The Black Forest seemed to have a life of its own. Gnarled roots reached out to trip Vanka whenever she let her guard down, and a thick mist that smelled like rotting roses tried its best to lead her astray.
Vanka had been walking for three days and three nights. Her traveler's clothes were now torn in places, and her face even behind the veil felt incredibly heavy.
She could feel the fine lines at the corners of her eyes deepening. Every time she rested by a stream and heard the wind whisper, calling her a 'brave Princess,' she felt her skin lose its glow. The curse was ruthless even a compliment from a forest spirit was poison.
"Noah... if you don't show yourself right now, I swear I'll burn this entire forest to the ground!" Vanka screamed in frustration. Her voice echoed, only to be answered by the mocking hoot of an owl.
Suddenly, the thickets in front of her parted on their own. A path sprinkled with glowing blue lavender appeared as if by magic.
At the end of that path stood a moss-covered wooden cabin, surrounded by pillars of ice that refused to melt despite the humid forest air.
And there, in front of a fireplace with pale blue flames, sat Noah. He was draped in a long black cloak, holding an ancient book.
He looked calmer, stronger, and... undeniably handsome in his solitude.
Vanka stepped forward, her legs shaking. "Noah!"
Noah didn't look up. He simply flipped a page. "You're two days late, Vanka. I figured you'd turned into a grandmother halfway here from listening to too many border guards' pick-up lines."
Vanka hissed, marching up to him and grabbing his cloak to force him to face her. "You! How dare you talk to me like that after what you did to me!"
Noah slowly closed his book and looked up. His eyes, as deep as the ocean, stared at Vanka coldly.
"Take off the veil. I want to see how much 'deceit' you've consumed at the palace."
Vanka tensed up. "No."
"Take it off, or I'll throw you out of here with magic far more painful than that curse," Noah threatened quietly.
With trembling hands, Vanka untied the veil. The silk cloth fluttered to the ground.
Noah went silent. He inspected Vanka's face with clinical precision. To a stranger, Vanka was still the most beautiful woman in Aradelle.
But Noah saw what everyone else missed: the gray hairs peeking through her dark mane, the faint creases on her once-smooth forehead, and the spark in her eyes that had dimmed from physical and mental exhaustion.
"How many men complimented you today?" Noah asked. His voice sounded a bit softer now, but it still cut like a knife.
"I didn't count!" Vanka snapped, tears blurring her vision. "The gatekeeper, the merchants on the road, even those stupid princes my uncle brought over... they all talk like their mouths are full of honey, but it tastes like poison on my face!"
Noah stood up. He was much taller than Vanka, his shadow completely swallowing her.
"And you loved it, didn't you? You've been thirsty for that praise since you were a kid. You built your entire ego on their fake words."
"I didn't ask them to lie!" Vanka hammered her small fists against Noah's chest. "Heal me, Noah. You said you were the cure. Say something! Fix my face!"
Noah caught both of Vanka's wrists, pinning them down firmly. "You want me to heal you? You know the rules, Princess. I have to be honest with you. And that honesty... it's often way more painful than the wrinkles on your face."
Noah pulled Vanka closer until their breaths mingled. Vanka could smell the scent of sandalwood and the cold, metallic tang of magic radiating from him.
"Say it," Vanka whispered defiantly. "Tell me how ugly I look now. Tell me how much you hate me. Just do it!"
Noah stared at Vanka's trembling lips, then whispered right against her face. "You want the truth? Fine."
Noah released her wrists and started pacing around her like a lion sizing up its prey.
"Honestly, when you insulted me in the hall three years ago, you looked breathtaking in your arrogance. But now?" Noah stopped right in front of her again.
"Now you just look pathetic. You look like a woman terrified of losing the only thing she thinks she's worth: her face. You look fragile, Vanka. And that fragility... it makes you look more human than you've ever been."
Throb.
Vanka didn't feel pain this time. Instead, a wave of warmth spread across her cheeks. She touched her face. The rough texture she'd felt this morning seemed to be smoothing out.
"More..." she whispered. "Say more."
Noah gave a cynical smirk. "Addicted to the bitter truth already, are we? Fine. To be honest, those gray hairs... they make you look like someone who finally has a thought in her head, instead of just being a hollow palace ornament. And the lines around your eyes? Those are proof that you finally know what it means to suffer."
Vanka felt a pulse on her forehead. She quickly felt her skin the creases that had appeared from her frustrated screaming were gone.
"You hate me, don't you?" Vanka asked, searching for an answer in Noah's eyes.
"Honestly?" Noah leaned in, his long, cold fingers tilting Vanka's chin up, forcing her to look him in the eye.
"I hate you so much for looking down on my family. But at the same time... I can't stop thinking about how much I want to completely break this pride of yours."
Vanka froze. Her heart was racing at a dangerous speed. "Is that... is that the truth?"
"The absolute truth," Noah replied. "I want to see you beg me every day. I want you to realize that your beauty means nothing if you don't have a man brave enough to tell you that you look like a mess in the morning."
Vanka sucked in a sharp breath. She felt her skin tightening back up. A flush of color returned to her once-dull cheeks.
"You're cruel, Noah," Vanka murmured, but she didn't pull away. "You're a literal monster."
"And you're the Princess who needs this monster just to stay pretty," Noah countered perfectly.
"Now, get inside the cabin. This forest isn't safe for a woman who just got a bit of her youth back. I don't want any other creature looking at you."
Vanka stared at the cabin, then back at Noah. "Are you going to keep me prisoner here?"
"I don't need to lock you up, Vanka," Noah walked back to the fireplace, sitting down with the air of a king.
"You won't dare step outside the radius of my honesty. Because the second you leave, the only thing waiting for you is a mirror showing you exactly how fast you're aging."
Vanka bit her lip. Her pride was still there, but her fear was way bigger. She stepped into Noah's cabin, inhaling the scent of herbs and old books that filled the air.
"I hate you," Vanka said as she sat on a hard wooden chair across from him.
"I know," Noah replied without looking up. "And honestly, that anger on your face makes you look way more alive than when you're faking a smile for Prince Eros."
Vanka felt her cheeks heat up. For the first time, she felt 'healed' not by a compliment, but by a brutal, honest insult from the man she hated most.
"Noah," Vanka called out after a long silence.
"What?"
"Thank you... even if you're still the most disgusting man I've ever met."
Noah stopped flipping his page. The corner of his mouth curled into a faint, mysterious smile.
"You're welcome, Princess. And honestly? That was the most insincere 'thank you' I've ever heard."
Vanka huffed and turned away, hiding the tiny smile that almost touched her lips, lips that were now, once again, as red as cherries.