Everything unfolded as if it had all been meticulously scripted in advance.

“Who would have thought you’d become the Grand Duchess?”

He let out a cheerful laugh, but his true feelings were perfectly transparent. It was the look of someone delighted that a worthless burden, once thought to have no use at all, had finally become valuable.

“Everything has been taken care of. Just in case, I disguised it to look like a monk once lived there, so you don’t need to worry.”

“Well done. Let’s go, then!”

Once everything was wrapped up, Selina made her way to the marquis’s estate.

The journey from the island to the mansion was long—nearly a full week on the road. Only as the distance stretched on did Selina realize just how far apart she and the marquis truly were.

“So you’re the bastard, then.”

Before her stood a grand mansion that looked like something from a storybook, and an elegant noblewoman. Although the woman looked young, she had a son around Selina’s age.

“I don’t know who your mother was, but at least you resemble your father. If you present yourself well, you won’t be cast aside so easily.”

The lady offered a curt assessment, then led Selina into the house.

From that point on, Selina spent far more time with the lady than with her own father, the marquis. The lady had taken charge of Selina’s education.

“You may not sense it now, but the role you’ve been given is quite significant.”

Though the lady never showed her affection, at least she did not treat Selina’s very existence with the same disgust as the marquis.

At first, Selina mistook her for a kind woman. Most people would despise an illegitimate child whose origins were unknown, but she was not like that.

And so, Selina allowed herself a glimmer of hope. If she did well in her lessons, perhaps the beautiful lady would come to care for her.

“Depending on how well you do, this peace may last—or it may end in an instant.”

But that hope was just a fantasy.

“So grit your teeth and play the part of a noble. No matter how filthy or disgraceful your origins, if you make a mistake, countless others may end up paying the price again—so endure it with all your might.”

Her words were delivered with a calm, expressionless face—devoid of even the slightest hint of warmth.

“If you ever find yourself on the verge of being exposed…”

It was only then that Selina realized the truth.

The lady hadn’t refrained from hating her—she simply saw Selina as a convenient card to use whenever necessary.

“Taking your own life is a perfectly reasonable option.”

With those words, the lady handed Selina a small knife herself, adding that if she struck the vein in her neck, she might die painlessly.

“I heard that bastard is supposed to marry the Grand Duke of Thalia?”

“Watch your mouth. If her identity is exposed, we’ll all be dead.”

“As long as nobody else finds out, what’s the problem?” Besides, do you really think something like that wouldn’t be noticed if she married the Grand Duke? She’s scolded by the lady every day for making the same mistakes. At this rate, aren’t we all doomed?”

After that day’s lesson, Selina buried her face in her pillow. From the hallway, she could hear the maids chattering away, not even caring if Selina could hear every word. Or perhaps they wanted her to hear.

Curled beneath her blanket, she pressed her aching, swollen calves—still sore from the blows she’d received for not mastering the proper etiquette. Selina bit her lip, enduring the pain. There was no one in this house who would offer her even a single drop of medicine.

Tap, tap.

Ari, the only one on her side, hovered nearby, tapping Selina’s arm gently.

Tap, tap.

Soon, Ari’s long, fluttering form danced through the air like a butterfly. Then, from the tip of her tail, letters sparkled in the air like starlight.

Calix.

The moment Selina saw the name shimmering in the air, tears welled up in her eyes.

‘That’s right. Calix said he would come for me.’

It had already been three years and some months since the boy had come to the island and left again. Before leaving, he had promised that he would come back for her.

She hadn’t truly believed that promise. The moment you pinned your hopes on something, even greater despair was sure to follow.

But ever since she’d come to this place, she found herself thinking of that boy more and more often.

‘Did he try to find me?’

She’d left a note beneath her bed before she left. She hadn’t had time to write much…

Maybe even that note had been burned by the marquis’s aide who came with her father.

If that was the case, then not a single trace of Selina—or anything of hers—would be left anywhere.

“Did he just give up and go back?”

Tears, heavy in her eyes, finally spilled down her cheeks.

No, maybe the thought that he’d simply given up and gone home was nothing more than wishful thinking. Why would a boy who shone as brightly as sunlight bother to come back to that island just to keep a useless promise?

