After Three Husbands Died, I Chose the Phoenix

(Blurb pending, title pending, pairing with Marco. Whether I start writing this may depend on how the preview is received.)

Evelyn thought she would marry for love and live happily ever after.

But all that happiness ended before the wedding, when her husband died.

It came to an abrupt stop.

It came to an abrupt stop.

Yes, two of them died.

Evelyn fell into deep thought.

Should she add a requirement to her list of qualities in a partner: not prone to dying...?

Still, there are always people who refuse to give up. So Evelyn got engaged for the third time, to a man who loved her deeply and, most importantly, was so healthy he had hardly ever been sick.

Evelyn was sure she would find happiness.

While the Whitebeard Pirates were resting on an island in their territory, they heard an interesting rumor.

“Evelyn's beauty is a curse! Anyone who marries her will die!”

“But there are always plenty of people who aren't afraid of dying.”

It was disgusting to blame a young woman's looks for people's deaths.

That was what Marco thought, before he unexpectedly came face-to-face with the infamous Evelyn.

“Hello? You... are you one of Captain Whitebeard's men? Would you like to come in for a drink?”

Before he knew it, he had stepped into Evelyn's little tavern.

Evelyn was beautiful. When he spoke, she watched him intently with her dark eyes. When he told her about his past, she gazed at him with admiration. When he wanted a drink, she handed him a glass. When he had too much, she thoughtfully covered him with a blanket...

Evelyn, Evelyn, Evelyn...

The tavern was filled with people calling Evelyn's name. Sometimes she couldn't hear him, and her gaze wouldn't linger on him.

That was normal. In fact, it was for the best.

Evelyn was an ordinary civilian, while he was a pirate with a fearsome reputation.

“Evelyn.”

And yet, he heard himself say her name before he could stop himself.

“Hmm? Captain Marco, you're here! Will you tell me a story today?”

Evelyn was looking at him again.

“Do you want to hear one?”

“Of course! I want to hear everything!”

“That would probably take a long time.”

“I don't mind how long it takes.”

Marco smiled at Evelyn. Where she couldn't see, his clenched fist slowly relaxed.

Ah, this is how it should be.

He touched his palm, where his fingernails had left marks. He slowly closed his hand again, his gaze fixed on Evelyn.

Just like this, slowly, bit by bit... that's all it takes.

Then Marco received an invitation from Evelyn.

She invited him to her wedding.

Content warnings:

1. The heroine really does lose three husbands early on, but Marco is her eventual love interest.

2. The heroine is simply a beautiful, ordinary person with no combat ability.

3. This is an imaginative work and may be out of character. It has no connection to the main storyline and focuses on everyday life.

4. More warnings will be added if I think of any.

Theme: Ordinary people can find love too.