I pray every dayfor this love to die. That I may love you only until today, and by tomorrow, may this love be dead. -Born of an affair, the ill-fated imperial princess Thalia Roem Guirta. She grows up twisted beneath the neglect of indifferent parents, hostile half-siblings, and servants who look upon her with contempt. To survive, Thalia learns to protect herself by baring her thorns at everyone who comes near. And yet, even she becomes utterly defenseless before one man. That man is Varkas Raedgo Seorkan, the noble young lord of the East. A vassal of the imperial family and heir to a grand duke, he was raised under relentless pressure to be perfect. Shaped by discipline so harsh it bordered on abuse, he grew up with most of his emotions long since numbed. A man who exists solely for his family’s honor and duty. To keep a promise made to the late empress, he becomes engaged to Ayla, Thalia’s half-sister. And Thalia, consumed by despair, begins to slowly break apart. But then— the love fated to end in her death reaches an unexpected turning point….