HKRH | CH 02

Chapter 2 

The Baron’s daughter didn’t even stop to breathe as she spoke.

“You won’t believe this! Madame Dupre had to leave in such a hurry for her father’s funeral that her shop clerk misunderstood her instructions—and accidentally sold one of her sample hats as a limited-edition piece!”

That meant the small, black hat Natalie had bought was actually Madame Dupre’s greatest masterpiece—her life’s work.

“But the boutique burned down at dawn! Everything was destroyed. So apparently, the only real limited-edition hat left in the entire world is the one you bought, Lady Ailsden! The others who bought sample hats thought those were limited editions, so they’re furious. The whole shopping street is chaos right now!”

Even while she complained, the Baron’s daughter couldn’t hide her admiration.

She showered Natalie with flattery—how could she have known which hat was the real one? She praised her for her excellent taste and sharp eye.

“Well, it was clearly the prettiest one,” Natalie said coolly. “It just… caught my attention.”

“Oh my!”

Pretending to be perfectly calm and confident, Natalie answered with a hint of pride.

Before long, rumors spread across high society.

Madame Dupre was known as a once-in-a-century fashion genius. Her creations were so exclusive that even the richest nobles often failed to buy them. Royalty and aristocrats from every kingdom had begged her for commissions—offering fortunes—but she famously refused every single one.

Now, after losing her entire collection of limited-edition hats in the fire, the devastated Madame Dupre publicly announced her retirement.

“I hereby withdraw permanently from the fashion world.”

The whole continent went wild.

The only remaining masterpiece—the one Natalie owned—instantly became a priceless treasure. Experts claimed the hat alone was worth enough to buy several small estates.

So Natalie, who had always been looked down upon in social circles, suddenly became the most envied woman in the noble world.

‘I guess I just got lucky,’ Natalie thought.

She didn’t believe it was anything special—just pure coincidence.

Sure, something about that black hat had drawn her in strangely, but it wasn’t like it meant anything. It was just a hat.

Still, because of that event, Natalie began receiving invitations to countless parties.

Her reputation hadn’t magically improved, and people didn’t treat her much kinder than before—but everyone wanted to see the famous hat.

Whenever Natalie appeared wearing the small black silk hat, imitation versions started popping up at balls within days.

Soon, she even received an invitation to an exclusive outdoor party.

“Lady Ailsden, shall we walk together?”

“It’s simple—you pick a racehorse’s number, bet your money, and if your horse wins, you take the prize.”

It was a lively wine party among young nobles.

Everyone placed bets on their chosen horses, and Natalie, carried away by the excitement, decided to join in—even though she knew absolutely nothing about horse racing.

She thought it would be safest to bet on the strong white horse everyone else picked. But—

‘No… I feel like betting on that one instead.’

Her eyes fell on a small, weak-looking chestnut horse.

Compared to the sleek, muscular white horse that glittered under the sun, the chestnut horse looked shabby—like a lost cause. The professional gamblers from abroad also ignored it completely.

“Lady Ailsden? What are you doing?”

Natalie couldn’t take her eyes off the chestnut horse.

In the end, just before the race began, she impulsively bet all her pocket money on it.

“Ha! Why waste your money like that?”

“It’s obvious who’s going to win! Quick, change your bet before it’s too late!”

The young noblemen and ladies all laughed at her. The women hid their giggles behind their fans.

“Why be so stubborn? Is she really that desperate for attention?”

“Honestly, I could tell something was off since she dyed her hair that color…”

“Shall we begin?”

Natalie snapped her fan shut sharply, silencing them.

Then the race began.

The gun went off—BANG!—and the horses sprinted forward.

Just then, dark clouds gathered, and rain poured down suddenly.

The white horse, which had been leading, started to melt—literally.

The “white” paint washed off in the rain, revealing a mottled gray coat underneath. Its pace faltered, legs slipping in the mud.

Meanwhile, the scrawny chestnut horse neighed loudly, stretched its legs, and surged forward—faster and faster—until it crossed the finish line first.

“And the winner is—Lady Natalie Ailsden!”

The entire arena fell silent. Then the foreign bookmakers cheered and brought Natalie bags of gold coins.

She had just won more money than her allowance for the next three years combined.

“How… how is that possible?! She doesn’t even know how to bet!”

“She also got the real Dupre’s hat! She must be unbelievably lucky!”

Soon everyone started calling her Lady Lightning Luck.

Natalie, already infamous, became even more famous—this time in a way people couldn’t stop talking about.

Some gossiped out of envy, others in admiration, but everyone agreed—her luck was unreal.

And for once, Natalie felt good. Twice now, she’d stumbled into good fortune. Surely this was a sign her life was turning around.

Invitations flooded in—mostly from nobles hoping some of her luck might rub off on them.

‘Now they’re pretending to like me, huh?’

Still, in high society, fame meant power. She wasn’t about to complain.

Then one day, she received an invitation to a masked ball—a small, exclusive event.

“An auction too? Sounds interesting.”

So Natalie dressed up, put on a red butterfly mask, and left her mansion.

But on the way there, it began to rain heavily.

As she looked out the carriage window, she suddenly frowned.

‘I… don’t want to go.’

An overwhelming sense of dread filled her chest. It wasn’t just reluctance—it was panic.

She tried to ignore it, but the feeling only grew stronger until it made her skin crawl.

Finally, right before reaching the mansion where the ball was held, Natalie ordered the carriage to turn back.

When she arrived home, the rain had become a downpour.

That night, lying in bed, she muttered softly to herself—

“The hat turned out to be lucky, and the horse too. This will probably end up fine as well.”

She hoped the strange feeling was another sign of coming luck… and fell asleep.

But that night, she had a nightmare.

Flames devoured the Ailsden estate. Monsters—huge, terrifying beasts—swarmed the halls.

“Father! Brother! No—!”

Natalie screamed, clutching her dead family in her arms.

Then—BANG!

A loud crash jolted her awake. Light filled her room, and heavy footsteps approached.

‘A dream?’

She blinked groggily as someone yanked open her canopy curtains.

It was Anatole, her older brother—five years her senior. His face was drenched in sweat.

“Anatole?”

He cursed softly and let out a shaky breath of relief.

“Damn it, you were asleep? You didn’t go to that masquerade, right?”

“I… was sleeping, yes…”

Natalie blinked in confusion. How did he even know she’d been invited? She hadn’t told anyone.

Anatole looked at her seriously.

“That masquerade party—you’re lucky you didn’t go. The guards raided it. They found people using a Class-1 forbidden drug. Everyone who attended… was arrested.”