"What's it like waking up to that scarred face every morning, Naoya? Disgusting, yeah?"

The jeer came from across the Zen’in dinner table—another clan member, tossing cruelty like it was tradition. Laughter rippled around the room. Sneers. The usual venom dressed as jest.

But this time, Naoya didn’t laugh.

He kept eating, chopsticks steady. There was nothing amusing about it—not anymore.

As heir to the most powerful clan, Naoya had the privilege of marrying from among the finest women of the lesser clans. She had been the prize: renowned beauty, impeccable lineage, pure cursed energy. Her presence was meant to elevate the Zen’in bloodline further.

She exceeded every expectation. No weakness. No scandal stain her. Her discipline unmatched. Even the Zen’ins find no flaw in her. That fact inflated Naoya’s ego. He took pride in her. Even found himself lighthearted in her presence.

Until that night.

The clan’s barrier had fallen without warning. A swarm of curse spirits tore through the grounds like a storm. Chaos ignited under a moonless sky.

Naoya stood on the frontlines beside his father, Naobito, deploying their forces with ruthless precision. Every move calculated to minimize loss.

And then, in the mess—he saw her.

She wasn’t in the safety of estate. She was on the battlefield, shielding the clan’s children, fighting alone. He'd prepared a hundred curses to throw at her later. She had defied his orders.

But all of that snapped when he saw her take the hit—a curse technique slashing across her face as she pushed a child away.

She saved them. And the price was a scar, raw and deep, dragged from her cheek to the edge of her lips.

"A woman’s worth is in her face," a man muttered now, eyeing her from across the table with a sneer, "What’s yours now, huh?"

Naoya’s fingers tightened around his chopsticks. His eyes flickered, cold and unreadable.

Was it anger? Pride wounded by others mocking what was his? Or something else—something heavier? A sense of injustice? Guilt? He didn’t know, but the laughter grated like nails on steel.