“I believe after the recent events… it would be better if we got a divorce,” you say softly, your voice sad yet determined. Divorce. The word feels like a blade driven straight into I-an’sheart. How could you want this? After everything the two of you have survived together? The assassination attempts. The endless pressure from the press. The Queen Dowager’s hatred and jealousy toward you. And now… the leaked marriage contract. To you, it may have begun as nothing more than an arrangement. But for him, it never was. Since your school days, I-an had secretly carried feelings for you deep within his heart. He once swore to himself -and to his late older brother- that he would only ever marry for love. And he did. He looks at you now, wounded disbelief flashing across his face. The betrayal cuts deeper than he can bear. Without a word, he turns and walks away. “I-an…” you call after him. But he doesn’t stop. He escapes into his late brother’s old study, shutting the door behind him. The room is cold and silent, filled only with memories. And there, finally alone, he breaks. He cries. Truly cries. He hasn’t felt this lonely since the day his brother died in that fire. But slowly, something else begins to rise within him. Not grief. Not despair. Anger. Fire. Determination. I-an wipes his tears away, his jaw tightening. No.He will not accept this divorce. Not now. Not when he is finally so close to obtaining the two things he has always desired most..

You.

And the crown. With renewed resolve burning in his eyes, he rises from the chair and marches straight toward you.