"You're so funny," Mars chuckled. "I can't believe such a beautiful and confident woman like you can feel insecure like this."

"Beautiful?" Emmelyn pursed her lips.

"Yes. You are the most beautiful woman in the whole world, and you are feeling threatened by other women who come to the royal ball?" Mars took her hands and clasped them with his. "This is funny."

"Funny how?" Emmelyn asked between her tears.

Mars smiled reassuringly, "Honey, look... I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. To me you are beautiful, and to be honest I'm baffled why you could think you look like a fat cow."

"However, I won't tell you how to feel. I just want to make you feel better. So... please let me know what can I do to help you so you can feel better?"

"Do you need clothes that can hide your pregnancy? Or do you want to pretend that there is no royal ball? I will do as you say."

Emmelyn didn't reply. She took her hands from his and cupped her face. Then she just kept hiding her face behind her two hands and sobbed.

Mars didn't say anything after that. He just sat beside her and waited for her to finish her tears.

After trying to coax her so many times, the prince realized that nothing he said could make a difference if Emmelyn already set her mind on something.

Now, he just sat there and listened.

Emmelyn didn't need a solution since the solution was right there, among the pile of beautiful dresses on the sofa. Yet, she refused to wear them.

"I'm sorry.. I don't know what's wrong with me..." Finally, she lowered her hands and turned to Mars who already closed his eyes, sitting beside her, waiting for Emmelyn to say something.

"There is nothing wrong with you. It's just your pregnancy hormones going crazy, I think," Mars said, opening his eyes one by one. "Mr. Vitas warned me about this. So, I am not too surprised."

"Are you not frustrated by me? I think I complain so much lately, even I hate myself for complaining that much..." Emmelyn looked at the man with tears streaming down her cheeks hard.

"Somehow I know I shouldn't complain about this or that... And I know I am not fat... certainly not like Lady Athibaud... but I can't help feeling bad about my looks," she added.

"There... there... So, you know it's only in your mind." Mars said with a smile. "You can either believe the negative thoughts, telling you that you look like a fat cow, or you will believe me that you are stunning, beautiful, and glowing."

Emmelyn went silent and her tears slowly stopped dripping.

She did think that she looked glowing like he said. However, it didn't change the fact that she also felt fat like a cow. So... a glowing cow?

"Do you believe me?" Mars asked her. "Do you believe my judgment?"

Emmelyn raised her face and looked at the man with droopy eyes, and finally nodded weakly.

"Do you think I am smart and I have a sound mind?" Mars asked her again. "Do you trust me enough to spend the rest of your life with?"

Emmelyn nodded.

"I do..." she replied in a barely audible voice.

"So, in case of doubts or fear, or confusion, would you listen to my opinions?" Mars asked her earnestly.

Emmelyn nodded again.

"Well, then..." Mars cupped Emmelyn's face with his hands and looked at the girl deeply. "So, if I told you that no other women could compete with you in my heart and in my eyes, would you believe me?"

Emmelyn lowered her face, but slowly she nodded again.

Mars tilted his face and kissed her lips passionately. His hands moved to the back of her head and her back to support her body while they kissed for a long time.

He wanted to show her that she was still as desirable as she had always been to him.

Finally, there were no more tears and sobs. Emmelyn wiped her wet eyes and let out a long sigh.

"Thank you..." she whispered.

"No.. thank YOU," the prince quickly replied. "Thank you for carrying my child and bearing all the discomfort and the pain like a champion. I'm sorry that you have to take all the physical and emotional toll alone. I wish we can share the burden... but we can't. I can only cheer from the side and hope that I don't add to your suffering."

Emmelyn pursed her lips again, ready to cry for another round, but Mars quickly hugged her and patted her back. "No need to thank me, Honey. That's the least that I can do."

It had been only 4 months... Mars massaged his temple. There were still another five and a half more months to go.

"Mmm... I want to try the dresses again." Emmelyn suddenly said after Mars released her from his embrace. She pointed at the pile of dresses on the sofa.

Mars stood up and took them to her. He let her check and choose the one she felt like wearing.

"I'll try this pink one," Emmelyn said, taking out one beautiful silk dress with intricate embroidery.

She was already wearing her corset with the help of her maids. It was worn loosely, to make her tummy feel comfortable. Now, with the prince's help, she put on her pink dress.

Emmelyn was a really beautiful woman, and she could make any dress look nice. This particular dress was made to showcase her stunning figure and her beauty.

So, when she wore it and turned around to ask the prince how she looked, Mars was actually stunned and he forgot to breathe.

"Beautiful..." He smiled so wide when he finally found his voice. "I think this is my favorite look so far. You know I'd always prefer to see you without clothes on.. but I actually don't mind seeing you wearing this dress."

Emmelyn finally laughed and hit his arm with glee. "Hmm... I think I like this dress too."

