Even Though I Know I Shouldn’t Act Like This in Front of the Duke

The wedding between the duke and Ellin proceeded quickly as planned.

Like the Duke of Linderto’s aggressive approach to business, the wedding preparations were swift and decisive.

People from the dress shop came directly to take measurements, handwritten invitations were prepared, and flower arrangements for the venue were selected.

Despite the hectic preparations, Ellin rarely met the duke in person. It was probably his intention.

Whenever Ellin had tea with Charlotte, she would sprawl limply on the sofa.

“I don’t even know what’s happening around me anymore.”

“They say when you meet your destined partner, everything progresses quickly to marriage. You two must really be fated.”

Ellin couldn’t agree with Charlotte, who spoke about them like they were the century’s greatest lovers.

But she wasn’t in a position to argue either.

* * *

Finally, the wedding day arrived.

The duke’s spacious garden was beautifully decorated, and white canopies adorned with flowers and ribbons fluttered in the breeze.

The fountain shot streams of water refreshingly, celebrating the duke’s wedding.

Sitting in the flower-decorated room where the bride waited, Ellin had many thoughts in this short time.

‘How happy would I be if this were a real wedding? It would be the best day of my life. Such a beautiful mansion, a wonderful groom, and a dazzling dress.’

She looked at her pure white dress with a bitter smile.

It was heartbreaking how all these beautiful things seemed to become mockeries in the face of the reality that she was a fake bride.

What would a real bride think at this moment?

A groom approaching the bride to whisper words of love, a sweet honeymoon, lovely children born between them. Plans for a happy future.

Such dreamlike things would have filled her heart with excitement.

But the aurora-like shining balloons in her mind popped like bubbles, mocking her.

Reminding her that she was just a fake, telling her to snap out of it.

Ellin answered the mocking voice in her heart.

I know it well, so stop laughing at me.

“You must be truly happy. Being the wife of Duke Linderto. You’ve stolen the first love of every woman in the Kingdom. How cruel.”

The maid arranging Ellin’s hair joked with a playful complaint.

Ellin could only smile bitterly at those words.

Meanwhile, in the garden in front of the fountain where the wedding would take place, people’s voices mingled with music, creating a lively atmosphere.

“My goodness. An outdoor wedding, how beautiful.”

“A duchess from such an unremarkable family. Baron Nilson must already be holding his head high.”

The guests gathered in small groups, whispering among themselves.

Baron Nilson wasn’t the only one who held his head high because of his daughter’s wedding.

“You’ve gained such a prestigious family as in-laws. You must be delighted.”

“Hoho. I raised Ellin like my own daughter, and now such a wonderful day has come.”

Rosana, surrounded by noble ladies receiving congratulations for once, couldn’t hide her joy.

“Who would have known she was such a hidden gem, perhaps because your eldest daughter stayed with relatives? She has quite a different atmosphere from your second daughter.”

Rosana’s face momentarily hardened at someone’s painful directness.

Following people’s gazes, she turned her head and saw the bride coming out in the distance.

“Oh my!”

People let out another exclamation upon seeing her.

“……Marisa?”

A forbidden name quietly escaped from one of the noble ladies’ lips.

When Rosana’s face turned pale, the lady quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

“She looks like a reincarnation of young Marisa.”

Another tactless noble lady spoke honestly.

For good reason—Ellin in her pure white dress resembled her birth mother Marisa too much.

“We’ll never see such a beautiful bride again.”

Words of admiration continued from someone’s lips.

It wasn’t mere flattery—everyone present couldn’t deny it.

With her glossy red hair braided and adorned with white flowers, a diamond-studded pearl necklace, and earrings, Ellin truly looked like a goddess who descended from the clouds.

Rosana, who had been holding her head high at the thought of having the duke as her son-in-law, felt irritation rise at Ellin’s beautiful appearance.

While pleased about forming ties with the duke’s family, she felt twisted seeing Ellin doing well.

