“We’re finally here.”
“Watch your step.”
Selina took Xenos’s outstretched hand and stepped down from the carriage.
“It was a grueling ten-day journey for you.”
“No, I’m quite fine. The carriage can’t go any farther from here, can it?”
“The Dragon Land lies deep within this snow-covered mountain. According to the records, those who wed there receive a special mark. It’s akin to a marriage certificate granted by the temple.”
“And you don’t know what kind of mark it is?”
Will shook his head.
“We don’t know. Isn’t that region the ancestral home of Your Grace’s maternal great-great-grandfather? Have you heard nothing about it?”
“The only surviving records are kept by the research society. My mother mentioned a few things to me, but I was too young to remember it all.”
“I see.”
At the thought of venturing into the unknown, Selina knitted her brows and looked toward the forest with an anxious gaze.
“My Lady, do not worry so much. If we take this path through the forest, we will certainly reach the Dragon Land.”
Selina took comfort in knowing that the one braving this venture alongside her was none other than Duke Eustia, whose Dragon Power was renowned for always bringing him victory.
Seeing their hands tightly clasped together, Will spoke.
“Well then, go on ahead, you two. I will join the rest of our party here and await your return.”
“Let’s go.”
“All right, we will be back soon.”
Selina entered the forest accompanied by Xenos.
Once the two had walked far enough that their traces vanished, Will murmured with deep sincerity,
“May you return safely.”
Trekking through the forest path—too rugged for even a carriage to enter—was no easy feat.
Though Selina had brought sensible shoes for the journey, walking across the snowy woodland proved difficult, and she stumbled and nearly fell several times.
Each time, Xenos was there as a steady support to catch her.
“I had physical training at the academy, but it seems I’m not accustomed to forest paths…. I’ve done nothing but show you my clumsy side.”
Xenos deftly steadied her after another near slip before answering.
“What clumsy side? If anything, I feel as though I’ve been given an opportunity. A chance to walk beside you just as I wish. From now on, whichever path we take, I will always be by your side like this.”
Xenos smiled, watching Selina lean into his support with complete trust.
‘If only I could see this smile every day, I’d want to stay by his side forever….’
Startled by the unexpected thought, Selina took a slight step back from him.
‘Since when did I start thinking this way? Since when has this man made my heart flutter every time I look at him?’
It was entirely unlike what she had felt for Erik or her former fiancé, Morgan, who had always been part of her life.
Before Xenos could ask why she had stepped away… it happened.
A deafening roar split the air, followed by a flash of white light that completely engulfed their vision.
The surrounding trees, grass, and earth all vanished, swallowed whole by the blinding radiance that eclipsed the sun.
“Selina!”
With Xenos’s final cry, Selina lost consciousness. Drawing upon his inner Dragon Power, Xenos barely managed to stay on his feet, catching her limp body in his arms.
Despite the searing pain threatening to rupture his eardrums, he cupped his large palms over Selina’s ears to shield her.
The blinding glow began to shrink, gradually condensing into the shape of a person.
Once the light had dwindled to human size, the thunderous roar ceased.
“Are you… human?”
The voice sounded more like rushing wind than human speech, yet it reached Xenos clearly despite the ringing in his ears.
Xenos shouted back with all his might,
“I am an heir to the Dragon Power. And I have come to this land to wed my one and only partner!”
“Selina. Selina, open your eyes. Selina.”
Selina opened her eyes to Xenos’s voice. The white light and piercing roar were completely gone.
“Your Grace, what happened?”
“I don’t know. I lost consciousness partway through as well…. I’m not certain.”
Pressing a hand to her forehead against a dull ache, Selina pushed herself up a little.
“What is… this?”
In her hand was a small pebble that resembled a white stone.
“I’m not entirely sure… but the presence made of white light said it would leave the Marriage Proof with you. It seems this is what it meant.”
“The Marriage Proof?”
No matter how she looked at it, it was just an ordinary white pebble. Selina turned it over in her hand and tapped it with her fingernail.
“It’s merely a pebble.”
“Before I passed out, I believe the white light said it leaves the Marriage Proof in the partner’s hand. As for the rest… I’ve tried to recall it, but I can’t.”
‘I knew it would be different, but I never imagined I’d have a wedding like this.’
Selina closed her hands tightly around the Marriage Proof. For some reason, it felt as though a gentle warmth was radiating from it.
“Do you remember anything?”
“No. After that deafening sound that felt like it would tear my ears apart, and seeing that white light… I lost consciousness.”
“This is troublesome.”
Both of them were well aware of just how unfavorably the odds were stacked against them.
“His Majesty will certainly never acknowledge our marriage.”
‘After traveling all this way through so much hardship, will I still end up married to Erik and have our family store stolen from me after all?’
Selina drew her knees to her chest and stared down at the pebble in her hand for a long moment.
“His acknowledgment does not matter.”
Noticing her tension, Xenos sat down beside her.
“You are my wife. Are you not?”
He covered Selina’s hand holding the Marriage Proof with his own large hand and continued,
“From this moment on, I am your husband. And I will protect you, no matter what happens.”
“And I will trust you. I will follow you as your wife, Your Grace.”
“Selina.”
“Yes, Your Grace?”
“Call me by my name.”
Selina looked into Xenos’s eyes, which seemed to gleam with newfound clarity, and before she realized it, she spoke,
“Xenos.”
“I had hoped to present this before a larger gathering, but….”
Xenos drew a ring from inside his coat.
“I take you as my wife.”
“Xenos….”
Selina looked in astonishment at the ring, which slid onto her finger in a perfect fit, and asked,
“When did you prepare all this?”
“When I brought you all the way out here to marry, my father said I couldn’t very well go without a ring, so he gave it to me.”
Scratching his head slightly, unable to tell a lie and crediting Philip, he held out his hand to her.
“Now it’s your turn.”
Selina took Xenos’s hand to slip the matching ring onto his finger.
‘Why am I trembling like this over something like this?’
She placed the ring on his finger, praying he wouldn’t hear her racing heartbeat.
“And I take you as my husband.”
Their hands shone together, each adorned with an identical ring.
The two emerged from the forest three days later. In the meantime, Will had assembled the escort sent by the families of the ducal faction and lined them up in formation to receive them.
“Over there! They’re coming!”
As the scout called out their arrival, the guards drew into sharp alignment.
“All of this is….”
“Thank you for returning safely. This way, if you please.”
A small wooden tower stood nearby, erected who knew when, flying the flag of the duchy.
Selina looked on in surprise as Xenos escorted her up the tower, while Will signaled that everything was ready.
“All troops, salute the Duke and Duchess!”
In unison, roughly two hundred soldiers drew their swords and drove the tips into the ground in ceremonial salute.
“Though we limited their numbers as an escort guard, it seems the families went out of their way to send more.”
“I worry this might be misunderstood as defiance.”
“Do not worry. From now on, I won’t allow anyone to harm a single hair on your head.”
“Yes, I trust you.”
Will smiled warmly as he watched the two speaking tenderly to each other.
Xenos then gave his command to the guards.
“March toward the capital.”
