The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride

"What do you mean by that?" Luciana's father asked in dread.

He had just returned from the courtroom in a bad mood and heard the good news that made him temporarily forget how angry he had been this morning, only to hear something even worse.

"She... cannot talk anymore?" He asked his wife, hoping he had been the one to hear wrong.

When he returned earlier, she had pulled him out of the chamber before he could even say much to Luciana to tell him about the news. She was distraught, and her face was swollen from crying so much.

"She... may not live long either. Our poor child." The woman said this and cried heartbreakingly.

"W-hat?" Her husband asked in shock and closed his eyes, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I should have had a son." He said with regret.

The crying woman looked at her husband, thinking she had not heard him correctly.

"You should have given me a son!" He repeated.

"Is... that what is important now? Our child is dying!" She said in tears.

"Then what should I do? Go there and sit with her until she dies?" He bellowed at her while pointing at the door.

"You should have at least raised her properly. If she had been an obedient and submissive wife, she wouldn't have turned into this now!"

"HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT RIGHT NOW?!"

"I WARNED YOU! YOU ONLY HAD A JOB TO GROOM HER PROPERLY FOR HER HUSBAND. BUT WHAT DID YOU DO?" He accused his wife.

"You fed her with things that blocked her stomach from conceiving and made her disgrace our family? What then is our gain for having a daughter?"

"I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS!" The woman cried out.

"I did my best to raise her into a beautiful wife. Did I follow her into the palace where she got corrupted? And if you cared a little about women, you would have known that babies are not conceived in the stomach!"

"Why should I educate myself on such irrelevant things?" He asked in anger.

"You have to make sure she apologizes to the royal family and make Prince Ivan take her back. She should at least leave this world with a proper title that won't put our family to shame."

"WHAT KIND OF MAN ARE YOU?" She gasped in exhaustion. "Is it the same royal family that is in shambles right now?"

The man was about to angrily reply to her when the door opened, and Luciana's maid, Leana, looked at the two with a worried look in her eyes.

But more than worry, she looked disappointed. Very disappointed.

"My lady... is right in here." She reminded them with a tight voice before she shut the door at them.

The older woman looked at her husband and shook her head before she covered her face with her hand, crying quietly.

"It's good she heard it. I'll just tell her directly. Her ears at least work, correct?" He asked his wife but didn't wait for an answer before he opened the door and went inside.

Luciana was sitting on the bed now, just staring blankly at nothing in particular. It had been obvious she got thinner when she was still unconscious, but now that she was up, it was even more obvious. She also still had a bandage around her neck.

Leana was helping her massage her legs, which were under the covers, and when her father entered with his wife closely following behind, none of the girls looked at them. Luciana just continued to stare blankly, her face still expressionless. She looked dead.

"She needs to rest. She doesn't need this now." Her mother pleaded with him, but it was obvious he was very angry, and the anger could only be satiated when he said what he had in mind. So he stood in Luciana's line of sight and began to speak.

"Even though I have always wanted a son, do not think that I do not love you." He started.

"I gave you the best. The best teachers. The best foods. The best fabrics. I made sure you wanted for nothing. And in the end, I expected you to perform your duties to your family. To THIS family."

"Your mother, as you know, was from a lowly family. Making her my wife brought great honour to her family, and even in their graves, her parents still rejoice."

His wife covered her face with her hands in shame and disappointment.

"Can you say the same for us? Can we rejoice in our graves?" He shook his head in disappointment.

"It's unfortunate that it won't ever happen. Because you may even die before us."

"MY LORD!" She could not take it anymore. Her husband was embarrassing.

"DO YOU NOW SEE WHY WOMEN SHOULD ACT LIKE WOMEN?" He yelled at his wife then turned back to face Luciana.

"Look at the queen now! Look at her daughter, who could not handle the kingdom for even a day. Look at Princess Amber, who is always falling unconscious because of how much of a busybody she is. What about Susan? She died just like that because she could not stay in one place and act like a lady."

For the first time, Luciana's eyes found focus, and they fixed on her father's face.

"Can you see yourself too?" The man continued.

"My Lord, enough!" His wife cried.

All of this information was new to Luciana, who had been unconscious for a long time.

Luciana turned to look at Leana with questioning eyes and shook her head as though saying that wasn't correct, right?

Leana pursed her lips, and with teary eyes, she nodded once, confirming that all he had said was nothing but the truth. Every one of them.

Susan was dead.

She let out a broken, strained gasp as tears suddenly filled her eyes and began to fall.

The sight of Luciana trying to cry soundly but being unable to do so and only making broken sounds was too painful to watch.

Leana hugged her, crying with her while her father finally shut his mouth and stormed out of the room.

Luciana's mother covered her mouth with her hand, crying quietly where she stood as she watched her daughter.

Meanwhile, the news about Luciana being awake had finally reached an almost insane Ivan in the lone cell where he was.

When he first heard Tyra had taken over the affairs of the palace, he thought everyone was insane to have let that happen, especially when several children of noblemen were brought into the dungeon at once and imprisoned.

He kicked, shouted, and cried out for him to be released so he would put things in the right place, but no one answered him. He had vowed to get rid of everyone when he stepped out. He kept it up until he heard Luciana had defeated death and finally woke up.

It was a surprise for the other 'inmates' when Ivan suddenly burst into tears, thanking the Moon Goddess and Luciana for returning to him.

"I will do better."

"I will be better."

"Thank you, my love."

He said it in between tears as he fell on his knees, oblivious to the fact that the story wasn't complete.