Jessica found herself momentarily at a loss for words. Should she express her hatred? Deep down, she felt she didn't have that right. After all, it was her father who had broken the agreement between their kingdoms, annihilating his nation and even ordering him to be castrated. They had committed unspeakable crimes against him first, so what right did she have to claim hatred?

"Jessica, do you love me?" Jeremy asked, his voice steady.

"Can we even talk about love anymore? My father destroyed your entire family, and now you're wiping out mine. How can we still speak of love?" Jessica avoided answering his question directly, her heart heavy.

"If we stripped away all of this, if it were just you and me, would you still love me?" Jeremy pressed on.

Jessica managed a faint smile, but the weight of their shared history hung heavily in the air. How could she pretend that everything that had happened was erased?

Jeremy's heart sank as he waited in vain for the words he longed to hear.

"On the day after tomorrow, we're getting married!" After a long pause, he dropped the bombshell and turned to leave.

It took Jessica a moment to process his words. "Married?"

But the only response she received was the echo of her own voice in the empty room.

Two days later, she donned the wedding gown that Jeremy had sent her. Deep down, she still loved him, even if his hands were stained with her family's blood. In the end, she chose to wear the dress for him.

As she gazed at her reflection in the mirror, she couldn't help but think that perhaps no one in the world was as heartless as she was.

Yet, despite her seemingly unfeeling exterior, she hadn't achieved her dreams. The wedding she had yearned for was not hers; she was merely another concubine he was taking into his palace on the same day he married someone else.

That night, but she found herself sitting alone before a pair of flickering red candles, waiting for dawn to break. That night felt unbearably long, and the dancing flames seemed to weep with blood.

The following day, she changed back into her usual clothes and made her way to the Peace Palace to pay her respects. After all, the king had just married, and she was expected to greet the queen.

However, when she arrived at the Peace Palace and laid eyes on the woman seated high above, Jessica froze. She had never imagined she would encounter a familiar face again.

The queen, the mistress of the Peace Palace, was none other than her former maid, Cate Blanchett.

No one could fathom the bitterness swirling within her as she knelt before the queen, forcing a smile. "Your Majesty, I pay my respects and wish you long-lasting happiness."

Now, she had lost everything—her kingdom, her family, her lover, and even her dignity.

Cate, lounging in her royal seat, finally spoke after a long pause, "You may rise." Her demeanor mirrored that of the once-mighty queen of Unikon, and Jessica felt as if her life had spiraled into a cruel cycle of despair.

Jeremy was busy rebuilding the kingdom, leaving only Jessica and Cate in the harem. Cate was the queen, while Jessica remained a mere concubine without a specific title or rank.

Jessica spent the entire morning in the Peace Palace, and it wasn't until Cate dismissed her that she was allowed to leave.

Only when she returned to her own quarters did she dare to stretch her limbs. Sitting for so long had left her aching; ever since her injury, her body couldn't endure much.

After sipping some water, she lay down on her bed, utterly exhausted, planning to rest a bit before hunting for something to eat.

In this palace, she had to do everything herself; there was no one to serve her, and in her little courtyard, she was all alone.

Just as she was about to drift off, she heard footsteps—familiar footsteps. She quickly sprang out of bed.

When Jeremy entered the room, Jessica felt a rush of panic as she hurriedly adjusted her clothes.

Despite her fluster, she composed herself and knelt, performing the proper greeting.

In the palace of Kinston, Jessica felt like nothing more than a humble ant; her perspective drastically shifted. Suddenly, she understood the torment Jeremy, once a mere servant named "Jery" in Unikon's palace, must have endured.

Jeremy approached her, pulling her to her feet. "No need for such formality, Jessica," he said. His tone wasn't exactly warm, but it was a far cry from the coldness she'd grown used to.

This shift in demeanor made Jessica momentarily dazed, and she whispered, "Jery?"

The sound of that name struck Jeremy like a lightning bolt.

His face darkened, and with a sharp push, he sent Jessica stumbling. "Slap her!" he barked, his voice cold and commanding.

Logan Dent, Jeremy's head servant, stepped forward, grabbing Jessica by the collar and unleashing a flurry of slaps across her face.

The first strike made her cry out in pain, but after that, she clenched her teeth and endured, refusing to make another sound.

The only noise in the room was the sharp "smack" of his hand against her skin.

The more she held her silence, the angrier Jeremy became. He was curious to see just how long she could withstand the punishment. But ultimately, it was Jeremy who faltered first.

When he finally ordered Logan to stop, Jessica's face was swollen beyond recognition, blood and saliva mixing at the corners of her mouth, staining her clothes with dark, ugly splotches.

Jeremy looked at her in this pitiful state, wanting to say something, but in the end, he simply turned and left with Logan, the silence between them heavy with unspoken words.

Once she was alone, Jessica slowly crawled to the edge of the bed, too weak to climb up. Instead, she leaned against it, her gaze fixed on the ceiling. All she wanted was to see the sky outside.

Time slipped away as she sat there, her eyes locked on the ceiling, until exhaustion finally took over, and she drifted into a deep sleep.

The next day, when Cate noticed Jessica had not come to pay her respects, Cate sent a young maid to check on her.

Knowing Jessica well after years of service, Cate understood her temperament; if something hadn't happened, she wouldn't simply ignore her duties.

The maid returned quickly, her expression filled with concern. "Your Majesty, she… I don't know what's wrong with her. Her face is swollen, and she's just sitting there, staring at the ceiling. If I hadn't seen her eyelids flutter, I would have thought she was dead."

