Chapter 1

“Now that we’re married, I suppose it’s time I told you something…”

“Yes?”

I swallowed hard.

What kind of secret would a husband reveal on the very first night of their marriage?

My contract husband, Carsel, was the perfect man for everything I needed.

Someone with enough status to protect Linea… and someone who, in turn, needed a wife to present to his mother.

Our contract marriage had come together as naturally as flowing water.

But nowhere in our agreement had there been a hidden clause about a Bluebeard-style secret.

As a bride on her wedding night, I waited nervously for him to continue.

“…It seems I may have concealed one of my titles.”

“You concealed it? Wait… are you saying you’re not the Marquis of Rivandel?”

That couldn’t be right.

I’d personally hired the Information Guild to verify his identity.

Panicking, I hurriedly questioned him.

“B-But to bring Linea with me, you need to be at least a marquis! Otherwise this contract marriage is meaningless—!”

“You don’t need to worry about that.”

“How can I not worry?”

The most important condition I had set for this marriage was simple:

His rank had to be higher than a count’s.

Only then could I legally obtain both the guardianship and parental rights of my adopted daughter, Linea.

There were only two dukes in the Empire.

The first was the emperor’s younger brother, Grand Duke Dishulier.

The second was Duke Rakan.

But Duke Rakan was unmarried and had never even crossed my mind as a candidate.

Which left only the marquises.

There were merely three marquises in the entire empire, and the only unmarried one was the Marquis of Rivandel.

What am I supposed to do now?

I’d finally managed to bring Linea to my side.

Just imagining the heart of a child who had only recently begun opening up to others being shattered again made my chest ache.

Perhaps seeing the worry written plainly across my face, Carsel gently tried to reassure me.

“…Asha, you truly have nothing to worry about. Not once have I ever lied to you.”

“Then… what title do you actually hold?”

“I…”

The corners of Carsel’s lips curved upward.

Leaning closer, he whispered into my ear.

“I am Duke Rakan.”

“…”

For several long moments, I simply blinked.

Had I heard him wrong?

“By Duke Rakan… you mean…”

You mean that Duke Rakan?

The merciless butcher who left bloodshed and funeral hymns wherever he went.

The obsessive secondary male lead who became fixated on the heroine.

And…

The final hidden mastermind of this novel.

Carsel Rakan.

Better known as the Duke of Rakan.

“W-What?!”

No way.

Sure, their names were similar, but their personalities were completely different!

Every memory I had of Carsel Rivandel was filled with nothing but kindness, courtesy, and warmth.

“T-That’s impossible.”

“And why would it be impossible?”

Why?

Because you’re supposed to—

“You’re supposed to become Linea’s obsessive scheming second male lead! W-We were practically going to become mother-in-law and son-in-law!”

Well…

In the original story, there wasn’t actually any romance between them because of the age difference—just his unhealthy obsession—but still!

This family tree was becoming far too tangled!

“What exactly are you talking about?”

At the words mother-in-law and son-in-law, he frowned in confusion.

I didn’t even have the composure to explain.

Frantically shaking my head, I blurted out,

“We can’t do this! This is the kind of train-wreck plot that should never happen!”

“We can’t?”

Carsel’s lips slowly curved into a sweet smile.

“But this is exactly what I intended from the very beginning. Why wouldn’t we?”

Why…

Why were all the ridiculous things I’d said to him before suddenly echoing inside my head?

—

“Thank goodness you only share the same name as Duke Rakan! Ugh… if you really were that terrifying man, I’d probably die of a heart attack.”

“As long as you’re not someone as frightening as Duke Rakan.”

“I’m just relieved you’re not Duke Rakan…”

—

In short…

I’d repeatedly and carelessly gone on and on about how grateful I was that he wasn’t Duke Rakan.

“Asha.”

His voice was soft.

“Don’t tell me it’s impossible now. Didn’t you cling to me, saying you needed me—that no one but me would do?”

“T-That was before I knew you were Duke Rakan! You liar! N-No… I take that back!”

The moment I called him a liar, I immediately regretted it and hurriedly tried to retract my words.

But Carsel had already accomplished exactly what he’d wanted.

His lazy smile only deepened.

“We’re already husband and wife. Before the gods, you signed your name, promising to stay by my side until death parted us.”

“T-That was…”

I was completely speechless.

Even while my brain struggled to process this absurd situation, I desperately argued,

“That was just… paperwork!”

