Betrothed to My Sister's Ex

It wasn’t the first time I had fallen asleep in a hammock.

On the ship, beds were basically hammocks, and even in the captain’s quarters on rough sea routes, hammocks were permanently installed. But that was purely a measure against the rocking—better than the fixed beds, sure, but never once had I thought of them as comfortable or enjoyable sleeping spots.

Yet now...

“...This feels good...”

I found myself whispering softly to no one.

The hammock at Tender’s Inn on Luhab Island was genuinely comfortable. It was spacious, allowing me to fully stretch out my legs, and there was no fear of being tossed around by sudden high waves. Most of all, when I looked up, the sky was filled with countless stars, and when I turned my head, there was the adorable sleeping face of Marie Shadelan.

...Soft, peaceful breaths.

...So cute.

When it was decided that we’d sleep in hammocks, Marie was genuinely thrilled—literally jumping with joy. After lying down, she even playfully rocked herself, saying it felt like a swing. Usually graceful and mature, sometimes she behaved like an innocent child, playing without a care. She was incredibly adorable like that, and just seeing her smile could blow away the fatigue of the entire day.

“Marie,”

I whispered gently, careful not to wake her, my voice barely more than a breath.

“Marie. Tomorrow, let’s go to the sea. Before the negotiations with the island chief start, I want to show you as much of Luhab’s scenery as possible.”

Her chest rose and fell with steady breaths, alive and utterly adorable.

“We’ll even do some shopping at the souvenir shops. Your new room should be filled with things you love.”

There was no response from her. Without expecting one, I continued speaking to myself.

“...Those two from Mizuho... I still can’t fully trust them yet... but I hope they become your friends—”

“...Mmm...”

Marie let out a small groan and turned over. The hammock swayed noticeably, and a strand of her red hair slipped down towards the ground.

I got out of my own hammock and gently moved her hair back onto her chest. Then, I squatted down beside her and matched my gaze to the level of her sleeping face, observing her features up close.

Marie Shadelan, eighteen years old. She looked more mature than her age. Her slender nose and slightly narrow eyes weren’t so much charming as they were strikingly beautiful.

Contrasting that impression, her plump cheeks were dotted with freckles. Probably due to her pale skin, the thinner areas of her skin showed a soft peachy pink. Though a sculpted beauty, she also possessed the innocent charm of a simple girl.

Her closed eyes had long, bright vermilion lashes just like her hair—I placed a finger on them, enjoying their gentle curve.

“...What is this? No matter how long I look, she’s just endlessly cute.”

Since starting this sea journey, it had become my habit every night to watch Marie’s sleeping face. She was a light sleeper and woke easily; just a slight poke on her cheek would rouse her right away. Being from a dairy farming territory, she was used to waking early.

When awake, she got embarrassed if I stared at her face, even running away if I looked too intently. Even though our wedding was imminent and we were practically husband and wife, to me, there was still overwhelmingly not enough Marie Shadelan.

If possible, I wanted to take in even more of her. Suffering from what I called marie’s component deficiency syndrome, an incurable illness, I was desperately longing for her. I wanted to fill an IV drip with essential nutrients called Marie and keep it connected to my veins at all times.

“Uuuhn...”

Marie let out a small painful sound and turned her back to me. Was she having a nightmare? I stood up and moved around to face her.

She lay on my bed with her back turned, still sound asleep. Her peaceful breathing was so cute. If only there was a device that could record and play this sound over and over—I’d stuff it in my ear and live with it.