Chapter 43 - I. Am. Not. Punishing. You.

There were sighs of relief from various directions, and the sound of weapons being dropped to the ground. The soldiers looked very relieved.

Even if it was only five minutes, the rest would mean a lot to them.

They also secretly hoped that the prince would take more than five minutes to talk to his woman so that they could rest a little longer.

Mars turned around and approached Emmelyn, who was standing behind him. He then pulled the girl's hand to enter the castle.

[Doesn't she have a thicker coat? Her hands are so cold.]

[I'm going to have Roshan order her a new coat.]

"What do you want to talk about?" asked Mars as soon as they got into the castle and he closed the door behind them so that the cold wind from outside did not enter.

"I want to know what makes you angry with me," Emmelyn said firmly. "You've been acting weird from last night. Did I do something wrong?"

Mars stared at the beautiful face in front of him with a turbulent chest.

Did she do something wrong?

Emmelyn didn't do anything wrong. The girl was only being herself. Mars was the one who made the mistake of falling in love with her.

"You didn't do anything wrong," the man replied simply. "Is that all you want to ask?"

Emmelyn frowned at the cold attitude Mars showed her.

"You said I didn't do anything wrong, but you treat me like an enemy," said the girl irritably. "I can't read minds, okay.. I'm not a witch. I think you're punishing me for something, and it pissed me off because I don't know what I did!"

"I'm not punishing you," Mars replied.

"Do you think I'm stupid? I can see how you have been treating me so coldly from last night. You make me feel like I made a very big mistake," said Emmelyn. "You're usually not like this."

"I. Am. Not. Punishing. You," Mars said again, emphasizing every word.

How could he punish Emmelyn? He was the crown prince and was used to being fair.

He would never punish an innocent person. In this situation, Emmelyn was innocent because the girl was just acting as herself.

Mars was at fault for falling in love with an enemy. Now, before his feelings got any deeper, he must distance himself from Emmelyn.

Apart from the sex they had to have every day until Emmelyn got pregnant, he would not see this woman at all.

He had also ordered Roshan to prepare a nice chamber for Emmelyn. Later, after breakfast, the girl could move to her own place.

"I told you ... I'm not a child and I'm not dumb. I know that you are angry with me for something and you are punishing me now," Emmelyn kept pressing. "Please don't insult my intelligence. I'll be angry."

"If you're not dumb, I am sure you'll understand what I'm saying, right?" asked Mars with an exasperated expression. "I am not punishing you, okay? Don't take arbitrary assumptions. I've never punished anyone carelessly. If I wanted to punish you, now you've lost your head for trying to assassinate me!"

Emmelyn was stunned to hear the man's cold words. She remembered the threat Mars gave her at that time. If she did not want to bear the crown prince's heirs, then she would be beheaded in the plaza.

Chill ran down her spine when she imagined that terrible scene.

Uff ...

She was in the enemy's den now. She could lose her freedom at any time.

"You're ... you're right," said the girl in a trembling voice. "My life is in your hands ... maybe that's why you feel like you can treat me however you please."

"Em ..." Mars stared at the girl's face, who suddenly looked depressed.

His chest felt tight, and the hurt came back to the surface.

Meanwhile, Emmelyn shook her head with a disappointed expression.

"I thought we could be nice to each other until I give birth to your children. How foolish! I was stupid and thought myself too highly," said the girl in a hoarse voice. "For you, I am just a prisoner that you can kill at any time. That's why you think you could treat me however you want. If you're feeling upset, then you will shut me up and act so cold.. You think I don't deserve an explanation and should accept all your treatment of me."

"You're wrong. I don't think that way about you," said Mars.

Emmelyn bit her lip and shook her head in disappointment. "I think too highly of myself by demanding an explanation from the crown prince. How presumptuous. Alright... I will not ask again."

The girl turned and walked with brisk steps towards the stairs leading up to the third floor.

