[Alvar’s POV—The Same Day—Morning—Before Marriage Proposal—Warehouse]

"...Did you get the herbs I asked for?"

Eryndor’s voice was calm but firm, his eyes fixed on the young elf woman who placed a bundle of leaves and roots in his hands.

"Yes, my lord. We went to the exact location you mentioned. This... this is everything we found."

He nodded once, his long fingers brushing across the herbs, separating good from spoiled. "Good. You’ve done well."

The woman’s lips curled into a small smile before she bowed and returned to her work.

When the warehouse fell silent again, I caught the faintest whisper from him. "But... that flower is still missing." His hand lingered on a wilted stalk before he exhaled softly. "...I suppose I should stop dreaming of ever finding it."

"...I can get them."

My voice broke the silence.

He did not startle, did not flinch. Eryndor merely lifted his head and looked at me standing in the doorway, his gaze flat and unbothered.

"Remove your shoes outside, Grand Duke," he said coldly. "This is a place of medicine. Respect the sanctity of it."

I stared at him for a moment—then slipped my boots off, setting them neatly aside. "You’re not surprised to see me here."

"I’m not." His hands moved steadily, trimming away the wilted ends of herbs. "I knew you would come. You carry too many questions to stay away."

So he knew. Always one step ahead.

"Then I won’t waste time on riddles." I closed the distance, my voice sharp.

He smirked faintly, eyes never leaving the leaves in his hand. "Good. Because I have no patience to waste on games either, Grand Duke."

"Then tell me." My voice was sharper than I intended. "What did you mean when you said you cannot use your powers on the divine?"

The elf’s hands stilled. Slowly, he raised his eyes to mine. "It is exactly as it sounds. No mortal magic, no ordinary power, can affect the divine. Their essence is... too pure. Our interference would only destroy them."

. . .

My breath caught. "...So you’re saying Leif has some divine power?"

Eryndor’s expression hardened a fraction, a blade under silk. "Some. ’Some’ is not the word. Leif is not someone with a little spark. He carries a current that belongs to something higher."

He smirked, "It’s Pity You know so little about the man you claim to love, Grand Duke. Because Leif is not someone who merely dabbles in divinity."

. . .

. . .

The air seemed to vanish from my lungs. "Leif... possesses divine power?"

"Not just possesses." His tone dropped low, grave. "Leif is a vessel of divinity itself. And yet..." Eryndor’s eyes darkened. "...he cannot feel it."

"Why not?" I demanded. "Why can’t he feel it?"

"Because someone," Eryndor said, each word bitten off like a curse, "forcibly sealed his divinity. Against his will."

I froze. The warehouse air suddenly felt suffocating. "Sealed? What in the gods’ names are you talking about?"

Eryndor’s expression tightened, a rare flicker of grimness crossing his face. "I can only see fragments, Grand Duke. But I know this much—Leif’s divinity was bound, locked away by someone with knowledge and cruelty enough to do it. And..." His gaze lifted, heavy with meaning. " ...is enough to terrify even me."

My fists clenched. "Don’t tell me the elves are not allied with him just because he tamed the Crimson Pack."

Eryndor chuckled darkly. "Do you truly believe that was enough? No. We elves have never trusted humans. But a human carrying divine blood? That is a bond none of us can deny."

My head spun. Leif... sealed? Why would anyone... who would dare? Is this done by...Elowen? No...that’s not possible. Why would she do that? She is not someone who is strong and sharp enough to seal someone’s Divine power.

I whispered, "Does Leif... know?"

Eryndor smirked faintly. "Do you really think he does? No, Grand Duke. He lives unaware. Blissfully ignorant of the godhood caged inside him and..."

I frowned, my heart hammering. "...And?"

The elf’s expression hardened. "...and, if we don’t find a solution to break those seals, the power struggling within will tear his life apart. Piece by piece. Until there is nothing left."

The words shattered me. My hands moved before my mind could think, fisting in his collar and slamming him back against the table. "What do you mean I will lose my life?! Say it again and I’ll kill you where you stand!"

