Night, carrying a cool breeze, blew into the magnificent palace.
The bright moon was already hanging high in the sky.
The wedding night, whether for men or women, is the most beautiful time in one’s life.
It is also an important moment for husband and wife to open their hearts and get to know each other more deeply.
However, that was only the general case, because Artoria simply could not face Guinevere at this moment.
After all, she was so expectant and joyful, and the smile on her face was constantly interpreting her expectations for the future.
But…
she had to tell the truth.
Artoria had no intention of hiding her true gender.
Although she knew that saying it out loud would cause her endless pain and sorrow, this young girl had the right to know everything.
She could have used magic to deceive her wife, but that would definitely not be the right choice.
Taking a deep breath, Artoria secretly encouraged herself and did some psychological preparation.
Her hands unconsciously clenched and relaxed.
Her anxious heart was burning with impatience, and her expression was as serious as if she were about to go to the battlefield.
The front was indeed a battlefield, and it was a battlefield that belonged solely to her, Artoria.
It was the only war in the life of the ever-victorious King that she was not confident she could win.
After preparing herself mentally, she waved her hand and dismissed the attendants waiting on the side.
Seeing Guinevere, who felt a bit shy and uneasy because of her actions, Artoria slowly walked forward.
Her wife was sitting on the edge of the bed at this moment.
Because of her approach, a nervous flush appeared on her face.
Her slender, delicate hands were nervously clutching the sheets on both sides, appearing even whiter because of the excessive force.
The atmosphere in the room was a bit ambiguous, but Artoria, who was preoccupied, did not notice this at all.
She came before Guinevere, knelt on one knee under the girl’s moist, autumn-water-like gaze, and lowered her eyelids.
At this moment, Artoria, whose body was as stiff as steel, spoke with difficulty: “Guinevere, from today on, we two have become husband and wife, so I believe you have the right to know the truth.”
Artoria could feel the hoarseness in her voice and the obvious trembling in her words.
“…King?”
Guinevere looked at her husband kneeling before her in surprise.
She looked at Artoria somewhat helplessly, and suddenly felt a trace of unease in her heart.
“Please get up quickly.”
She stood up in a panic, wanting to reach out and help her husband up, but her arm reaching toward King Arthur was stopped in mid-air.
Artoria gently lowered Guinevere’s hand that was suspended in mid-air.
She shook her head slightly, signaling to her wife with a heavy tone to let her finish speaking.
She raised her head to look into her wife’s azure eyes.
Even though her heart was in extreme pain at this moment, she absolutely could not look away.
“Guinevere, I must confess something to you now.
There is something I kept from you before the wedding, and I hope to receive your forgiveness.”
“Actually, I am a woman.”
Guinevere’s face turned pale.
She looked at King Arthur before her in disbelief, her delicate body trembling uncontrollably.
After all, this was simply too absurd…
She suddenly raised her head and met Artoria’s gaze with those beautiful eyes, as if she wanted to see into the other person’s heart.
She slowly opened her mouth, her voice trembling, “My King, are you joking with me?”
“My dear wife, how could I possibly joke with you about such a thing.”
“It’s just that there are some things I must tell you.
I cannot deceive you any longer.”
Artoria knelt on one knee before her.
In the dim light of the room, it was as if she had handed everything she had over to the girl’s hands.
She looked at Guinevere earnestly, her face filled with incomparable seriousness.
Looking at the King like this, Guinevere already believed her words in her heart.
“Because of dirty political interests, I hid the identity of King Arthur.
I had to do this; I am very sorry.”
Never before had Artoria felt so deeply how willful and selfish she was, as she did at this very moment.
Relying on her status and power, she had high-handedly and easily destroyed a young girl’s life.
However, even so…
“…I know I have no right to say such things, but please, still assist me in keeping this secret.”
What kind of arrogance is this?
How could I have the nerve to say such things?
Artoria looked at Guinevere, whose figure was swaying and eventually slumped back onto the edge of the bed.
She felt waves of bitterness in her mouth.
At this moment, the girl’s originally lively eyes were filled with sadness.
She stared blankly at the silent King Arthur, her eyes devoid of any spirit.
