Marius had no particular ambition to ascend the throne, but as the first prince, there was no reason he shouldn’t become the crown prince. Neither he nor Lorenz had any intention of competing for the throne. Politically, it made the most sense for Marius and Juliana to be engaged.
Sophie understood all this, which is why, no matter how many times Lorenz told her, “It’s you I wanted,” she would only reply with a gentle, “You’re so kind, Lorenz.”
“I wanted this… I’m sorry, Sophie.”
Lorenz could almost hear Sophie’s voice in his head, softly saying, “It’s not your fault, Lorenz.” The thought of her smile only deepened his sorrow.
He had spent the remaining time with Sophie doing what she wanted: eating desserts, strolling through town in disguise, building shelters and orphanages, and visiting the sea. At some point, he realized that most of what Sophie wanted to do were things he had once mentioned in passing as his own desires.
It was Lorenz who had once said he wanted to gorge on desserts, while Sophie had replied she liked sweets but only in small amounts. It was Lorenz who had wanted to buy street food as an ordinary man, and Sophie had simply added that she’d love to try fresh-squeezed juice from a stall. He had vented his frustration about the lack of funds reaching the common people and mentioned wanting to escape to the sea when feeling powerless.
“You fool,” he whispered. “You didn’t have to spend what little time you had left on me.”
“I’ve found the culprit. Just wait a little longer, Sophie.”
Reluctantly, Lorenz glanced back several times before leaving the church. His destination was the castle.
* * *
Sophie’s eyes opened.
She didn’t understand what was happening but found herself looking at Lorenz’s distorted, tear-streaked face. Before she could speak, he suddenly pulled her up and hugged her tightly.
Too tightly.
Her first words after so long were, “You’re squishing me.”
Her entire body ached—partly from the embrace and partly from disuse.
“That hurts,” she said.
“I know,” he replied.
“No, you don’t,” Sophie thought. She needed him to ease his grip, but the pain also made one thing clear: this wasn’t heaven.
“Who am I, and where is this?” she asked.
“You’re Sophie, and this is the church. Have you forgotten?”
“It’s hard to say. I don’t remember coming here myself.”
“That’s true.”
Both their voices were hoarse. Sophie’s throat felt raw from prolonged inactivity, while Lorenz…his voice seemed strained for other reasons.
“Am I not…dead?” Sophie asked.
“You’re not dead. You’re alive. You’ve been asleep for three and a half years, but you’re alive.”
“Oh my,” Sophie murmured, as if it were someone else’s problem. She was, in fact, surprised, but her memories were beginning to return. She distinctly remembered closing her eyes, thinking there was no saving her.
“Was the curse broken?”
“Yes.”
“By whom?”
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