"Mr. Song?" the priest whispered.
Min Ho, still looking at Gia Lee's figure, said,
"I don't."
"Huh!" Almost everyone was shocked. Only a few remained calm, enjoying the drama.
Gia Lee smirked and started walking towards the altar. Heads turned at the sound of her heels clicking the marble floor, silencing the murmurs.
"What is she doing here?"
"White dress! Is she serious?"
Patriarch Han, on the other hand, was panicking and furious.
Soon she reached the alter. Gia Lee moved closer to Mi Rae , her smirk widening. She leaned into Mi Rae's ears and whispered.
"Sister! Move,"
Mi Rae looked at her, frozen,puzzled, question marks written on her forehead.
"Don't you understand, sister? I said move. If you may, please."
Her voice was stern, commanding and without even realizing it, Mi Rae moved backwards. Some people stood ,some hang their hands in the air at the scene.
At a corner, a figure wearing a red veil on her face smiled.
"She's perfect. A woman who takes and doesn't wait for permission."
Back at the altar , "Priest, if you may continue, please," Gia Lee said. The priest looked at her in puzzlement, but one glare from Min Ho made him turn to her.
"Your name?"
"Gia Lee."
"Do you, Miss Gia Lee, promise to take Mr. Song as your lawfully wedded husband, support him in sickness, happiness, and pain, and be by his side till his last breath? Until death do you part?"
"I wouldn't say till his last breath, but I do," Gia Lee answered, and the crowd gasped.
"Is the priest crazy? Stop this wedding!" Kyung Soo shouted, but even he couldn't gather the courage to step forward and stop it.
"Do you, Mr. Song, promise to take Miss Gia Lee as your lawfully wedded wife, support her in sickness, happiness, and pain, and be by her side till her last breath? Until death do you part?"
Seconds passed. He looked at Mi Rae's shocked face then back to Gia Lee.
Everyone expected him to reject her, but he answered,
"I do."
A loud thud echoed through the church as Patriarch Han collapsed to the ground. Gasps filled the room.
.....
Everything happened in a blur. In one minute, she was walking down the aisle, about to meet the love of her life, and the next, she was aside , her heart clenching in pain as she watched her younger sister snatch the love of her life . Tears streamed down Mi Rae's face. She thought her sister would get better, but she only got worse.
She wanted to scream at Gia Lee, slap her, tell her to stop envying her—get her groom back. But when she heard Min Ho say "I do" without hesitation, she stopped. Her mind went blank .
She gathered the energy, her hands trembling slightly as she moved her feet closer to the alter to confront Gia Lee when a loud thud was heard. She turned towards the sound, and her eyes widened.
Her grandfather had fainted.
"Grandfather!" she screamed, concerned, while Gia Lee scoffed.
Blood boiled inside Mi Rae. Every ounce of innocence disappeared from her eyes. She turned to look at Gia Lee, who stood there with a smirk plastered on her face.
"Why, Gia Lee? Why? Why take the love of my life away? I hate you," she said.
"Took you long enough to say those three words. Guess you aren't as innocent as they claim you are, after all." Gia Lee's indifference shocked her.
"You are a monster."
A cold laugh escaped Gia Lee's lips, drawing everyone's attention from Patriarch Han back to her.
"Oh, poor baby. You didn't know? Oh, poor you. I almost felt bad for you. But sister, you know what's funny?" Gia Lee paused.
"You declared that I was the villain—the one possessed by demons, the bad one. So why are you hating me for acting the way you said I am? It's all your fault, Mi Rae. Now that I've taken your groom, why don't you go marry Felix Smith… see how it feels."
"It's all your fault… fifteen years ago was your fault too," she added, her voice lowering so only the two of them could hear.
Mi Rae's eyes burned with anger. She turned and ran towards Patriarch Han.
Gia Lee looked at Min Ho and smiled. She grabbed his hand and walked out of the church—
a power couple, indeed.
Meanwhile, Kyung Soo was panicking. Patriarch Han lay unconscious, and Ji Woo looked completely confused.
One moment, Song Min Ho was perfect and composed, and the next, he was a devil—shamelessly rejecting Mi Rae and accepting the rumored evil sister.
"Don't let any of this get out. Don't let anyone know. The news will still be that Han Mi Rae is married to Song Min Ho—not that deceitful daughter of the Han family," Song Kyung Soo said, going around in panic.
He ran his hands through his hair, then suddenly froze when he saw a figure leaving the church.
She wore a long, red, fitted dress, with a red veil covering her face.
Even from the back, he recognized her. Her walk. Her aura. Her presence.
"She came?"
He thought she wouldn't come… but reality proved him wrong.
Gia Lee and Min Ho stepped into Gia Lee's car. She sat in the driver's seat and let out a deep breath. Her heart was pounding—she could hear it in her ears.
She started the engine and drove off. After a few minutes, she pulled over a few meters away from the church, stopping in the middle of the road where no one was around.
She pulled out a paper from her bag and handed it to Min Ho.
Min Ho looked at it curiously and began reading.
It read:
Part A, Han Gia Lee, and Part B, Song Min Ho, will live together at Part B's house until the termination of their contract.
If Part B wins the election, both parties will divorce after one year.
If any party decides to breach the contract, they will pay a penalty of five billion US dollars.
If Part B loses the election, he is not allowed to breach the contract.
Both parties shall have no intimate relationship with each other.
Part A's identity as Part B's wife will remain a secret.
—
Song Min Ho took a pen and, without hesitation, signed the contract. Gia Lee had already signed it.
"I will be at your house at four in the evening. I need to go sort out my luggage," Gia Lee said.
"Okay," Min Ho replied.
Gia Lee looked at him, confused."Won't you get off?" she asked.
Song Min Ho raised an eyebrow.
"You mean you. Because I'm not getting off. You trashed my wedding—it's me who deserves VIP treatment. Now, off."
Gia Lee stared at him, shocked.
"Excuse me? I am a lady. I cannot walk from here to my house. Besides, you can call one of your bodyguards. You should be the one getting off."
Min Ho chuckled darkly. It was the first time she had heard him laugh, and it sent goosebumps down her spine.
She swallowed.
What was she thinking, trying to ditch the Cold Prince on an empty road?
His chuckle faded. He stepped out of the car.
Gia Lee sighed in relief—until he walked around to her side, opened the door, and said coldly,
"Get off. I won't ask again."
She swallowed hard.
The rumors weren't wrong.
He really was the Cold Prince.