Anastasia woke to the soft touch of fingers on her shoulder and Yae's quiet voice.
"Lady Anastasia... it's morning."
She blinked slowly, the hotel room coming into focus through the haze of sleep. Sunlight filtered through the heavy curtains, casting golden stripes across the bed. Julius lay beside her, still deeply asleep, his breathing steady and calm. One arm was draped loosely over her waist, as if even in dreams he refused to let her go.
The events of yesterday crashed over her like cold water.
The confession. The kiss. Julius asking Rem to marry him. The way Rem had run.
Anastasia's swollen eye throbbed in protest as she sat up. The bruise had darkened overnight into a vivid purple-black crescent. She touched it gingerly and winced.
Yae had already prepared a simple breakfast on the low table near the window: fresh bread, fruit, tea, and a small bowl of porridge. The ninja stood respectfully to the side, hands clasped in front of her.
"Report," Anastasia said quietly, voice still rough from sleep and crying.
Yae bowed her head slightly and began.
"The party itself was not particularly eventful, my lady. Julius introduced Rem as you to most of the guests. When someone recognized her and looked confused, he calmly explained that you were unwell and had asked Rem to stand in for you. No one pressed the matter once they heard you were in poor health."
Anastasia nodded, sipping the tea Yae had poured for her.
"What matters more," Yae continued, "is that Rem forced Subaru to apologize to Julius. It was extremely uncomfortable for both of them. Subaru looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him, but he did it. He let Rem continue acting as you for the rest of the night because, in his words, 'it was his fault.'"
Anastasia's grip tightened on the teacup.
"Julius behaved perfectly," Yae added. "He did not kiss Rem, did not grasp her waist, did not do anything that could be seen as improper. He danced with her once, as he did with several other ladies, but they mostly sat with the important guests who came for the festival. He was polite, distant, and professional the entire time."
Anastasia stared into her tea, genuinely surprised. After the intensity of the bench scene, she had expected... more. Heat. Slips. Something. But they had held themselves back so well.
Yae seemed to read her thoughts. "Rem probably didn't want to do anything in Subaru's presence. She kept a respectable distance whenever he was nearby."
Anastasia set the cup down. "Where is Rem now?"
"She went home with Subaru after the party ended. She returned to the hotel early this morning to help, but she hasn't prepared breakfast yet. She is currently looking for her ring. She seems quite distressed about it."
Anastasia's lips curved into the smallest, coldest smile.
Of course she was looking for it.
The ring was safely locked away in her room, submerged in Julius's seed, exactly where it belonged.
She glanced back at Julius, still sleeping peacefully beside her. For a moment the mask slipped and her expression softened with genuine love and fear.
Then the mask returned.
"Prepare my clothes," she told Yae. "I want to look presentable when Rem returns. And keep watching her. I want to know the exact moment she realizes the ring is gone for good."
Yae bowed. "As you wish, Lady Anastasia."
Anastasia turned back to the window, watching the morning light spill over the festival grounds below. The fireworks were long gone, but the real show was only just beginning.
She took a slow sip of tea, the bruise on her face throbbing in time with her heartbeat.
Let her search, she thought.
She'll never find it.
Julius stirred beside her, his eyes fluttering open to the soft morning light filtering through the curtains. For a moment he looked disoriented, then his gaze found Anastasia. He sat up slowly, the sheet slipping down his bare chest, and glanced at Yae standing respectfully by the table.
"Morning," he murmured, voice still rough with sleep.
Yae bowed her head politely. "Good morning, Sir Julius. I'll go bring breakfast for both of you. It will only take a moment."
She slipped out of the room without another word, leaving the door to click softly behind her.
Julius turned to Anastasia, his expression already guarded. "What were you and Yae talking about just now?"
Anastasia took a slow sip of her tea, buying herself a second to compose her face. The bruise around her eye throbbed in protest, but she kept her voice light.
