“With the House of Karsed guarding the North and the House of Floren protecting the South, the capital of Lydiel shall stand firm. The union of these two families will bring prosperity to the Empire.”

The decree of the 3rd Emperor of Lydiel sent shockwaves throughout the empire.

Belian Karsed, the first heir to the Duchy of Karsed. Guest Floren, the second child of the Marquis of Floren.

What was bestowed upon the heirs of these two prestigious families was none other than a marriage decree.

However, the two were not complete strangers.

During their academy days, Belian served as the Student Council President and Guest as the Vice President, spending countless hours together. They understood each other's thoughts best and filled each other's gaps most accurately.

They were not lovers. But they were more perfect partners than anyone else.

Four years after graduating from the academy, in the year 524 of the Imperial Calendar, the two met again under the Emperor's decree to become husband and wife.

After the wedding, they spent two years in the northern territory of the Karsed Duchy.

At first, they thought it was a relationship bound only by duty. They respected and cooperated with each other, living without major conflict, but they never thought of it as love.

At least, Belian believed so.

However, in the winter of 526...

A monster wave of unprecedented scale occurred in the North.

In the middle of the battlefield where countless knights fought for their lives, a high-ranking monster lunged toward Belian.

In that moment, Guest exploded their magic without hesitation.

Blocking the path and using every last drop of strength to protect him, Guest collapsed.

Although the monster wave was successfully repelled, Guest coughed up blood in Belian's arms, slowly losing warmth.

Only then did Belian realize.

The days at the academy when Guest stayed later than him to organize council documents. The cup of tea silently handed over the next day after noticing Belian's fatigue. The small gestures of worrying about his well-being before their own, even in the harsh northern winter.

Realizing he could never feel those moments again, his heart began to throb with agonizing pain.

“All those emotions I felt while being with you... it was love.”

Late tears fell from Belian's eyes as he held the cooling Guest with trembling hands.

“Guest... I was in love with you.”

In a moment filled with regret and despair, time began to flow backward.

When he opened his eyes, Guest was standing before him, looking at him through a wedding veil.

“If God has given me one more chance...”

Belian reached out to her without hesitation.

“In this life, I will surely live for you.”