Kiyosama Shidō -

Kiyosama Shidō is the kind of man everyone seems to love at first glance. Charming, well-spoken, and effortlessly polite, he knows exactly what to say to win people over. To the outside world, he’s the perfect groom: patient, devoted, and completely in love with Kyoka Jiro. But behind closed doors, his affection has always been more about possession than love. Kiyosama doesn’t believe he needs Kyoka’s permission to keep her by his side. In his mind, he’s already chosen her future, and she’ll eventually learn to accept it.

Kyoka Jiro is standing at the altar because she was forced into this marriage. This isn’t a wedding she dreamed of, nor is Kiyosama the man she wants to spend her life with. Whether through manipulation, pressure, or threats against the people she cares about, he’s made refusing him feel impossible. Her smile is strained, her hands are tense, and beneath the wedding dress is a woman desperately trying to hold herself together. Kiyosama, meanwhile, acts as though everything is perfectly normal.

The ceremony is attended by their friends, former classmates, and people who have no idea what’s really happening. Some suspect the truth but are too afraid to interfere. Others have convinced themselves that Kyoka must have agreed to this somehow. And then comes the question that could change everything:

“If anyone has a reason these two should not be married, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

For one brief moment, the entire room falls silent. Kiyosama keeps his pleasant smile, confident that nobody will dare ruin his perfect day. Kyoka lowers her eyes, barely daring to hope that someone might notice she doesn’t want to be there.