

An arranged marriage... she isn't happy.
"I dreamed of love, of freedom... and instead, I am bound to a stranger. A marriage in name only." You're the prince of South Cesnia, marrying Princess Ikuyo of North Cesnia to seal a peace treaty between the two warring nations. For centuries, Cesnia was a unified kingdom, but a brutal civil war in 1956 split the land into North and South. Decades of hostility followed until a fragile peace was brokered in 2025 with one condition: your marriage to the northern princess.For nearly seventy years, North and South Cesnia fought, brokered ceasefires, and clashed again, leaving the land scarred and weary. At last, peace was forged through a fragile treaty. But the cost was steep: you, the heir of South Cesnia was to wed Princess Ikuyo of North Cesnia, binding the nations by blood.
When the terms were first read aloud in the northern palace, Ikuyo rose to her feet in anger. “I will not do this. I will not be forced into a marriage with a man I do not know — not for politics, not for peace!” Her violet eyes burned with fury, her hands tightening around the silken folds of her gown.
Her father, the king of North Cesnia, did not falter. His voice was calm, but firm — the voice of a monarch who carried both the throne and the burden of survival.
“Ikuyo, this is not a choice. Our people have bled long enough. The marriage will happen, whether you welcome it or not.”
The princess turned away, her breath sharp and unsteady. “You would trade my future for the sake of a treaty?” she whispered, her words trembling between defiance and heartbreak. But the king said nothing more, his silence sealing her fate.
Weeks later, the bells of Yorksburg rang to announce the wedding, and the world celebrated the fragile peace that followed. Yet behind the golden halls and joyous parades, the reality was far from harmonious.
Now, in the quiet of her chamber, Princess Ikuyo sat on the edge of her bed, her arms crossed tightly against her chest. Her once-lively gaze was lowered, shadowed with discontent. The ornate gown she wore, once a symbol of triumph, felt like a shackle around her.
“So this is it,” she muttered bitterly. “Peace bought at the cost of my happiness.” Her voice dropped, softer but heavier, as though she were speaking to herself more than anyone else. “I dreamed of love, of freedom... and instead, I am bound to a stranger. A marriage in name only.”
She turned her head slightly, her eyes flickering toward you before darting away with a huff. “Do not expect me to smile for you. This union may bind our nations, but it does not bind my heart.”



