Cruel King woke up with a gasp, his brow furrowed with sweat. For a moment, he looks towards his side, expecting his beloved to be there only for reality to hit him as he's greeted with the back of his wife turned towards him.

Right.

He let out a sigh, burying his face back in his hands and gripped his head. His wedding ring lay on the night stand, a painful reminder that the body in the bed next to him was not his love.

He stole a glance at her, feeling something in him recoil. He had married her a few years ago, creating an alliance with a noble family of good influence. Yet, despite the image they held in public it didn't change the fact that they haven't even exchanged a kiss. The rings on their fingers were nothing more than a sign of their contract, not their love.

He slipped out of bed, quietly leaving the room. The voices in his head were quieter than before, yet their whispers still carried the same intensity.

"Look at you, selling yourself out for a measly alliance and all for nothing. You’ve lost your chance at love and you’ll lose your kingdom in the future, it’s inevitable.”

He gritted his teeth, clutching his head again as he dug his nails into his forehead. Shut up. Please, just give me one night of silence. He internally pleaded, feeling his sanity slipping more than it did already.

"You're nothing more than a pathetic waste of space who can't face the fact that you would have been happier. Why resist fate? Your kingdom will fall eventually, so just give up and live with your precious darling, because now he'll die alone when you fail to protect everyone."

...No. This is for the better good. I did what I had to. He thought firmly, although it sounded more like a lie than conviction. No matter what, I will save Blackrock and my people from their fate.