I married the prince they called a monster. Four women before me had accepted his proposals, only to become bloodied corpses. In short, I was a sacrificial lamb offered to this beast.

On our wedding night, I braced myself for death.

“Grr…” A guttural growl rumbled from his throat. Then… a miracle.

“Good, stay still.”

“Yes.”

He rested his head on my lap and nudged it back and forth, as if begging for a caress.

‘Does he want me to pet him?’

“Ren, please don’t go,” he pleaded, clutching my sleeve with a desperate look in his eyes. “I can’t live without you.”

A pang of sympathy resonated deep within me. It seemed like I had tamed the monster a little too well.