Chapter 81 – The King and Queen

Alex returned to Naosa’s house after what felt like a lifetime of separation.
He couldn’t bear to let go of her—not even for a second. “If this is a dream,” he whispered in her ear, “I hope I never wake up.”

Naosa wrapped her arms around him with fierce devotion. “We’ll be together forever,” she said with unwavering certainty. “I won’t let you go.”

Their tears hadn’t yet dried. They held each other close, affirming the love they had nearly lost forever. “I love you,” Alex murmured again and again, clinging to her hand as if it were his lifeline. He would never let it go again.

That night, he finally slept soundly—for the first time in weeks—with Naosa safely in his arms.
The rest of the week blurred by in perfect contentment, their world reduced to the quiet sanctuary of their room.

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On Monday morning, Kacy and Lu passed each other in the dining room with soft, knowing smiles. “Good morning,” one said with gentle amusement. “It’s been a while since we’ve seen you both.”

Alex offered a sheepish explanation, barely containing his happiness. “We’ve been rehearsing for being stranded on a deserted island.”

Laughter returned to the table with warm familiarity. For the first time in far too long, the house was filled with genuine warmth and joy.

As Alex watched Naosa chatting easily with Lu and Kacy, his chest tightened with overwhelming emotion. Even after everything—after all the tears he’d shed—more welled up. Ordinary life felt like a miracle.

There was only a little more than a month until their wedding.

Though Alex had never truly agreed to cancel the ceremony, he called Naoaki that morning to confirm their plans. Naoaki, upon hearing that Naosa’s memories had returned, didn’t hesitate for a moment. He and Geneviève would begin preparing immediately for the wedding in France.

“I don’t want to leave home again,” Alex muttered with reluctance. Naosa smiled and kissed him goodbye with gentle reassurance. “I’ll be here when you return.”

No matter how tightly he held her, Alex couldn’t shake the persistent fear—that she would vanish in the next moment, like sand slipping through his fingers.

It haunted him relentlessly—the day she had smiled and said, “I’m fine,” and the next time he saw her, her heart had stopped.

Naosa’s memories never fully returned to their previous state. She couldn’t remember anything about medicine—nothing about the laboratory, nothing about the life she’d built as a dedicated doctor.

But she remembered her friends with crystal clarity. She remembered love. She remembered Alex.
It was enough. More than enough.

She knew how difficult it was for Alex to carry that trauma. She wanted to stay by his side—but she couldn’t return to Saint Clarion without her professional memories. So, she made the difficult decision to quit.

“I hurt him,” Naosa told herself with quiet determination. “From now on, I’ll support him a different way. Until his wounds heal completely.”

Alex, even back at work, felt the profound emptiness of coming home to a house without her presence. Her laughter, her gentle humming, the comforting smell of her tea—they were painfully missing.

Every day, his desk was covered in photographs. Some of them captured the two of them together. Most showed just her radiant smile. Emma’s resignation letter still sat unopened in his drawer. He understood why she left.

Still, the fear lingered. He found himself calling home during breaks, just to make sure she was safe and breathing.

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Naosa tried to think of something—anything—that might help ease his wounded heart. But trauma like his couldn’t be undone with kind words alone.

She often sat alone, quietly wondering with growing concern, “Am I hurting him just by being here? Maybe I should set him free… But I can’t live without him.”

One night, over dinner, Alex gently brought up the idea of installing security cameras throughout the house—just in the common areas: kitchen, living room, their bedroom. Not the basement where Kacy and Lu maintained their privacy.

“I just… want to know right away if something happens when I’m not home,” he said, vulnerable and honest.

Kacy and Lu, already planning to move out after the wedding, didn’t object. They still carried the heavy guilt of not finding Naosa sooner that terrible day.

And Naosa… she only nodded with understanding. “If it makes you feel safer, then let’s do it.”

The cameras were installed the next day with professional efficiency.

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That night, lying in bed, Naosa whispered with heartfelt regret, “I’m sorry I made you suffer so much.”

Alex shook his head with firm conviction. “It’s not your fault. Please don’t blame yourself. But if I’m not there, and you collapse again—” His voice cracked. He couldn’t finish the thought.

Naosa stroked his hair tenderly, holding back tears of her own. “I don’t know why… but I feel different now. Stronger. As long as you’re with me, I’ll be okay. You make me feel stronger… and weaker, too.”

She smiled and kissed him with infinite love. “It’s okay. We’re getting married soon.”

That reminded Alex of something important—the fortune teller.

He told her the strange prophecy that had haunted him for so long.
“There was no knight left at the queen’s side. Instead, a king took her away. Then the Grim Reaper came for the Queen. After that, the fortune teller said he couldn’t read anymore. Nao… I’m scared that something—or someone—will take you away from me.”

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Naosa’s eyes sparkled with gentle amusement. “Do you believe in fortune-telling?” she asked softly.

Alex hesitated, thinking of his dreams, the visions, the way everything seemed to align. “Yes,” he admitted. “I think I do.”

She reached for his hand and smiled, reassuring, filled with quiet wisdom. “Then listen closely. You’re not a knight anymore. You’re marrying the queen—so that makes you the king.”

“You’re the king, Alex,” she said with a loving certainty. “You don’t have to be alone anymore.”

Alex blinked with dawning understanding, then smiled with profound relief. “I see… On that day, you’ll be the most beautiful bride on this planet— and I’ll be the happiest man on this planet.”

They held each other’s hands with unbreakable connection.
“I’ll never let go of your hand,” he promised with absolute conviction.

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The beginning of the next month arrived—a bright, perfect early-summer day in the French countryside.

The ceremony was held in an ancient stone hall, like something from a timeless fairy tale. Only close family, beloved friends, and local villagers were invited. It was intimate. Solemn. Absolutely magical.

When the ornate doors opened and Naosa appeared in her wedding dress, the entire room fell into reverent silence.

She was radiant. Breathtaking. Ethereal.

Alex, standing between Naoaki and Geneviève, turned to see her approach. Tears rose in his eyes—but he blinked them away with determination.

He wanted to see her clearly—every precious second of it.
He smiled and extended his hand with an open heart. She took it with perfect trust.

The two of them stood before everyone, fingers intertwined in an eternal promise.

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An elderly man from the distinguished De Valois family stepped forward with ceremonial dignity. “I hereby declare the marriage of Queen Séraphine. Séraphine De Valois is now the beloved wife of Alex O’Neill.”

The hall erupted in cheers and thunderous applause. The De Valois family wept with joy. The townspeople rejoiced. Even Delacroix cried openly with happiness.

Reginald O’Neill, though unfamiliar with De Valois tradition, raised a hand in solemn blessing. He, too, gave his wholehearted approval, visibly moved.

Geneviève leaned close to Naoaki and whispered with profound relief, “Séraphine has been saved. She can live freely now—just as Sarotte once chose to love you without regret.”

Naoaki, at last, wept—his pain lifting with the gentle wind.

That day, Naosa became the most beautiful bride on this planet.

And Alex became the happiest man on this planet.

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