I Became a Barbarian’s Bride

If the life given to a human is 70 years, then it was a power that traded those 70 years of life.

That must have been the original nature of this power.

If she had awakened her ability when she was younger and used it recklessly, she might not even be here now.

She had never once liked her ability.

Because she thought it was just an ability that prevented death.

Because she thought it was an ability that only brought the pain of death.

It wasn’t.

Her ability was actually one meant for dying.

The only difference was that she would have to experience death dozens, no, hundreds of times more than others before reaching it.

She burst into laughter.

‘If I go on inspections twice a week, how long will it take?’

Only when the small, insignificant cogwheel that was herself was removed would everything finally find its place.

If her life wasn’t noble, then at least let her death be noble.

That was all Nisha wished for.

***

Thud-,

The door opened with a harsh sound.

Nisha, who had been quietly reading a book, slowly lifted her head.

He seemed excited as he came in, his large chest heaving as he sat heavily on the bed.

“You’re back, Kagan.”

Nisha, feeling less opposed to sharing the space with him now that her heart had lowered its guard a bit, reached out and gently held Kagan’s hand.

At her touch, Kagan slowly allowed the tension in his chest to subside.

Recently, she had realized something: Kagan was more open to physical affection than she’d thought.

She still didn’t understand why she used to freeze up and turn her head whenever he touched her before.

But now, it was clear that within his boundaries, he was quite gentle, and those boundaries included Nisha.

His earlier words about her being his only partner didn’t seem to be a lie, as he often touched her, kissing her cheek or nuzzling the nape of her neck.

While words of love hadn’t been exchanged, it didn’t matter whether he liked her body or her as a person. She didn’t ask.

After all, all he had asked for was that they grow accustomed to each other.

Either way, the increased physical affection wasn’t something Nisha minded, in fact, she liked it.

It almost made her feel as if she were loved. Receiving affection she hadn’t before was a feeling she didn’t dislike.

Kagan pulled Nisha onto his lap, resting his face in the crook of her neck as he spoke.

“Princess, how was the tea party today?”

“Tea party…?” Nisha furrowed her brows.

No matter how much she tried to sugarcoat it, could that really be called a tea party?

Honestly, she didn’t think so.

After all, she had seen far too much for it to fit that description.

“Yes, the tea party.”

“…It was more like a drinking party… pretending to be a tea party,” Nisha muttered cautiously, glancing away.

“…”

This time, it was Kagan who fell silent. He looked at Nisha, visibly taken aback, then turned his head away, only to glance back at her after a long pause. He took a deep breath.

“It was supposed to be a tea party.”

“There wasn’t any tea… only snacks and whiskey…”

Not to mention the conversation that couldn’t really be called appropriate for a tea party, and even a fistfight had broken out.

From Nisha’s perspective, calling it a drinking party was already being generous.

“Anyway… nothing unusual happened, right?”

“Unusual? Well…”

Nisha trailed off, her eyes darting around nervously. Kagan’s gaze darkened, growing heavy with suspicion.

“Something did happen.”

“That…”

“Tell me, what was it?”

Should she tell him? Nisha hesitated, caught between Kagan’s serious expression and the words she wanted to say.

Seeing her hesitation, Kagan leaned in closer, speaking in a soft, coaxing tone.