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chapter 03
“I Don’t Want to Die, So Please Break Off the Engagement, Duke”
It was only natural that my father was flustered by what I said. Who was Dante Romanov? The young head of the Romanov ducal house, and the man who had been engaged to me for three years already.
‘He looks really shocked.’
It was an understandable reaction. Unfortunately, my reputation within the Bryant Empire was terrible. My debut had been a disaster, and I had shut myself away afterward, to the point where all sorts of nasty rumors were circulating.
And yet, one day, the person who had suddenly sent a marriage proposal to someone like me was none other than the Duke of Romanov.
There were no conditions whatsoever. In fact, the engagement had been arranged entirely in writing without us ever even seeing each other’s faces.
From my father’s perspective, it must have felt like striking gold. With my reputation being so poor, it wouldn’t have been surprising if I had ended up marrying into a far lesser family. And yet I was a daughter of a ducal house.
I could understand my father’s feelings to some extent.
‘Besides, I’m not even his real daughter. If my marriage were to bring disgrace to the Lindberg name, he’d think that would be awful.’
Even so, I didn’t have the luxury of worrying about my father’s circumstances.
‘First, I need to break off the engagement.’
I had to cut off any possibility of marriage from the root. Only then could I survive and plan for what came after.
“Father, please. I really want to break off the engagement.”
“……”
“I’ll meet Duke Romanov myself.”
My father, who had been hesitating as if deep in thought, suddenly shot me a sharp look.
“Did Duke Romanov do something inappropriate to you?”
That was not a question I had expected.
I rubbed my forehead and shook my head.
“No, nothing like that. I’ve never even seen his face.”
“I see.”
“Father, please.”
“…Alright.”
“Please—… what?”
“Do as you wish.”
…Huh? Just like that?
Even as I was heading to my father’s room, I had been wondering how I should protest if he refused. Surely, he would want to marry off a daughter with such terrible rumors surrounding her as quickly as possible.
‘He’s always found me disagreeable, so I thought he’d want to take this opportunity to send me off.’
I had assumed he would never agree so easily. Still, it worked out well for me.
“Thank you.”
“Go get some rest.”
“Yes!”
Things are going smoothly.
With a much brighter expression, I greeted my father and left the room. Then, with a grin tugging at my lips, I turned to Hannah, who was standing beside me.
“Tell them I’ll be visiting the Romanov ducal residence immediately.”
“What? Right now?”
Hannah’s startled reaction was only natural. It was the middle of the night.
“Ah! Is it too late? Then I’ll go first thing in the morning.”
“My lady, that’s still too—!”
‘You want to say it’s reckless, don’t you?’
She didn’t finish her sentence, but her expression said it all.
Pretending not to notice, I simply smiled and slipped into my bedroom.
* * *
The next day.
After finishing a simple preparation, I headed to the Romanov ducal residence—one of the grandest mansions in the capital.
After a long ride, the carriage came to a stop with a rough grinding sound.
“My lady, we’ve arrived.”
As the coachman spoke, Hannah, who had been looking anxious the entire time, urgently reminded me:
“My lady, it’s truly rude to visit so suddenly. Please, please keep that in mind when you meet the Duke. Please!”
“Of course. Don’t worry so much. If worrying could reduce worry, there wouldn’t be any in the world.”
With confident steps, I walked inside.
A moment later, I was guided to a reception room in the Romanov estate.
‘Is it because I’m his fiancée that they brought me to such a grand room?’
Even trying not to show it, I couldn’t help but be impressed by the sheer splendor. My eyes kept wandering. As a daughter of the Lindberg ducal house, I thought I was already used to luxury.
‘But this place is on another level.’
As expected of the richest and most prestigious noble family in the Bryant Empire—the House of Romanov.
“The Duke of Romanov has arrived.”
At the servant’s announcement, the door opened. Soon, an enormous man stepped into the reception room.
‘Oh.’
That’s Duke Dante Romanov?
‘…Wow, that’s insane.’
Dressed neatly in a formal uniform, his appearance in the bright reception room was beyond merely impressive—it was perfection itself.
As he walked toward me, his height and build made him seem like a black panther approaching, despite his elegant steps.
Hair as dark as the night sky. Clear golden eyes tinged with a mysterious amber hue.
‘He’s really handsome. More like a masterpiece than a person.’
Truly the kind of appearance befitting the strongest character in the world—the heroine’s father, crafted with all the author’s soul.
I found myself staring at him absentmindedly when a deep, cold voice reached me.
“Lady Lindberg?”
“Ah, yes.”
“I heard you came to see me.”
Right, this wasn’t the time to be admiring him. I needed to greet him.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Your Grace. I’m Hazel Lindberg. I came because I have a request.”
“…A request for me?”
It seemed the Duke was not pleased with my sudden visit. His cold gaze fixed on me, as if he already knew my request would be unpleasant.
Under his gaze, I swallowed nervously. Anyone would be overwhelmed—not just by his appearance, but by the immense aura he carried.
He was the bearer of the “Power of Polar Night,” passed down only to the head of the Romanov family.
Simply put, it was a power of darkness.
‘…And it’s no joke, either.’
A scene from the novel suddenly came to mind—Duke Romanov explaining the nature of his power to Hazel.
‘One who possesses the Power of Polar Night cannot remain fully human.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘A demigod. That would be the most accurate term.’
‘A demigod…?’
‘Half human, half divine. The power must be restrained by darkness, so it resides not in a perfect god, but in a fragile human body.’
It was said that the successive heads of the Romanov family preserved this power by spending time alone in the forest of their duchy during the coldest winters, where no sunlight ever reached.
If it were me now, I would have made a huge fuss, but Hazel in the novel had accepted it rather calmly.
Snapping out of my thoughts, I looked at him again. The realization that he might be even more extraordinary than I had imagined made me want to state my business quickly and leave.
“You said you had a request.”
“Ah, yes. That’s right.”
“Why are you just standing there in a daze? Should I read your mind myself?”
With that cold remark, the Duke stepped closer.
As he approached, I had to tilt my head up to look at him, while he looked down at me. The atmosphere turned… strange.
‘No, not strange…’
More like chilling.
Taking a steady breath, I met his expressionless gaze. It made me far more nervous than when I had spoken to my father.
“I want you to break off the engagement.”
The moment those words left my mouth, the air in the room froze.
A suffocating silence filled the space. My heart tightened under the gaze of the man whose expression had hardened.
This is nerve-wracking.
“…Your Grace?”
“You do know this is the first time we’ve met, don’t you?”
“…Yes.”
“And yet, for something said at a first meeting—”
“Ugh.”
“—that’s quite a bold proposal.”
His voice brushed past my ear, sending chills down my spine.
It was definitely rude. I knew that, and I brushed away the goosebumps on my arms.
And then—
“I refuse.”
An unexpected answer.
‘Huh? What…?’
As I tilted my head in confusion, the Duke spoke again, enunciating clearly:
“I don’t want to. This ‘breaking off the engagement’ you’re proposing.”
The corner of his lips curled upward boldly, and his eyes gleamed sharply.
‘What is with that look? That almost prepared madness…?’
In “My Father is a Monster Duke,” Duke Dante Romanov had definitely been described as a very cold man.
He definitely was.
‘Then why—!’
I couldn’t understand this man who had suddenly changed expressions and was now smiling, even showing dimples.
I had thought he might get angry—“Damn it! How dare someone like you say that to me!”—but I never imagined he would refuse with a smile!
“You don’t want to?”
“That’s right.”
“…Why?”