Like an infinite void, as if her soul had been hollowed out, her lips moved subconsciously, but she did not make any sound.
This scene made Artoria’s heart sink into the abyss as well.
In two lifetimes, she had never felt so miserable.
It felt as if her heart had been cut thousands of times by a sharp dagger.
So, was this the feeling of a heart being cut by a knife?
A bitter taste rose in Artoria’s mouth.
She had never intended to hurt anyone, but in the end, she had hurt the girl before her.
Her heart was a mess at this moment.
She did not want Guinevere to be sad, and she especially did not want the starlight in Guinevere’s eyes to shatter, but this matter could absolutely not be deceived.
Artoria had to do this; she was already prepared to be resented by the girl for a lifetime.
She knew better than anyone in her heart that since she herself was in such unbearable pain, how desperate must Guinevere, the victim, be at this moment?
Artoria gritted her teeth and took off the hair tie behind her head.
A head of brilliant golden hair immediately cascaded down like a waterfall.
Her eyebrows were heroic and exquisite, and her eyes were clear and green.
Guinevere slowly raised her head and saw this scene.
The only pillar in her heart collapsed with a crash.
The glass pillar shattered into pieces, cutting her soft heart.
Her vacant eyes were now wrapped in a layer of mist, as if they were going to collide with the air.
She felt that she was now in an endless forest of mist, wanting to escape but deeply trapped in it, not knowing how to get out.
Her only wedding in this life turned out to be a long-planned, shocking scam.
After all, she was only a seventeen-year-old girl.
The pain and despair in her heart, as well as the anger at being deceived, made her very angry at this moment.
Guinevere clenched the corners of her clothes tightly, her heavy breathing causing her chest to heave violently.
She angrily scolded Artoria: “Smashing my heart and dignity to pieces, how could you do this!”
After expecting so much for so long, is this the final result?
She was unwilling, very unwilling.
She covered her face with her hands, not letting anyone see the tears in her eyes.
What could she do even if she was unwilling?
Even if she was unwilling, she could not change the cruel reality to the end.
Things had come to this; Guinevere had already lost her way.
Artoria lowered her head without saying a word.
The hair on her forehead covered her eyes, making it impossible for anyone to see her expression at this moment.
A silent stillness spread throughout the room.
There was only a meter of distance between the two, but the barrier in their hearts seemed to be as far apart as heaven and earth.
For a long time…
Guinevere, sitting on the edge of the bed, lowered her hands covering her cheeks.
She looked up at the ceiling, the tear stains at the corners of her eyes making her look particularly haggard.
As if accepting her fate, a heavy sigh escaped from the corner of her mouth.
Hearing the sigh, Artoria raised her head to look at the girl before her who was filled with sadness.
She felt as if her heart was being twisted by a knife.
She wanted to step forward to hug her, to comfort her, to wipe away her tears and tell her not to cry.
Those hands lifted slightly but ultimately fell back down.
She knew she had no right to do such things, because the person who brought pain to the girl before her was none other than she, Artoria.
Withdrawing her gaze from the ceiling, Guinevere cast her eyes toward Artoria, who was still kneeling on one knee before her, having not changed her posture for such a long time.
“…Arthur Pendragon, this shouldn’t be your real name, right.”
Her voice trembled: “Could you tell me?
I want to know my husband’s real name.”
“…Artoria Pendragon, this is my real name.” Hearing the girl finally speak, Artoria hurriedly replied.
Guinevere, who had calmed down, looked at the King before her with complicated eyes.
In the end, she still could not resent Artoria; after all, she had once held a trace of admiration and attraction for this woman.
In a tone like casual conversation, she asked somewhat confusedly: “What do you want me to do?
And as a woman, in what position will you place me, your wife?”
“You are King Arthur’s Queen, and you are also my wife, Artoria’s wife.”
Artoria said eagerly to Guinevere: “I am willing to love you and protect you from the bottom of my heart.
Every word I said to you in the church today was absolutely not a baseless lie.”
This is truly surprising.
Guinevere could not help but widen her eyes.
She did not expect to receive such an answer from Artoria.
She had thought that the other party only treated her as a tool, but she had suddenly received a confession from the other party.