"Emmelyn, you assumed wrong. That's not what made me avoid you ..." Mars said suddenly. His voice trembled and made Emmelyn stunned.

The girl stopped in her tracks and then turned to face Mars.

"Then why did you give me the silent treatment?" asked the girl with pursed lips. "What is my fault?"

Mars looked closely at Emmelyn.

"I am not punishing you. I am just .."

"Just what? Can you please talk in full sentences? I told you I can't read minds .." Emmelyn snapped at him.

Mars swallowed hard.

"I just wanted to stay away from you because ..." Mars took a deep breath and finally answered in a sad but firm voice. "Because I don't want to fall in love with you."

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from the author:

Yeayyy!! three chapters today! Enjoy! Happy new year!

ANNOUNCEMENT:

Dear lovely readers,

I would like to announce that the story is going premium (locked) from the next chapter. You can unlock the chapters with coins or fast passes. If you are new to the site, this is how the chapters will be priced:

200 words = 1 coin, and 1 coin is worth $0.02

So, the longer the chapters, the more coins needed to unlock them. For 1200 word-chapters, the price will be 6 coins, 2000 word chapters are worth 10 coins, and so on.

Out of these coins, the author will only get 35%, minus 5% tax. The other 65% was divided between Google/Apple (as app store providers) and ReadNovelFull.

HOW MUCH AN AUTHOR ACTUALLY EARNS?

An author gets around 30% of what their novels earn. From a chapter that costs 6 coins, only 2 coins will go to the author. It's not really much, considering 1 chapter takes 1-4 hours to write (depending on the author's health, inspiration, research, etc).

But the more readers unlock the chapters using coins, the more money an author could make. So.. please open the locked chapters with coins if you wish to support me and this novel.

So, if you see a chapter with 1200 words (around 8-9 pages) and priced 6 coins. It means the cost to unlock the chapter is:

6 coins x $0.02 = $0.12

Out of that $0.12 (twelve cents), the author earns 30% or around $0.036

FYI, I have 6 contracted books on Web.no.vel, but I still have to do my day job because those 6 books don't earn enough to live. So, you can tell that my books don't make much as of today.

However, I do hope that will change as I write more and as more people find my books. I really hope I can pursue writing as a full-time career.

In exchange for your support, I can promise you my dedication and hard work to see this book written until the end. I never drop a book in my life and I will not leave you hanging. I hope this book brings you joy as you read it and get you through the day, feeling happier.

FAST PASSES & OTHER SUPPORT

If you cannot afford to unlock the chapters with coins, and can only use fast passes, don't feel bad about it. I love you too! I know how it feels to be poor and crave books. I understand. I was there.

I pray that you will be blessed abundantly and someday you can have the luxury to support the content creators that you love. The universe is listening :).

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love, Missrealitybites

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PS: IMPORTANT TO NOTE

If you are new to this site, I would like to clarify that ReadNovelFull allows authors to add words after a chapter is published, but it doesn't allow us to delete.

Also, the price for each chapter will be automatically set by the system when the chapter is published. It won't change even after edit.

So, if I published a chapter with 1200 words, the price will be 6 coins.

However, if I want to add more text to the chapter, like adding a long explanation, announcement, or author's note (I do it after the chapter is published and the price is set) then the chapter will stay 6 coins, even though after I add more text it becomes 2000 word.

That means, if I want to add my authors' thoughts in the chapter, I will do it AFTER the chapter is published so you won't pay extra coins for them.

You can also rest assured that authors won't cheat on you by publishing 2000 words so the chapter will cost 10 coins and later deleted half of the content to become only 1200 words but with 10 coins price.

Remember, authors CANNOT DELETE original wordcount from the chapter. WE CAN ONLY ADD.

You will see in the later chapters that I added important announcements and my thoughts at the bottom of the chapters. Don't worry, you are not paying for them.

All my notes are added after the chapters are published.