Karina was floating as if on water in pitch-black darkness.

It was a space filled with silence and stillness where nothing could be heard.

Before she could feel any strangeness, a faint glimmer of light appeared in the distance.

Karina felt no fear or terror.

She just blankly watched the light clusters gathering and dispersing among themselves.

Then at some point, one light cluster that seemed to grow a bit larger approached and spread around her.

The surroundings brightened.

“You may enter now.”

She heard the whispering voice of a maid standing beside her.

‘…What is this?’

A small question arose, but before she could recognize it, that question sank deep into her inner self.

And Karina’s lips moved contrary to her will as she stood in front of a massive door.

“Okay.”

Karina realized she was extremely nervous.

At last, the door opened.

Karina entered the hall, holding back her trembling heart.

On the ceiling, a brilliantly shining chandelier sparkled dazzlingly, brightly illuminating the interior of the vast hall.

Adding to the grandeur and luxury were canopies of luxurious fabric and vibrant colors.

A wedding aisle stretched out in a straight line before her.

On both sides of the wedding aisle were colorful decorations of vibrantly blooming flowers, and various sparkling jewels showed off their harmony.

At regular intervals, candle holders finely crafted by artisans were placed on decorative stands, emitting a soft glow.

It was an incredibly spacious and splendid wedding hall.

The eyes of the guests sitting in their seats poured onto the bride.

Yet, the moment she caught sight of him waiting for her at the end of the wedding aisle,

Karina could see only one person.

‘Jeremiah!’

Karina’s eyelids fluttered as she saw him.

Jeremiah, neatly dressed in a wedding suit, looked so handsome.

His jet-black hair, soft-looking with a good texture, was swept back, revealing his forehead clearly.

His thick eyebrows, eyes dark as the night sky, straight nose bridge, sharp jawline, and tightly closed red lips perfectly harmonized, accentuating his already handsome features.

Jeremiah stood there like a statue, waiting for Karina.

Karina’s face flushed. Her heart pounded wildly as if it would burst.

Each step towards him felt like being drawn into a painting.

Jeremiah greeted Karina with an expressionless but calm face.

Yet, as she approached, he exuded a strangely tense atmosphere.

‘Is Jeremiah as nervous as I am?’

Karina thought to herself as she stole a glance at his face.

As the two stood side by side, the high priest began the ceremony.

She was so nervous that she couldn’t properly hear what the high priest was saying.

Before she knew it, Jeremiah was placing the ring on Karina’s finger.

Feeling the warmth of Jeremiah’s hand holding hers, Karina found it hard to keep her composure.

It was Karina’s turn. She clenched and unclenched her trembling hand.

‘I must not make a mistake!’

With a slightly trembling hand, she placed the ring on Jeremiah’s left ring finger.

“…I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

The high priest concluded the ceremony.

Karina didn’t know how the wedding had passed. She felt happy yet breathless.

She wanted to quickly end the ceremony and have a private conversation face to face with Jeremiah.

After finishing the hectic greetings with the nobles attending the wedding and following the scheduled order, the long wedding finally came to an end.

Night had already fallen, the day having passed quickly.

After the ceremony, Karina changed her clothes and went to Jeremiah’s office.

“If you think I’m going to consummate with you, I’d like to tell you to wake up from that dream right now.”

Jeremiah said without even looking at Karina.

“I’ll continue using the room next to the office as my bedroom. I’m busy with work, so don’t disturb me unless it’s urgent.”

Jeremiah wore an expression that showed her visit was very bothersome.

“Ah, no. That’s not why I’m here.”

Although she felt very disappointed inside, knowing that this marriage wasn’t out of love from Jeremiah, she couldn’t show it outwardly.

She didn’t want to get on his bad side from the start.

Karina tightly clenched her hands, which were becoming sweaty from nervousness.

Feeling that she wouldn’t be able to speak properly if she looked him in the eye, she squeezed her eyes shut.

“Jeremiah. I’m sincere.”

Karina spoke the words she had practiced hard until now.

“I’ll try my best. I’ll work hard to be loved in the Grand Duke’s family, so please wait and watch over me for a little while.”

Thankfully, she was able to speak without stuttering or trembling, thanks to her practice.

“…”

But no matter how long she waited, Jeremiah’s answer didn’t come.

“Jeremiah?”

Karina opened her eyes again and looked at Jeremiah.

Jeremiah was looking at Karina with a cold expression.

He spoke in a chilly voice without any change in expression.

“You’re making unnecessary efforts.”

Karina’s heart sank at his words.

He opened his mouth, looking straight at Karina.

“Let me be blunt. As long as you’re the daughter of Viscount Millainer, it’s all meaningless. Don’t harbor false hopes.”

Karina couldn’t respond to his cold and firm rejection.

It was a completely unexpected reaction, and she didn’t know what to do.

“Je… Jeremiah… I…”

“And.”

His voice lowered a tone.

“When did I give you permission to use my name? I don’t recall doing so.”

