Chapter 1


    My entire life I had been preparing for this day. I always knew that I was never going to be able to


    choose whom to marry because I was a woman and a princess. I didn''t have the right to choose. Hell, I


    didn''t have any rights at all. My opinions and feelings didn''t matter to anyone, not even my own family.


    In fact, my father viewed me as a tool to gain more power, to create an alliance with the kingdom of


    Decresh - a very powerful kingdom - by marrying me off to one of their princes.


    "For a prince and princess, the kingdomes first," Father said. "Your desire for somethinges


    after."


    Yes, right. It could for a prince, but not for a princess. If a prince married for alliance and didn''t like his


    wife, he could just marry another. Usually most of them had several wives and mistresses, but for a


    princess the story was different. There''s nothing she could do. She just had to please her husband and


    watch as he married other women when he gets bored with her. I felt my blood boil, but now was not


    the time to get angry.


    Leaving all the bad thoughts behind me, I studied myself in the mirror. My maids had spent hours


    preparing me, making me look more beautiful than I was. I was wearing a white and golden dress, and


    my brown hair wasbed back beautifully with golden hairpins in the shapes of flowers and leaves.


    The makeup was perfect, the only problem was the jewelry. They were beautiful but heavy, now that I


    was wearing a lot of them. I was already feeling weak because of nervousness, or was it fear? I didn''t


    know, but I was feeling sick. There was a knot in my stomach that refused to go away no matter how


    hard I tried to calm down.


    "My Lady, don''t you like the dress?" Lydia asked.


    Lydia and Ylva, my handmaids, have been taking care of me since I was a little girl. They were the only


    ones I could talk to. I would miss them once I left.


    "No, I love it. It''s beautiful." I tried to smile, but failed.


    Lydia could see the fear on my face.


    "Everything will be alright," she told me. "Don''t listen to the rumors, they are nothing but just that.


    Maybe your husband is a nice man." She tried to sound positive, but I could hear the doubt in her


    voice.


    Not that I believed the rumors, but they did affect me. I wasn''t scared because people said that he was


    the devil''s son, they couldn''t be speaking literally. They were probably referring to his personality, that


    maybe he was a liar, a tempter, a murderer, a maniptor or that he was just pure evil, and that''s what


    scared me.


    A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts, and shortly after a courtdy came in.


    "My Lady, it''s time," she informed me.


    I descended the stairs, careful not to fall or stumble, but it was hard with the long dress and the heavy


    jewelry. I was relieved when there were only a few steps left, but just then I stepped on my dress and


    stumbled forward, almost falling before a strong arm came around my waist and saved me from ruining


    myself on my wedding day.


    Straightening myself, I looked up to see who it was. Who had dared to touch a princess like that? Not


    that I minded, I was just curious.


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    Looking up, my eyes met a pair of golden eyes. No, wait! Not golden, they had the color of mes or


    theva from a volcano. I had never seen eyes like that before.


    "Are you alright, My Lady?" asked the man in front of me with a frown.


    If I had knots in my stomach before, now suddenly I had butterflies as I gazed into his eyes.


    Who was this man? I had never seen him before. He was tall, broad-shouldered and his thick raven


    ck hair fell over his shoulders down to his waist. You could tell from the clothes that he was royalty.


    Could he be one of the royalty who came to attend my wedding?


    "Yes, yes... I am... I am fine, My Lord," I replied.


    "My Lady." He bowed elegantly before turning around and leaving.


    "That''s one good looking man." Ylva pointed as I stared at his back while he walked away.


    Yes, I thought to myself. Very good-looking, but I was getting married and didn''t have the luxury to look


    at other men.


    "Shall we?" I asked, but Lydia and Ylva were too upied to hear what I said. They kept following him


    with their gaze until he was out of sight.


    I snapped my finger in front of their faces to wake them up. "Yes, yes, My Lady. Let''s go." They hurried


    to say.


    The ceremony would begin with a greeting exchange between the bride and the groom and their


    families. I gave the guard a nod, and he informed my presence, then motioned for me to enter.


    Lydia and Ylva gave me a reassuring smile before I left them behind to walk inside. Now I was all on


    my own.


    Taking a deep breath, I strode into the hall carefully, and immediately all heads turned to look at me. I


    walked with my head high but kept my gaze low, only looking at the floor until I reached the throne


    where my father was sitting with my mother next to him. While greeting them, I felt my legs tremble.


    Mother smiled at me nervously, but my father just gestured for me to sit down at a table nearby. He was


    unbothered by the fact that he was marrying me off to a prince rumored to be the devil''s son.


