Morning light filtered into the royal bedchamber, casting a faint shimmer through the golden-threaded curtains. The air was still and silent, heavy as if waiting for something to break.
Liveta slowly opened her eyes. She turned to the familiar face lying beside her, but instead of warmth, a chill ran through her veins. The face she had kissed, loved, and trusted now felt foreign and unnervingly distant.
The man beside her stirred. When he saw her awake, he smiled tenderly and whispered, "Good morning, my love."
Her fingertips trembled. She pressed her lips together and forced herself to speak, her voice so faint it was barely audible.
"Who are you… really?"
The man paused. Then, still wearing the same gentle smile, he reached out as if to caress her cheek, his voice softer than ever.
"Liveta, I am your husband. Your beloved. What's wrong, my love?"
That one word "love", once capable of melting her heart, now felt like a blade slicing her to pieces.
Liveta turned away, refusing his touch. Her eyes were filled with caution and suppressed anguish. She clutched the sheet tightly, her voice trembling as she said,
"Last night, I had a dream."
She paused, eyes sharp as a blade, and spoke each word with deliberate force.
"In the dream, the real Adrian told me… you're a fraud. You took his body and imprisoned his soul."
The man's brow twitched, barely noticeable, but the shadow that flashed in his eyes did not escape her. Even so, he quickly returned to his gentle facade.
"Silly girl," he murmured, his tone indulgent as if calming a frightened child. "You must have had a terrible nightmare."
He moved to embrace her again.
But Liveta pushed him away, her gaze now cold as frost.
"If you're really Adrian," she said, her voice tightening, "then answer me this."
Her hands clenched, knuckles white.
"The first time we walked in the garden, I accidentally stepped on your shoe. What did you do?"
"And on our wedding night, what did I tell you in private?"
The man fell silent.
Liveta fixed her eyes on him. "Well? Don't you remember?"
The air froze.
He stared back at her, the tenderness in his expression gradually melting away. After a long pause, he lowered his gaze and gave a faint, bitter smile.
"So… I can't fool you anymore."
A tremor ran through her. It felt as though she had plunged into icy water.
He spoke again, his voice laced with something that almost sounded like sorrow.
"You're right. I'm not Adrian. My name is Arthur. I am his twin brother."
Liveta's grip on the sheets tightened, tears welling in her eyes.
"Why?" she whispered, her voice shaking. "Why would you do this?"
Arthur raised his head. There was something wild in his eyes—an obsession that had grown too deep to contain. His voice quivered as he confessed.
"Because… I love you. From the moment I first saw you, I fell helplessly, hopelessly in love."
His voice carried the weight of a tragedy too great for words.
"I spent eighteen years in darkness, locked away with nothing but silence and pain. I begged. I fought. I gave up. Until one day, you walked into the chapel as the future queen."
Arthur reached for her hand. His grip trembled as he pressed a kiss to her knuckles.
She instinctively tried to pull away, but he held on.
"When I saw you, I saw light. Your smile broke through the shadows. You made me want to live again."
His voice began to crack.
"And then I saw you crying. Crying because of him. That cold, arrogant Adrian who hit you and made you suffer."
He was shaking now.
"I could endure the darkness, the loneliness, even the pain. But I could not bear to see you cry because of him."
He took a breath that felt like it scraped against his soul.
"So I tricked him into switching souls with me."
Arthur cupped her face gently, his tone almost reverent.
"Liveta, please. Have mercy on me. I swear on my life, I will cherish you, love you, never let you cry again."
Her heart felt like it was being torn in two.
She had loved Adrian, deeply. But this man, Arthur, he was so gentle, so attentive, and he had endured so much. He said he would give her everything.
Seeing the hesitation in her expression, Arthur pulled her into his arms.
"Don't be afraid," he whispered close to her ear. His voice was low and intoxicating. "I will make you happy."
She trembled. Her tears flowed without end.
Arthur held her even tighter, then leaned down and kissed her.
It was a kiss filled with tenderness and desperation, with aching longing and silent pleas.
She struggled at first, but as he whispered again and again in her ear—
"I love you…"
"I would give you the world…"
"Just let me stay by your side…"
The resistance within her slowly melted.
Liveta closed her eyes, her tears soaking his shoulder.
She knew that in this moment, she no longer had the strength to pull away.
And in the depths of her sorrow and despair, she began to surrender.