Rose's POV
Over the last few days, the palace had been in a constant state of motion. Servants running through the halls, tailors arriving with bolts of exotic fabric, florists filling the corridors with the scent of fresh blooms, and royal advisors shuffling in and out of the council chambers. All in preparation for the upcoming wedding.
My wedding.
And yet, despite being at the center of it all, I felt strangely distant- like I was watching it unfold from the outside. Perhaps it was the superstition.
We were forbidden from seeing each other before the engagement ceremony, supposedly to protect the union from bad omens. I couldn't help but wonder who came up with that ridiculous rule.
I had just been summoned to the grand hall when I turned the corner and caught sight of Selena. She stood near one of the high archways, speaking to a man in hushed tones. She looked on the verge of breaking down.
The man's back was to me, but something about his stance - his broad frame and tightly crossed arms stirred my memory. I knew him from somewhere.
Curious and a little concerned, I slowed my steps. The tension between them was palpable, the air crackling with unspoken words and restrained emotion.
"Everything okay?" I asked cautiously.
They both jolted slightly as if they'd forgotten their surroundings. The man stepped back almost immediately, creating distance between them, while Selena straightened and turned to me with a too-bright smile.
"Yes. Everything is fine, mistress," she said quickly, her voice a little too chipper. "Let's go. We shouldn't keep His Majesty waiting."
I gave her a lingering look but decided not to press. Whatever it was, it wasn't the time or place.
As we walked away from the corridor, it finally clicked. I had seen that man before, always positioned just a few steps behind King Lazarus. His silent shadow. His protector, perhaps? A soldier, or something more trusted?
Just the thought of Lazarus sent a warm flush to my cheeks. It brought back memories from that night. The kiss. His touch. The way his voice dropped when he whispered into my ear.
The way I had accepted him, not as the feared Dark Lord but as something else entirely. Something human. Something… mine.
It had been a week since that night, and I hadn't seen him since.
I missed him.
More than I wanted to admit.
Was it normal to feel this deeply for someone I'd barely met? Someone I'd only just begun to understand?
Sure, I knew of him before, through stories, legends, and murmurs of terror but the man I met that night bore no resemblance to the monster from those tales.
The world called him cruel. A murderer. Heartless. But I'd seen the shadows in his eyes. I'd felt the careful restraint in his touch. And most of all, I'd sensed a longing in him that mirrored my own.
Maybe I was just foolish. Like those tragic mistresses in old love songs the ones who gave their hearts to kings who used them and then forgot them by morning. The ones who clung to glances and empty promises, hoping to be seen again.
Oh gods, was I her?
Something is very, very wrong with me.
We entered the grand courtroom of the Liliac Kingdom. The stained-glass windows cast colored light across the marble floor, painting everyone in fractured hues of red and blue.
"Greetings to The Majesty," I said formally, bowing low. "May I ask the reason for my summons?"
King Rory smiled warmly, rising slightly from his throne. "Ah, Rose. Your father-in-law well, King Alexander has made a special request. He wishes for the wedding to be hosted in the Roosevolt kingdom. He believes their kingdom deserves to celebrate this momentous occasion for their king."
My breath caught slightly at the mention of King Alexander. I had met him that day. Ruthless and cunning. A man who smiled with daggers behind his teeth.
And then the words hit me properly. The wedding will be hosted in Roosevolt.
The fear in the chamber was instant.
Several advisors and attendants flinched at the mention of the Dark Lord's realm. The name alone had weight. It echoed with screams, drenched in bloodshed. It was said Lazarus once painted the snow crimson with the blood of his enemies. Even children.
Yet… I was going to be their queen.
King Rory's voice cut through the tension like steel.
"Let it be known," he declared, "that all of us present here will accompany Princess Rose to the Roosevolt kingdom. We will witness the union of our beloved daughter and the Dark Lord himself. Prepare the royal carriages. Begin arrangements for the journey. We leave shortly after the engagement."
A murmur passed through the room, and I could feel the ripple of mixed emotions. Some looked pale, others intrigued.
There was fear- real, tangible fear. But also something else. Curiosity.
Why did the Roosevolt kingdom, despite its cruelty and infamy, remain the most powerful and prosperous kingdom in existence?
What secrets lay hidden behind its stone walls and blood-stained banners?
No one said it aloud, but everyone was thinking the same thing.
For all their fear, they wanted to see it.
And so did I.