The sheer curtains of the room were drawn slightly apart. The first light of morning danced upon the walls, casting a dim, golden-yellow hue across the light-painted room. For a moment, I forgot where I was. Then came the dim walls, the ornaments, the heavy fabrics, and... the silence. An ache lingered in my feet from last night's ball, and my mind was overflowing with thoughts.

The only things intruding upon the silence were the distant chirping of birds and the lingering topic of my being Ambrose's beloved sole wife.

Mornings in the fortress were different. Noiseless yet magnificent, like a giant that had awakened but still spoke in whispers. Throwing a light morning robe over my shoulders, I headed to the window. In the courtyard, a few soldiers were gathering for drills. In the garden, servants were clearing the grounds, gathering flowers damp with morning dew.

And a silhouette... a man leaning toward his horse's mane, his pitch-black hair waving gently in the wind.

Ambrose.

He sat atop a black horse. Majestic, exactly as he should be. The beast did not seem to merely obey him; it looked as if it were one with him. Locking eyes with a predator—that is what this moment felt like—yet it wasn't frightening. I continued to watch. When a knock came at my door, I was still standing by the window. The servant who entered announced that the morning meal would be served in the garden. I knew I needed to get ready, but my mind was still on the man below.

***

"You were watching me," he said, direct but not accusing.

I raised my delicate brows slightly. "Was I not supposed to?"

"No," he replied, a faint curve touching his lips. "I merely noticed."

I took another sip. "It looked powerful... your riding. Establishing such a bond with a horse cannot be easy."

"It takes time. You must recognize its fears, and distinguish them from your own. You cannot fight an animal, and you cannot win against it. You must understand it." He spoke as if this were merely routine for him, but an interaction between a human and a beast was rarely so effortless.

Well... Thinking about it now, was he trying to do to me exactly what he did with the horse?

"Do you think... you could teach me?" I asked, not breaking eye contact. "To ride a horse. I have never had the opportunity before, but I want to learn. Recognizing my fears doesn't sound like a terrible idea."

In case I ever need to flee. From here, from the enemy... Perhaps... from you?

Ambrose paused for a moment. His eyes were on my face. Hard to read, but not unsettling. It was as if he were weighing something within himself again. Did he notice the self-interest hidden in my voice? Even if he did, he would help; he probably couldn't even guess I would harbor such a thought.

"Today. Around noon, I will be at the western training grounds," he finally said. "I will have a suitable horse prepared for you. But I will not lie—you might fall on your first day."

"If I fall, will you help me up?" I asked softly, an involuntary challenge threading through my voice.

Ambrose tilted his head. It was the first time I fully saw him smile. Not with his teeth, but with his narrowed green eyes. In that moment, he smiled not like a quiet, cold commander, but simply like a man.

"I will not let you fall."

Breakfast had ended, but the morning was only just beginning. I rose from the table with an unfamiliar thrill fluttering inside me. As my dress rippled softly in the wind, I could feel his eyes still resting on me.

Today... I was going to learn how to ride a horse. "I should choose a suitable outfit, then."

He rose to his feet alongside me. "Absolutely."

***

As the sun climbed toward its zenith, the wind meandered through the fortress's stone walls. With the servants' help, I had dressed in a training outfit in shades of dark purple and brown that allowed for mobility. It was tailored to preserve elegance. My hair was gathered in a loose bun at the nape of my neck. And I liked it... After those tight, breath-stealing corsets, this was wonderfully comfortable and ordinary. I was still wearing a corset, of course, but it was not the kind that squeezed my stomach and pushed out my chest when I bent over; it was flexible.

When I arrived at the courtyard, Ambrose had already prepared his horse. He had already rolled up his sleeves, his gloves fastened tightly around his veined wrists. The dark horse beside him was impatiently striking its hooves against the ground. But what truly caught my attention was another horse, slightly more petite and delicately built—a blend of lilac and white, standing apart from the rest with its graceful posture. Even standing side by side, the horses shone in their contrast.

"I chose this horse for you," he said, assessing me. "Her name is Liora. She is docile, but proud. If she senses you are afraid, she will pull away from you. She is a rather sensitive horse and can grow temperamental quite easily, but beside Tenebris, she is quite calm."

"Tenebris..?" "Liora is Tenebris's mate."

As Ambrose's right hand slid from the black horse's reins to its cheek, I realized Tenebris was his horse.

"Darkness... And My Light," I smiled, stepping closer.

"They were given their names before they found one another."

"They remind me of us." Perhaps I should have kept that to myself, but it slipped from my lips. Even I found it amusing to compare us to the horses. I approached. Liora's large eyes looked at me patiently, as if she, too, was curious about what I would do. Her eyelashes were so beautiful that, combined with the lilac shimmers in her eyes, she looked exactly like a horse from a fairytale...

"May I reach out my hand?" I asked in a whisper. My question was directed at Ambrose, not Liora. And he gave a fitting reply.

"Should I ask her?" Ambrose said, narrowing his eyes. His arms were crossed. "Make her feel it. Not with words, but with action."

