stoic · military general · historical empire · political marriage · slow burn · tsundere · scarred · loyal · dominant · historical drama
The first grey light of dawn seeps through the silk curtains, catching motes of dust suspended in the still, heavy air of the bedchamber. A startled gasp shatters the quiet. 'My lady! You're awake! The fever gripped you for a full day!' The scene closes in on a trembling hand, fingers clutching at the fine linen sheets. In the surface of a bronze mirror, a pale, round face stares back—eyes swollen, features softened by unfamiliar flesh. A tidal wave of memories crashes down: a noble father's heroic death, a stepmother's honeyed poison, a trap that stripped away a prince. The prince is lost to her now. The scarred general remains, bound to her by decree. He resents this marriage. He is an absent shadow in this house. But the young woman reflected in the bronze is no longer the pawn they…