{Third Person}

Two Weeks Later...

The forests surrounding the palace had long turned pale beneath frost, and every morning, cold mist stretched heavily across the mountain ranges beyond the capital. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Yet despite the deepening season, life within the palace continued almost unaffected.

The werewolves moved through winter naturally and comfortably as though the cold itself did not exist.

Only Amara seemed to suffer more with each passing day.

This morning, she had woken feeling strangely uncomfortable. Not sick exactly, just... wrong.

Even after staying close to the fireplace for hours and wrapping herself in layers of blankets, the cold still seemed to cling stubbornly to her body.

And worse, her skin itched constantly.

Amara sat curled near the edge of her bed while absentmindedly scratching lightly at her wrist again.

"There is nothing there," she murmured in frustration while staring at her skin.

There were no rashes, no redness. Nothing unusual at all.

Yet the itching sensation remained beneath her skin like something irritating her from the inside.

Nearby, Ginger remained curled beneath the blankets beside her legs, unusually quiet today, as though sensing her discomfort.

Mrs. Woods had already noticed since early morning that something was wrong.

Amara looked visibly weaker. Even her face lacked its usual brightness.

"My Lady," Mrs. Woods asked carefully after approaching the bedside, "are you certain you are alright?"

Amara sighed tiredly and leaned back slightly against the pillows.

"I don’t know," she admitted honestly. "My body feels strange today."

Mrs. Woods frowned gently. "Strange how?"

"I feel cold no matter what," Amara explained softly. "And my skin keeps itching."

As if to prove her point, she rubbed lightly at her neck again before stopping herself.

Mrs. Woods immediately became serious. The Alpha Prince’s instructions from days ago surfaced instantly in her mind.

’If anything unusual happens, inform me immediately.’

Without delay, Mrs. Woods instructed Sonia to continue attending to Amara before quickly leaving for the Alpha Prince’s side of the residence.

---

Alexander was in his study when Mrs. Woods arrived.

Jasper had barely finished announcing her presence before she was already being ushered inside.

Mrs. Woods bowed respectfully the moment she entered. "Your Highness."

Alexander immediately noticed the seriousness in her expression. "What happened?" he asked.

Mrs. Woods carefully explained everything Amara was going through. The chills, the weakness, and the itching.

Alexander’s gaze darkened slightly the more he listened. Then, without another word, he stood up immediately.

Mrs. Woods quietly stepped aside and led the way toward Amara’s side of the residence. The closer they got to her bedroom, the more noticeable the heat became.

By the time Alexander entered the room, even he found it excessively warm.

Amara, however, still sat wrapped tightly beneath blankets on the bed near the fireplace.

The moment she looked up and saw Alexander walking into her bedroom, surprise flashed across her face.

"Your Highness?" she called softly, visibly caught off guard.

Alexander walked closer calmly while his gaze moved carefully over her appearance.

She truly looked uncomfortable. Though not severely ill, but weaker than usual.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

Amara shifted slightly beneath the blankets before answering honestly. "Cold," she admitted quietly. "And my body feels itchy for some reason."

Alexander’s brows furrowed faintly. "Itching?"

Amara nodded, then showed him one of her hands. "There’s nothing there, but it keeps bothering me."

Alexander stepped closer and took her wrist naturally before she could lower it again.

The moment their skin touched, his expression changed slightly.

Her hand was freezing, far colder than it should have been. Especially inside a room this warm.

For the first time in a while, even Alexander himself felt overheated standing there. Yet Amara still looked cold beneath multiple blankets.

Amara also seemed slightly startled by how warm his hands felt against hers.

Alexander ignored the reaction and pressed two fingers lightly against her pulse instead. It was steady, normal. Not weak or irregular.

Everything about her pulse felt perfectly fine, which only made the entire situation stranger.

After a moment, Alexander released her hand slowly, though his gaze remained fixed thoughtfully on her.

The memory from that drunken night resurfaced once again in his mind.

The blue veins beneath her skin, her abnormal reaction to cold water. And now this.

Alexander’s suspicion deepened quietly because no matter how he looked at it, this was no ordinary reaction to winter.

His gaze lingered on Amara quietly with a thoughtful expression as she pulled the blankets tighter around herself again.

The room stayed silent except for the soft crackling sounds from the fireplace nearby.

Finally, Alexander spoke again. "Have you always reacted this way during winter?"

