The one-minute fainting spell, the easiest part of the ordeal I was about to face, was over. I opened my eyes and immediately crumpled the letter from Lena I was holding.
‘What about my life?’
I had been working hard for eight years to save my family’s failing business, even dropping out of the academy. I opened my own wedding dress shop and became the most famous designer in the empire. I even bought a townhouse to enjoy a wonderful one-year vacation after making my best friend Lena Protard’s wedding dress.
A vacation? I didn’t have time to worry about that.
‘It’s over… The Grand Duke of Richevard will not let me go.’
The answer was clear. Of all places, Lena disappeared from my room last. Anyone who could think would suspect that I had helped her. In other words, even if the Grand Duke went wild and interrogated me, I had no defense.
‘I even put my shop up for sale… I just came to my senses and found myself asleep. I had no idea.’
I covered my face with both hands, remembering how I had boasted about taking a one-year break after making Lena’s dress.
We were best friends. How could you betray me like this, Lena? If you were going to run away, you should have done it from your own house.
No solution for the future came to mind. The moment I thought I wanted to cover my face and sob, someone knocked on the door urgently.
“Miss, it’s Emma. Are you awake? There’s a huge commotion. Miss, did you really decide to marry the Grand Duke of Richevard?!”
What is she talking about now?
Startled by the absurd question, I ignored my orthostatic hypotension, a condition brought on by my grueling days, and ran to the door. I flung it open. The maid, Emma, pointed to the front page of a morning newspaper and said urgently,
“Even your father read it and went into a frenzy. Lady Lena’s name is listed as the source of the information for this article!”
I quickly put my hand on Emma’s shoulder and skimmed the article.
Lena Protard’s Testimony: ‘My Marriage Was Unwanted. Daphne Algerf is Edin Richevard’s True Partner’
-According to Lena Protard, Edin Richevard’s former fiancée, the two have been connected since childhood… Lena Protard has stated that she cannot stand in the way of those who share a true love, which would be an arranged marriage due to family pressure.
What kind of nonsense is this? I’ve never even had a proper conversation with Edin. I collapsed to the floor. My knees’ lifespan was shortened by 10 years today.
‘What kind of crazy novel is this world?!’
I remembered that I had been reincarnated. I vaguely knew it was a novel, but so many things had happened so quickly that I couldn’t think straight.
“What is this!!!”
My parents rushed up the stairs at the sound of my scream. They were very elegantly surprised and observed my state, then hugged each other.
Excuse me, what about me?
“Daphne, such a story…”
“But our family is so small, the dowry…”
I don’t want to be misunderstood like this! Whether my heart was in despair or not, ‘The Fanatic Daily,’ a top morning newspaper, quickly spread throughout the empire.
Today, my friend of 16 years stabbed me in the back…
Haha, hahaha, hahahaha. I couldn’t help but laugh like a lunatic, completely out of my mind. Everything was tangled up. Just because I had invited my best friend to my house for one day!
I sent my family away. It was obvious that staying at home would only make me tired of the commotion from my family and the servants. I asked Emma for a simple makeover and headed to my dress shop.
‘How can a person’s life be turned upside down overnight?’
I rested my head against the carriage window, my thoughts sinking to a level where I could almost see the underground bedrock.
First, I had an obligation.
‘I’ve heard the name Grand Duke of Richevard… but I don’t think Edin was the main character.’
Step one: Recall the title of the original novel of this world.
‘Given the flow of events, Lena must be the female protagonist.’
Step two: Identify the novel’s main characters. The bracelet Lena left behind might also be an important clue. I glared at the letter and the bracelet, racking my brain, and was able to pull out a faded memory.
‘The previous Grand Duke of Richevard was named Delphid… The only son of the Richevard ducal family is Edin, so I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere before…’
Thanks to my intensive thinking for a while, I was able to figure it out. This novel was the sequel to ‘<A Duchess Beyond Dimensions>’. The female protagonist, Laylilly, who had traveled through dimensions, gets entangled in a love-hate relationship with the Grand Duke, Delphid. But Delphid had a nephew whom he adopted and raised as his own son! Who would that be? Edin, of course.
Edin, naturally, couldn’t accept Laylilly as his new stepmother. The female protagonist works hard and, after much effort, becomes the Duchess and also wins Edin’s heart. Anyway, it was a happy ending.
The story was so grim that I had only watched it with my eyes half-closed, so I didn’t remember the details well. But no one in this world didn’t know that the former Duchess’s name was ‘Laylilly.’ In any case, I was sure that the framework of this novel was ‘<A Duchess Beyond Dimensions>’.