"Just the report from last night," she said. "Rem forced Subaru to apologize to the man who kissed his wife. It was... quite the scene, apparently. Subaru looked like he wanted to die on the spot, but he did it because Rem insisted. She really made him grovel."
She set the cup down and gave Julius a teasing smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"You really are a bad man, Julius. Kissing another man's wife in public like that."
Julius's face tightened instantly. He looked away, jaw clenched, clearly uncomfortable. The teasing hit exactly where she intended — raw and exposed.
Anastasia watched him carefully, her own heart twisting. Part of her enjoyed his discomfort; another part hated how easily she could hurt him.
After a long silence, Julius spoke again, voice low.
"We should return to the mansion today. You don't look well, Anastasia. Your eye... it needs proper rest and treatment."
Anastasia nodded without argument. "Yes. I agree."
Yae returned a moment later carrying a tray with fresh bread, fruit, and warm porridge. She set it down and asked, almost casually, "Shall I go fetch Rem? She hasn't come back yet."
Anastasia shook her head, her voice perfectly calm.
"No need. Rem came to the hotel early this morning to help, but she went out again. She's currently looking for her wedding ring — she lost it yesterday during the festival."
The words hung in the air.
Julius froze mid-reach for a piece of bread. Yae's eyes flicked to Anastasia with a spark of understanding.
Anastasia simply picked up her spoon and began eating, as if the statement meant nothing at all.
Inside, however, her mind was already spinning ahead — calculating, planning, waiting for the moment Rem would realize her precious ring was never coming back.
Yae lingered by the door, her posture perfectly respectful but her eyes sharp with curiosity. "Should I go tell Rem that once she finishes looking for the ring, she should return to the mansion?"
Anastasia took a long, slow breath of resignation, the kind that carried the weight of every bad decision she had made in the last twenty-four hours. She rubbed her temple, careful not to press too hard on the swollen eye.
"No," she said at last, voice tired. "Don't pressure her too much. I don't want her to quit. Especially now that Julius has... complicated things."
Julius gave her a look — that familiar, disapproving knightly stare that always made her feel small and guilty at the same time.
Anastasia met his gaze head-on, her voice sharpening despite the exhaustion. "Don't give me that eye, Julius. I'm the one who has to wonder how Rem is going to endure working alone with you after last night. Should I agree if she requests not to work with you anymore?"
She let the question hang for a moment, then added under her breath, almost to herself, "Maybe the gods are already punishing Rem for adultery by taking her ring."
The words slipped out quieter than she intended, but Julius heard them. His jaw tightened, but he said nothing.
Yae bowed her head, hiding a small, knowing smile. "As you wish, Lady Anastasia. I'll leave her be."
The ninja slipped out of the room without another word, leaving Anastasia and Julius alone with the breakfast tray and the heavy silence that had settled between them.
Anastasia stared at her plate, appetite gone. The bruise around her eye pulsed in time with her heartbeat. She could still feel the ghost of Julius's hand on Rem's waist, the way Rem had melted into his kiss even while claiming she hated him.
She ran... but she kissed him back first.
That thought hurt more than the punch from Subaru.
Julius reached across the table and gently took her hand. His touch was warm, careful, the same touch that had once made her feel like the most important woman in the world.
"Anastasia..." he began, voice low.
She squeezed his fingers, not trusting herself to speak yet.
The silence in the hotel room felt heavier than the bruise on Anastasia's face.
She stared at the half-eaten breakfast in front of her, the spoon trembling slightly in her fingers. Julius sat across from her, quiet, his golden eyes fixed on the tablecloth as if it held answers he couldn't find. The distant sounds of the festival being dismantled outside — workers calling to each other, carts rolling over cobblestones — only made the quiet between them louder.
Anastasia finally set the spoon down. Her voice came out small, cracked, almost childlike.
"...What are you going to do now, Julius?"
The question hung in the air like smoke after the fireworks.
