Once in the room, Tadase locked the door and pushed Amu towards her bed until she was sitting at the edge. He leaned down and tried to grasp her chin, but she recoiled, pulling her face away. Tadase's eyes narrowed, and he straightened up angrily. "What's this, Amu? You let some random guy kiss you, but you push me away? Your fiancé?!" As he spoke, he gestured with his arm in a random direction, emphasizing the "random guy" remark.

"You're scaring me..." Amu looked at him sadly and uncertainly.

"I really wouldn't have expected this from you. Do I even want to know what you'd let that guy do to you while I get nothing?" He clenched his fists, continuing to glare at her with anger and seriousness.

"Nothing... what do you even think... I just feel uncomfortable around you right now... please calm down..." She had never seen Tadase like this before, and what was she supposed to do? Everything that stranger did was unexpected and sudden, leaving her unable to react before it happened.

"Oh, but you felt comfortable with him, didn't you? You know, I wanted to approach this more gently, but if that's how you are. Do you realize what your main duty as my wife is, right?" He approached her again and grasped her chin to look her in the eyes.

"What do you mean...?" She maintained eye contact, but her expression was terribly sad and fearful.

"You're supposed to bear an heir, and my parents are already nagging me that we should start with that sooner rather than later." He pushed her onto the bed and placed his left hand on her right shoulder to keep her down.

"Tadase... please don't..." She started sounding more pitiful and tearful, trying to wriggle out from under him, but he held her too tightly. The blonde prince kissed her neck and then her mouth before letting go of her.

"You better prepare for it. Sooner or later, it will happen. It's not like it's anything abnormal between spouses." With a deep sigh, he finally left her room.

Amu sat up, hugging her knees to her chest, burying her face in them as she quietly sobbed. She didn't understand why she was getting all this. She understood his frustration, but it wasn't her fault; she didn't do it on purpose. The thought of the near future also worried her. She had to admit that even though she was aware of it, she hadn't thought about this topic yet.

Yoru observed the whole thing silently and sighed softly, deciding that he couldn't tell Ikuto about this for now. Otherwise, he'd burst in here immediately, and that would be his certain end. He jumped from the ledge onto the windowsill and then into the room. If he couldn't inform Ikuto, he should at least offer comfort to Amu. "Hey, he'll get over it, chin up, okay?" His voice sounded friendly as he snuggled up to Amu. The girl looked up, surprised at the talking cat. "Who are you? Why can you talk?" She sniffled and wiped away her tears.

"Talking creatures are totally normal. Don't you have that in your oh so wonderful city?" He raised an eyebrow as much as a cat could and tilted his head.

"I don't know... I don't get out much," she replied, accepting the cat's statement. After all, how would she know what was normal and what wasn't?

"May I pet you?" she inquired, waiting for Yoru's reaction, which was a nod of confirmation.

"You know, it's not really my business, but shouldn't you be happy to take this step with your fiancé?" He licked his paw as she stroked his head, waiting for a response.

"I... I guess so... but he was so different... he just scared me..."

"Well, who wouldn't be jealous after what happened today? And then you deny him even a simple kiss." Amu pouted a little.

"I had never kissed anyone before... that guy just stole my first kiss... I had imagined so many times how it would happen with Tadase one day, and then this guy shows up and Tadase reacts like this... it couldn't have been worse." Yoru sighed, but the fact that his master could still be considered her first kiss did satisfy him to some extent. He didn't want to make Tadase look good, nor did he want to push Amu into his arms, but he weighed everything, and the likelihood that Tadase would soon try more was high, and then it would be more bearable for Amu if she dealt with it.

"So, I don't want to pry, but you're both not 12 anymore, how on earth have you never kissed before?"

"Tadase only recently started paying attention to me at all... And I didn't want to push myself on him. I didn't want him to end up hating me." She didn't understand why she was telling this strange talking cat so much, but she didn't see any threat in it.

