For the next few days, it felt like there were two wars going on. A war within the palace walls and a war outside of it. Whilst Kade and his people were readying the supplies and plans in the office, he'd return home to his estate where a silent battle ensued.

  Lina slept in a separate bedroom. She was his rightful First Wife. The only woman he hadn't fed abortion-inducing medicine too, as he would to his occasional flings along time ago. The only woman he'd allow to sire his children.

  Lina knew what Kade wanted from her. He wanted to treat her well, to see her indulge in the benefits of his work. He worked hard to give his wife everything she'd need in life. Power. Reputation. Wealth. Kade lacked nothing. Even so, Lina touched nothing of his anymore.

  "Princess, please eat something…"

  Isabelle had been trying to get the Princess to eat. Almost two weeks had passed. Isabelle was surprised the Princess was still alive and sitting upright. She wondered if the Princess was secretly eating at night time or something.

  "The chefs heard these were your favorite dishes from Teran, Princess. They worked hard for three days to scour the ingredients and then prepare the recipe to perfection for you. Please at least have a bite," Isabelle begged.

  Isabelle was extremely worried for the Princess. The atmosphere within the estate was tense. Not a single maidservant dared to make a mistake or step out of line. Everyone was walking on egg-shells.

  Neither the Seventh Prince nor his wife lashed out at anyone. But with the thick atmosphere, everyone wished they were the violent kind of couple to toss chairs and break furniture. That way, they could blow off some steam.

  "I-if you don't want to eat, how about allowing me to change the bedsheets, Princess?" Isabelle left out the part about the Seventh Prince's scheme to replace the cheap concubine materials with high-quality ones.

  Lina wasn't an idiot. She knew what Kade was doing. Although she had moved into the shabbiest concubine room she could find, the quality of this place had suddenly increased after a day of staying. She could only conclude it was Kade's doing. As a result, she had dumped almost everything comfortable out of the room.

  To punish Kade, she had to punish herself. Truly, what a marriage she had.

  Lina had tossed out the bedsheets. She opted to use the coarse blankets and hard, wooden mattress. At night, she'd shiver and tremble. In the morning, she was uncomfortable.

  "U-uhm, also the Seventh Prince prepared more gifts for you, Princess……"

  Lina didn't even blink. Kade tried to court her from morning to night. He played the part of a dutiful husband to the public, whilst betraying his wife all day. She didn't forget the sword delivered to her the first day she came to this room. He thought it could cheer her up.

  The sword was being used—to collect dust.

  "And—"

  "Out."

  Lina stiffened.

  Kade's voice was like the wind on a stormy night. Cold. Merciless.

  It was the first time Kade had visited her in the past ten days. Last time they argued, it had been for ten days as well. So that was how long he could hold back his lust.

  Lina almost laughed at the thought. He was here to claim his wife back, for one night, and then betray her again.

  "If you think torturing yourself hurts me, then think again." Kade stormed into the dining table, where he saw ten dishes laid out in front of her. Ten untouched and cold plates.

  "Starting from this moment, what you're doing is torturing your subordinates as well."

  Lina didn't know what he was talking about. That is, until he dropped a leather whip onto the table. The many leather tassels were spiked with sharp edges, meant to dig the skin right open.

  "For each dish that you don't eat, it'll be ten whips on their backs," Kade snarled.

  Kade had enough of this silent dispute. He had enough of seeing the undisturbed dishes being sent back to the kitchen. He hadn't seen her in ten days and she seemed to be half the size of when she came to Ritan. Even her most well-fitted clothes were a loose fit on her now.

  "Now eat."

  Lina ignored him. She proceeded to stare out the window. It was what she did morning till night. She'd watch the tree branches sway. Sometimes, there would be birds. Sometimes, a leaf would fall. Other times, it was mundane staring.

  BAM!

  Kade slammed his hand on the table.

  "Fine then," Kade softly said. "I'll have your people brought here. For each second that passes where you don't eat, I'll whip them right here."

  Lina could feel her entire world crumble to the ground. What little hope she had of him was squashed like an ant. Her eyes watered and she said nothing. Instead, she felt a lone tear slip out.

  "To keep you by my side, I'll turn into a tyrant."

  Kade leaned closer to her. He was exhausted from today's task. Today, he had finalized the rations for the war, concluded the formation and plans, gave a morale-boosting speech, readied his soldiers, inspected the forest, and attended multiple meetings. All he wanted to do was get a final look at his wife before he departed tomorrow morning.

  One final look at his prize.

  "You've turned a hero into a villain. I hope you're pleased," Kade murmured.

  Lina's entire core was shaken. She wanted to scream and yell at him, but her emotions had long died off. She simply stared out the window. His words were nothing, but bluff. She knew her people were dead. She knew he had tortured them to no return.

  "Hah…"

  Kade picked up the whip. He raised his hand. She didn't even flinch. He loudly threw the weapon to the floor. She didn't even look at him.

  Without warning, Kade grabbed her chin by force. Even so, she didn't fight him. She responded like a rag doll. He turned her face and shoved a pastry to her lips. She wouldn't open her mouth.

  "Eat."

  Lina refused. He might've shifted her face, but her eyes were glued to the window. She envied the birds that could fly off.

  Kade threw the pastry to the ground. It landed with a soft thud. He had never seen so much despair in a woman's eyes before.

  "Lina," he tried to reason.

  Kade released her jaw. He lowered himself to the ground, until he had one knee rested on the hard floor. He knelt before her, like a man ready to propose. He took her hands into his and squeezed.

  "My sweet wife," Kade murmured. "If you torture yourself, fine. But you've already resulted in the death of a child, do you want to kill the potential one in your stomach?"

  Lina was so repulsed by the thought that she nearly threw up on him. Her body had grown as cold as ice. She was practically sweating from her anxiety. Her breath quickened.

  "Are you so much of a heartless woman to starve a baby?" Kade asked, placing a hand on her stomach.

  Kade knew she wasn't with child. It was far too early in their marriage to show. They had done it multiple times before, but who's to say they were extremely fertile? Seeing as she showed no symptoms of pregnancy, he didn't expect anything.

  "Think of our child," Kade murmured. His voice was low and gentle. He grabbed her hand and placed it over her flat stomach.

  "Don't torture your baby," Kade said.

  Lina's resolution threatened to crack. But she remained firm. She continued to look out the window. Ah. There was another bird. How beautiful it looked, with its soft wings.

  "You will hate me for the rest of your life, but I have all the patience in the world to make you love me again."

  Kade rose to his feet. The sudden movement caused the bird to quickly fly off.

  Lina's shoulders dropped in disappointment. She wanted to grow wings, like the dove he so tenderly called her. Maybe that way, she could actually put herself to good use, as the symbol of peace.

  "A woman often gives their lover a ribbon for good luck," Kade said.

  Kade glanced at her hair, tied up by a single ribbon. No fancy hairpins. No silk dresses. Even so, he took the only thing she had left. The ribbon. Her hair fell softly down her shoulders, like ink spilled on paper. He was mesmerized by her allure, but haunted by her agony.

  "Sleep well, dove of mine."

  Dove.

  In the end, Lina was just a pretty bird in a cage. And now, she was the prize for a heinous war. A battle with no real reward. A battle where thousand would die because of her.

  Kade tied the ribbon around his sword. Then, he departed from the room.

  "What a shame," Lina whispered to no one. "You just sealed your fate."