All Chapters of Once Her Betrothed, Now Her Judge: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

[Gideon's POV]Winona Green let out a cold laugh. The guard at her side stepped in to block my adjutant, Tom Brown. Meanwhile, she stood there with her arms crossed, her tone mocking."Gideon, it's been five years, and you're still as hot-headed as ever. Looks like marrying Shane first was absolutely the right decision. If you'd gotten me before he did, where would he fit in? You'd have bullied him to no end."Her smile faded a little, and her tone turned serious. "Why can't you learn from Shane? How are you supposed to please me as my spouse with a temper like yours? I know you're upset about being demoted from prince consort to equal consort, but you're both just as important to me. You don't need to bully him to compete for my favor."Years of brutal warfare had turned my heart to stone, so even hearing something this vile didn't stir anything in me."Hah. I suppose you're certain that I can't live without you, Your Highness. For your information, men don't need to cling to pow

[Gideon's POV]The boy dropped to the ground as his father had and rolled around, screaming and wailing. He shouted that I wanted to smash him to death.Winona's face twisted with heartache as she pulled them both into her arms. She glared at me and hissed, "You monster! How dare you hurt my husband and child to my face! If I were to make someone as brutal and cruel as you my consort, will you even let them live? Guards!"Her voice turned ice-cold as she summoned her guards. "Gideon Ward, a slave branded a criminal, has defied his betters. Drag him out and give him a hundred strokes of the military cane."The guards were just about to move when Shane spoke up gently. "Gideon is in full armor and might suffer internal damage if he's beaten in it. In my opinion, he should be stripped of his armor and shirt before the punishment is administered."The guards hesitated and looked at Winona. Without armor, a hundred heavy blows from the military crane could smash even stone to pieces.

[Gideon's POV]"You know I love you and can't bear to hurt you, so you've done this to humiliate and insult me. Still, I did neglect you for five whole years. I guess… this makes us even now." Winona walked out of the tent, looking exhausted. "I'll have someone bring you medicine later."From now on, you're not allowed to be involved with any other women. I do not take lowlifes as husbands. You'll come back to my estate with me in secret, as my kept man."Before leaving, Shane glanced back at me, his smirk smug.Once everyone was gone, I couldn't hold on any longer. My vision went black, and I passed out. In my dreams, I was taken back to the day I'd taken that blade for Winona."Gideon, how could you be so stupid? I'd rather die than see you hurt, even a little." She'd held me in her arms, sobbing so hard that she could barely breathe.She'd sent out calls for the most famous physicians in the country and spent a fortune having them treat me. When I'd burned up a high fever and

[Gideon's POV]In that instant, grief and fury nearly ripped Winona apart. She cried, "Your Majesty, Gideon and I have long since been engaged. We are deeply in love, and we swore never to part, not even in death. If you now tear us apart, won't that make the people in the realm lose faith in you?"With every single word that fell from Winona's lips, the faces of her people behind her went a shade paler. By the time she finished, they had already edged several yards away, each one desperate to distance themselves from her."Your Highness, please don't say any more…" Shane tugged hard at her sleeve, but she slapped him so viciously that he went sprawling to the ground."Why are you stopping me, you worthless thing? Do you want me to lose a husband with a general's rank?" she barked.She'd put all her strength into that slap; Shane's head slammed heavily against the city wall's bricks. Instantly, there was blood everywhere."Your Highness, it hurts so much…" He looked utterly pitif

[Gideon's POV]The empress said, "General Ward, I am in my prime. I can ride into battle with you."I looked at the scholarly, dignified empress practically itching to join the fight, and hurried to find the right words. "Your Majesty, I'm sure you have the courage to stand alone against thousands of men. But these barbarians are nothing worth troubling your divine might over."I calmly issued my orders, and the soldiers hidden in ambush all around us surged out to counterattack. Very quickly, the enemy cavalry's momentum shattered, and their losses mounted horribly.Winona stared blankly as things played out and murmured, "So you really are a general. How much suffering have you gone through all these years?"Thinking of how she'd let herself be played for a fool by a spy, only to give up a true hidden gem, she slapped herself hard across the face several times.The sounds of battle raged on for a full day and night. The entire field became a river of blood.Facing the never-en