Claimed By The Tyrant King

Rebecca had not accepted immediately, of course. She had needed time to think because marriage was not a decision she could make on impulse, no matter how sincere Cedric had been.

At first, the idea had overwhelmed her, yet the more she reflected on his words, the more she understood why he had said them.

As his wife, she would no longer have to worry about where she belonged or whether people would question her presence.

She would have a home, a family, and the security she had long gone without. More importantly, Julian would finally have someone he could truly call his father. For all his life, that was something he had never known.

There had once been a time when Rebecca believed that future would belong to someone else. She had dreamed of marrying the father of her child, believing every promise he had whispered to her. He had vowed that he would return for her, that they would raise their family together and spend the rest of their lives side by side. She had held onto those words with everything she had, only for him to abandon both her and his own son without ever looking back. Even now, thinking about marriage again stirred those old memories she had tried so hard to bury. The wounds had healed over time, but the scars still remained.

Yet Cedric was nothing like Alaric and In every way that mattered, he was different.

He never made promises he could not keep, and every word that left his mouth was followed by action. He had stood beside her without asking for anything in return, cared for Julian as though it came naturally, and offered her a future without demanding that she forget her past.

He was asking her to become his wife not out of obligation or pity, but because it was genuinely what he wanted.

Rebecca had been anxious. She had been frightened for more reasons than she could count, and part of her still feared placing her trust in someone again. Even so, whenever she looked at Cedric, those fears seemed a little smaller. The man standing before her was not someone who would walk away when things became difficult. He had already proven that much through his actions.

Perhaps, for the first time in a very long while, she did not have to be afraid.

All she had to do... was trust him.

And so she had said yes.

Rosalind asked after a thoughtful silence, turning her attention to Rebecca. "So... Julian is comfortable with Cedric becoming his father?"

Rebecca smiled before nodding. "He truly cares about Lord Cedric," she answered gently. "In fact, I believe he’ll be happier than anyone when he hears we’re getting married."

As she spoke, she felt Cedric’s fingers gently tighten around hers, and the simple gesture made the corners of her lips lift a little more.

The room fell quiet again, although this time it was a comfortable silence.

After a moment, Cedric turned toward Rowan and straightened respectfully.

"Your Majesty," he began, his voice calm but resolute, "I would like to ask for your permission to marry Rebecca. She is the mother of your nephew, which makes her someone precious to your family, and I promise that I will cherish her, protect her, and stand beside her for the rest of my life."

His words were neither exaggerated nor rehearsed. They were simple, honest, and filled with conviction.

Rowan held his gaze for a moment before a faint smile appeared on his face.

"I trust you, Cedric," he said without hesitation. "If there were anyone I could confidently entrust Rebecca to, it would be you."

Cedric’s shoulders visibly relaxed. "You have both my support," Rowan continued, "and my blessing."

He then looked toward Rosalind. Rosalind smiled immediately as she looked at the couple standing before her.

"And you have mine as well," she said. "Both of you deserve every happiness. We give you our blessings, and we sincerely hope your marriage is filled with peace, laughter, and love."

"Thank you, Your Majesties," Cedric said sincerely.

Rebecca’s eyes had already begun to glisten. She quickly blinked away the emotion before it could become obvious, and together she and Cedric bowed respectfully before excusing themselves from the royal chamber.

The moment they stepped outside and the doors closed behind them, Rebecca released a long breath she had not even realized she had been holding. "That was intense," she admitted with a nervous laugh.

Cedric looked at her and smiled. "But it went well in the end," he replied.

Rebecca lifted her eyes to meet his, and a genuine smile spread across her face before she nodded in agreement. "Yes," she said softly. "It really did."

The wedding itself arrived sooner.

Neither Rebecca nor Cedric wanted a grand celebration. A quiet ceremony surrounded by the people who genuinely cared for them felt far more meaningful than lavish decorations or endless festivities. They chose to exchange their vows in the palace chapel, where sunlight poured gently through the stained-glass windows and painted soft colors across the stone floor.

Only their loved ones were present.

Cedric’s mother attended, while his sister stood beside her. Rebecca, however, had no family left to stand with her. But that day, the King and Queen stood in place of the family she no longer had, silently reminding her that although she had lost much in life, she had also found people who had chosen to become her family.

Julian stood nearby with a smile so bright that it seemed impossible to contain. His excitement filled the chapel, and every so often he glanced between Rebecca and Cedric as though he still could not believe this day had finally arrived.

Several of Cedric’s most loyal men were also present to witness the occasion. They watched their Lord Commander exchange vows with Lady Rebecca, and although many of them were seasoned soldiers who rarely showed emotion, more than one of them found themselves smiling at the sight before them.

It was not the grandest wedding the kingdom had ever seen. But for the people gathered inside that small chapel, it was exactly the wedding it needed to be.

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