"Hmm... I see," he pondered briefly about sitting on her lap but shuddered when a menacing Ikuto appeared in his mind and quickly dismissed the thought. "So, I'm just an ignorant cat, but from a neutral perspective, you seemed much happier with that stranger than with that strange prince." Of course, there was nothing neutral about it, but he really thought she had a completely different aura with Ikuto.

"That jerk better stay away... he's nothing but trouble... he better not come back to try to take me with him again." Her expression twisted again into one of worry and dissatisfaction, and she sighed heavily.

"You won't have a choice," Yoru said carelessly and chuckled softly, artificially and affectedly.

"How do you know that?" she tilted her head and looked at him skeptically.

"I'm a cat, we have better senses. He was definitely confident in what he was doing and saying. If he told you that, he'll 100% come back..." He hoped she would buy this excuse because if not, he would soon have to admit that he knew Ikuto, and that wouldn't be good.

The pink-haired girl sighed dejectedly and hugged Yoru to her chest. "But I don't want that..." She never wanted to see Tadase like that again. She was really scared of him when he was like that and was sure that in that state, he was capable of anything.

\\She doesn't want you to come back, seems like you went too far,\\ he found nothing wrong with sharing that information.

\\That'll change, I'm still a stranger to her.\\

\\A stranger who stole her first kiss without asking.\\

\\Is that so?\\ Ikuto grinned smugly. He was glad Tadase hadn't beaten him to it.

\\I can literally imagine your smug grin,\\ Yoru sighed, still happy for his master. However, he felt sorry that Amu would continue to have unpleasant experiences, and Ikuto wouldn't be the first in everything. Should he tell him? But what would that accomplish? Without his powers, he couldn't even defend himself.

Meanwhile, Amu had drifted into her own thoughts, running her fingers over her lips in deep contemplation. The thoughts of that person wouldn't leave her mind. Why would a complete stranger do something like that? No one knew her well enough to develop feelings; why would a stranger kiss her out of the blue? Suddenly, a shiver ran down her spine. Shouldn't she consider those words more of a threat? She was known in the media; maybe it was some pervert. Yoru, noticing her change in mood, looked at her questioningly. "What nonsense is going through your head now?"

"It's not nonsense! It's absolutely logical and rational that maybe this was some obsessed pervert!" she defended herself, crossing her arms.

The little cat grimaced and pondered how to change and improve the image Amu had of Ikuto. "Did it feel like that?" Although he couldn't know for sure, he was pretty sure that someone with such intentions would have a completely different aura.

"No..."

"Well, there you go. You should go find that guy and leave Tadase behind," he shrugged a little. But Amu just looked at him incredulously and bewilderedly, shaking her head. She had loved Tadase for so long; she wouldn't just leave him for a stranger.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, and when Amu responded with a soft "Come in," her three maids entered the room. It had been quite some time, and they thought it was worth a try if they could visit Amu now.

They inquired about their mistress's well-being, as they had noticed the prince acting roughly and angrily. Amu explained with a deep sigh what had happened, and the three maids' expressions became even sadder and more concerned than before. "I never thought Tadase would react like this..." Su handed Amu a piece of cake she had brought, hoping it would cheer her up.

"Well, I can still understand him a little; we also observed the scene with that mysterious man," Miki joined the conversation, thoughtfully holding her chin.

"I can't understand it at all. It almost sounds like he almost... well, you know..." Ran was completely distressed and didn't want to leave her mistress's side.

"Well, he made it pretty clear to me that it should happen soon, and I think it doesn't matter what I want..."

Ran still couldn't believe it and found the prince's behavior outrageous. First, he didn't care about Amu at all, and then suddenly she should be ready for something like that from one moment to the next. "I think you should rest first, Milady."