Julius didn't answer immediately. He closed his eyes for a long second, then exhaled slowly, as if the weight of the night had settled permanently on his shoulders.
"I don't know," he admitted, the honesty raw in his voice. "I truly don't know, Anastasia."
He looked up at her then, and the pain in his eyes made her chest ache worse than the punch from Subaru.
"I love you," he said, the words steady but heavy. "That has never changed. You are my wife. My partner. The woman I chose to spend my life with. But last night... something broke inside me. I crossed a line I swore I never would. I told Rem I love her. I asked her to marry me. I held her, kissed her, touched her like she already belonged to me."
Anastasia's lower lip trembled. She tried to hold back fresh tears, but one escaped anyway, sliding down her bruised cheek.
Julius reached across the table and gently wiped it away with his thumb, his touch so tender it hurt.
"I hate myself for it," he continued, voice rough. "I hate that I let your games push me this far. I hate that I enjoyed every second of it. And I hate most of all that I can't stop thinking about her even now."
He leaned back, running a hand through his hair.
"I don't want to leave you, Anastasia. I don't want to divorce you. I don't want to abandon the life we built. But I also can't pretend I don't feel something real for Rem. Something deep. Something that scares me because it feels... right."
Anastasia's breath hitched. "So what then?" she whispered. "You'll keep seeing her? You'll keep wanting her while staying married to me? Or will you eventually choose her and throw me away like I'm nothing?"
Julius flinched at the words.
"I don't know," he said again, quieter this time. "I need time. We both do. I need to figure out where my heart truly lies... and whether I can live with myself if I choose wrong."
He reached for her hand across the table. She let him take it, her fingers cold in his warm grip.
"I'm not leaving you today," he said firmly. "I'm not leaving you tomorrow. But I can't promise I won't want to see Rem. I can't promise I won't think about her. And I can't promise that if she ever came to me... I would be strong enough to turn her away."
Anastasia stared at their joined hands, tears falling freely now.
"So I'm supposed to just... share you?" she asked, voice breaking. "Smile and pretend everything is fine while you fall in love with the woman I pushed into your arms?"
Julius's thumb stroked the back of her hand.
"I don't have an answer that will make this better," he said softly. "All I can tell you is the truth. I love you. I still love you. But right now... part of me loves her too. And I don't know how to make those two things exist in the same heart without destroying everything."
He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles gently.
"We'll go back to the mansion today. You need rest. Your eye needs care. And then... we'll talk. Really talk. No games. No manipulation. Just us."
Anastasia nodded, though her heart felt like it was tearing in two.
She didn't know if she could survive "just us" anymore.
Not when part of him now belonged to Rem.
Anastasia stared at the teacup in her hands, the porcelain warm against her palms. The bruise around her eye throbbed with every heartbeat, but the real pain was deeper — a sharp, twisting ache in her chest that refused to ease.
She set the cup down and looked at Julius, her voice quiet but steady.
"What are you going to do now?"
Julius didn't answer right away. He leaned back in his chair, eyes distant, the weight of last night still etched into every line of his face.
Anastasia continued, her tone carefully measured. "If you want... you can go help Rem look for her ring. She lost it because of you, after all. Because of what happened between you two."
She paused, letting the words sink in.
"But I doubt she wants to see you right now. Not after everything. Still... if you don't go, you'll miss the chance to spend time with her. Alone."
Julius's jaw tightened. He looked at her, conflict burning in his golden eyes.
Anastasia reached across the table and took his hand, her fingers cold against his.
"I don't mind if you want Rem," she said softly. "I really don't. As long as she stays in second place. As long as I'm still first in your heart."
The words tasted like ash in her mouth, but she forced them out anyway. She needed him to hear them. Needed him to believe she was giving him permission — even if it tore her apart inside.
Julius closed his eyes for a long moment, his thumb absently stroking the back of her hand.