Amara looked slightly confused by the question at first, but she answered honestly, "No. This is my first time feeling like this."

’First time?’ Alexander’s eyes narrowed almost invisibly. That only made things more suspicious.

He remained quiet for a moment before asking another question casually, "What about cold water?"

"Cold water?" Amara blinked. "What about it?"

Alexander nodded calmly. "Do you react badly to it?"

This time, Amara became slightly alert. The question sounded too specific, and suddenly, she faintly remembered something that had happened a few times in the past.

Though not clearly enough to piece things together completely, but enough for caution to rise quietly inside her.

So instead of answering immediately, she chose her words carefully.

"Well..." she began slowly, "I grew up in a rich household, so I was pampered most of the time. There was never really a reason for me to bathe with cold water."

Alexander watched her silently. The answer sounded too smooth to him, as though she had prepared it midway.

Amara avoided his gaze briefly before adding lightly, "I simply dislike cold things in general."

Alexander did not push further immediately. Instead, after a short pause, he asked another question.

"Is your body temperature usually lower than normal?"

Amara hesitated just briefly this time, but Alexander noticed.

Then finally, she nodded faintly. "A little," she admitted. "And... I do get cold easily."

Alexander’s gaze darkened thoughtfully. The more answers he received from her, the less ordinary she seemed.

At that moment, Amara suddenly frowned slightly and scratched lightly at her wrist again. The itching clearly had not stopped.

Alexander noticed immediately. Without another word, he reached for her hand again and checked her pulse once more.

Amara stiffened faintly from the sudden touch before slowly relaxing again.

His hands were unbelievably warm compared to hers. The difference was almost startling.

Alexander remained focused while feeling the steady rhythm beneath her skin.

Her pulse was completely normal, yet her condition clearly was not. For a brief moment, another possibility crossed his mind.

Poison.

The itching could explain it, but somehow, his instincts told him this was something else entirely.

Meanwhile, Amara gradually stopped scratching.

The warmth from Alexander’s hand spread slowly through her cold fingers, easing some of the discomfort buried inside her body.

Without realizing it herself, she relaxed deeper into the pillows, and her tense shoulders loosened little by little.

Even her breathing became softer and slower.

Alexander noticed the change almost immediately.

Amara herself seemed unaware of it. She only shifted slightly beneath the blankets before her eyelids slowly began growing heavy.

Then finally, she fell asleep quietly, naturally, still holding his hand.

Alexander looked down at her silently. The faint discomfort between her brows had already eased considerably compared to earlier.

For some reason, that realization unsettled him more than he expected.

---

Meanwhile, on the other side of the residence, Barron finally woke from his afternoon nap.

After wandering around for a while and not finding Alexander anywhere, he eventually crossed paths with Jasper outside the study.

"Where is your master?" Barron asked casually.

Jasper answered respectfully, "His Highness is currently in Her Ladyship’s residence."

Barron’s brows lifted immediately. "With the political bride?"

"Yes."

That was enough to spark his curiosity completely.

Without wasting another second, Barron headed straight toward Amara’s side of the residence.

The servants outside the bedroom immediately bowed upon seeing him, but Barron barely paid attention to them before stepping inside. Then he stopped.

Alexander sat beside Amara’s bed while holding her hand. Amara herself had fallen asleep beneath thick blankets near the fireplace.

The room was overheated and quiet, intimate in a way Barron had never expected to witness from Alexander.

For the first time since entering, Barron did not speak immediately. His eyes moved slowly from Amara’s sleeping face... to Alexander.

Then finally, a slow smile spread across his lips. ’Oh.’

Barron’s first instinct was, naturally, to tease Alexander mercilessly. The sight before him was simply too rare and too unbelievable.

Alexander, sitting quietly beside a woman’s bed while allowing her to sleep peacefully, holding his hand, was already shocking enough on its own.

And that woman happened to be his human political bride.

Barron almost laughed. He had barely opened his mouth to speak when Alexander slowly lifted his gaze toward him.

The look in his eyes was calm, but the warning inside it was unmistakable.

Do not speak.

Leave.

Barron immediately understood. A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he raised both hands lightly in surrender.

Then, without making another sound, he quietly turned and walked back out of the room.

The door closed softly behind him.

And inside the warm bedroom, silence settled once more around Alexander and the sleeping Amara.