Episode 1. A Solid Fireball
They called me many things.
The greedy Duchess of Stroud.
A shameless woman obsessed with money.
All because I worked harder than anyone else for this territory—but every success was written under my husband’s name, the Duke of Stroud.
To outsiders, it looked like I was just a noblewoman spending my husband’s money comfortably.
That misunderstanding was unfair and hurtful, but I endured it.
Why? Because if the Stroud family prospered, I could pass the lordship down to my child one day.
That one goal gave me the strength to endure the whispers and pointing fingers.
At least… until she appeared.
The Stroud Duchy was the pride of the empire—beautiful harbors, bustling sea trade, and wealth everywhere.
Which meant there was endless work to do.
On top of that, I had to prepare for my son Jaive’s very first birthday party in two months, while also selecting trade routes and cargo for ships sailing in and out of the empire.
These were things my husband, the Duke, should’ve handled.
But of course, he shoved everything onto me.
If things went well, he got the credit as the lord.
If things failed, it was all my fault.
I couldn’t even complain to the Emperor who forced me into this marriage—shoving me onto his wealthy bastard son from the Pardia family.
Nor could I blame my father, who was too loyal to the crown to oppose the union.
This was normal for noblewomen anyway—political marriages for the sake of their houses. I was no different.
But in that suffocating life, the God of Life had given me one true blessing.
“My sweet boy, I missed you, Jaive.”
His chubby little fingers and soft baby arms were the only color in my otherwise gray existence.
He could stand and even sit by himself now. Just seeing his smile made my tired body fill with warmth again.
“The young master walked two steps today, madam!” the nanny said excitedly.
“Really?” I quickly put him down on the floor.
Jaive wobbled, his little legs shaking as he tottered toward me.
“Oh, heavens…”
It was only two steps, but watching him walk into my arms made me feel like I had the whole world.
‘Maybe… maybe he’ll even walk hand-in-hand with me at his birthday party.’
Just thinking about it made me smile unconsciously.
Jaive was my joy, my hope, my everything.
As long as he grew up healthy, I could endure my husband’s neglect and my mother-in-law’s endless nagging.
Later that day, I returned to my office after finishing the knights’ schedule.
The desk was stacked with papers from last night and more from Baron Christie, my husband’s aide.
I hadn’t even had time to eat, so I asked the servants to prepare just some bread and milk.
My legs were aching as I tapped them lightly with my fists, ready to finally take a bite—
Bang!
The office door slammed open.
It was Lady Roze, my husband’s mother, and also once the Emperor’s mistress.
Even in late middle age, she still clung to her beauty like a weapon.
“What is going on, Mother?” I sighed, setting down my bread.
“The jeweler refuses to come! He said I never paid him last time!” she snapped.
“…Didn’t you say you’d buy that jewelry set with your personal allowance?”
Her face twisted with fury, deep wrinkles flashing before vanishing again.
“Do you know how many social gatherings I attend? All for the family’s sake! And you can’t even get me one small jewel?”
“Last month, the servants’ salaries were delayed for a week because I had to cover your dress expenses. You remember that?”
Lady Roze’s hands trembled.
“The Strouds aren’t so poor that we can’t buy me one dress!”
“It wasn’t one dress, Mother.”
“How dare you talk back to your elders!” She slammed the desk so hard that the milk spilled over the edge.
“This is what happens when the wrong woman marries into the family! Before you came, I was respected. Do you know how humiliated I am now? Do you know what people call me at parties?”
I stayed silent.
“You wouldn’t know, since you never attend! My allowance can barely cover one gown, and that’s it!”
“That’s because you insist on buying from the Emperor’s private tailor and paying extra. There are other respectable shops—”
“I’ve only ever worn gowns from there!” she shouted, then burst into tears, rambling about her glorious days as the Emperor’s mistress and how much she sacrificed for this family.
I quietly signaled the maids to leave.
At that moment, my husband Ryan walked in.
“Enough, Mother.”
He rarely showed up in my office. After all, we weren’t really a couple—our marriage was political, not romantic.
We lived like polite strangers.
“Wife, I’ll pay the jeweler’s bill,” he said.
Lady Roze instantly brightened, smiling with shameless satisfaction.
Then Ryan turned to me, his expression cold.
“As nobles, we must display wealth. My mother’s reputation must be upheld.”
The words burning in my throat—Do you even know how much she spends every month?—I swallowed them down.
But my chest boiled like a fireball.
“Reputation should match the family’s finances,” I said tightly.
“It’s for the family,” he insisted.
“Then perhaps you should tell your mother to change her tailor.”
As always, he excused her—she was a poor, misunderstood woman, and everything she did was “for the family.”
From the side, Lady Roze sneered.
I ignored it.
Finally, Ryan convinced her to leave.
When she was gone, I tried to calm the burning in my chest.
“Do you have more to say?” I asked coldly.
He handed me a gold-dusted envelope.
“A royal decree. I saw it first, but it’s for you.”
Inside, the Emperor declared that a small border skirmish had escalated into war.
Reinforcements would be sent, and each noble family was required to provide knights.
“Prepare the list of men to dispatch with the imperial forces,” Ryan said.
“That’s something you could do.”
He frowned.
“Your approval is needed anyway, and you manage the rewards. Better you handle it—you’re better at it than me.”
I bit back a retort. He’d always said that—“You’re better than me.”
It wasn’t praise. It was mockery, born of resentment.
My eyes dropped to the spilled milk on the floor.
Just like me, ruined and wasted, no matter how much effort I poured in.
Ryan’s voice broke through my thoughts.
“Oh, one more thing. This might please you.”
“…Please me?” I asked bitterly.
“My brother will be coming as the imperial representative.”
Barnes Hilvardo. Second in line to the throne after the crown prince.
A legitimate royal, unlike Ryan, who always carried the shame of being a mistress’s son.
But to me, Barnes was something else—my childhood friend. Almost like an older brother.
“Your old lover is coming. Isn’t that good news?” Ryan sneered.
“He was never my lover. We were children under the Emperor’s orders, nothing more.”
“We’ll see what story the prince himself tells when he arrives,” he said with a mocking grin.
Then he left, reminding me again about the knight list.
My appetite was gone. Completely.
