HWSDR | Chapter 001

Chapter 001

When I first realized I had possessed someone, I already had a husband and a son.

Without even a moment to process that fact or try to do anything about it, I was locked away somewhere and then thrown into a carriage heading for the South.

I couldn’t jump out of the carriage, and I couldn’t run away in a place where I had no connections. What else could I do? If I wanted to try anything, I had to take care of my body first.

My first meeting with my husband was also unique.

He was glaring at me while holding his one-year-old son, who was looking at me with bright, sparkling eyes.

It was as if he thought I was going to harm his child.

“Listen carefully to what I’m about to say. There will be no grand wedding.”

“Yes. That’s fine.”

I was extremely exhausted. I didn’t realize I would suffer from such terrible motion sickness the entire way here.

So, without any particular protest, I immediately nodded. A grand wedding? Please. My only desire right now was to lie down on a comfortable bed and rest.

“It would be best if you didn’t even think about prying into family affairs under the pretext of acting as the mistress of the house. I won’t give you any information.”

“……That sounds wonderful, too.”

He clearly doesn’t know how great it is to slack off without having to work. Besides, leaking information? I had absolutely no intention of getting entangled in pointless political struggles.

The owner of this body might be the daughter of a rival family, but my soul certainly isn’t.

“It would also be best if you didn’t think about harming the child. There will be no sleeping arrangements between us, so there will be no successor other than this child.”

“Of course. The baby is truly beautiful.”

I answered feebly once again. Sleeping arrangements? I had not the slightest intention of sharing a bed and having children with a man I’d just met.

And harming the child?

A child that cute? Unless I were insane. I am someone who has vowed to become a new-concept stepmother.

My husband readjusted his hold on the baby, glared at me, and added one more thing.

“……Are you sick somewhere?”

“It’s not that…… Ugh!”

Finally reaching my limit, a surge of nausea burst forth.

I reached out a hand toward my husband, who had frozen with a deathly pale face.

“Ple-please, help me……”

I’ve always had terrible car sickness…….

* * *

Ceres, who had placed Roana—now his wife as of today—in the bedroom and even had a doctor examine her, asked with a serious expression.

“Is her health very poor?”

“It seems the journey here was not comfortable for her. It appears her motion sickness was quite severe as well.”

Ceres furrowed his brow slightly.

After handing the child over to the nanny, he had personally carried Roana to the bedroom.

He had been quite startled when her face turned as pale as a wax doll and she collapsed helplessly. For a moment, the lobby had turned into a scene of absolute chaos.

‘T-the Duchess!’

‘She hasn’t passed away, has she?’

‘Nonsense! Fortunately, she is still breathing.’

At any rate, amidst that commotion, he hadn’t felt right entrusting Roana—who looked pale enough to actually die—to anyone else.

“She was lighter than a twig. Is she truly not ill?”

Perhaps the Hegest Ducal House had intentionally sent a sick daughter. So that if Roana died here, they could pin all the blame on Ceres.

He felt guilty for having such thoughts about a sick person, but Ceres was the lord responsible for the South and the head of the Vereidan Ducal House. Therefore, he could not exclude any possibility.

“It could be due to her constitution, or the fifteen-day journey may have been grueling. However, for now, there didn’t seem to be any major illness.”

Ceres nodded gravely.

“Make sure she takes her medicine. She must recover her health as soon as possible. I will also instruct the head maid to pay close attention.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Ceres dismissed the primary physician and slumped onto the sofa.

The sudden marriage, and everything that happened today. It was all purely draining to his mental strength.

Taking the daughter of the rival Hegest family as his wife was absolutely not his will.

It was something that would never have happened if not for the complex circumstances involving the two families and the Imperial Family.

This marriage must be maintained peacefully and then ended appropriately at the right time.

So that Hegest cannot find any fault.

Roana was simply an existence who needed to stay quiet and then leave quietly. That was exactly the role Ceres desired from her.

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes.

I felt like I had made quite a fool of myself in front of my new husband, but fortunately, I was alone.

It would have been quite embarrassing if my husband had been by my side. I sat up, letting out a small cough.

In this novel titled <The Grand Return of Duke Vereidan>, I took on the role of the wicked stepmother. As soon as the husband dies on the battlefield, she takes all the assets and vanishes into thin air.

And as soon as the male lead grows up, he tracks me down, recovers the inheritance, and kills me.