    Ignoring my father, I smiled at my mother then went to my seat. I could feel everyone''s eyes on me,


    some stared at me with pity and others with repulsion as if it was my fault I was getting married to


    whoever I was getting married to. They should me my father, not me.


    After a while, the guard informed the groom''s presence and everyone turned their attention from me to


    the door. The room went quiet as the guests waited for the groom to enter. I, on the other hand, looked


    down quickly and rubbed my hands together nervously as I felt the knots in my stomach return. I


    wanted to look up, but I was afraid.


    What if I didn''t like what I saw? What if the rumors were true? Would he have red eyes and long nails


    and maybe even ck horns on his head? Don''t be ridiculous, I told myself and decided to take a look.


    Slowly, I nced at the door as my heart hammered inside my chest and almost gasped when the


    groom entered.


    Wait!


    This was the man from earlier with the golden eyes. He couldn''t be the groom, could he?


    The guests stared at him surprised as well and began to whisper hysterically into each other''s ears.


    They must have been expecting someone with ck horns to enter the room and not some tall, elegant


    looking man.


    Not the least bit bothered by the whispers or stares, he walked gracefully toward my father, taking each


    step with confidence.


    "Your Majesty," he said, bowing slightly.


    I dropped my jaw. So did the guests. No one bowed slightly to the king. This man was truly fearless and


    being disrespectful toward my father. I already got a bad feeling about him. Not because I thought my


    father deserved any kind of respect, but because he was so daring with his actions already.


    He must have noticed people''s reactions; it was so obvious, but he didn''t seem to care. My father, on


    the other hand, didn''t react. He just gestured toward me.


    As I saw him turn to me I looked down quickly, then heard the clicking sound of his footsteps as he


    neared before sitting on the other end of the table, facing me.


    He didn''t utter a word. Wasn''t he supposed to greet me or at least tell me his name? I don''t think father


    ever told me his name, but I don''t think I gave him the chance to either. I had fought and cried the day


    that my father told me he was marrying me off to some stranger, but my father was stubborn and had


    already made up his mind.


    Còntens bel0ngs to N?(v)elDr/a/ma.Org


    "Today I gather us to celebrate my daughter''s wedding to the prince of the Decresh," Father spoke


    once everyone was seated. He raised his golden wine cup, "Let the ceremony begin, and enjoy


    yourselves."


    People pped while dancers and musicians walked in to entertain the guests. People seemed to


    enjoy themselves. I of course couldn''t see since I was supposed to keep my gaze down, because


    ''that''s what ady should do''. Well then, I hate being ady.


    "Don''t you like the music?" He finally asked, breaking the awkward silence. I peeked through my long


    lashes, but once I gazed into his eyes, it was hard to look away. They were captivating.


    "I do, Your Highness," I replied.


    "What do you have in store for the tea ceremony?"


    Oh no! The tea ceremony! That was the traditional part of the royal wedding where the bride has to


    show one of her talents to entertain the guests and impress the groom. Hell with impressing. I didn''t


    want to impress anyone, especially not this man.


    "It is a surprise, Your Highness," I said, sending him a staged smile.


    Soon it was time for the tea ceremony. I was sitting in a chair in the middle of the room, everyone''s


    attention directed at me. The guests would sit and enjoy their tea while I would have to entertain them.


    I took up my flute before lightly putting it on my lips and started ying. Soon my nervousness


    disappeared. I loved ying the flute and loved the sound of it. Closing my eyes, I let the sound take


    me far away, to a peaceful ce. Now and then I would hear some people praising me through my


    haze, and they apuded when I was done.


    Opening my eyes, I found him staring directly at me. He wasn''t apuding, but there was a hint of a


    smile on his face.


    Now it was time for the gift exchange. We exchanged our gifts, and then it was time for me to go to my


    new home. The knot in my stomach returned with such intensity that I felt like throwing up.


    Mother came up to me while father spoke to my husband. Husband? The word sounded strange in my


    head. She took my hands in hers. "Everything will be fine," she said, "just remember what I told you".


    Yes, I remembered very clearly our mother and daughter talk. To be a good wife, to listen to your


    husband, and to not make him angry.


    "Yes, I will," I said, enveloping her in a tight hug. As a princess I wasn''t supposed to hug people, but


    right now I didn''t care because I might never see her again.


    The carriage was waiting outside. The prince, or should I say, my husband led the way. I looked behind


    me onest time and found Lydia and Ylva standing on the balcony, their cheeks wet with tears.


    "I will miss you too," I whispered.