Each word from Jeremiah stabbed Karina’s heart like a dagger.

Her chin trembled slightly.

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

It felt like all the blood was draining from her body.

‘I shouldn’t be hurt by this already. It’s only the first day.’

Karina forced a smile, trying to appear nonchalant.

“I thought it would be okay to call you by name since we’re married now…”

Hesitating, Karina continued.

“I’d like it if you called me Karina too.”

“I refuse.”

Her chest tightened at his cold response.

“I don’t even like you calling my name.”

“Then… when you acknowledge me as your wife, will you allow me to call you by name?”

“That will never happen, so don’t waste your effort.”

Jeremiah’s voice, firmly stating with a cold expression, seemed to be right next to her.

‘Huk!’

Karina trembled, feeling as if her breath was caught in her throat.

The image of Jeremiah sitting in the office began to darken around the edges and gradually faded from Karina’s view.

Karina’s body fell backward, plunging into a darkness where the floor was invisible.

The wind felt as she fell harshly struck Karina’s entire body.

The light clusters that had distanced themselves gathered again and rushed at her from the front along with a harsh winter wind.

She closed her eyes and covered her face with her arms against the biting wind.

The feeling of falling stopped, and the sensation of solid ground beneath her feet returned.

When she opened her eyes, she was in front of the Grand Duke’s mansion, covered in pure white snow.

“Haah.”

As she exhaled, white breath spread out.

The northern winter, with falling snow and cold waves, was bone-chillingly cold.

Despite shivering, Karina was waiting for Jeremiah to arrive.

Today was his birthday.

It was his first birthday since their marriage, so Karina had carefully planned for days, pondering what to prepare.

She wanted to prepare a small gift and set up a dinner table for him herself.

Though her skills were lacking, she had spent all day in the Grand Duke’s kitchen, working hard to prepare the food.

It was beef stew and apple pie, which Caroline had told her were Jeremiah’s favorite foods.

After several failures, she finally managed to create a decent finished product, her face smeared with soot.

She hoped Jeremiah would be pleased.

There was also a small wish mixed in, hoping that he, who had not yet opened his heart to her, would see her in a new light, even if just a little.

Her heart was fluttering with anticipation and excitement.

“Isn’t it about the time he said he would arrive?”

“Yes.”

After setting the table in the dining room, she had come out to the front of the mansion a little earlier than the time he was supposed to arrive.

But even though the time he said he would arrive had long passed, there was no news.

“On such a cold day, what a pointless trouble this is.”

“That’s right. We could have just waited inside, but suddenly she wanted to wait outside.”

“She’s really making a fuss.”

“…”

She could hear the maids grumbling softly behind her.

At another time, she might have scolded them for being impertinent.

But by this point, Karina’s self-esteem had already hit rock bottom due to various instances of being ignored, cold-shouldered, and slandered.

She didn’t want to be misunderstood as causing a disturbance inside the mansion while Jeremiah was away.

She just stood still, pretending not to hear, while tightly gripping the hem of her skirt with both hands.

‘It’s a special day today. I don’t want to get red-faced over trivial matters.’

Karina reassured herself inwardly.

As time passed, she grew more anxious.

Not only was she worried about the carefully prepared food getting cold, but she was also concerned that something might have happened to Jeremiah.

Finally unable to bear it any longer, Karina asked a maid.

“Has there been any message about him being late?”

“No, there hasn’t.”

“…”

The maid answered immediately without even checking with the mansion or the guards at the main gate.

“But if something had happened…”

“If there had been any message, the Grand Duchess would have been informed first.”

Other maids chimed in one by one.

“The schedule for returning from monster subjugation often runs late.”

“Let’s go inside now, Grand Duchess.”

“…”

Their faces clearly showed that they wanted to go inside.

“If you’re cold, go in first. Go in and reheat the cooled food. I’ll wait a bit longer.”

“Yes, Grand Duchess.”

The maids rushed into the mansion as soon as Karina finished speaking.

‘It’s easier to wait alone.’

Karina gathered her resolve again and waited for Jeremiah.

Meanwhile, the sun had set and it had grown dark.

The sentries and guards patrolling the castle lit torches here and there.

As the waiting time grew longer, she felt she had been stubbornly foolish.

‘But it’s the first birthday since we married. I want to make it a special, memorable day.’

It was two more hours before Jeremiah and the knights finally returned.

“Ah!”

The main gate opened, and she saw Jeremiah approaching on horseback.

Karina opened her mouth to welcome him.

“Welcom bak.”

But perhaps because she had waited so long outside in the cold, her mouth was frozen stiff and she couldn’t pronounce properly.

Startled, Karina rubbed her hands together and massaged her cheeks and around her mouth to loosen them up.

Then she greeted Jeremiah again as he approached her.

“Welcome back, Your Grace.”

“Why are you out here?”

Jeremiah asked, looking down at Karina from atop his horse.

“I heard you were returning today, so I wanted to come out and greet you.”

“You’ve done something unnecessary.”