All three had noticed the cat, but they found that mentioning it wasn't worth it in this situation, especially since Yoru wasn't saying a word at the moment. When they finally started getting Amu ready for bed, Yoru discreetly turned away. After all, he was actually a man and shouldn't look there, and Ikuto would probably kill him if he were to take advantage of his position like that. After a few minutes, the three girls left the room, and Amu turned off the light, lying down in her bed. She reached for Yoru and hugged him to herself. At first, he tried desperately to free himself, but then he accepted that she simply needed this extra comfort right now.

The next day, Amu was rudely awakened early in the morning by a knock on the door. Still half-asleep, she reluctantly dragged herself out of bed and rubbed her sleepy eyes as she opened the door. When she realized who was standing at her door, she suddenly became wide awake and started to stutter a bit. "T-Tadase, what are you doing here so early?" She didn't want him to see her with tousled hair and fresh out of bed in her sleepwear, instinctively hiding behind the door. He smiled gently and pushed the door open to gain entry. "Don't always worry so much. Sooner or later, I'll see you in every condition anyway."

"If that happens sooner rather than later, you might still call off the wedding," she muttered to herself, tugging at her hair to straighten it a bit. Yoru stretched lazily on the bed, shooting Tadase a disdainful look. /Hypocrite../

"That's not going to happen. Close your eyes and open your mouth," he grinned and waited for her to comply with his request. Amu blinked at him confusedly, tilting her head questioningly, and then did what he asked. In the next moment, she had a sweet, incredibly delicate taste in her mouth. "One of the finest chocolates, still relatively new and unknown," he smiled, watching her eyes sparkle. "This is incredibly delicious!" Amu finally exclaimed before being taken by Tadase's hand and finding herself running after him as he pulled her along. "Let me at least get dressed!" she whined as she hurried after him. "It takes too long."

When they finally came to a stop, they were on the highest floor of the castle, facing a window from which Tadase climbed shortly after and then reached out his hand to her. The pink-haired girl hesitated for a moment, but then reached for his hand and also climbed out. Outside, they were now sitting on the roof, and just a few seconds later, the sun began to rise slowly, painting the whole land in color. The first birds also began to chirp. Amu watched everything with wide eyes and a cheerful smile. Tadase took her hand and also looked towards the horizon. The girl found the whole scenario beautiful and romantic and considered for a moment whether she should kiss Tadase. Surely, it was an attempt to apologize for the previous day, and under different circumstances, she would never have rejected him. Just as she was about to move closer to his face, a cat's meow sounded, and Amu spotted Yoru, who was wobbling on her lap with shaky legs. Of course, only pretended; he was very confident in his cat form, even on roofs. Tadase looked at her when he heard the cat and his expression changed to a slightly puzzled one.

"The cat jumped into my room yesterday and somehow won't leave. But why are you here now?" she looked at Yoru and waited for an answer, but he remained silent. Tadase didn't need to know he could talk.

The prince shrugged and now placed a hand on Amu's cheek, looking calmly into her eyes. "May I?" he asked, turning his gaze shyly away, and his cheeks turned a soft shade of red. The future princess also blushed and made a soft, shy, affirmative sound. Just as the blonde man approached his fiancée and was about to reach her lips, he made a painful noise and recoiled from Amu to inspect his arm, where a small black cat had bitten and clawed itself firmly. He shook his arm gently up and down to make the animal let go.

"I don't like your new pet," his voice was downcast.

"I'm so sorry!" she reached for Yoru and gently pulled him away from Tadase. "What was that for?!" her voice and gaze were annoyed. It would have been the first time she had gotten so close to Tadase naturally without being forced like the day before, and Yoru had now ruined it twice.

Tadase sighed and looked ahead again. Another attempt would be in vain with this cat in the way, just wasted effort. When the sunrise was over, he accompanied Amu back to her room and said goodbye for the time being. But the next few days were spent with Tadase coming to see her more often, and they did things together. Amu was happy about this time together and had almost forgotten the events of that one evening.