“You never cease to amaze me.”

Great-aunt Isabella whispered to Ellin with a pleased face.

“You’re so radiant today, Ellin.”

Charlotte placed her hand on her chest, unable to hide her excitement.

Dominic, who had been discussing business with guests even on his wedding day, finally turned his head to look at the bride.

For a moment, his gaze couldn’t leave her, like he had received a small shock.

After her appearance, there was a stir among the nobles standing with the duke.

“Ellin.”

She turned at the voice calling her name and saw the duke, smartly dressed in formal attire, extending his hand toward her.

Seeing the duke looking directly at her with golden eyes, Ellin finally felt the reality sink in.

That she was really marrying this man.

Thus, the two stood side by side before the priest.

Ellin’s body trembled slightly from nervousness, but she tried to appear calm.

‘Deceiving everyone at this sacred ceremony. I’ll surely be punished by heaven. Mom in heaven, I’m sorry. Your daughter is such a worthless person. Great-aunt, I’m sorry. But I had no choice.’

She kept repeating these thoughts to herself, casting a spell of self-assurance.

Once this wedding ended, she would be free from that terrible house and could save her brother too.

‘The price for deceiving God will be great. I might never have the chance to be a real, happy bride again. Then this wedding is my first and last. I’m getting married with that determination. Let me do this well, as if it’s a real marriage. So I won’t have regrets.’

Ellin made a resolute promise to herself.

“I hereby declare that these two have become husband and wife through love.”

While she was lost in thought, the solemn declaration of marriage flowed from the officiant’s lips.

Ellin’s body froze in place, but Dominic remained as natural as ever.

“May the couple seal their vow as husband and wife with a kiss.”

When those words ended, Dominic looked down at Ellin’s face beneath the white veil.

Her green eyes trembling behind the dense mesh were clearly visible to him.

He slightly lifted the veil and pressed his lips firmly against Ellin’s. Her eyes closed instinctively.

When she felt the soft, warm sensation, it seemed like all the noise in the world disappeared.

Even though their lips merely touched lightly, Ellin felt her heart might jump out of her chest.

Opening her eyes wide, Ellin met Dominic’s golden eyes. Their gazes intertwined deeply.

Dominic momentarily lost his self-control and gently bit Ellin’s lower lip before exploring a bit more inside her parted lips.

“……!”

When the surprised Ellin raised her head, he naturally cradled the back of her neck and delved deeper.

The venue stirred at the kiss, which was more intense than expected.

People’s eyes were fixed on the couple, their mouths involuntarily hanging open. It was a scene rarely witnessed at a solemn noble wedding.

Soon, cheers and applause erupted from the mischievous men in the crowd.

Only then did their lips part, seemingly with reluctance.

He firmly wrapped his arm around Ellin’s waist, who felt like she might collapse with her mind going blank after the passionate kiss.

Though he pretended to be unfazed, the most bewildered person at that moment was Dominic himself.

He intended to merely touch her lips briefly and pull away, but he couldn’t understand why such an impulse had overcome him.

Even amid all this, some people watched the new couple with skepticism.

Seeing the duke and his wife walking together down the wedding path strewn with flower petals, Janice bit her lip in frustration, while Royce nursed his bitter feelings.

On another side, Silvia sniffled with tears.

Fortunately, Jonathan, who stood beside her, comforted her by offering a silk scarf.

“Oh my. Isabella?”

Even in the confusion, Melissa noticed a dignified elderly woman with silver hair continuously dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.

The elderly woman also acknowledged Melissa.

“Madam. It’s been a while.”

To see that stubborn Isabella Avery in a place like this.

Melissa’s expression turned perplexed, wondering what was happening.

‘Why is that old woman who should be in Castia here?’

Looking back and forth between the bride in her dress and Isabella, Melissa finally smiled a twisted smile, as if she now understood.

“Was the relative in Castia actually you?”

“I’m sorry, but yes, it was.”