Chapter 4

“Silence!” Aleron’s voice cut sharply through the room as he struck the papers against the table. “You have no place to concern yourself with my affairs.”

Emmanuel hurriedly apologized. “My apologies, Your Majesty. Please forgive me.”

…

Upon returning to her chamber, Snow applied the ointment before the mirror.

It was, without question, a remarkable remedy. Within only two days, the injuries upon her face had faded considerably, leaving behind little trace of what had occurred.

Since this rare moment of reprieve afforded her some measure of privacy, she quietly gathered the few belongings she intended to take with her and exchanged several pieces of jewelry that held little practical value for money.

The following day, the queen mother summoned Aleron, Verde, and William to her presence.

Aleron dragged Snow along with him.

After the meal had concluded, the queen mother regarded her son. “It’s been three years, and still you haven’t taken a wife. It is time you selected a queen and secured an heir.”

Aleron merely turned the cup in his hand. “I have yet to bring complete peace to the kingdom. Marriage is not a matter I have the leisure to consider.”

The queen mother could only sigh in resignation.

For three years, she had heard the same excuse repeated countless times, and each time she found herself powerless to change his mind.

She knew very well the true reason behind his refusal. Her gaze then shifted toward Verde. “Lady Verde, it is also time that you and William consider having a child.”

The words had scarcely left her lips when a sharp sound rang through the room.

Aleron’s cup had broken in his hand. A thin line of blood appeared upon his palm, yet he seemed not to notice.

At that moment, Snow was pouring their drinks. Without warning, he drew her toward him and seated her upon his lap. “Dress my wound.”

The scent of blood reached her senses.

The world seemed to turn, and before she could stop herself, Snow became ill.

In her panic, she immediately lowered her head in apology, but the queen mother’s expression brightened. “Could it be that you are with child? Summon the royal physician at once!”

The change in Aleron’s expression was immediate. The warmth that had briefly appeared upon Verde’s face vanished as well, and tears gathered in her eyes.

When the physician finally confirmed that Snow was indeed carrying a child, she felt as though the ground had disappeared beneath her feet. She was pregnant with Aleron’s child!

“She is unwell,” Aleron said coldly. “I shall take her back to rest.”

Before anyone could object, he led her away.

When they returned to her chamber, Aleron placed a bowl before her.

“Drink.”

With trembling hands, Snow took the bowl. With no choice but to obey, she lifted the bowl and drank.

The pain that followed soon overwhelmed her. She sank down, barely aware of anything around her, until even consciousness began to slip away. Blood flowed from between her legs, and she almost fainted from the agony.

For one fleeting moment, she thought she saw something akin to regret in Aleron’s eyes.

But it could only have been an illusion. How could Aleron ever pity her?

His heart had always belonged to Verde.

Only when the royal physician confirmed that the child was gone did Aleron finally leave with the others.

The moment the door closed behind them, Verde entered with several attendants.

“Lock the door!” she ordered coldly.

Before Snow could react, Verde’s anger had already found its target. Her kick landed on her stomach.

“Ahhh!!!”

Overwhelming pain filled her. It hurt so much that she doubled over. Cold sweat drenched her clothes.

“You witch!” Verde’s composure finally broke. She seized Snow by the hair and forced her to meet her gaze. “Have you learned nothing? How dare you carry His Majesty’s child?!”

Snow shook her head weakly. “I did not intend for this to happen…”

Her tears mingled with the remnants of sweat from her fever and exhaustion. “I had no control over it…”

But Verde had no desire to hear her explanation. Her expression hardened as she turned toward the attendants behind her. “See that she can never conceive again.”

Their hits and strikes rained down upon her. The pain overwhelmed her, and before long, darkness claimed her once more.

When she awoke again, the chamber was empty.

For a long while, Snow lay there without moving. Then, with trembling hands, she touched her stomach, and tears quietly slipped down her cheeks.

Perhaps this was for the best.

That child had never been meant to enter a world such as this. Perhaps it was kinder that they had been spared such a fate.

In the days that followed, Snow was no longer summoned to attend upon Aleron at night.

He did not seek her. He did not inquire after her. It was as though she had vanished from his thoughts entirely.

Then, one day, Aleron suddenly entered her chamber without warning.

His gaze immediately fell upon the papers scattered across her desk. Upon each page, the same word had been written again and again.

[Leave]

His expression darkened like thunderclouds gathering before a storm.

“You wish to leave?” He seized the papers and tore them apart before her eyes. “Rid yourself of such foolish thoughts, Snow. Even if you flee to the very ends of the earth, I shall find you.”