Selina thought of the man she was supposed to marry—the Grand Duke. By some strange coincidence, his name was also Calix.

‘There’s no way they could be the same person.’

The Grand Duke’s full name was Calix Silas. He was said to be the one who’d restored the duchy that had suffered centuries of invasion at the hands of the Empire.

A man of that stature would never bother showing kindness to a girl living on a remote island, her face hidden beneath a hooded robe.

‘As if I’d ever be that lucky.’

From the moment she was born, Selina had never been loved by anyone. She knew better than anyone that there were no princes in this world who would go out of their way to rescue someone as insignificant as her.

And yet, she couldn’t let go of that hope—because if she did, she’d have nothing left at all.

So, even with her calves still swollen and bruised, Selina clung to the memory of him just to make it through each day.

And now, having come to the imperial capital for her wedding—

“They say the Thalian dogs have arrived at the gates of the capital. Why are they causing trouble on the outskirts instead of just coming in?”

The marquis stood before Selina, yanking loose the tie at his neck and muttering irritably.

“I think they heard the news, sir.”

“What news?”

“That the bride has been changed.”

“…Impossible. How could they have found out? We kept it strictly confidential.”

“It seems all the knights we sent out in secret have confessed everything.”

“Ahem! You’ve gotten soft lately!”

The marquis glanced around and lowered his voice.

“As if we sent them! They were just runaway knights from our territory.”

“I’m sorry, sir. It appears those defectors not only caused trouble but also revealed that the Grand Duke’s intended bride is not the princess.”

“So now they’re here, refusing to enter and making a scene?”

“It seems they believe you sent them on purpose, my lord.”

“…How could they know? No—how could they possibly know those knights were from my territory?”

“It seems one of them took a sword engraved with our family’s crest, sir.”

“They’re all fools!”

The Marquis threw his cravat onto the floor and shouted angrily. Selina watched quietly as he did so, then bent down to pick up the cravat.

As she did so, the jewelled bracelet that hung from her wrist brushed against the cravat. This beautiful ornament, set with a gem the colour of a crimson sun, was said to have been sent by Thalia as a gift for the future bride.

‘Of course, it was never really mine.’

Selina pictured the imperial princess, born of noble blood. This was the kind of gift that would only suit someone of the highest standing in the empire.

In that moment, the bracelet felt unbearably heavy, as if it were a set of manacles chaining her wrist.

“Useless fools! If you’re going to die, at least die cleanly! Why leave evidence behind?”

“It seems that unless you greet them yourself, they’re refusing to enter and causing a scene.”

“We show a tiny, backwater nation a little respect, and now they dare to get above themselves.”

Marquis Bryson Ilios Axell could barely contain his fury, yet now that his own wrongdoing had been exposed, he couldn’t simply pretend ignorance.

“Fine, I’ll go myself.”

With long strides, the marquis set off toward the city gates where the Thalians were making their stand.

“F-Father, here…”

Selina cautiously offered the cravat back to him.

“There’s no need to show manners to people like that!”

He dismissed her with a single wave and moved to walk ahead. Then, as if struck by a thought, he spun around and fixed Selina with a piercing look.

“Come to think of it—girl, do you even know how monstrous those Thalians really are?”

“N-no, sir, I… I’m not sure…”

“Then you’d best see for yourself.”

Before Selina could even finish her answer, he pulled her forward to lead the way.

She bit her lip hard, careful not to let him see. She wanted nothing more than to abandon this unwanted marriage, to turn away from a father who could treat his own daughter so callously, even if the ones opposing him were his enemies.

‘I have no choice but to obey the marquis’s wishes.’

He had leverage over her—something she could never break free from. As long as he held that, Selina had no choice but to do as he commanded.

The place they were heading to was the room the imperial palace had assigned for Selina to use as a guest.

“Marquis, sir, you’re here.”

Inside the room, the maids who had accompanied Selina from the estate to help her prepare were gathered. The oldest of them was the first to recognize the marquis and greeted him at once.

“So, here you are. There’s a place I need you to come with me to.”

“Me, sir?”

“Yes. It’s a very important matter.”

Still not understanding what was happening, the maid, Maya, rose to her feet and followed her master out of the room.