Yoru overheard a conversation between the prince and his mother once, and he shared with Ikuto what this family's true intentions were with Amu, even though he wasn't entirely sure if there weren't also feelings involved with Tadase. Ikuto was naturally extremely upset about it, but Yoru managed to calm him down and keep him in check for the time being. The blue-haired boy spent every free minute working on his skills because the longer it took for him to master them, the longer he couldn't rescue Amu. In the meantime, Yoru continued to interrupt every attempt at intimacy the two made, earning himself slowly but surely hateful glares, not only from Tadase but also from Amu. Since that one evening, he hadn't spoken to Amu either; there was no need, and ultimately, it led Amu to think she had only dreamed it all. "Can't you finally stop getting in our way all the time?" Amu whined at the cat, realizing that it was futile anyway.

After another sermon from his mother, Tadase made his way annoyed to Amu and entered the room without waiting for permission. Amu looked at him puzzled but immediately had an uncomfortable feeling as he closed the door behind him. The prince spotted Yoru and approached him, grabbing him by the collar, placing him in front of the window, and closing it.

"Tadase..?" Amu looked at him worried and concerned. "I'm tired of constantly having to hear how incapable I am. I've been nice to you long enough, and I have my imposed duties to fulfill." Amu could feel the anger in his voice and took a step back. "You can always talk to me... why don't we try that?" she tried to calm him down. "Talking won't change the regulations." It was only now that she processed his words, and her expression looked like that of someone whose heart had just been torn in two. What did he mean by that? He had been nice to her long enough? Was none of it real? That couldn't be. Amu shook her head desperately, trying to find an explanation for these words. Tadase, on the other hand, pushed her onto the bed and positioned himself over her, ignoring how she squirmed and tried to get away from him.

"Tadase, this isn't you, stop it... please..." she started to cry bitterly and quickly realized she was helpless against him. If things had gone differently, it would have been perfectly okay, but why did he have to say such cold things, why did he have to act so lovelessly? He grabbed her wrists with one hand and pressed them firmly into the bed, while with the other hand, he began to undress her. "Please... I'm willing to do anything, but please not like this..." she whimpered fearfully, trying to make eye contact with him, but he continued to ignore her until he forcibly penetrated her. A painful scream escaped Amu's lips, which was stifled by his hand on her mouth. Her entire face was covered in tears, and she tried for a long time to continue to resist him and break free, but in vain. Eventually, she gave up and just let it happen. Yoru tried to somehow open the window, but as a cat, he couldn't, especially not from the outside. Eventually, he turned around with drooping ears and tail, averting his gaze. From that day on, it went on like this every day. Every day, for several hours, because the two of them were supposed to produce an heir with Amu's abilities as quickly as possible. After he was done, he usually left the room without a word, but occasionally, he tried to comfort her; after all, he had to keep her in his nets. Amu tried to convince herself that the blame lay with the parents and his duties, and as soon as she finally became pregnant and gave birth to a suitable heir, everything would get better. She didn't want to admit that the nice sides Tadase showed her were only him pretending.

"Amu, don't you want to go out for a bit?" Ran asked, looking worriedly at her mistress, who almost always sat in her room, looking sad.

"I have to be here when he comes back..."

"You can't just sit in here your whole life, waiting for him to do that to you!" Miki shook Amu and noticed her empty eyes.

"Just until I finally get pregnant..." Ran and Miki looked at Su.

When the three of them first found out about it, they had discussed that it might be better if Amu didn't bear the child of such a man. They decided that Su should mix herbs into her tea from now on, which would affect fertility. The three of them looked at each other and then all looked down. If they continued to do this, Amu's suffering would only continue, but they just had a bad feeling about the whole situation with the child. They hoped that he would eventually give up on Amu if she didn't get pregnant. Banishment would certainly still be better than what she had to endure.

"How about you just go all the way out? Out of the castle, into the city," Su suggested finally, looking at her mistress with a gentle, sad smile.

"What should I do there?" Amu pulled her knees up to her and buried her face in them. She slept poorly and now had dark circles under her eyes. She didn't understand why she wasn't getting pregnant; he had been coming to her every day for hours for over a month now. Miki sadly furrowed her brow and looked around the room. When she saw the current news, she took it and held it out to Amu. "Here, distract yourself with the latest news."

