'Dear Grandma...
A lot of things have changed since you left. The weather was harsh for the first few days and there was a thick layer of snow in our County for a very long time.
I moved to our cabin with Chirpy to spend some time alone. The fresh air in the mountain and the quiet environment was just what I needed.
One day I woke up in the capital and learned I was married. Surprise!
Clive, Tristan, and Elliot had a hand in it. My new husband was cursed. He had been asleep for months even before we were married.
Stuff happened and people tried to kill me. Turns out my new husband had a lot of enemies. So I escaped, faked my own death, and left the capital.
I met Grandpa Gilbert along the way. Threatened Clive, consoled Mom and Dad, and straightened things with Tristan and Elliot if you know what I mean.
I traveled across Orion and eventually crossed borders into Velven. I found a new home in a small beastmen village here. I made a lot of new friends. I'm also part of their mercenary group now.
The Nero mercenaries are quite an interesting bunch. You would have loved them.
Raeden and Jade are the only responsible adults in our pack. Raeden is brooding all the time and Jade is grumpy all the time. The latter is mostly because of me and the twins Noah and Oliver.
The twins and I have become inseparable. Wherever we go we are always together. The villagers started calling us troublemakers after an incident with the local Lord's son.
I tried my best to adopt the Leveret siblings Eugene and Bea. Eugene thinks I'm crazy for even suggesting the idea. But deep down I think he loves it. He is just too embarrassed and prideful to accept.
Years have passed since then. I'm finally back in Orion for a job. After completing this job, I will return back to the village to take some vacation time.
Everything is going just as I wanted. I couldn't be more happier.
I miss home from time to time. I miss Mom, Dad, Clive, Chirpy, the Knights, our butler, the servants... I miss them all.
I miss you the most. I miss hiking for hours in the Finnel mountains with Chirpy running loose and staying up late in the cabin wrapped up in a blanket before a cozy fire.
Once things in the capital settle down, I'll go back to our home and everything will be just like it used to be.
Oh! Right!
Before I forget...'
Angelica opened her eyes and muttered,
"I f*cked up"
The jig was up.
After the world-shattering reveal that shook her to the core, Edward pulled a chair for Angelica to sit in. Then he led her by the hand and gently nudged her to take a seat.
In a dazed state, Angelica limply followed his actions without putting up a fight. Even if she was in the room physically it was clear that her mind was elsewhere.
But before they could talk further the two were interrupted by a knock on the door.
"My apologies for the intrusion, Your Grace. Its Nathaniel. There is an urgent message from the Imperial Palace"
At first, Edward ignored the knock. But when Nathaniel persisted, Edward grunted and reached for the doorknob.
While a shell-shocked Angelica was still processing everything, Nathaniel and Edward spoke for a few seconds following which Edward exited the dining hall with a grim expression on his face.
After that, Angelica made it back to the bedroom where she had been holed up for the past four hours sprawled all over the bed and staring at the ceiling with no end in sight.
'Angelica...'
Angelica imagined Edward's face on the ceiling as he kissed her hand. The feel of his lips was surprisingly warm as it still lingered in her hand.
Irritated, Angelica threw a pillow toward the ceiling to rid of the image only for it to fall on her face a second later.
Much like the pillow it was her meddling that had landed her in trouble face flat after years of struggle.
The moment Edward called her Eunseo, Angelica had felt time stop around her. It was because the only other person Angelica told that name in this world was Edward during her brief stay in the Frost estate when he was cursed by Havu and slumbered in a vegetative state for months.
As far as she could remember, Angelica had not read anything about the attributes of Edward's curse other than the fact that he was in a coma with his mana being steadily drained from his heart. It would be only after Helen came into the picture that the curse would be broken by her holy power.
But somewhere along the way, Edward seemed to have gained awareness of his surroundings.
'To summarize everything... things would've been perfect had I kept my damn mouth shut!?' Angelica screamed, holding back tears.
She had voluntarily given all the information Edward would need like a news forecast of the future.
Angelica sat up and listed the things she had done to Edward over the course of the month they were together. Unfortunately for her, there was not a single sign of goodwill between them to initiate peace.
Using his face as a canvas, turning his body into a bookshelf and his fingers into bookmarks, climbing on him on multiple and separate occasions, hitting him with a pillow to relieve stress, breaking into his secret vault, and last but not least drowning in his wine before wrecking the room apart.
'No wonder he's back with vengeance'
Angelica facepalmed. All the absurd criminal charges on her made sense now.
The part that did the most damage was her pissed-off mouth that had the filter ripped out. The things she said to him were not that be brushed off as just jest.
In spite of him already being in a cursed state, Angelica cursed, insulted, ridiculed, mocked, and threatened Edward on multiple instances.
Was it a ripple effect of surviving the attack on Mount Zion when she was originally destined to perish? Or was there an anomaly in the curse that made Edward regain awareness before the scheduled time? Or was he self-aware the entire time and she just didn't know? Angelica felt her head sting from the multitude of unanswered questions.
