Not a single day of her marriage had been happy.
When a rebellion broke out, her husband—the Emperor—abandoned her and fled. Having accepted her fate, she quietly waited for death to arrive.
Then, a man appeared before her.
"Why didn't you run?"
"Duke Ballestein...?"
"There's no time. Follow this path and escape the palace."
A barbarian of unknown origin.
A ruthless war hero feared across the continent.
A man who had never crossed paths with her before.
He gave his life trying to protect her, only to die a miserable death.
"We've found the Empress. Kill her!"
That same night, she too lost her life.
But instead of staying dead...
She woke up two years in the past.
At a royal banquet in the Imperial Palace, she met him once again.
"Oh my, is that really Duke Ballestein?"
"No matter how great a hero he is, isn't a dukedom wasted on a barbarian with no known lineage?"
"What noble lady would ever want to marry a man like that?"
The nobles mocked the duke who had just returned after ending a long and brutal war.
Unable to stand by and watch him be humiliated again, she impulsively blurted out:
"Will you marry me?"
"Stop joking."
He rejected her without hesitation.
But by the Emperor's command, he was destined to marry someone anyway.
"There is no love in this marriage. As husband and wife, we will never share a bed."
Thus began their contract marriage.
Except...
This man says one thing and does another.
He speaks coldly, yet throws himself into danger whenever she's involved.
When she falls ill, he secretly visits her at night and stays awake to care for her.
And despite his intimidating expression...
His ears turn bright red every single time.
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