Cate listened, a long pause hanging in the air before she finally spoke, "Who can make sense of palace matters? Let her be. Just pretend you've never been there, and I haven't heard a word from you. Remember, in the palace, it's often best to keep things to yourself."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I understand," the maid replied, bowing her head.

After that day, Jeremy didn't step foot in the harem for a full week. When he finally returned to Jessica's room, he found her lifeless body slumped against the bed.

She was still wearing the same clothes from that day, though the bloodstains had long since dried.

"Jessica." His heart skipped a beat as he rushed to her side, carefully checking for a pulse. A wave of despair washed over him until, after what felt like an eternity, he finally detected a faint breath.

Quickly, he lifted her onto the bed and called to Logan, "Get a doctor—now!"

Doctors from the royal hospital were summoned one after another to Jessica's quarters, but they were all at a loss.

She had lost the ability to swallow, and there was nothing they could feed her.

The outcome was clear, and no one needed to say a word.

"Bring me a bowl of sugar water," Jeremy suddenly commanded.

Moments later, a servant entered, carrying a bowl of sugar water. Jeremy took it from her and coldly ordered, "Everyone out."

The room emptied in an instant.

He settled beside Jessica on the bed, taking a sip of the sugar water before setting the bowl aside. Gently, he lifted her up, pouring the sweet liquid into her mouth, using his own strength to coax her to swallow it.

By the time he finished feeding her the entire bowl, he was drenched in sweat.

He laid her back down softly, his fingers tracing the contours of her face, a mixture of tenderness and regret flooding through him.

Jeremy remembered how radiant she looked when she gave him candy, her face alight with joy. He recalled her desperate pleas, pulling palace maids along to beg a eunuch not to subject him to castration.

He remembered her haughty demeanor in public and the tender, gentle smiles she reserved for him in private. He could still see her eyes filled with love as she called him Jeremy and declared her affection, as well as the steely resolve on her face when she drove a knife into her own body.

Jeremy was caught in a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. He loved Jessica, yet he hated her too. She had witnessed all his humiliations and vulnerabilities. Once, he believed that as long as Jessica loved him, nothing else mattered. But now, when he couldn't get the answer he desperately sought, the past felt like a dagger lodged deep in his heart.

"What am I supposed to do with you?" he murmured softly, staring at the woman lying motionless on the bed, but no one could answer him.

That day, she had called him "Jery," a name she had used since childhood, back when he was just a servant in the Unikon palace. After they fell in love, she had switched to calling him "Jeremy," never uttering "Jery" again. Hearing that name slip from her lips had jolted him back to his days of servitude, a painful reminder that he was no longer her Jeremy. It was that realization that had driven him to lash out so violently. He didn't even recognize himself in that moment, as if he had lost his mind, nearly costing her life.

Perhaps the sugar water had worked its magic, for Jessica's breathing seemed a bit stronger. Jeremy called for the doctor, who checked her pulse and prescribed more medicine.

For three days, Jeremy took care of her, but the mounting issues in the court forced him to leave her in the care of Amy, his trusted aide.

Despite his busy schedule, he made it a point to visit her every day. Each time he saw her improving, a sense of relief washed over him.

On the fifth day, when he returned, he found Jessica awake.

Seeing her lying there after so many days of silence made his heart race. He felt a wave of anxiety wash over him, unsure of how to approach her.

He had been too harsh that day, and now he wanted to say something—anything—but the words eluded him. He longed to apologize, but the damage was done, and a simple "I'm sorry" felt utterly inadequate.

Jeremy stood there, grappling with his thoughts, when he noticed Amy Stone, the maid, watching him closely.

"She's been like this since she woke up," Amy said quietly. "She hasn't said a word. She drinks when offered water and eats when given food, but she just won't speak."

Jeremy's gaze shifted back to Jessica. He took a few tentative steps closer, trying to sound casual. "Jessica, how are you feeling?"

Jessica kept her head down, avoiding his eyes. The moment he entered the room, she had glanced at him once, then quickly averted her gaze, refusing to look up again.

When she heard his voice, she buried her face even lower, not uttering a single sound.

"Jessica, what do you want to eat tonight?" he tried again.

Still, she remained silent. But as he moved closer, he noticed her body tense up, her small movements betraying her anxiety.

A sinking feeling gripped Jeremy's heart. Is she afraid of me?

He didn't want to believe it, but as he stepped closer, he could see her trembling. Just as he reached out to touch her, she suddenly turned and scrambled onto the bed, burying her head in the curtains, a clear sign of her desire to hide from him.

The sight of her fear pierced his heart. She was genuinely terrified of him, avoiding him like he was a venomous snake.

Jeremy hesitated, rooted to the spot, watching her shiver. Deep down, he knew that if he truly wanted to hurt her, she wouldn't be able to escape. That realization made her fear all the more painful.

He longed to pull her out from her hiding place, to comfort her, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he took a step back, turning to Amy. "Take good care of her. I'll be leaving for now."

The last part of his statement was directed at Jessica, though she couldn't hear it.

"Understood," Amy replied, her voice steady.

Jeremy cast one last glance at the figure cowering on the bed before striding out of the room.

Once outside, he didn't rush away. Instead, he made a small peephole in the paper of the window to watch her reaction. He couldn't shake his anxiety.

After a long wait, Jessica finally moved. She cautiously turned her head, peeking around the room to make sure it was safe. Seeing only Amy still present, she took a deep breath and surveyed her surroundings more carefully. Only when she was certain the coast was clear did she slowly get out of bed and return to her place by the bedside.

Jeremy watched for a while longer, noting that she remained still. With a resigned sigh, he turned and left.