“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

Mirai yelled out frantically, dread glinted in her eyes. When she prepared herself for this time, she did not expect this thing to happen. There, in front of her own eyes Ryosuke stood holding a dagger on his right hand while bloods were dripping down from his left palm.

“Hold your voice down, Lady.”

“Bu-bu-but you just cut yourself!”

Ryosuke shrugged. He sheathed the dagger and took out a handkerchief to wipe the remaining blood on his palm. “It’s just a small cut. See?” He showed his palm to Mirai.

Seeing that indeed the blood had been stopped, Mirai sighed in relief. “You really gave me heart attack. Now, why did you do it? You stained the bed sheet.”

Mirai looked with pity at the white bed sheet which had become dirty because of Ryosuke’s blood meanwhile Ryosuke looked at her as if she was growing a second head. “It’s supposed to be that way.”

“Eh?”

“You don’t get it?”

“What?”

Ryosuke massage his temples. Mirai would really give him a headache. Is she really that naïve?

“They will collect it tomorrow to check whether we did what supposed to be done in royal wedding night.”

Mirai contemplated. What is supposed to be done in royal wedding night? And suddenly a deep blush formed on her cheeks. “Oh!”

 “Seems you get it.”

“Ye-yes.” She felt her face warmer. “But…,” she was embarrassed but her curiosity beat her. “Ho-how did th-they know that I am… I…” Still she could not utter the word.

“?” Ryosuke said nonchalantly.

Mirai nodded, still obviously embarrassed.

“Do you think they will pick my bride randomly?” Ryosuke retorted. "The wedding night itself would prove whether you're or not. If you're, then it's good for you, but if you aren't, then dead sentence is not unheard of."

Mirai shuddered imagining the punishment if a royal bride was found out as not pure. Though Mirai came to comprehension, she asked, “But still… why did you cut yourself?”

Ryosuke sighed, “If I didn’t do that, they will throw us into another wedding night, you know, over and over until it’s done.”

“Oh! I see...” Mirai trailed off.

“If you’ve understood, then let’s talk seriously.” Ryosuke gestured in the direction of the bed. Mirai hesitated and Ryosuke saw it. “What? You don’t want to sit on a blood stained sheet?”

Mirai shook her head, “It’s not like that.” She plopped down beside Ryosuke. It is because you’re too close.

“Listen,” Ryosuke started. Mirai looked at him through the corner of her eyes. “First of all… I apologize for not fulfilling my promise.”

She was surprised. She never expected him to apologize. “It… It was not entirely your fault. I understood.” Mirai gave him a bitter smiled, “If only my family did not betray me, maybe…”

Ryosuke could relate to her sorrow, being betrayed by her own trusted people. “Don’t let it get to you.”

Mirai looked up to him, but Ryosuke did not bother to explain why he said that, instead he continued, “Like or not, it has already happened. So, now we need to figure out what to do afterward.”

“Do you have plan?” she asked.

“Sort of.”

A brief silence hung in between them.

“Say,” he eventually spoke. “What do you want?”

“Eh?”

“This marriage… you can choose to let it go or build your life on it.”

“Build…my life…on this marriage?”

Ryosuke placed a hand on his forehead, “I’m sorry. Though I said it, it’s impossible to let you go for the time being.”

Mirai was confused. “I don’t understand.”

He avoided looking at her eyes, “I knew you don’t want to do anything with this marriage, but please bear with it for some time. And maybe one day, when I’m strong enough, I can free you from this burden.”

“You will let me go?” Mirai’s eyes widened.

“That’s what you want, right? A freedom.”

Mirai wondered. A freedom? What kind of freedom?

“Let’s make a deal,” Ryosuke stated. “I won’t prohibit you from anything you want to do unless it breaks serious rules, but in exchange you have to play your role as my wife in public. How is it?”

“What kind of wife I have to portray?”

Ryosuke thought for awhile, “Just…be normal. As a wife should be.”

As normal as a wife should be?

“And one more, be honest to me.” Ryosuke