The next morning I was woken up by the sound of Herbie fleeing through the door after catching a glimpse of us on the bed together.

What time is it now? I hoisted myself up from the sand.

There is no sense of time in the place I was in. The red sun and the waves were all I could see as if I was living inside a distant dreamland.

At some point during the night, I had fallen asleep. It was the first time in months I was able to rest with a peace of mind that it was refreshing.

On a physical level, I was still bedridden and unable to move, but could no longer feel the pain inflicted by the Havu curse. Because the curse was somehow broken(?) by the woman sleeping peacefully next to me, my wife Angelica.

After our first night together took some unexpected turns, she curled up next to me exhausted from singing the same song over and over again.

I can still hear it ringing in my head. If only I could do something to stop it.

Right then Angelica woke up from her slumber.

"Hmmm"

As she sheepishly blinked her eyes, her soft eyelashes brushed against my chest like a butterfly fluttering its wings.

Tickling and fluffy at the same time. It was an odd sensation.

Then mimicking her behavior from the previous night she rubbed her face against me one last time before rising up. Seeing her do so casually one would think we were together for a very long time.

"OH MY GOD!" Angelica exclaimed, surprised by her own position, and rolled back till she hit the floor.

*thud*

That's gotta hurt. Though it is nice to see her being energetic first thing in the morning.

For a second, I was surprised by my own thoughts.

We barely knew each other for a day but subconsciously Angelica had already become a part of my mind.

"Oww"

Angelica's groan brought me back to my senses.

She remained on the floor for a while without any movements. But I could feel her eyes fixed on me as if she was scheming something.

Even if she wanted to harm me, there was nothing stopping her as I'm at her mercy in the absence of others. However, I doubt she will ever do that.

Hesitantly climbing the bed, Angelica crawled towards me. She was able to climb on top of me with ease, now that she has done it a few times.

When I recalled her behavior the previous night, it appeared as if she was about to yell at me again. So I braced myself and waited for her to speak.

Instead, Angelica started poking all over the sides of my body.

*poke* *poke*

"No reaction" Angelica muttered in a doubtful voice, pinching the tip of my nose.

'What is she doing?' I couldn't help but laugh.

Whatever it was running through her mind, I could tell that she was being serious.

After she was done with the poking, Angelica's next move was to tickle my abdomen as best as she could.

*tickle* *tickle* *tickle*

"Tough one huh"

As expected, there wasn't any physical reaction, but I could feel the course of her hands move as she felt my body with a feathery touch.

Then it struck my mind. I belatedly understood the reason behind her weird acts.

My wife Angelica was just making sure if her husband was genuinely in a coma or if he was just faking it.

Not a single person so far has considered such a possibility.

Angelica was so close to discovering the truth. Her actions proved that she was clueless about the influence she has on the curse, at least for now.

In the end, she didn't. Her tensed-up muscles relaxed, convinced that I was in a coma.

"Haah..." Angelica let out a sigh.

Seeing how relaxed she was, it seems like I have successfully passed the trials, and am now free of doubt.

'My wife sure is a cautious little fox' My lips curved into a sinister smile.

Unfortunately for her, I was able to clearly sense her activities till the minute of details.

*knock* *knock*

There was a knock on the door.

It was Nathaniel and Herbie. They must have come to prepare for the arrival of the priests for the scheduled cleansing.

Allowing them to enter, Angelica tried to get up. In the process, she slipped and fell on top of me as the door opened.

Right on cue, Nathaniel walked in the middle of our supposedly intimate moment and retreated in his steps leaving her flustered.









Over the days of my marriage, I've been learning a lot about my wife.

For one, Angelica became accustomed to her life in the Frost estate sooner than I had expected.

She was very mindful of how the people in the estate perceived her character and went along with their stories on her.

Hiding her true self, she stuck to the fake persona of an innocent noble lady even perfecting it to the point of fooling the astute Nathaniel.

However, the moment we were back alone, she would revert to her original personality.

Within days Angelica identified the spies in the estate who have been leeching out any information they could get their hands on for their employers.

And she made sure I knew it by reciting their names and designations all the while bragging about herself.

Even without those feats, there has been a lot of mysteries surrounding Angelica, starting from the absolute lack of information on her to the ability to alter the curse, not to mention the restricted knowledge of the Havu curses.

From her posture and movements alone, I was easily able to surmise that she was a trained soldier with a tactful mind.

Under a different set of circumstances, this wouldn't be much of a flag. Ashford County is the home to the Eagle Knights, who had taken part in every war in Orion's history. Thus it was only natural that one among their kin is a trained soldier.

For the world, Angelica Ashford was a sick child since birth who has been taken care of her family with utmost care. That was the story everyone knew of, including me.

Yet, Angelica's hands were rough and calloused, unlike the sick and weak girl she was believed to be.

It was like her presence was intentionally concealed from the eyes of society.

I remember that the former Countess Ashford had passed away along the time of the Saintess's disappearance.

As I was away leading the investigations on the missing Saintess, my father Archduke Clifford Frost attended the funeral on behalf of the Frosts.

Maybe the former Countess was hiding something about Angelica?

Also, the last place the Saintess visited was the west before she came to the capital and the former Countess died shortly after her disappearance.

Could this be a mere coincidence?

No. My instincts are telling me otherwise. There might be a connection among these threads.

