GDPSW 2

⟡Chapter 2⟡

Called a First Meeting, Read as Love-at-First-Sight Accident

From the moment she regressed three years into the past, Anneliese had only one goal.

‘I’m absolutely going to have an arranged marriage. I’ll live my whole life coldly with a husband who looks like a dead fish and doesn’t even know what color my eyes are.’

She didn’t care if it sounded like a warped view of marriage.

That was how terrible her married life had been.

[Anneliese. I love you. Marry me and help me rule this country together.]

Being born the legitimate daughter of the noble Count Solaritzen family, which carried the bloodline of the first Saintess, and becoming the Crown Princess—those parts were fine.

But after the wedding, the Crown Prince completely changed.

[Why don’t you love me? Hm? Anneliese, what do I have to do for you to love me?]

That damned obsession with love.

The Crown Prince endlessly demanded love from her.

‘Isn’t it enough that I manage state affairs properly as Crown Princess and remain faithful as a spouse? What exactly is lacking?’

It was absurd, but he was still her husband—and the future emperor.

So Anneliese tried to deal with his tantrums.

She coaxed him, got angry, even tried to love him like he wanted.

But it was useless.

You can’t force your heart to feel something it doesn’t.

[You must have another man, don’t you? Otherwise, there’s no way you wouldn’t love me. Look at everything I do for you!]

He refused to accept that she didn’t love him.

Eventually, the Crown Prince became pathologically paranoid, and their marriage fell apart.

Then one day, while she was suffering from stress-induced hypertension brought on by that miserable marriage—

Anneliese returned to the past.

To the moment just before she accepted the Crown Prince’s proposal.

To a point where she could change everything.

There was no time to marvel at this unexpected stroke of luck.

If she hesitated, she would once again be pressured into becoming Crown Princess.

‘If I get married first, even the Crown Prince won’t be able to do anything. I just need to find a husband.’

It wasn’t easy to find someone who met her conditions, but eventually, she found the most suitable candidate.

And today—

Anneliese hid herself among the bushes in the imperial garden, waiting for someone to arrive.

It was disgraceful behavior for a count’s daughter, but she had no choice.

The man she was meeting today—the Grand Duke of Aperhis—was not someone even royalty could summon lightly.

So instead of formally requesting an audience, she had to resort to this rather inconvenient method.

After a while—

Just as she expected, loud voices approached.

A father and daughter, both with red hair, were arguing.

They were Sir Ramier, the imperial consort, and Princess Roselia.

Holding her breath, Anneliese listened in.

“Roselia. The Grand Duke is waiting in the reception room. Do you know how much our empire stands to gain if he becomes part of the imperial family? You must sacrifice yourself for the nation.”

The reason the consort had invited the Grand Duke today was to propose a marriage with the princess.

Despite hearing that her potential husband was being discussed for marriage with someone else, Anneliese remained calm.

‘There’s no way this proposal will succeed. Because it’s that Grand Duke of Aperhis.’

As expected, the princess shouted in disgust.

“I said no! It’s always winter there, and not even a blade of grass grows in that barren land! How am I supposed to live there? You might as well tell me to die!”

Anneliese nodded in agreement.

The Grand Duke of Aperhis—the empire’s strongest protector against the monsters of the northern mountains.

Though part of the same empire, his northern territory functioned as an autonomous region, practically a different country.

Even the climate was completely different. While the empire was warm year-round thanks to the blessing of the sun god Ainan, the north was not.

‘I heard the temperature is always below freezing—so much that frozen rain falls. They call it… snow, right?’

People who wore light cardigans even in midwinter would never adapt to the north.

‘No wonder the princess refuses. Sending your daughter to a place like that… The consort must be out of his mind.’

But that wasn’t the only problem with the Grand Duke.

“How terrible must he look to go around hiding his face behind a mask?!”

That’s right.

Even if the land was harsh, it wouldn’t matter if he was a decent person—but rumors said the Grand Duke was horrifyingly ugly.

They even called him the “Monster Grand Duke.”

“Tell me! What noble lady in her right mind would want to marry him? You’d have to be ridiculously naive or completely insane!”

The princess was absolutely right.

‘The only insane noble lady who wants to marry that man… is probably me. What a relief.’

She was honestly glad the women of this country were so mentally sound. It meant the nation’s future was bright.

The argument ended quickly.

In the end, Princess Roselia was dragged off to the reception room by the consort.

After confirming no one else was around, Anneliese stood up.

‘Ridiculously naive or insane, huh…’

She mulled over the princess’s words for a moment, then shrugged.

‘Still better than marrying the Crown Prince.’

No matter how cold and barren the north was, or how frightening and ugly the Grand Duke might be—

It didn’t matter at all.

What mattered was this:

She possessed something the Grand Duke was searching for.

And with it, she could make a deal—marriage in exchange.

‘The Grand Duke’s family has honored its contract with the first emperor for generations. If I secure this contract properly, I’ll be safe until the Crown Prince is dethroned.’

Lately, the Crown Prince had been pressuring her for an answer to his proposal.

She had sought out families strong enough to ignore the imperial family, but every single one rejected her offer of a contract marriage.

‘Not loving your wife during the marriage—is that really such a hard promise?’

Apparently, it was.

According to imperial statistics, arranged marriages accounted for less than 5% of all marriages.

People in this country were obsessed with love.

They found Anneliese strange for wanting a loveless marriage.

And so, her last hope remained—the Grand Duke of Aperhis.

‘I hope it’s true that he lived his entire previous life unmarried because he had no interest in romance. If even he refuses… my only option left is an international marriage.’

The ticket to a foreign country, safely stored in her mansion, flashed through her mind.

Standing in front of the guest reception room, Anneliese glanced around.

‘Where did all the attendants go? And what’s with this chill?’

There should have been servants guarding the door, but none were in sight.

And despite it being midday, an eerie atmosphere filled the corridor.

As she pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders—

The reception room door suddenly burst open.

“Wait just a moment! Grand Duke Aperhis! Roselia! Pull yourself together!”

Inside were three people:

The flustered Crown Prince,
The unconscious princess collapsed on the floor,
And a man standing partially hidden behind the door.

Even without seeing his face, she knew.

‘That’s the Grand Duke of Aperhis.’

As she stepped aside, she froze.

“How could I take as my wife someone who can’t even stand properly before me?”

His low voice pierced her ears.

“That’s enough. This isn’t even worth discussing.”

Though his tone was calm, it carried an overwhelming pressure.

As the Grand Duke stepped out, her vision suddenly darkened.

Standing against the light, his shadow completely engulfed her.

Her eyes wandered over the long cloak that covered him from head to toe.

Tilting her head up further, she finally saw his face.

‘As expected, he’s wearing a mask. I wonder if I can at least see his eyes…’

She was curious what kind of gaze he would direct at her.

Fortunately—

Perhaps because he had rushed out, the mask wasn’t properly secured. Through the gap where it sat crooked on his nose, his eyes became visible.

Just a little more, and she might see them fully.

‘But… why is my body trembling like this?’

Why?

It was hard to breathe, like climbing a steep mountain.

Without realizing it, she staggered back, trembling.

Her shawl slipped from her arm and fell to the floor unnoticed.

Then—

She lost her footing, stepping right onto it.

Instinctively, she reached forward to catch herself.

In an instant, her wrist was seized.

And—

Anneliese reflexively shut her eyes, then opened them again.

“What is this?”

A pair of golden eyes—like those of a bird of prey—looked down at her.