Amu sighed and took the bundle of papers. Her gaze lingered on the cover image. "Demon Lord... what did he do again?"

Ran explained to her again what had happened, why he had been banished and appointed as the Demon Lord. "Oh, right... that's true..." she sounded drained of energy and life. "Those eyes..."

"What about them?" Su asked curiously, also looking at the picture. "They seem so familiar to me..." she had completely forgotten and repressed the stranger, but she couldn't shake the feeling that this man's eyes were incredibly similar to those of the Demon Lord. However, that couldn't be, how could someone with such warm, honest eyes be a bad person? She sighed. The eyes of the Lord were much colder and more emotionless upon closer inspection; she must have been mistaken.
Ran stampeded her foot on the floor and put her hands on her hips. "That's enough moping! You're going out! If you really need a purpose, then go take a look at the poorer districts, as a future queen. After all, you should know about all the layers of society in the city."

Miki and Su nodded in agreement and pulled Amu off her bed to make her inconspicuous. They dressed her in normal, middle-class clothing and a wig. "Why not try working or something, maybe that'll distract you," Ran made a thoughtful pose and nodded confidently. "I can barely muster the strength to exist, and everything hurts from the hours of intercourse. How am I supposed to work?" "You'll manage! You should be able to slip out through the window with a long rope, it's on the quiet, seldom-used side of the castle."

Amu stepped in front of the mirror, examining her reflection with mixed feelings. The angled bangs and the high ponytail with strands cascading down her cheeks formed an unfamiliar hairstyle. The angled bangs partially obscured her eyebrows, while the tightly bound ponytail sat neatly atop her head. The loose strands framing her face added a gentle touch. With the wig, she now sported black hair instead of her striking pink.

Her gaze traveled down to her outfit. It was a simple beige dress that reached her knees and loosely draped around her figure. It had no special cut or extravagant details, appearing plain and inconspicuous. The sleeves were short, and the collar was round and high-necked. Amu's usual elegance and sophistication were completely hidden by this attire.

As she observed her reflection, Amu felt like a stranger in her own body. The unfamiliar hairstyle and the plain clothing made her barely recognizable. Yet she knew it was necessary to remain unrecognized. With a deep sigh and a heavy heart, she slipped out through the designated window. What if she didn't make it back in time? That would surely spell trouble, especially if he found her in this disguise.

Yoru continued to report everything to Ikuto, including the assaults on Amu. To his surprise, Ikuto was surprisingly understanding and remained focused on his powers. Yet the pain in his voice was palpable. The blue-haired boy was making good progress with his shape-shifting abilities. The cat followed Amu as she made her way into the city.

The girl looked at the houses with a sorrowful gaze. There were worlds of difference between her home and these dwellings. They were rundown and reduced to the bare minimum. Did the royal family not care about the poorer people? She had been on the verge of making a decision to change things once she became queen, but then she remembered that a queen had no say.

"Hey girl, you look like a servant, come in, we urgently need someone," a stranger called out to Amu.

Amu looked at the stranger, baffled, and waved her hands. "No, really, I'm not good at this," she laughed nervously, scratching her head. The man shrugged. "Still better than nothing, we'll manage, don't worry, kid." Before she could voice any more concerns, she was pulled into the inn by the man and found herself facing another girl who explained everything to her. Amu sighed and hung her head for a moment. Perhaps she should give it a try after all. Maybe it would distract her from her dismal life. So she decided to listen attentively and explained that she only had a few hours in the evening to help out.

Meanwhile, Yoru sensed the perfect opportunity and contacted Ikuto to inform him of the latest events. Ikuto grinned and watched himself in the mirror as his appearance changed. His eyes and hair both turned brown, and his facial features shifted, but not too drastically. There could have been more exciting colors, but Ikuto had no intention of attracting attention.