even stronger.

“Your Majesty.”

Among the knights who respectfully greeted Carlos, one man spoke up.

“We haven’t captured Joseph yet, but we’ve dealt with all his men who stayed behind.”

At the knight’s words, Ines shuddered. She didn’t need to ask; the overpowering scent of blood was proof enough.

“That will do. Continue the pursuit and finish it. And…”

Carlos glanced at Ines briefly before giving a cold command.

“Take the lady away, with respect.”

A knight asked in response to his order, “Shall we take her to the underground prison?”

“No.”

“Then to the tower…?”

The knight’s voice wavered as he asked. The tower was traditionally a place of confinement for royalty. Since Ines had not yet been crowned queen, she should technically be in the underground prison.

However, considering she had long wielded power as the king’s betrothed, staying in the tower wouldn’t be unusual. Thus, the knight assumed she would be taken to the tower. But Carlos’s next words defied everyone’s expectations.

“Take her to the Lily Palace.”

The atmosphere turned cold, as if doused with icy water. Because that palace was…

“That’s the palace where queens have resided for generations. How could a criminal…”

“That’s precisely why she should stay there.”

Carlos continued in an indifferent tone.

“She’s going to be my wife.”

He spoke as if he were stating the most obvious fact. The knights fell silent, gauging the mood.

On the day the palace was swept by a bloody storm, another unseen storm was approaching.

* * *

Perhaps our meeting was never meant to be from the start.

‘I’ll wait for you, Carl.’

If I had known it was a promise I couldn’t keep, I wouldn’t have said it so lightly.

No, from the very beginning, when you said you were going to war for our marriage, if I had stopped you, at least…

Lost in her memories, Ines suddenly raised her head at the noise outside. ‘Kill the witch of Tezever.’ Ever since she survived, the shouts of people echoed daily outside her room.

Clack—

Ines, feeling uncomfortable, closed the window. Someone had left it open again today, as if to ensure she heard the cries demanding her death.

Her head spun, and she felt nauseated. After the rebellion, the news that Ines, who was expected to face execution, would become the new queen stirred strong opposition among the rebels’ supporters.

Protests demanding her death occurred almost daily, and threatening letters flooded the royal palace.

Everyone hated her.

Everyone wished for her death.

Her family had already fallen; her father and brother’s heads were severed and hung on the city walls, yet people wanted her head to hang alongside them.

Except for one man.

“…Carlos.”

Why couldn’t he let her go?

A man once despised had risen to a position where no one could ignore him. Now, everyone kneeled and bowed their heads before him. But what about now?

With just one declaration to appoint her as queen, everything he had painstakingly built was once again on the verge of collapse. Ines’s gaze darkened.

‘I have been a burden to you, both then and now.’

The guilt of betraying him in the past weighed heavily on her shoulders.

Though it was a choice made under her father’s threats, the fact remained that she had hurt him.

“I still… Carlos…”

Ines, briefly recalling Carlos’s face, clenched her fist.

‘Still love him.’

This feeling had never changed, not for a single moment. So she didn’t want to be a burden to him. Ines, standing with her back to the window, lifted her head.

‘Let me say it once more.’

She resolved to go to Carlos and persuade him that this marriage could never happen. She would ask him to send her to a convent. If killing her was too uncomfortable, then at least do that, please.

With this decision, Ines grabbed the cane she had leaned against the wall and stepped out of the room. As she limped along, the sharp eyes of others pierced her, but such gazes were no problem. She was used to it. However…

“Seems you slept well.”

The man she encountered in the corridor was still someone she wasn’t accustomed to. Ines, who had been looking at the floor, finally raised her head.

Herman Tishi.

He was Carlos’s right-hand man and a key contributor to the recent rebellion.

“Well, someone who should be waiting for death in an underground prison is staying in a warm room, so of course, you must have slept well.”

Herman mocked her, despite her being a remnant of the previous dynasty who was still living in comfort. Ines silently listened to Herman’s undisguised hostility. She had known Herman for a very long time. Because he was…