Chapter 2

"Then, please make me your wife."

"……!?"

Despite it being late at night, I had come to the king's private room to make what could be the greatest whim of my life.

The Crown Prince was born, and I had been taking care of him in the castle ever since.

I watched over the wet nurse feeding him, gave him his first solid foods, changed his diapers, and played with him.

Sometimes, I did so alongside the king.

The king would visit the Crown Prince during his breaks from work.

He would look at the Crown Prince's eyes, which were identical to the late queen's, and stroke his hair, which was just like hers, always with a sad smile.

As I watched the Crown Prince stand and speak for the first time, and as I watched these moments with the king, I couldn't help but develop a gentle affection.

It was a child's first love, one that could never be fulfilled.

"――I have always admired you."

My fiancé was the young Crown Prince.

A contract between the royal family and the duke's family, a bond that could never be betrayed.

The reason I, who am ten years older, was accepted as the Crown Prince's fiancée was due to the high-quality silk produced in the territory of my duchy.

The contract between the late king and my grandfather was to marry the grandchildren of both families to strengthen the ties between the two houses, but I believe their true intentions were different.

My duchy sought to raise the price through the prestige of being a royal supplier and to emphasize its rarity.

For the royal family, it was to prevent the rare product from easily leaking to other countries and to establish it as a national specialty.

This was a contractual engagement bound by the interests of both families.

In this absolute monarchy, it is impossible to break a contractual engagement with the royal family. Normally.

……But, what if?

If the Crown Prince himself betrayed the contract.

Wouldn't it be all right for me to live as I please?

"……"

The king placed his elbows on his knees and bowed his head, not moving an inch.

"Your Majesty?"

"……Nicole, I can't let you go."

"Eh?"

The king stood up with a snap and approached me with large strides.

He stood in front of me and pulled me close by the waist.

――Huh? What?

I just wanted to be free and do as I pleased now that I was no longer bound.

I only planned to express my feelings, be rejected, and perhaps enter a convent……

When I looked up at the king, who was taking unexpected actions, his face slowly approached mine, and our lips met.

"Mn――"

"I will take full responsibility. To let go of such a beautiful and intelligent Nicole would be foolish, even for my son."

The lips that met again were hot and sweet, as if they would melt.

"Nicole, become my wife."

"! Yes!"

On the eve of my wedding, my fiancé was taken by my stepsister, so the king took responsibility.

Sometimes, long-held feelings do come to fruition.

Apparently, the wedding tomorrow will be between the Crown Prince and my stepsister.

It seems like it will be a big commotion, but I can sincerely wish them well.

The future that is about to come, they should be wary.

"Your Majesty, I will do my best to bear a son."

"Haha! It's been a long time since I've felt this happy."

Is the villain my stepsister or me? It's a subtle point.

――Karma.

Yes, this is karma.

I knew about the Crown Prince's hidden love and the dark desires of my stepsister and stepmother but pretended not to.

I intended to continue looking the other way as long as they didn't cross the line――.

◆◆◆◆◆

I started to have suspicions about the relationship between the Crown Prince and my stepsister about three years ago.

"Nicole!"

"Your Highness? What brings you to such a place?"

On my way to the gazebo where I was supposed to meet the Crown Prince, he called out to me.

He seemed to have come out of a greenhouse where they were growing flowers for transplanting in the corner of the castle garden.

"Ah, well, I thought I'd get a bouquet from Nicole, but the gardener wasn't around."

"Thank you very much."

In recent years, the Crown Prince's lessons in statecraft had begun, and he had started to take on some of the duties. We had agreed to have tea once a week at the gazebo.

During these times, I sometimes received a small bouquet, so I assumed this was the case today.

When the Crown Prince offered his right hand to escort me, I thanked him and