“I’m sorry,” were the only words that seemed to escape my lips at that moment. I felt utterly defeated, a shell of the person I once was, unable to meet her gaze. Just a short while ago, we had made a promise to each other, a vow that felt unbreakable, as if nothing could ever come between us. Yet here I stood, the epitome of despair, in front of her, a pathetic figure, desperately apologizing for being such an i***t—an i***t who had the audacity to make those promises and now found himself on the brink of being cast out of this kingdom.
“Why are you apologizing?” she asked, her voice steady, yet tinged with concern—a mixture of compassion and disbelief that cut through the fog of my despair.
The reality was starkly clear to me, though perhaps it remained obscured to her. “Princess, it’s