Eryndor didn’t even flinch. He smirked, his voice low and sharp as a blade. "Kill me if you wish, Grand Duke. But save that fury for the one who bound him. Because your anger means nothing to me... yet Leif means everything. He is precious to us too. He is the first human we trusted and he is the first human who looked at us as partners, not slaves. We will not let him fall."

My grip trembled before I released him, stumbling back. My hand raked through my hair, my chest heaving. "... What am I supposed to do?"

Eryndor’s eyes glinted in the dim light, almost pitying, almost cruel."Find the one who sealed him," he said. His voice dropped to a razor’s edge. "Or find a way to shatter those chains. Fail in both... and prepare yourself, Grand Duke, to watch the man you love waste away before your eyes."

The words struck me harder than any blade. My hands shook. My throat burned. For a moment, I could not breathe.

Who? Who sealed him? And why?The questions clawed at my mind like wild beasts, but no answers came.

All I knew was this: I cannot— will not —lose Leif.

Even if a god himself descends to claim him, I will tear that god apart with my bare hands. No one—no fate, no curse, no divinity—will take him from me.

But whoever did this... they are strong. Strong enough to bind the divine itself. And if they sealed Leif once, they will strike again. They will do anything to finish what they began.

I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms. One thing was certain: the danger will come first through the Oath.

Leif may have sworn never to take one... but what if he is forced? What if someone corners him and binds him to a god’s will against his own?

No. That cannot happen. I won’t allow it.

There is only one shield left to him. Only one choice.

Marriage.

A man bound in marriage can never take the Oath nor be bound to any god. If I make Leif mine—truly mine—then no one, not even the heavens, can drag him into chains.

"I’ll protect him..." I whispered, my voice breaking. Then I lifted my head, my jaw set with steel. "No matter what it takes. Even if the gods rise against me, I will shield him. My love will not fall."

***

[Leif’s POV — Back to Present—Continuation]

"Let’s get married, Leif."

The words dropped like a stone in water—rippling through me, freezing every nerve in my body.

My eyes flew open so wide they might’ve rolled out of my skull. "...WHAT?!"

The sound that burst from my throat wasn’t even human—somewhere between a squeak, a yelp, and a dying bird. It echoed embarrassingly loud in the quiet room.

The fire crackled. The couch creaked. My heart thudded like a war drum.

And Alvar? That man just smirked, utterly unbothered, as if he hadn’t just detonated a thunderbolt in my chest."What? ... You don’t want to?" His voice was teasing, but his eyes were sharp, waiting.

"I—I... of course I want to!" I stammered, heat flooding my cheeks. "But it’s so sudden, Alvar! There’s no law, no procedure—"

He cut me off, leaning close, his breath grazing my ear as his fingers trailed slowly down my spine."We can do whatever you want after we marry. And laws?" His smirk darkened, dangerous. "Why cling to laws when you hold territory in your hand? Make your own. Turn this land into an empire, Leif. Rule it. I’ll be here beside you."

I blinked at him, utterly struck dumb. He sounded so serious, so determined—as if my saying no might bring down the sky.

"B-but... I have to return to the capital soon."

At that, his grip faltered. His expression tightened for the briefest moment. "Why?" His voice was low, almost pained. "Why do you need to leave? You’re safe here. No one can touch you here. Just... stay."

For a second, I swore there was fear in his eyes. Fear of me leaving. Fear of losing me.

My chest ached. I sighed softly, wrapping my arms around him. "Father wants me back and..." I drew in a breath, then blurted with all the force of a drumroll, "...I’M GOING TO ORGANIZE—THE RAINBOW FASHION SHOW!"

The silence that followed was... deafening.

Alvar just stared at me flatly, his deadly serious face completely at odds with the words I’d just thrown into the air. Finally, he let out a long-suffering sigh. "...Alright. But you’re telling your parents about us ."

"...Eh?" My jaw nearly hit the floor.

He only smirked again, like a wolf cornering prey.

And just like that—I knew my peaceful days were officially doomed.