But the original story had ended. The side story of her living happily with her son was also finished. Even if I recalled my memories, there was nothing I could do. I pressed my throbbing head and looked up.
First, I’ll go to the real estate agency and tell them to take my property off the market. And then I have to contact my acquaintances who might have misunderstood…
“What is that?”
I immediately opened the window connected to the coachman and shouted.
“Turn the carriage around! Go somewhere with no people right now!”
A crowd of people I had never seen before was gathered in front of my shop. It was obvious that they were reporters who had read this morning’s article and came to cover the story. I wouldn’t be able to live in the capital like this.
‘How are my customers supposed to enter the store like that?!’
I had to put an end to this. Suddenly, the Grand Duke of Richevard came to mind.
That’s it, let’s solve this problem first! I have to correct the misinformation!
With a nervous heart, I asked the coachman to drive the carriage to the Grand Duke of Richevard’s residence in the capital. It might be rude to go without notice, but what could I do? It was an emergency. Besides, I said I wanted a vacation, not that I wanted to get married. Wasn’t that also the Grand Duke’s position? If he met me after meeting Lena, he wouldn’t be satisfied, would he? I offered a short prayer that the Grand Duke would agree with me and that we could quickly resolve this matter. I had no idea what the future held, and I only hoped that the Grand Duke wouldn’t be angry with just me.
“…”
“I’ve been waiting for you. I was going to send an invitation in the afternoon after I finished my work.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to resolve an urgent matter as soon as possible? Thank you for welcoming me so warmly even though I came unannounced.”
I took a sip of the tea that Edin, the Grand Duke of Richevard, offered and glanced at him. He had cold, pale skin and lustrous black hair. His azure eyes, revealed below, sparkled beautifully despite having just faced a troublesome piece of news.
‘The rumors that he’s the most handsome man in the empire aren’t false.’
If I hadn’t been so busy with work and uninterested in marriage proposals, I would have been attracted to Edin like the other ladies. He stopped his work and sat in front of me.
‘His legs are incredibly long.’
We were sitting on couches of the same height, but the length of his legs was on a different level from mine. I gently rubbed my thumb and index finger together, choosing my words.
‘Let’s think of him as a customer. A somewhat picky one.’
The Grand Duke looked down and just drank his tea. He was exactly like a customer who wanted me to pitch my experience first. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t scared of the Grand Duke who protected the empire.
Alright, don’t be nervous.
“I assume you’ve seen the article, too, Grand Duke.”
“Yes, I’ve confirmed everything, including Lady Lena’s disappearance.”
“Yes, as her close friend, I was also surprised to learn she was so distressed. That’s why she reported such misinformation…”
“Misinformation… What are you referring to?”
“I thought it was necessary to clarify that the article claiming you and I were in love and that I was your true partner was all nonsense.”
Edin raised one corner of his mouth. He then tilted his head slightly and looked at me as if to ask what the problem was.
“Wouldn’t it be better to correct this article so that you can get a good marriage proposal in the future, Grand Duke?”
Wouldn’t it be the best option for us to just go our separate ways? I clasped my hands together and looked at Edin with a sincere expression.
Edin leaned back against the sofa, thought for a long time, and then suddenly stood up. Instinctively, I flinched a little, pursed my lips, and hunched my shoulders. He came closer to me. Then he knelt on one knee.
Why is he taking a marriage proposal stance in front of me?
“I apologize to you, Lady Daphne.”
…Pardon?
“Lady Daphne, you will have to become my bride.”
What kind of nonsense is this? A shiver ran down my spine.
Is the Grand Duke of Richevard a weirdo, which is why he hasn’t been able to get married until now?
I fidgeted, looking around the parlor at his absurd proposal. I wondered if he was playing a prank on me with someone else. But he said with confidence,
“I intend to marry Lady Daphne, just as the article states.”
“I have no intention of doing so!”
“In that case, I will have no choice but to pursue Lady Lena. I know that everyone in the capital knows about your friendship with Lena Protard, but what can I do?”
He’s going to pursue Lena Protard. That was a plausible action for a partner’s family to take against a runaway fiancée who had reported false information. However, my mind went blank the moment I thought of the punishment for a lady who had betrayed her family. If she was caught by the pursuit team, she would at least be sent to a convent. Considering the crime of deceiving the Grand Duke, she could even be executed. On top of that, he’s making this ridiculous proposal and adding a threat? I was so flabbergasted that I couldn’t speak.
He carefully placed his hand on my stiffened cheek. Then he asked, as if he was genuinely curious,
“Perhaps Lena’s choice was a good thing for us?”
What exactly was a good thing?!
