"Aurelia Marissa Gianni, do you solemnly commit to Judah Alessio Bianco as your legally-bound spouse? To share in all aspects of life together – through better times and hardships, wealth and adversity, sickness and health, promising to be faithful until death do us part?"
"I do," I replied, then my mind drifted away, acting like a machine under someone else's control during the remainder of the ceremony, until it was time for our symbolic kiss. The chill in his gaze and the tense set of his lips betrayed his reluctance as much as my own, for I equally wished not to participate in this forced union.
Aurelia never sought this marriage; she had no desire to bind herself to a man like Judah, who was initially intended for her sister. However, after their scandalous encounter, she was coerced into marriage to evade her father's愤怒. Love was not a factor; she didn't even harbor fondness for him. This union marked the beginning of a life bound by obligation rather than choice.
