IRTRHP 02

Episode 2: The Beginning of All Misfortune

Aileen swallowed the words rising to her throat. There was no time.

“Get inside.”

She shoved Ethan mercilessly toward the deepest corner of the attic.

“Even if you sense pheromones, don’t make a sound. You have to hide like a dead mouse. That’s the only way you’ll live—and I’ll live too.”

Aileen warned him firmly. Ethan blinked in confusion at her unexpected seriousness.

“…A sound?”

“If you get caught, they’ll take you away.”

“Then can’t I just refuse? Is hiding really necessary?”

“You don’t know what kind of man he is.”

Someday, Ethan would find out. But for now, he had no idea.

“Just do as I say. No matter who comes, don’t come down. Only come out when our parents arrive. Got it?”

“Aileen?”

She didn’t have time to explain the panic in his eyes. The sound of hooves outside meant the man would be here any second. Aileen rushed to open the window, letting Ethan’s pheromones dissipate into the air, then sprinted to the front door.

Grinding out the name of the cause of all her troubles, she muttered,

“Duke Lloyd Rihast.”

The bastard who had taken her brother as a spouse—and handed him over to his subordinates—was here.

God must have turned back time out of pity for her miserable fall.

[Your brother and your parents—all of them were killed by the Duke.]

Patrick’s last words before she died still echoed in her mind.
Her misfortune had begun with Duke Rihast. Her brother, who had married the Duke, had taken his own life. The family was ruined. Everyone died—except Aileen.

‘I won’t go through that nightmare again.’

This time, she would never let the Duke take Ethan.

“Miss, Duke Rihast is here. What should I do?”

The butler, pale-faced, reported.

Aileen, still breathless from rushing to hide Ethan, didn’t answer right away. She steadied her breathing first. Meeting him too hastily would only give him the upper hand.

When she’d finally caught her breath, she said evenly,

“Open the door.”

The butler obeyed. A tall, black silhouette stood against the sunlight. When he stepped inside, the shadows lifted from his face.

Aileen’s lips parted slightly at the sight of him.

Dominants were said to be the chosen of the gods—born without flaw, breathtakingly beautiful in both form and presence.

Ethan, hiding upstairs, was himself a stunning dominant omega. Yet the man who entered was striking in a completely different way.

Short, dark hair framed a sharply sculpted face, each feature cast in elegant light and shadow. His nose was high, his lips full—and his eyes, above all, were overpowering.

Eyes that looked down on the world itself.

Their cold, commanding gleam made Aileen swallow hard.

Could she possibly deceive this man?

Gathering her skirts, she curtsied slightly.

“Welcome, my lord.”

“You knew I was coming?”

One of his brows lifted. Understandably—he had arrived unannounced. It was the sort of discourtesy only a man who didn’t care for manners could afford.

‘How pitiful it is to be powerless.’

If she complained about rudeness, she’d only lose more. Compared to the ducal house, which carried royal blood, her own family—landless and poor—was nothing.

“Of course not,” she replied smoothly.

In truth, the Duke’s visit had been a surprise in her first life—he had barged in and taken Ethan away. But after turning back time, Aileen had known he would come. She just couldn’t say that aloud.

“I only came out because I heard horses.”

The Duke’s gaze lingered on her face. Under that sharp scrutiny, Aileen bit the inside of her cheek to keep from showing a flicker of fear.

After a long, suffocating silence, the Duke finally spoke.

“I came to see Ethan Claudia.”

The tension that had built like a test reached its peak—only for her to be handed the next question before she could even breathe out in relief.

Ethan—hidden upstairs in the attic.

As a dominant omega, he could control his pheromones well, but the Duke was also a dominant, and far more sensitive. So Aileen deliberately raised her voice—drawing his attention away from upstairs.

“He’s not here.”

She met the Duke’s eyes with a look of innocent confusion.

“Not here?”

Aileen nodded. His gaze swept the room, and she swallowed nervously.

‘Huh?’

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the butler trembling slightly. That could only mean one thing—the Duke was releasing pheromones.

Aileen exhaled quietly in relief. She couldn’t sense them—thank heaven. If she had, she’d never have been able to act calm under such pressure.

She was grateful she hadn’t yet manifested.

“That’s unfortunate.”

“We can arrange another meeting soon,” she offered. “A proper appointment, next time.”

Of course, she had no intention of ever letting that happen.

“I don’t have time for that.”

The weight behind his words made her stomach tighten.

Aileen remembered—after marrying Ethan, the Duke had gone straight to war in the Duchy of Sihar. Her brother once mentioned that the ducal council had refused to send him unless he was properly wed.

The Duke already had a fiancée chosen by his family. Ethan, being a dominant omega, had been forced into that role.

‘And then you threw him away.’

Fury burned up her throat. She pressed her lips together, lowering her eyes to hide it.

‘You’re the one in a hurry this time, not us.’

This time, she would never let him take Ethan. Let him marry someone else or fight the council—it wasn’t her concern.

The Duke’s gaze drifted around the room, then settled back on her.

“Then I’ll take you instead.”

…What?

Was he insane?

Aileen’s temper nearly burst, but she forced it down. This was Duke Rihast—the man even the highest nobles feared.

“Me? You can’t just abduct someone in broad daylight, no matter who you are.”

“It’s not abduction. It’s a proposal. Marry me.”

…Marry him?

Aileen stared in disbelief at the man who said it so casually.

“Who proposes like that?”

“So what’s your answer?”

He didn’t even sound impatient—just expectant.

Of course, her answer was no. She didn’t want to be tied to his cursed house, not by any means. But refusing outright was dangerous.

The Duke himself probably hated this arranged marriage as much as she did, but he was still here. That, she knew, was because of her grandfather—the one who had signed a binding agreement with the previous Duke generations ago.

‘Still, I can’t just let him drag me off.’

Her mind spun rapidly until an idea struck.

“I’m a beta, my lord.”

Her manifestation was a year away, but for now, it was true. A beta would be useless to a ducal line that demanded strong offspring.

‘Let’s see the council approve that.’

“That’s fine,” he said without pause.

“I thought so—wait, what?”

“A beta can still bear children. That’s enough.”

Aileen’s eyes widened. The Duke’s cold mouth curved into the faintest smile.

“That’s only your opinion, isn’t it, my lord?” she said sharply, trying to hold her ground.

“Is it?”

He nodded as though it hardly mattered.

Just then, Aileen noticed the butler clutching his throat, coughing violently.

“What’s wrong—?”

Before she could finish, there was a loud thud! above them.

Aileen’s heart dropped.

The Duke slowly lifted his gaze toward the ceiling. The sharp gleam in his eyes seemed to pierce straight through the wood—straight into the attic where Ethan was hiding.

‘No, it’s impossible. He couldn’t have—’

But then his gaze locked on a specific point above, and her throat tightened.

“Seems there’s a rat up there,” he said calmly.

“A rather large one.”

Aileen’s face went pale.

Why… why had her brother—?