Did he even think before letting words leave his mouth?
Arianna felt a wave of nausea twist her stomach. Refusing to look at Ethan again, she walked straight to her father.
"I will go to the North and marry the king. Is it tomorrow that he is sending his men to pick me up?" she asked.
The king let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his forehead with his thumb. He was convinced his daughter was trying to teach him a lesson for forcing her to marry Prince Casper of the South.
"You don't have to do this," he said softly. "I know you're trying to prove a point, and I understand now, daughter."
A small frown appeared on Arianna's face as she folded her arms across her chest.
"Ethan and the others may be confused about me, but I don't expect you to be." Her voice was calm but firm. "I may have wanted to marry that man over there."
She pointed directly at Ethan.
"Yes, I wanted to marry him. But I have changed my mind, Father. And trust me when I say this, I truly want to marry the King of the North."
The king fell silent for several moments. He glanced at his wife. The queen immediately shook her head, but this time he ignored her.
"So be it," he finally said. "If you still feel the same way tomorrow, I will allow you to marry the Barbarian King."
Arianna's lips curved into a smile.
"Thank you, Father."
She gave him a slight bow.
One by one, everyone left the hall. Though they remained silent, the shock on their faces was impossible to miss. They all thought she had lost her mind.
But that was far from the truth.
Arianna knew exactly what she was doing.
If Ethan wanted to break her heart, then she would make sure he regretted it.
She was going to take her revenge by marrying his father.
As she walked back to her room, a familiar voice stopped her.
It was Ethan.
Even now, he refused to believe she meant what she had said in the hall.
"I know you don't want my father," he said as he stepped in front of her. "You know better than anyone that he's not just a barbarian. He's a monster."
Arianna stared at him without saying a word.
"The entire tribe is filled with savages," Ethan continued. "I'm the only one among them who received an education."
"At least he won't fake marrying me," she said in a low tone.
"What did you say?"
"Let me go, Desmond. I have made my decision, and it is useless going back and forth with you. Or are you scared your father will be a better husband than you?"
He was taken aback by her boldness. Arianna had never spoken to him like this before. Or had she learned new tricks to turn him on while trying to defy him? Either way, it only made him more angry, especially the thought that she was using his father.
"I know what you are trying to do," Ethan said coldly. "But I know for a fact that in three days, you will come running back and begging for my love… just like always."
Arianna felt a sharp sting in her chest. In her previous life, she had been foolish enough to let him believe that. And now it gave him the audacity to look down on her like this.
"In your dreams, Ethan," she said firmly.
"It's a bet then. But when you come back this time, you will pay for it in many ways."
Arianna watched him walk away confidently, but her chest burned with everything he had said. She wanted to call the guards and have him thrown into the dungeon, but she could not. Not yet.
Not until she became the Queen of the North.
*****
The next morning came faster than she expected. The maids dressed her in a beautiful white and brown gown. They did light makeup on her face and gathered her straight hair into a neat ponytail.
Sitting in front of the mirror, Arianna wondered if she was making a mistake by agreeing to marry the King of the North. Ethan had already shown her what kind of men came from there.
And the rumors about his father were even worse.
Yet she still chose this path, all for revenge.
It would still be better than marrying any other prince.
In her previous life, she had chosen Ethan. She had run away with him, believing in love. They got married, and he abandoned her without a second thought.
Five years later, she found out the truth at the marriage registry. Their marriage certificate was fake. He had been married to Selena all along.
When she confronted them, they pushed her off a rooftop and watched her die.
"Red lipstick looks good on you, my lady," Maria, her chief maid, said as she entered the room again.
"Thank you, Maria," Arianna replied softly, wiping the tears that had escaped her eyes. Her brown eyes still carried the pain of that final moment.
"Do you think I made the right decision today?"
Maria looked surprised by the question. "My lady, whatever decision you make is the right one. I believe that with all my heart."
Arianna smiled faintly and stood up. She took one last look around her room before speaking again.
"I will miss everything here."
"I am sorry, my lady," Maria said, lowering her gaze.
After a moment of silence, Maria asked carefully, "What if things do not go well over there?"
"I am not planning to stay there for long," Arianna said with a small smile. "Once I get my revenge on Ethan and Selena, I will divorce the Barbarian King and come back home. I will open my clinic and treat the poor. I heard he has many wives, so it will be easy for him to let me go."
"Wow… that sounds so easy," Maria whispered.
Before Arianna could respond, a knock came at the door. One of the maids stepped in.
"The King's carriage has arrived from the North."