One incident that particularly stood out was Angelica's first proper interaction with the priests as a part of her duties.

Earlier, on the day after Angelica arrived, none of the priests were able to sense the shift in the curse. They proceeded to perform their duties and returned without having a chance of interacting with her as she was busy touring the estate.

However, on the next day when Angelica entered the room, there was a subtle change among the Eir priests' countenance. Whereas the Theodore priests who had withdrawn to avoid clashing with the people from Eir, passed by her normally.

Once the Theodore priests left the room, Nathaniel and the attendants followed after them leaving Angelica with the Eir priests.

"Something is strange" said High Priest Thesser, overwatching the blessing ceremony on my body to keep the curse dormant.

"What? What is strange?" Angelica asked, altered by his sudden statement.

"I don't know. But I can feel it" High Priest Thesser nodded and walked towards the bed.

While the others watched in silence, he extended his hand and invoked his power causing a cold breeze to sweep across the shores of the lonely beach I was residing in.

High Priest Thesser fell silent.

Along with the rest of the people in the room, I waited for him to speak, expecting him to realize my condition.

"I think..." He dragged, increasing the anticipation.

"I think it is due to the presence of the lovely lady that the tension in the air has disappeared" High Priest Thesser complimented Angelica and congratulated her for the marriage.

I can't say that I wasn't disappointed to hear his words. But congratulations on the marriage? That wasn't bad.

This event repeated for a week where High Priest Thesser insisted on Angelica accompanying him throughout the blessing ceremony.

He seemed to have taken a liking to Angelica. The moment his eyes spotted her in the room, he started chattering her ears off much to her annoyance.

"I enjoy our daily conversations, child. Don't be faltered by the fleeting illusions, the will of the goddess will always upon your future"

"You have no idea"

Angelica smiled while I stifled a laugh.

'Heh! I can hear her face twitch'

Even if High Priest Thesser didn't express it, I'm certain that he was withholding details. The way he kept dawdling around Angelica increased my suspicions of him knowing more than he revealed.

As for our marital relationship, we've had our ups and downs.

From 'Edward, Eddie, Eddie boy, Mr.Husband, Hubby, Frosty...' when playful or happy, To 'dolt, stupid, male lead, moron, prick, waste of carbon and strange words I do not know the meaning of...' when she was angry or moody, I've been called countless names.

Every day the morning started with Angelica checking my heartbeat, which she does without fail before breakfast.

Even though she complained about the talkative High Priest, Angelica always accompanied the priests and any other healers who appear at the Frost estate to break the curse.

After going for a stroll inside the estate walls, she stays beside me and reads a book or two to keep me entertained. Or she says so.

Some were books researching the cause and effect of the Havu curse, some general knowledge, and others for her own leisure. She had discovered the part of the Frost library that many avoid due to its scandalous nature.

With the minimal resources available, Angelica managed to train inside the parameters of the room without arousing the suspicions of the servants.

Despite all that, the main problem arose at night.

Before I was too occupied with her ever strange antics to notice, but now that I'm used to it, I have come to realize a major crisis.

Angelica seems to have the habit of hugging someone to sleep.

Who was it she was hugging to sleep before she came to the Frost estate? Was it a man? Did she perhaps have a lover back home?

I don't know why. But every time I think about it, I get extremely frustrated.

At night she tends to wear immensely thin clothes which were albeit unintentional, extremely stimulating.

Every single time her skin brushes against mine, I could feel my entire body burning in fire. As a man in his prime robbed of his mobility, I realized what real torture felt like.

While she sleeps peacefully wrapping herself around me, I was struggling to keep my sanity intact.

Although challenging, this became our new normal.

On her good days, Angelica was usually playful.

"Can I borrow your shirt, my husband?"

"Of course. Anything for you my dear wife"

That was not me. Rather it was my wife, controlling my mouth like a marionette and answering her own questions.

"You're such a cutie... What a waste of such a handsome face... Haah..."

During these times, she was quite talkative with me, and might I say handsy.

The things she loves, the food she eats, the people she admires, every bit of information I needed came from the most reliable source, Angelica herself.

"Ohh... spicy"

I had no option other than to listen to her choice of books with patience.

On her bad days, she tends to become a temper tantrum child.

"You conniving manipulating pathetic piece of sh*t!"

When her anger reaches a certain level, Angelica relieved her stress by using my body as a punching bag. Even then she was meticulous to use a pillow to not leave any signs for when Herbie changes my clothes.

Whatever might have been the reason for her fury, the topic would ultimately come back to one thing.

My presumed infidelity.

"How dare you! You cheating b*stard get me in this mess!"

For reasons I'm unable to comprehend, my wife is adamant that I would be unfaithful to her.

Angelica keeps mentioning the name of a woman I have never heard of and insists that she was my destined love.

Still from Angelica's actions and words, I can surmise that she is clearly attracted to me or my body in the least. But the hurdle between us was the tale she keeps telling herself.

I was both desired and hated by my wife because of a woman I had not once interacted with.

What Angelica has forgotten is that I'm the one who gets to decide that.

I may be many things. But I'm not a vile man who is unfaithful to his spouse.

Aside from that, there were a lot of complaints about my character and criticism of my methods of work. Things could get tough depending on the trigger point of her anger.

And today just so happened to be the worst of those bad days.

"I'm sick of this"

Having just returned from her visit to the library, Angelica had encountered the third assassination attempt at her life.