"I'm conflicted, Anastasia," he admitted, voice rough. "Even if Rem... accepted my confession a little... she was so cold when Subaru was there. Like she didn't even want me around. Like she regretted every second we spent together last night."
He opened his eyes again, pain clear in them.
"I understand her position. I put her in it. I forced her into a corner and made her question everything she has with Subaru. That's on me. But it's hard now. Especially knowing she's out there right now... looking for the wedding ring Subaru bought her."
His grip on her hand tightened slightly.
"I don't know if I should help her find it. I already pushed the line so far last night. Helping her search for the symbol of her marriage to another man... it feels wrong. Cruel, even."
Anastasia watched him closely, her heart pounding.
Julius let out a shaky breath.
"I don't know what to do anymore. Part of me wants to go after her. To be near her. To see if last night meant something real to her too. But the other part of me... knows I should stay here. With you. Where I belong."
He looked at her then, eyes searching hers.
"Tell me what you want me to do, Anastasia. Because right now... I don't trust myself to make the right choice."
The room fell silent except for the distant sounds of the city waking up outside.
Anastasia held his gaze, her swollen eye throbbing, her heart in pieces.
She had pushed him this far.
Now she had to decide how much further she was willing to let him go.
Anastasia looked at him for a long moment, her good eye glistening with unshed tears. The bruise on the other side of her face pulsed with every heartbeat, a constant reminder of how fragile everything had become.
She took a slow, shaky breath and spoke softly, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I will not tell you what to do, Julius."
Her fingers tightened around his hand, but she didn't squeeze — she simply held on, as if afraid he might slip away if she gripped too hard.
"I want you to act on your own. I will never tell you to do something anymore. I want you to make your own decision... about what you truly want."
The words hung between them, heavy and final.
Julius stared at her, his expression a storm of confusion, pain, and something deeper — almost disbelief. He had expected her to push, to manipulate, to give him the "permission" she had been dangling for months. Instead, she was stepping back completely, leaving the choice entirely in his hands.
Anastasia continued, her voice trembling but resolute.
"I've pushed you enough. I've forced things, teased, schemed... and look where it got us. If you want to go find Rem right now, go. If you want to stay here with me, stay. If you want to see her later, or never see her again... that has to be your choice. Not mine. Not because I told you to."
She looked down at their joined hands, a single tear slipping free and falling onto his knuckles.
"I love you too much to keep controlling you. Even if it hurts... I want you to decide what kind of man you want to be. What kind of husband. What kind of future you want."
Julius remained silent for several long seconds. His thumb stroked the back of her hand almost absentmindedly, but his eyes were distant, lost in the weight of her words.
Finally, he spoke, voice low and rough.
"...You're really leaving this to me?"
Anastasia nodded, wiping her cheek with her free hand.
"Yes. I am."
The room fell quiet again, only the faint sounds of the city waking up outside the window breaking the silence.
Julius looked at her — really looked — seeing the exhaustion, the bruise, the raw vulnerability she rarely let him witness. He saw the woman he had married, the woman he still loved, even through all the pain and manipulation.
He exhaled slowly, his shoulders sagging under the burden she had just placed on him.
"I don't know what I want right now," he admitted quietly. "I know I love you. I know I hurt you. And I know... part of me wants to see Rem. To talk to her. To understand what last night meant to her."
He paused, then added, almost to himself:
"But I also know that if I go after her right now, I might make everything worse. For her. For Subaru. For us."
Anastasia didn't reply. She simply waited, letting the silence stretch, forcing him to sit with his own thoughts.
Julius gently lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles, his eyes closing for a moment.
"Thank you," he whispered against her skin. "For not pushing me this time."
He didn't say what he would do.
He didn't say whether he would go after Rem or stay with her.
He simply held her hand, the weight of the decision pressing down on both of them as the morning light grew brighter outside the window.
Anastasia's heart beat painfully in her chest.
She had given him freedom.
Now she could only wait.