As she massaged her throbbing head, the ring on her finger caught her attention.
"This..."
Edward had slipped the ring onto her finger when she was too muddled to refuse.
Angelica examined the silver ring that had a peculiar design. The band itself had a root-like pattern that twisted around her finger with two wolfs holding onto a large vibrant ruby placed at the crown.
Even under the light of the room, the ruby shone so brightly that it made it obvious it was of a higher grade to a non-expert like her.
"Why is this not coming off... Arghh!!" Angelica grumbled, pulling on the ring in an effort to remove it from her finger.
Despite her attempts, the silver ring stuck to her finger like it was a part of her hand.
Feeling exhausted, Angelica sighed and toyed with the ring twisting it around her finger.
Back when she first came to the Frost Estate, she did not wear a wedding ring since Edward was still cursed. They were supposed to hold a ceremony when Edward eventually wakes up and exchange wedding bands in front of a priest.
However, that never came to fruition as Angelica was attacked and declared dead merely a month into the marriage.
Now that she noticed it, the ruby placed at the center was the same color as Edward's eyes. It was a practice between married couples in Orion to have their wedding bands embedded with gems that matched their partner's eyes.
It was more common among couples that loved each other than those that married with purpose. Her parents had rings that matched each other's eye color.
If anything Angelica's existence was an obstacle to Edward and Helen's love story. Edward would never risk Helen's happiness for the sake of another. He was the kind of person who showed utter blind devotion to his lover and scrutinized everyone else who approached him.
Suddenly, wearing the wedding ring made Angelica uncomfortable as it felt like she was holding onto something that belonged to someone else.
There must be something Edward was after for him to risk his chances with Helen. No matter how much Angelica speculated she could not find the reason.
Angelica hugged her knees to her chest, rested her head, and closed her eyes. She decided to play her part and continue to act dumb till she found a safe way out of the situation. And for that, she needed to regain her strength both mental and physical as soon as possible.
'As long as I figure out his true motive, I have a fighting chance'
That thought lasted for a whole of ten seconds when the bedroom door opened and a figure walked in.
At the sound of the door creaking, Angelica turned her head to the left as Edward walked into the bedroom.
Naked from the waist up, Edward casually strode in, his wet hair sticking to his face as droplets of water ran down his sculptured body with every step he took.
The loose black pants strapped to his waist were the only piece of clothing that covered his body.
"!"
Angelica's eyes unconsciously followed Edward till he stopped right in front of the bed. As if he had just gotten out of a bath, Edward had a towel in his hand with which he was passively wiping his wet hair.
Every time his hand moved, the muscles in his arm tensed and relaxed before following the same pattern. His usually-kept hair was ruffed from the friction of the towel.
Shocked into silence, Angelica who was sitting right across from Edward gaped at him wide-eyed with her mouth open. Her jaw had not dropped to the floor but was certainly on its way.
This was not Angelica's first time seeing Edward's body. On her first day at the Frost estate, she had stripped him of his shirt to check on the progress of the curse on his back.
If she had thought the past Edward was brawny, the man in front of her was on an entirely different level.
The last of the boyish charm she had seen in him was replaced with the aura of a mature man. His features which had grown with the years were more distinct and his muscles were considerably broader standing on par with adult beastman who have higher physical prowess by nature.
'Did he buff up?'
Right then a droplet of water slithered down Edward's neck flowing between the crevices of his abdomen muscle and disappeared below.
Lost in thought, her gaze unconsciously swept across his body completely oblivious to the pair of eyes that were staring back.
Edward's eyes creased like a crescent moon when he realized Angelica was staring at him like a hawk. He dropped the towel to the floor and faced Angelica with a smile, even taking a step forward so that she could get a better view.
"Like what you see?"
Angelica snapped back to reality at that comment.
"Wha... What? What? WHAT? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" She exclaimed, hastily getting to her feet on top of the bed.
The temperature in the room had risen out of control in a matter of seconds.
Angelica's face flushed red as her heart began to beat at a faster pace. She pointed at Edward, and then at the door.
"Why are you here?! Get out! Get! Out!!!"
"..."
"Are you even listening to me? Get out you pervert!"
"..."
However, instead of replying Edward was staring back at Angelica as if he was possessed. The words from her mouth appeared to go in one ear and out the other.
Angelica stepped forward and waved her hands in front of his eyes to get his attention.
"Hello! Eorthe to pervert"
"..."
Seeing that Edward was still unresponsive, Angelica jumped down the bed and headed toward the door.
"Fine! I'll go"
Only after Angelica said that did Edward finally open his mouth.
"Are you going to go out looking like that?"
"What?"
Frowning, Angelica turned around confused. She followed the direction of his gaze to herself and froze in place under realization.
"!"
Earlier Angelica might have been too occupied to have noticed. But as recognition dawned on her she dashed toward the bed in a flash and wrapped herself in the sheets.
Petrified after the revelation, Angelica barely remembered being dressed by the maids and escorted to the room.
