Chapter 1

‘No poison was detected in the tea you drank, Your Grace the Grand Duchess.’

She was on the run. Even as she ran with all her might, the butler’s deceit wouldn’t leave her mind.

‘Fortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any concrete evidence to suspect a poisoning attempt. It appears that you have simply overexerted yourself while adapting to the North lately, Your Grace.’

The stolen maid’s uniform fluttered in the cold wind. She clenched her teeth, holding her mask tightly so it wouldn’t fall off. Fury welled up inside her.

Even after transmigrating, why did it have to be into a character like this, running away with such a frail body!

The Grand Duchess had collapsed, coughing up blood after drinking the tea said to be brewed from precious tea leaves, but they claimed no poison was found? There’s no way that’s true!

She knew very well that Iris Hesse, the original character she possessed, was assassinated in the North! Just how far were they planning to make a fool of her?

So this was her last struggle, trying to carve out her own path to survival, rather than quietly waiting to die.

“Damn Northern bastards!”

She had barely run at all, yet she was already out of breath. This wretched body was only pretty, with no use at all.

Still, escape was the only answer. After all, she hadn’t even had a wedding, and was already a Grand Duchess abandoned by her husband.

It had been over a month since she came to the North, yet her so-called husband hadn’t shown his face even once—was that even possible?

If she disappeared on her own, the Northerners might even throw a grand celebration, relieved that they didn’t have to bother assassinating her. Maybe they wouldn’t even bother to look for her. A small hope began to bloom.

Panting, she finally spotted a carriage in the distance.

Yes, if she could just get on that carriage, she could reach the village. She’d pretend to be a maid out shopping for groceries, get to the village first, and then…

“Ah!”

She tripped over a rock while not paying attention. She hadn’t fallen hard, yet her body wouldn’t respond.

Even if she was born out of wedlock, she was still of imperial blood! She must have grown up eating all sorts of delicacies—so why was she so weak?

Thankfully, the mask still clung to her face. All the servants of the ducal residence wore masks when going outside. That was because the monsters in the North had the chilling ability to imitate people’s appearances. The descriptions of them even picking up corpses to mimic human faces had given her the creeps…

Ironically, it was thanks to this dreadful setting in the original story that she could even plan her escape.

“Her Grace the Grand Duchess has disappeared!”

She flinched at the booming voice that echoed as if through a loudspeaker. She tried to get up, supporting herself on the snowy ground, but immediately collapsed again.

‘They already noticed?’

She bit her lip hard to keep from screaming.

“Seal all the exits!”

Seal them? Absolutely not. That would cut off her way to the village!

“Search thoroughly for any signs of intrusion!”

“Her Grace doesn’t even have the strength to open her own door. Assume kidnapping and search every corner!”

She barely managed to stand. She felt so hopeless she might burst into tears.

If the Grand Duchess they tried to assassinate disappeared on her own, shouldn’t they be grateful instead of causing a fuss? Weren’t they looking down on her for being an illegitimate imperial princess?

“…Ugh, ah.”

The biting cold made her head throb. She roughly wiped away the tears that had gathered in her eyes.

She couldn’t even manage to get on the carriage, and her weak body made it impossible to run far.

But she couldn’t give up here. Just as she paused to collect her thoughts, a foul stench wafted from somewhere.

“Grrrrrrrrr…….”

Startled by the ominous growl, she twisted her ankle. Was her luck really this bad?

She looked up to see a giant wolf targeting her. She was frozen in place, unable even to scream.

What’s more, the wolf’s eyes glowed an ominous red. Ah, in the original story, monsters had eyes that glowed unnaturally red, like some kind of luminescent substance… That meant this was definitely a monster imitating a wolf.

She’d heard that the Grand Duke had recently conducted a large-scale hunt to wipe out the monsters. They said it would be safe for a while—so where did this thing come from?

“G-get away.”

From the way it licked its lips, it seemed the monster was savoring the thought of eating her.

‘Ah, maybe it would have been better to just quietly get poisoned at the ducal residence…’

It seemed too late to run now. Looking around, she picked up a long stick. Even as a side character, she couldn’t just let herself be killed by a monster. Her survival instinct took over.