"It looks like the royal tailor just surpassed herself this time. I have never seen a dress this beautiful before," Mars admitted. "Well.. now, you've got a perfect dress, and a perfect accessory, you're ready to go."

"A perfect accessory?" Emmelyn furrowed her brows. "I only have this necklace. What other accessory do you mean?"

"Me," Mars replied with a chuckle. "I'll be your accessory tonight."

Emmelyn rolled her eyes, but internally, she laughed at his joke. Yes, the crown prince was a nice accessory to complete her looks.

Now, she no longer felt despondent. She could even smile.

***

For the first time in decades, the crown prince entered the royal palace without the king's guards clearing the pathway for him. In the past, those guards would make sure no women were around the path that he would pass.

Before he was freed from the curse, Mars wouldn't want to touch women by accident because they would die the next day.

He would rather let them believe that he was a monster, a cruel man who hated women and would kill anyone who dared to come closer.

Now, there was no need to keep up those lies. He walked gracefully through the palace entrance with a beautiful woman by his side.

The royal ball attendees still remembered that this woman was also present in the previous ball. She looked just as beautiful as the last time, if not more.

"Look.. it seems, our crown prince no longer hates women. Maybe he has found the woman that he could tolerate and now he finally becomes like other men?"

"Yes, the king's guards no longer force people to make space and move away when he arrives."

"This is such good news!"

Whispers and gossips immediately filled the ballroom, as the crown prince and his small entourage entered. He and Emmelyn walked gracefully toward the table of honor, where his parents were sitting and enjoying wine.

"Good evening, Your Majesty," Mars greeted his parents and bowed down his head in respect. Emmelyn curtseyed and forced a smile.

"Welcome, and have a seat," the queen replied gleefully. She rose from her seat and hugged Emmelyn. "You look glowing and so pretty! I have never seen a dress this beautiful."

Inwardly, the queen was wondering if Emmelyn was carrying a female baby since she looked more beautiful than usual.

Old wives' tales said that if a woman was carrying a female baby, she would look glowing and more beautiful. The opposite was if she was carrying a son, she would look haggard.

However, the queen didn't say anything. If her first grandchild turned out to be a girl, she would still feel grateful, as long as the baby was healthy.

She was traumatized by so many dead babies she gave birth to in the past, and she hoped Emmelyn would never experience what she had.

Queen Elara glanced at her husband and wondered if the king would be as happy as she was if Emmelyn didn't give birth to a son.

"Thank you for your kind words, Your Majesty," said Emmelyn with a hoarse voice. She was soon fighting back tears when she heard the queen's warm words.

Darn pregnancy hormones! She could only curse inwardly.

"Are you feeling worse discomfort than last week?" The queen asked attentively. Emmelyn nodded weakly. "Oh... I am so sorry to hear that. But believe me, when your baby is born... you'll realize that it's all worth it. Just keep looking forward to the reward. This too shall pass."

Those words of comfort worked like magic. Emmelyn finally felt better. She smiled and nodded. She glanced at the prince and found the man look relieved.

Mars didn't know how his mother did it. She always found ways to make things better. He was so grateful that the two women he loved in this world got along really well.

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From the author:

Queen Elara is truly a dream mother-in-law!

I'm happy to present a mother-in-law who is different from the typical monster-in-law we often read out there because I believe these sweet women truly exist. They are not unicorns.

Btw, I'm sorry for the delay in publishing this chapter today. Gosh.. I don't know what's wrong with me.

The past week, I can only fall asleep at 8 am and woke up at 5 pm. My body clock is messed up again big time. And when I was awake, I was too tired to do anything.

Now, I wish I have Mr. Vitas' potion to help me sleep since it seems to work on the crown prince... ahahaha.

I did go to the doctor though, and their sleeping pills made me sleep up to 20 hours, even though I already asked the dosage to be as low as possible. So, I don't want to keep taking it. It's scary to take them and suddenly not being able to wake up?

Anyway.. I'll keep trying to get my life back and fix my sleeping problem. Wish me luck.

Uh oh... btw, this scene, where Em was feeling upset because of her pregnancy, thinking she looked like a fat cow, reminds me of a scene from my book "The Alchemists." It's too good, so I can't help but share this with you... haha.

So, the male lead in the book was coaxing his wife-to-be who was 5 months pregnant and her tummy started bulging.

She was crying and feeling upset because she was a famous singer who must perform soon with several slim and beautiful backup dancers. She felt like a sack of rice, compared to them, and thus made her stressed.

So, this man, immediately called his assistant to find replacements for those backup dancers (without her knowledge). The order is, those backup dancers must weigh AT LEAST 100 kg each (or 220 lbs).

He said, "I cannot make her thin during her pregnancy, can I? If she was stressed, my child in her womb would be stressed too. So, the only way to make her feel thin is by making everyone around her look fat."

I love the guy so much.. and it is one of my favorite scenes from the book. XD.