Hearing this made me want to take a step back, because I rarely get close to anyone... Let alone something I hadn't even established a verbal bond with..? But... my stubbornness won out. I extended my hand, keeping my palm open as I neared Liora. The animal pulled her head back slightly at first, then brought her damp nose to my hand and sniffed it gently.

Ambrose approached; he was now on the other side of the horse. "Do you see?" he said slowly, almost in a whisper. "Fear is fleeting, but touch is enduring... Now, let us try mounting. Unless, of course, you would rather share a single horse with me first."

"Tenebris and Liora may belong to each other, but from now on, Liora and I are partners as well. I would not want to betray her," I said with a childish eagerness.

Even if the horse were to throw me off, trample me, or stubbornly run away, I believed I had gained her full acceptance with that single interaction. She wasn't going to be a bad girl. At least, I hoped so.

"Very well." Ambrose stood before me to help me mount. "Liora is on your right. In this case, first place your left foot into the stirrup on your side and settle into the saddle. Make sure to place your other foot into the free stirrup. And when mounting, do not yank on the reins; hold onto the saddle if you are looking for support." He placed his hands on my waist. "For now, I will assist you." He lifted me as if I weighed nothing at all. I placed my foot in the stirrup just as he instructed, swung my leg over, and settled the seat of the saddle between my thighs.

It was the first time I had ever sat in a saddle. On the very first step, I was already close to losing my balance, but Ambrose supported my body until he was certain I was steady. "Squeeze your thighs." I followed his instructions to the letter. With every sway, the horse seemed to throw my upper body backward and my hips forward. I tried to squeeze my thighs as much as possible, without stifling either of us.

Liora was a graceful horse, but she certainly had height. Ambrose, unlike me, did not look small standing beside them. If Liora threw me, Ambrose would probably catch me... The first few steps were... jarring. My body swayed back and forth, my hands gripping the front of the saddle to keep my balance. Ambrose walked slowly beside me, matching his steps to the horse's.

After a lap or two, we had returned to our starting point, with Tenebris following us from a short distance.

"You will find your balance in your hips. Do not clench your knees; breathe. Now, I am going to let go of you and mount my own horse."

"I can handle it... Liora will not throw me," I tried to convince myself, reciting it like a prayer.

I heard Ambrose's mocking chuckle; it took him all of two seconds to swing onto his horse. "She does not understand your words, but she feels what passes through your heart."

A small smile appeared on my lips. "That information is not very comforting."

"Truths rarely are comforting," he said, his voice dry, but his eyes narrowed slightly, hiding the satisfaction of possessing the maturity to say such a thing at the corner of his lips.

The sound of hooves replaced our dialogue. A sweet breeze blew as we circled within the fences.

"Should we continue in the forest, perhaps? I haven't had any time to see the outside."

He thought for a moment. "We can try. For a short while, and strictly on the safe trail." They rode slightly ahead of us; we were close enough that he could still see me while looking ahead, but positioned so that he would be the first to face anything that might cross our path. "Going deeper is too dangerous, so we will follow the trail."

"What kind of dangers? I heard these forests were purified by magic."

"They are. A portion that is large to humans, but small to the forest, has been purified. However, when nature merges with magic, mutated animals act like monsters. In case you haven't seen one before: a natural wolf is your size, but a mutated wolf is five of you. Once they spot their prey, they do not leave it alive. You either die, or you kill." He turned his face to me. "Of course, unless you venture deep into the forest, you won't encounter such trouble. Nor while you are by my side."

I tried to memorize the trail, but every tree looked identical. It felt as though we were returning to where we started, making certain laps just as we had behind the fences...

Was now the time to ask him about the second wife matter?

"Ambrose," my grip tensed, though I didn't pull on the reins. My voice seemed calm, but a crack ran through it. "You do know that a man who will not have an heir cannot become Emperor."

The hum of the forest mingled with the rustling of the trees. The wind seemed to stop for a moment, as if wanting me to hear only his voice.

"Is that so?"

His gaze pierced me, but his face gave nothing away. That response struck a nerve, just a little. The pressure in his silence was heavier than his words.

"Do not mock me." "I am not."

I did not break eye contact. "You know, and despite that, you said I would be your only wife, General? Do you think me a fool, or have you forsaken the throne?" I deliberately urged the reins forward to make my horse pass his. It was as if Liora felt my heart and quickened her pace. A spark of anxiety flared within me, but it vanished just as quickly. With Tenebris and Ambrose here, Liora seemed quite obedient, even helpful to me.

A twitch appeared on Ambrose's lips first, followed by that familiar, slightly mocking smile. "Who will become Emperor, then? Neven? And why, Princess, do you assume we will not have an heir? Just because I did not touch you on the first night does not mean I will not touch you later."

His words pierced me like ice. We didn't meet eyes, but my heart knew his gaze was reading every twitch on my face. I felt my cheeks burn with a mixture of excitement and anger, and my breathing quickened. I gripped the reins a little tighter.

"You and Neven are the same age, and what matters is that the eldest ascends the throne—excluding one without an heir. In that case, he takes your place." My voice carried the tone of both conveying facts and issuing a challenge. He was undoubtedly more knowledgeable on this matter than I was, but if he couldn't see the truth, I had to repeat it for him.