The Camellia Tattoo - Chapter 9
Thud. Feeling like her chest was sinking, Amber swiftly turned her head.
Just when she thought she had discarded everything like pride before she died… as the same situation repeated, her pride was fading away into a deep shade of blue again.
Regardless of the reason, for a husband to leave his bride alone on the first night, would show this to everyone around that he was very dissatisfied with Amber.
Some petty people even expressed deliberately leaving the wife alone on the first night as a way of asserting dominance.
Honestly, a wife might also find the relationship with her husband extremely dissatisfying as well, so why did the authority to make that decision rest solely with the husband? Amber couldn’t understand and trembled with indignation for a long time.
She couldn’t sleep well due to the anger for a while.
“Princess.”
At that moment, a thick and low voice fell onto her stiffened shoulders.
It seemed like he had called her this way before. When she didn’t respond and just turned away, he simply left.
Would the same thing happen again this time? He… he shouldn’t.
Inside Amber’s mind, a fierce battle unfolded between the part that said, ‘Look at him, raise your head and look,’ and the part that said,’Just stay like this, getting angry.’
By the time the two in her mind were about to grab each other’s hair and slap each other, he spoke up.
“I urgently need to go on a mission. A pack of one-horned wolves is approaching the village without any fear.”
“One-horned wolves?”
No, more importantly… was he explaining?
As her eyes widened when she turned to look at him, Igmeyer chuckled and knelt on one knee.
In his eyes, the behavior of his much younger wife seemed quite adorable.
Throughout the banquet, she displayed arrogant glances and gestures as if being treated respectfully was a matter of course. Her chin was raised and a straightened back despite wearing layers so tight that breathing seemed impossible.
However he didn’t even think about getting closer because he knew that marrying him was like stepping into the mud for the princess.
Igmeyer was well aware that even exchanging words with a lowly blood would bring shame to royalty. Those who had come with her from her hometown had the same expression.
They acted as if the esteemed princess had been sold off to bandits.
But strangely…. after the first night passed, it felt as if the princess had opened up a little.
‘Well, I never thought she’d suck me.’
Feeling that she wasn’t just blindly rejecting him, Igmeyer continued a few more words.
“One-horned wolves are annoying, but they’re not a significant threat. The problem is what comes with them.”
“What, what’s coming?”
“Their master. Fenrir.”
Fenrir! Amber cowered at the mention of that fearful name.
In northern mythology, Fenrir’s king is referred to as a sinister being who devours the sun, bringing endless darkness and doom to this world.
Even without the mythological context, Amber knew how ferocious the creature was.
‘It’s annoyingly ferocious and clever. It has been known to attack livestock or raid meat warehouses. If not stopped in time, it might even devour young children.’
In her past life, she heard about it. Once Fenrir appears, the scale of damage becomes several times larger than other monsters.
“I think I can only come back after catching Fenrir, who’s been lurking and moving the one-horned wolf pack. Can you spend time alone until then?”
“…Don’t speak as if I have choices when I don’t. I’m upset.”
“Ah, I see. I apologize.”
As Igmeyer readily admitted his mistake, Amber’s heart also eased a little.
Moreover, when she learned that he had a reason for leaving so abruptly, she felt a strange sense of relief.
She was a Princess who had grown up listening to the words that she must protect the people. She would permit him without hesitation if he left the bridal chamber to protect the territory.
“Be careful… and come back.”
“Thank you for allowing me.”
He responded modestly, and a slight smile crept up on Igmeyer’s face. Even though he had to confront one-horned wolves and Fenrir, he seemed not the least bit scared.
Amber found his composure a bit amusing.
“Commander! Please! At this rate, the village will be overrun!”
Oh, there was no time to be at ease?
From outside, the sound of his lieutenant, Jean, rushing in was heard.
As Igmeyer turned slightly to look back, his face seemed to be swallowed by shadows, making it hard to read his expression from where she was sitting.
‘He and Jean were close since Igmeyer established the mercenary group.’
Before her regression, Amber didn’t particularly like Jean. Jean didn’t like her either.
‘If you don’t know anything, you should just stay quiet.’
Digging through her memories, a cold remark from Jean surfaced.
It’s not that she doesn’t know anything.
She had learned much more than an ordinary Princess.
Beyond flower arranging, embroidery, and reciting old poems, Amber could take the lead in conversations even in front of contemporary musicians or famous artists. She knew how to decorate a large banquet hall to make it look elegant and had been leading the trend in new dress styles every year.
Moreover, the professors at the Shadroch Philosophy Academy admired her so much!
While Amber’s talents shone like a star in Shadroch, in Niflheim, where the social scene did not open up, her talents seemed extravagant.
This land had rendered her useless.
Even if time were to rewind, that thought remained unchanged. Jean’s attitude and tone seemed unfair as well.
“It seems like the lieutenant has quite the fussy personality.”
The words she wanted to say were pressed down, and what came out was just that.
