Alaric’s grip slowly loosened around Rosalind’s neck, as the room remained trapped in a heavy, stunned silence and she used that moment to draw in a sharp breath. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

His gaze shifted slowly to Rowan, and he met the lowly footman’s hard, unflinching glare. Even the guards holding him looked unsettled now, their grip loosening slightly as confusion spread through them.

Rosalind herself watched in confusion, unable to understand what was happening in front of her.

The silence was finally broken by Alaric’s sudden laugh. "Your father’s what?" he repeated, amusement lacing his voice, although his expression betrayed something else that both he and Rowan clearly understood.

"You must have completely lost your mind," Alaric said coldly, before turning to the guards.

"Get him out of my sight. I will execute him myself," he barked sharply.

The guards hesitated for a moment before grabbing Rowan again by the shoulders and dragging him away,

"Wait," the king suddenly called out, halting everyone in their tracks. "Not a word of this leaves this room," he ordered coldly. The guards exchanged uneasy glances before nodding immediately, and the footman lowered his head in agreement as well.

Even as Rowan was led out, Rosalind remained frozen, confused as to how Rowan could hold the king’s gaze like that, and why his words alone had shaken Alaric so deeply.

She was still lost in thought when Alaric turned to her, and her breath caught in her throat as she stiffened on the bed.

"You..." Alaric pointed at her sharply. "I’ll come back for you," he promised, before turning on his heel and walking out without another word.

But even the way he left unsettled Rosalind, because for a brief moment, he almost stumbled before quickly regaining his balance. And for the first time, Rosalind felt something she had never felt before from him.

Fear.

The same king who was always feared by everyone, the same man whose presence silenced entire halls, had just walked out of her room unsteady.

"Your majesty..." the footman called cautiously, unsure of what to do with Rosalind now.

"Keep an eye on her," Alaric ordered without turning back, his voice lacking its usual authority, while the footman watched him disappear down the corridor.

Now that silence had returned, Rosalind remained on the bed, unable to move after everything that had just happened. It all felt like something she had watched happen to someone else.

First, she and Rowan had been tangled on the bed, and then Alaric had stormed in on them. Just when she thought everything was already over for her, one sentence had stopped Alaric mid-action.

"Do not raise your hand..."

Rosalind could not stop those words from replaying in her mind. How could Rowan say something like that to the king, and why had Alaric reacted as though he understood it?

Wait... hold on.

Rosalind shot upright as a chill ran down her spine.

Father?

Rowan?

Impossible!

That could not be possible.

He could not have said something like that in anger alone... Rowan was just a footman, so how could he speak as though the king was his father? Rosalind tried to make sense of it, but the thought refused to settle properly, and her head began to ache from the confusion and shock all at once.

And fear settled in too, because Rowan had been taken away again, and this time, Alaric had ordered his execution. That meant there was no longer anything she could do to save him, no matter how much she wanted to. It had already been decided.

And yet... Alaric had said he was coming back for her.

Rosalind could not sleep that night because too many things kept circling her mind.

****

She woke with a start the next morning, blinking her eyes open slowly as she realized she was still inside her chamber.

Last night felt almost unreal, as though none of it had actually happened and she had only suffered through a terrible nightmare.

Except it had happened, and the memories were still fresh in her mind.

Yet, here she was instead of being thrown into the dungeon for committing such heinous crime.

Despite everything, the palace still carried on with the wedding preparations as though they had not committed an abomination the night before. The atmosphere outside remained busy with preparations as they rushed to complete everything before the auspicious hour arrived.

Rosalind sat quietly in her chamber while the maids dressed her.

They had already taken care of the most important preparations the previous night.

"My lady, were you up all night?" Jae asked as she looked at Rosalind’s slightly tangled hair and the dark circles beneath her eyes. "You look rough compared to when we left you."

It was as if Rosalind had ruined all the effort they had put into preparing her.

Rosalind avoided meeting any of their gazes because she felt deeply ashamed and embarrassed. Even though the king had ordered that no word of it should leave the chamber, she still felt stained by it.

She didn’t say anything and the maids resumed their work around her.

They redid her hair, arranging it into an elegant bun woven with braids while decorative pins glittered around her head.

The maids responsible for her appearance continued transforming her face as well, brushing powders lightly against her skin and painting her lips delicately.

Rosalind swallowed nervously as they continued.

Did Alaric still intend to marry her after what had happened?

He should have announced the cancellation of the wedding and declared punishment for treason, yet he had said nothing at all, and she knew it was because Rowan’s words the previous night had shaken him deeply. The king had not looked like himself afterward.

She just needed to endure this and see what happened next. Hopefully, the wedding still would not hold.

The maids then helped her into the heavy white dress adorned with glinting stones that sparkled beneath the light. The gown itself felt suffocating, and the jewelry placed around her body was even heavier, yet she was expected to wear everything gracefully.

The corset was tightened behind her while she held onto the edge of the table for support. The maids pulled the ropes firmly, and Rosalind felt as though they were crushing the breath out of her lungs.

"This will make it look more beautiful, my lady," one of the maids assured her.

Rosalind could barely respond because she could hardly breathe.

Oh God... she could not do this anymore.

Afterward, she slipped into the shoes that matched the gown perfectly, and just as the veil was about to be lowered over her head, another servant hurried into the room.

"Excuse me, I have important news," she announced quickly.

Everyone paused immediately and turned toward her.

The servant bowed respectfully before speaking again. "His Majesty has postponed the wedding. It will not hold today."

"What?" Rosalind heard the maids ask one another in shock.

"The wedding is being postponed? Why?" another maid questioned immediately.

But Rosalind already knew the reason.

She had even expected Alaric to cancel it entirely but he hadn’t.

"That means all our effort was for nothing," Jae sighed.

Rosalind tried to breathe again, but the tightness around her chest still remained.

"Undo the corset first," she said, as she desperately needed air, and once the servant left the room, the maids quickly loosened the strings until Rosalind could finally breathe properly again.

"You must be so sad, my lady, now that the wedding has been postponed after waiting for it all this time," one of the maids, Kira, said sympathetically.

Sad?

If anything, Rosalind felt relieved that the wedding had been postponed, although having it called off completely would have been far better.

Yet, she could not allow herself to feel too relieved because too many dangers remained around her.

How was she supposed to save Rowan from execution? What exactly would Alaric do to her now?

And worst of all, what had Rowan truly meant the previous night?

If anything, Rosalind was overwhelmed with confusion and desperate for answers, and now that the wedding had been postponed, another dreadful thought settled heavily in her chest.

Did this mean she would remain trapped alone inside this chamber day and night again?