That male lead is the bright-eyed baby I saw earlier.

His name is Hayden Vereidan.

“I will never let it turn out that way.”

Wicked stepmother? I’ll be reborn as an angelic stepmother, the likes of which the world has never seen.

And I had no intention of being at odds with my husband. In truth, a war breaks out regardless of whether I can control it or not.

There are things you can’t change even if you know the future, right?

The original Roana tormented her husband, leaked information, ignored him, and did all sorts of things, but I didn’t want to do that.

He’s a man who will die soon; I’m not a psychopath.

Let’s live quietly, and leave quietly.

That was my goal. It’ll be six months at most, Roana.

* * *

Ceres saw Roana again in the dining room. He reflexively frowned at the gaze she directed toward him with her clear face.

Roana was a homework assignment thrown by the Imperial Family.

It was none other than the Emperor who pushed for the marriage between Hegest and Vereidan. Hegest was a Duke of the North who wielded great influence even in the center, and the Vereidan family was a prestigious Ducal house that dominated the South.

Roana’s father, Duke Hegest, intended to marry Roana to the Crown Prince, but the Emperor, seeking to punish Duke Hegest for coveting his power, sent Roana down to the South to marry Duke Vereidan.

Why on earth did Vereidan have to be dragged into this?

“Good morning. Ah, what should I call you?”

The woman chattered. Unlike her near-death appearance yesterday, her voice was refreshing.

“……Whatever is comfortable.”

Ceres replied coldly. At that, the woman rolled her eyes and spoke cautiously.

“Your Grace?”

Ceres gazed at the woman without a word.

“……Ceres?”

Ceres let out a sigh.

“Honey?”

Ceres furrowed his brow.

“Hmm, what would be better to call you?”

Ceres stared at the woman with a chilly gaze. The woman, meeting his eyes, scratched her cheek.

“Ceres. Call me Ceres.”

“Yes, then I’ll call you Ceres.”

Roana laughed awkwardly.

“I slept very soundly thanks to you looking after me yesterday. The bed was nice.”

“……Do you remember what I said yesterday?”

Ceres asked coldly. Seeing her smiling face like that made him wonder if the conversation they had yesterday was an illusion. Since she was said to have suffered severe motion sickness, she might not remember.

“Of course! How could I forget! First, do not expect a wedding. Second, do not try to do anything. No leaking information. Third, do not approach Hayden. Is that correct?”

“I’m glad you remember.”

“Yes. I will definitely keep them.”

Seeing her face as she spoke with determination made him feel uneasy. She says those things while smiling?

He thought she would be offended. Furthermore, Roana made the dining table, which was always quiet, quite noisy.

“The soup is really delicious. Is it crab soup? I feel like my stomach is settling.”

“……I’m glad.”

“Ah, mashed potatoes? They have this kind of flavor here too. You should eat a lot too, Ceres! The chef’s skills are truly wonderful.”

As she said that, Roana gazed at Ceres with strangely sorrowful eyes.

What on earth is that? That look. Ceres, feeling inexplicably unpleasant, furrowed his brow sharply.

However, that look vanished before he could say anything.

“Ceres, do you want more of mine? I’ll give you some.”

“……That’s enough. This is plenty.”

He really didn’t know what to make of her. She collapsed yesterday, and today she doesn’t know how to give her mouth a rest. What kind of daughter did Hegest send? With what intention did they send such a noisy daughter……?

Hegest had four daughters. It was widely rumored that the eldest daughter would take a son-in-law to carry on the name, the second daughter, Roana, was to be made the Crown Princess, and the third daughter was to be made a Marchioness. Now, only the youngest daughter remained.

Didn’t the third daughter have her wedding not too long ago?

Truly impressive, Hegest.

Since the heart of Hegest is nothing but insidious, Roana must surely have some scheme as well.

There was something suspicious about her actions too. Usually, it is customary for noble ladies to bring maids from their family home when they marry.

However, he had no intention of letting Hegest’s maids into Vereidan. And for some reason, Roana obediently sent back the close maid she had brought with her.

Thus, he intended to find a separate maid to assign to Roana. He would thoroughly dig up and expose those hidden intentions.

“Wow. The salmon steak is truly a delicacy! I heard salmon is very good for the body. Ceres, eat more.”

Just when did they become close enough for her to act so friendly? That, too, must be a type of strategy.

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