First, she’d poke its eyes with this, and then, while it was distracted, she’d try to escape as far as she could…

At that moment, the monster’s red eyes flashed as it lunged at her. Overwhelmed by a fear she’d never felt before, her legs gave out.

This was a game she had no chance of winning. Sitting down, she braced herself for death and shut her eyes tightly.

“Stand back!”

Just then, a man blocked her path faster than light.

He practically leaped, severing the monster’s head with a single stroke. The monster’s head thudded to the ground. Pitch-black blood splattered across the white snow, and the gruesome sight made her whole body tremble.

“Are you all right?”

The man slowly turned around. He roughly tore off the mask stained by the monster’s fluids. She was left speechless.

It was as if the very night of the North had taken human form. Jet-black hair, ashen eyes, a flawless and perfect face, a physique that dwarfed even the wolf. He was, truly, an unrealistically beautiful man.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

He wiped the blood from his sword as he approached her. The closer he got, the harder her heart pounded.

“Take my hand.”

He reached out. She nodded silently and took his hand. His fingers were hot, as if she’d been burned.

As he helped her up, her vision spun.

“Ah…!”

The man quickly caught her as she collapsed. The scent of winter trees filled her senses. She lost consciousness in his arms.

* * *

She’d only fallen asleep after working late, yet when she opened her eyes, she found herself inside a book. Of all things, it was the 19+ harem novel <The Beasts Who Obeyed the Saintess>, filled with all sorts of wild twists—not even as the main character, the Saintess, but as a side character doomed to die.

The person she possessed, ‘Iris Hesse’, was an illegitimate imperial princess, born when the Emperor seduced a maid. She had dazzling platinum blonde hair, green eyes like early summer leaves, and flawless features. The Emperor doted on Iris because of her outstanding beauty.

Iris, trusting in the Emperor’s affection, lived recklessly. The Emperor found his lowborn daughter cute, since she could never aim for the throne anyway.

‘The only man worthy of me is Grand Duke Kian Werner.’

He even indulged her childish whims that far.

But married life with the Northern Grand Duke was nothing like Iris imagined. The North, ruled by the Empire’s most eligible bachelor, was the front line defending the Empire from monsters.

Iris, who had enjoyed a comfortable life in the Imperial Family, had no idea what the Grand Duchess of the North had to endure.

‘Father, everyone in the North is a barbarian. The Grand Duke wouldn’t even bat an eye if I died.’

Iris kept writing letters to the Emperor, begging him. The harsh environment, the rough Northerners, the monsters always lurking about… for Iris, it was hell.

‘The monsters imitate humans. You can’t even have your portrait painted, and you have to wear a mask if you want to go even a little far outside.’

She begged to return to the Imperial Family, insisting she couldn’t stand another moment in the North.

‘I think someone is after my life. But everyone treats me like I’m just being sensitive.’

The Emperor grew increasingly tired of Iris’s repeated complaints.

‘It’s just your imagination. Endure it.’

Crushed by the Emperor’s cold reply, Iris despaired.

And before long, Iris really did die in the North. Her fear of assassination wasn’t mere paranoia after all.

‘Wipe out all those Northerners!’

The culprit was never found, but the Emperor, who saw the North as a thorn in his side, seized the opportunity. Using his daughter’s death as an excuse, he ordered the North destroyed. The Crown Prince marched out, and the kind Saintess followed to mediate.

But the North had already fallen to the monsters. The Saintess tried to win over even the Grand Duke, who was the true villain, but failed miserably. In the end, the Saintess and the Crown Prince brutally executed the Grand Duke and permanently sealed off the North.

After the Crown Prince was recognized for his achievements and ascended the throne, the Saintess married the biggest fish in her pond, the Crown Prince. The premise that every man fell for the Saintess was a bit far-fetched, but it wasn’t a bad story to pass the time.

So, if only she hadn’t possessed a side character sacrificed for the Saintess’s happy ending, there wouldn’t have been any problem…

* * *

“Your Grace.”

At the voice calling her, she snapped awake. At the same time, a wet towel fell from her forehead.

What was this—did she actually manage to escape? There’s no way these barbaric Northerners would know how to nurse someone.

“Are you all right?”

It was that man. The ominously beautiful knight who had saved her from the monster.