She was wearing a pale white nightgown that barely reached her knees with transparent laces stitched along the borders. There were detachable laces in place of straps which could easily come undone with a light tug.
It was eerily similar in design to the nightgowns she had worn during her stay in the past. Back then, it did not matter because Edward could not see her. But that was not the case right now.
It was evident that the piece of clothing was built to fall apart, for a certain occasion. Their intentions for the night were as obvious as much.
Burning with self-awareness, Angelica glared at Edward before turning away from him.
"Wait here"
Clenching his hands into tight fists, Edward averted his gaze and went out of the room.
Just as he disappeared behind the door, Angelica caught a glimpse of the tip of his ears which were flushed red.
Edward returned a minute later and extended a robe to Angelica.
"Thank you. Now get out!"
Angelica snatched the robe from his hand without looking back. She covered herself with the robe and safely securely a knot around her waist.
The nightgown had shown too much skin compared to the area it was covering. Had she noticed it beforehand, she would have asked the maids to provide her with a different nightwear.
'Phew... I can finally breathe'
Sensing that Edward was still behind her, Angelica complained,
"Are your ears for decoration? I told you to get out of my room!"
"This is my bed chamber. Where else am I supposed to go?"
'What did just he say?'
Right as Angelica turned around to protest, she caught Edward in the middle of putting on a shirt. The light material of the shirt loosely clung to his body as he did each button.
"!"
Angelica gulped at the sight. Goosebumps prickled her skin as she felt her face burn in heat. It was equally as worse as when he was half naked.
Meanwhile, the deer in headlights look on her face did not go unnoticed by Edward. With a chuckle, he slowly took his time hooking each button on before purposefully leaving the top two undone.
'The charm of a male lead is no joke...'
Angelica shook her head to rid herself of unsavory thoughts. However attractive he may be, it was not worth the price of putting her life at risk.
"This is your room?" Angelica asked, shifting her gaze to avoid looking at him.
The interior was a little different from what she remembered. The room, void of extravagant furniture or decorations looked like any other chamber in the estate. The major change was the absence of the large empty frame that used to hang on the wall near his secret vault.
"We are a married couple. It is only natural that we sleep in the same chambers"
Angelica narrowed her eyes at Edward's calm explanation.
'You must be joking'
With a scoff she said,
"That's fine and all. But... I'm not your ex-wife"
"You're not my ex-wife"
"Then you agree?"
"Of course. How can you be my ex-wife when we are still married"
'This dolt...'
Angelica bit her lips holding herself back from cursing him. Instead of wasting time by fighting a losing battle, she climbed down the bed to find a different room to sleep in.
"Then I'll go to a different room"
But the moment she took a step forward, Edward blocked her by extending his arm.
"This is the only room available"
"This is the only room available?"
Unable to believe her own ears, Angelica parrotted his statement. She thwacked the arm that blocked her way.
The Frost estate occupied the second-largest residential land in the capital. Along with the built-in training grounds for Knights and the stables, there were different gardens, greenhouses, warehouses, holding cells, and whatnot. The estate also contained separate quarters for the servants and Knights with enough room for an entire city of people to live in.
An extravagant estate as such lacked a single empty room for her to sleep in? Angelica could see right through his act.
"Are you telling me that there is not a single empty room in this enormous estate?"
"Yes"
"All right then! I'll sleep on the floor if I have to"
"You can't. There is a hole in the floor"
"Where? I don't see one"
"There will be"
"..."
The frustration on Angelica's face was made apparent by the veins on her forehead. Aside from being exasperated by Edward's shameless behavior she also felt tired.
One part of her wanted to hit him in the head while the other part of her wanted to rest.
Sighing Angelica looked over at the bed. The giant bed was large enough for a dozen people to sleep in. For someone, who had woken up after three weeks of sleep she felt the drowsiness catch up to her too soon.
After the spectacular day she had, Angelica desperately needed a long night's sleep to rest her body and soul.
Glaring at Edward, Angelica walked over to the far side of the room. She lay on the bed, pulled the quilt to her side, and faced away from him.
"Touch me and I'll break your eggs"
Knowing that she meant her threat, Edward's lips curled.
"I would never approach you without your consent"
"..."
"Good Night"
"..."
When Angelica did not reply, Edward turned off the lights and moved toward the bed in silence.
He lay down as softly as he could so as to not disturb, his eyes fixed on Angelica's silhouette in the darkness the entire time.
Angelica sensed Edward climb onto the bed on the other side. Minutes passed and he neither attempted to pull to quilt nor lessen the distance she had established between them. He had stuck to his words.
Reassured, Angelica closed her eyes. All at once the fatigue caught up to her and before she knew it, she had drifted off to slumberland.
Edward watched Angelica's shoulder relax in the darkness. After being on high alert she had finally trusted him enough to fall asleep. Although small, it was the first step.
'Today must have been a shock for you... Tomorrow will be a new day'
Under the sound of Angelica's steady breathing, Edward closed his eyes.
********
NOTE: Credits to the artist. The picture does not belong to me. This image is as close to Edward as I pictured. Enjoy!