If someone had told me two years ago that I would end up as the future queen, I would have choked on my soup, slapped them, and promptly run in the opposite direction.



Yet here I was.



Sitting in the grand palace, drowning in a mountain of royal paperwork, and wondering where it all went wrong.



~~~



"Lady Thalia, please, we need your signature on these documents—"



"NO."



"But the tax reforms—"



"NO."



"Your Majesty, your etiquette lessons—"



I threw a spoon at the royal instructor.



At this point, even the palace staff had given up on trying to discipline me. It was common knowledge that despite my fancy title, I still operated on pure gremlin energy.



Cassian, Adrian, and Damian had completely given up on stopping my nonsense. They just watched in silent resignation, occasionally placing bets on how long I could go before causing another diplomatic incident.



The last time I "accidentally" insulted a visiting noble, he apologized to me instead.



I was a menace, and they had no choice but to accept it.



~~~



Of course, the King—my wonderful, terrifying, ridiculously handsome tyrant fiancé—was no better.



He still ruled with an iron fist.



He still struck fear into the hearts of nobles.



He still made the palace staff cry on a daily basis.



But the moment I walked into the room?



He turned into the biggest simp in the world.



One time, I threatened to resign from my royal duties, and he bribed me with cake.



Another time, I tried to sneak out of the palace, and he stationed fifty knights outside my bedroom window.



And now, two years later, we were finally getting married.



I should've been excited for my wedding.



But instead, I was panicking.



"HOW DO I LOOK?!" I screeched, twirling in my extravagant, ridiculously expensive wedding dress.



"You look beautiful," my mother sobbed, dabbing at her eyes with a silk handkerchief.



My father nodded solemnly. "Like a noblewoman. A true lady."



"Disgusting," I muttered.



Adrian burst out laughing in the background.



Cassian looked emotional, like he was sending his own daughter off to war.



Damian, bless his soul, simply sighed. "It's too late to escape, Thalia."



I threw a bouquet at him.



Meanwhile, The King...



The King was waiting at the altar, looking as serious and terrifying as ever.



But on the inside?



He was losing his mind.



After all these years, he finally had her.



No more sneaking away. No more running. No more causing international disasters out of sheer stubbornness.



She was his.



And no one—**no noble, no rebellion, no force in this world—**could take her away.



~~~



When it was time for the vows, I braced myself.



And then the King absolutely destroyed me.

"I vow," he said, voice firm, "to protect you, to stand by you, and to love you for the rest of my life. I vow to listen to your endless rants, to endure your reckless plans, and to cherish every single moment we have together. And most of all—"



His lips curled into a smirk.



"—I vow to make sure you never escape me again."



I froze.



The audience erupted into whispers.



I turned bright red.



My parents cried harder.



Cassian facepalmed.



Damian looked away in secondhand embarrassment.



Adrian was too busy laughing his lungs out.



And me?



I seriously considered throwing my bouquet at my soon-to-be husband's face.



But as I stared at him—this terrifying, overprotective, endlessly patient man who had somehow become the most important person in my life—I sighed.



And then, for once in my life, I gave up.



"Fine," I grumbled, grabbing his hand. "Let's do this, you overgrown tyrant."



And with that, the King—my King—kissed me.



As we walked down the aisle, officially married, I felt a familiar sense of dread creep up my spine.



And then.



[Congratulations! You have successfully completed "How to Be a Proper Lady"! ]

[Next Course: "How to Be a Proper Queen"! ]



I screamed internally.



This was never going to end.



The End (For Now).