“How dishonest.”

He smiled leisurely.

“So the real fraud was standing here all along.”

“Excuse me?!”

Maintaining that elegant smile, he continued,

“You never once asked whether I was Duke Rakan. I simply never answered a question that wasn’t asked. Yet now you’re claiming the words that came from your own mouth weren’t sincere?”

“Concealing something on purpose is still deception!”

This is exactly why you’re supposed to read the terms and conditions before clicking ‘Agree’!

“Asha.”

His voice became impossibly gentle.

“We are now husband and wife, recognized by the gods themselves. You can never leave me.”

He reached for my hand with perfect courtesy.

Then, as if to prove his point, he lightly kissed the back of it.

His crimson eyes—red as pomegranate seeds—held mine with a slow, unwavering gaze.

There was something fierce tightening beneath that look.

I could only stare back blankly.

But one thing became painfully clear.

I’m doomed.

And all of this…

had begun only a short while ago.

✦ ✦ ✦

“Could you lend me some money?”

“…Pardon?”

The guild master’s eyes widened the instant I got straight to the point.

Well, of course.

No ordinary countess would march into the Information Guild and boldly ask for a loan.

But I’m not an ordinary countess.

I’m someone who transmigrated into this world.

At this point, I was tired of explaining it.

Who would’ve thought that reading romance fantasy novels on the subway during my commute would land me in one of the infamous transmigration-reincarnation-regression stories everyone joked about?

If fate had that much power, it could’ve at least let me win the lottery instead!

Regardless, I’d ended up inside a romance fantasy novel.

And, naturally, I became the villainess.

Asha Delmore—the former Countess Delmore—from I Became the Secret Friend Obsessed Over by the Crown Prince.

My husband had died only a month after our wedding.

Not in battle.

Not from illness.

He’d literally worked himself to death in his mistress’s bed.

As for my original role…

I was supposed to become the wicked stepmother who abused Linea Delmore, my late husband’s daughter.

Linea was the novel’s heroine.

After enduring years of abuse at the hands of her stepmother and relatives, she eventually caught the attention of both the Crown Prince and a powerful duke before marrying the Crown Prince in a classic Cinderella ending.

The only problem?

I—the abusive stepmother—was destined to be brutally murdered by the obsessive duke who served as the second male lead.

Fortunately…

I hadn’t mistreated Linea yet.

Which means I still have a chance to start over with her.

Considering all the abuse she would suffer over the next decade, wouldn’t it be better to become close to her now and escape this household together?

Truthfully, I could have left on my own.

But I couldn’t abandon Linea.

Maybe it was because she reminded me of my past.

A child desperate to be loved.

A child with no one to protect her.

I wasn’t trying to become her mother out of some naive sense of responsibility.

The real problem was…

I was flat broke.

Taking custody of Linea—a child who wasn’t even biologically mine—would require an enormous amount of money.

Thankfully, she hadn’t yet lost her kind nature.

But if I left things as they were, she’d grow into the pitiful heroine burdened by years of abuse.

So I intended to take Linea and escape this family as quickly as possible.

And for that…

Money came first.

Unfortunately, no bank was willing to lend money to a penniless former countess.

The Information Guild’s master didn’t seem much different.

“So… you do realize this isn’t a bank?”

“Of course. I also know this is a place where information is bought and sold. And our last transaction was rather profitable for both of us, wasn’t it?”

“Well… yes, but…”

Smiling brightly, I continued,

“The Peral Merchant Company made quite a fortune from the information I gave them. Much more than what you paid me for it.”

Shamelessly pressing my advantage, I watched the guild master study me with curious eyes from behind his mask.

“To be honest, you’re rich anyway, aren’t you? Just lend me two thousand gold. You already know I only bring you top-quality information.”

I knew exactly how insane I sounded.

In modern Korean terms, it was like walking up to someone and casually asking to borrow two hundred million won.

At the moment, I didn’t even have two hundred gold to my name.

But I was confident I could repay double within a year.

Besides…

Knowing the future and not making money from it would be a crime.

“I’ll pay you back twice the amount exactly one year from now.”

“And if you lose those two thousand gold?”

“Then you can cut me open.”

The guild master looked at me as though I had completely lost my mind.

Maybe I had.

But sometimes, achieving your goal meant throwing away your pride.

Linea…

Mom’s going to earn us a fortune.

As that thought crossed my mind…

I remembered the very first day I met Linea.