Chapter 2
It was natural that my father looked so shocked at my words.
I mean, who is Duke Romanov? He’s the young head of the powerful Romanov Ducal House and has been engaged to me for three years.
‘He really looks surprised.’
Of course, he would be.
Unfortunately, I had a terrible reputation in the Bryant Empire.
My debutante event was a disaster, and I barely showed my face in public.
There were even nasty rumors going around.
And then out of nowhere, the Duke of Romanoff sent me a marriage proposal.
No conditions.
Not even a single meeting—it was all done in writing.
For my father, this must’ve felt like winning the lottery.
With my bad reputation, it wouldn’t be a surprise if a much lower-ranked family came knocking for marriage.
But here I was, getting engaged to a Duke’s heir.
I kind of understood my father’s feelings.
‘And I’m not even his real daughter.
He must’ve thought it’d be a disaster if I embarrassed the Lindbergh family through marriage.’
Still, I didn’t have the luxury to worry about his side.
‘First, I need to break off the engagement.’
I needed to cut off any chance of marriage.
That was the only way I could live and plan what came next.
“Your Grace, please.
I really want to break off the engagement.”
“…”
“I’ll meet Duke Romanov myself.”
My father looked like he was deep in thought, then suddenly gave me a sharp look.
“Did the Duke do something to you?”
That caught me off guard.
I rubbed my forehead and shook my head.
“No, nothing like that.
I’ve never even met him.”
“I see.”
“Please, Your Grace.”
“…Alright.”
“Really…?”
“Do as you wish.”
…Huh? That easy?
On my way to my father’s study, I’d been thinking of what kind of protest I’d need if he said no.
I mean, he always acted like he didn’t like me much, so I figured he’d use this as a chance to marry me off quickly.
‘He never liked me, so I thought he’d be eager to push me out of the house.’
I honestly didn’t think he’d agree so easily.
But hey, I wasn’t complaining.
“Thank you.”
“Go to bed.”
“Okay!”
Things were going smoothly.
I smiled brightly, bowed, and left the room.
Then I grinned and told Hannah, my maid,
“Tell them I’ll be visiting the Romanov estate immediately.”
“What? You mean right now?”
Hannah was clearly shocked.
It was the middle of the night.
“Oh, is it too late? Then I’ll visit first thing in the morning.”
“My lady, even that’s a bit too—”
‘Too sudden and reckless!’—that’s probably what she wanted to say.
She didn’t finish the sentence, but her face said it all.
I pretended not to notice and cheerfully went into my bedroom.
—
The next day.
I got dressed simply and headed to the Romanov estate, one of the grandest mansions in the capital.
After a long ride, the carriage came to a stop with a clunky noise.
“We’ve arrived, milady.”
The coachman spoke, and Hannah, clearly nervous, turned to me.
“My lady, it’s very rude to show up unannounced like this.
Please, please remember that and be polite when speaking with the Duke.”
“Of course.
Don’t worry so much.
If worrying actually fixed things, there wouldn’t be any problems in this world, right?”
I stepped confidently into the estate.
Soon, I was guided into a grand receiving room at the Romanov mansion.
‘Is this because I’m the fiancée? They’re letting me into such a huge room?’
I tried not to show it, but I was honestly stunned by how luxurious everything was.
My eyes kept drifting around the room.
Even though I came from the Lindbergh family and was used to fancy things, this was on another level.
‘Wow, no wonder they say the Romanovs are the wealthiest and most prestigious family in the Empire.’
“The Duke of Romanov is arriving.”
A servant by the door spoke, and the doors opened.
A massive man stepped into the room.
‘Whoa.’
Is that Duke Romanov?
‘He’s… insane.’
In the bright and elegant room, he entered in a crisp formal uniform, and he looked—no exaggeration—absolutely perfect.
More than handsome, even.
He walked toward me slowly.
Even with such graceful steps, his size and presence made him feel like a black panther approaching its prey.
Jet-black hair like the night sky.
Clear golden eyes with a mysterious glow.
‘He’s ridiculously good-looking.
Not even human, he looks like a masterpiece.’
He really did look like the best character design ever, created by a writer who gave it their all.
I found myself staring in awe when his cold, low voice broke the silence.
“Lady Lindbergh?”
“Ah, yes.”
“I heard you came to see me.”
Oops.
Time to stop gawking and speak properly.
“Nice to meet you, Your Grace.
I’m Hazel Lindbergh.
I came to ask you something.”
“…You came to ask me something?”
He didn’t look happy about my sudden visit.
His eyes were cold, like he could already tell I was about to say something unpleasant.
I watched him, nervous, swallowing hard.
Anyone would be intimidated standing in front of him—not just because of his looks but the powerful aura he gave off.
He was the current wielder of the “Power of Eternal Night,” passed down only to the heads of the Romanov family.
It was basically a power of darkness.
‘It’s no joke…’
I remembered a scene from the original novel.
The Duke had explained the power to Hazel:
> “A person with the Power of Eternal Night can’t be just human.”
“What do you mean?”
“They’re Half-human, half-divine.
The power must be restrained by darkness, so it settles in a mortal body instead of a god’s.”
Previous Dukes had isolated themselves in pitch-black forests during winter to protect that power.
If it were me now, I probably would’ve freaked out, but the Hazel in the novel had accepted it calmly.
Still, remembering all this left me briefly spaced out until I snapped back to reality and looked at him again.
This man was way more impressive in real life.
I just wanted to say what I came for and leave.
“You said you wanted to ask something.”
“Oh, right.
Yes.”
“Then why are you just standing there staring?
Should I read your mind or something?”
His cold voice made goosebumps rise on my arms.
As he stepped closer, I had to look up to meet his eyes while he looked down at me.
The atmosphere was… weird.
‘Actually, not weird.
More like… chilly.’
I took a breath, stared at his blank expression, and said, this time with real effort,“I want to break off the engagement.”
The room immediately fell into an icy silence.
It was so quiet, you couldn’t even hear breathing.
My heart clenched as I faced the man with a hardened expression.
So tense.
“Your Grace?”
“You know this is the first time we’ve met, right?”
“…Yes.”
“And yet the first thing you say is…”
“Uh…”
“A very bold proposal.”
His voice gave me chills.
I knew what I was saying was rude, so I tried to brush the goosebumps off my arms.
And then—
“I refuse.”
What?
I blinked in confusion, and he repeated it clearly:
“I’m not going along with this engagement breakup, Lady.”
He spoke firmly, with a smile lifting just one corner of his mouth.
His sharp golden eyes sparkled unnaturally.
‘What is with those eyes? Why does he look like he’s been waiting for this moment?!’
In the novel
My Dad is the Monster Duke, Duke Romanov was cold and emotionless.
So then Why—
Why was he suddenly smiling like this?
With dimples and everything?
I thought he might be mad, like “How dare you say this to me?”—but laughing?
Refusing me with a smile?
“You’re saying no?”
“Yes.”
“…Why?”
