Chapter 1

Evelyn woke up at the same time as her death.

And soon she realized that the place she was in now was the decaying romance novel she had read before.

‘……Damn it.’

While others might reincarnate as a supporting character or an extra, she had entered the body of the novel’s female protagonist.

If the female lead was a character who would receive an abundance of love from the male lead or be showered with affection from the side characters, it would be a different story. But as mentioned, this novel was a bleak and hopeless one.

The female lead Evelyn in this novel persistently clings to the male lead, Dyffrin, who does not even like her, and ultimately ends up dying of depression.

Only then did Dyffrin feel a little regret.

‘Too late, way too late.’

Thinking about it, she couldn’t understand why this was categorized as a romance novel in the first place.

Even at the end of the story, there was no psychological depiction of Dyffrin loving Evelyn or anything like that.

The more maddening point was something else.

Evelyn was to be terribly mistreated by her in-laws upon marrying Dyffrin.

Dyffrin was the only son of the Liwonoc family, one of the ducal houses of the Colclough Empire.

The former Duke of Liwonoc had arbitrarily promised to marry his grandson to his friend’s granddaughter.

Not only were the two families close friends in the past, but the former Duke of Liwonoc had once owed his life to his friend, and he was repaying that debt through his grandson.

And that friend’s granddaughter was the female protagonist, Evelyn.

But marriage was not just between individuals but between families too.

Unfortunately, Evelyn’s family was a humble barony without wealth or power, and Dyffrin’s mother, the Duchess of Liwonoc, found Evelyn, unqualified as daughter-in-law and continuously made her life miserable.

Thus, even though Evelyn was the female protagonist, the path she had to walk was not a flower-strewn path, but a thorny one.

‘No, this is practically the path to the underworld.’

In fact, Evelyn’s life was shortened due to the stress.

However, if there was a silver lining to it all, it was that Dyffrin had not yet inherited the dukedom and was staying in the capital, working as a minister. Meanwhile, Dyffrin’s parents, the Duke and Duchess of Liwonoc, were residing in the duchy, managing the estate.

This meant that Evelyn rarely had to see her cold-blooded in-laws.

Evelyn sighed, rubbing her forehead.

Just then, the door burst open, and a maid spoke to Evelyn.

“Lady Evelyn, the members of the ducal family have arrived in the receiving room.”

Evelyn tightly gripped the bouquet she was holding and stood up from her seat.

As she rose, Evelyn’s reflection was visible in the large full-length mirror – a beautiful woman with rye-colored hair neatly tied up, wearing a pristine white dress that elegantly spread out.

Today was the day Evelyn and Dyffrin would get married.

It seemed her in-laws had just arrived at the wedding venue. Evelyn left the bridal waiting room to greet them briefly before the ceremony began and entered the reception room.

As the maid had said, the ducal family was there.

The man who will become Evelyn’s father-in-law, Duke Dunswell Liwonoc, the woman who will become her mother-in-law, Duchess Amelia Liwonoc, and her husband-to-be, Dyffrin… 

‘Wait where is he?’

As Evelyn looked around, she felt a piercing gaze. It was from Amelia, who would soon be her mother-in-law.

Amelia was wearing a white hat with several colorful peacock feathers adorning the wide brim, and a light blue velvet dress.

Her attire was elegant enough, but the most striking features were her vividly painted red lips and her dark, unwavering eyes.

Realizing that she was late in greeting them, Evelyn calmly addressed them.

“Thank you for traveling such a long way, Father and Mother.”

The Liwonoc Duchy was in the eastern part of the empire, and it must have taken them five full days to reach the capital.

Amelia, seated in the chair, looked up and fixed her gaze on Evelyn.

“You will address me as ‘Your Grace’.”

She spoke in a cold tone, making it clear that she would not allow the use of a more familiar form of address.

“…Yes, Your Grace.”

Amelia’s eyes, as icy as hailstones, were directed at Evelyn.

Her excessively dark eyes and her expression, which felt almost haughty, were indeed intimidating, just as described in the original novel.

“On the way here, I couldn’t help but wonder if this wedding is truly worth the five-day journey.”

Amelia’s thorny words struck Evelyn, but she was able to accept them without any visible emotion.

When thinking coldly about it, her icy attitude was not entirely unjustified.

After all, Evelyn was just the daughter of a poor baron with nothing to her name, and even her sole remaining family member, her father, had passed away, leaving her an orphan in the world.

Yet, because of a single word uttered by the previous Duke of Liwonok, she was to become the daughter-in-law of this esteemed ducal house. It was understandable to feel resentful.

Even in modern times, marriage was an important business transaction, and for a powerful house like the Liwonok who wielded influence over the empire, it was even more so.

‘The Liwonok family must be losing a great deal by this marriage.’

That was why the original Evelyn, while happy to marry Dyffrin, also felt guilty for bringing such a significant loss to his family.

‘But that doesn’t justify the way they mistreat Evelyn though.’

There is a certain line that should not be crossed.

However, Amelia did not stop at merely disliking Evelyn; she tormented her with contempt and verbal abuse.

While reading the original novel, she must have clicked her tongue countless times. At times, she empathized so much with the pitiful Evelyn that she thought, if she were in Evelyn’s place, she would never respond the way she did

Perhaps because of that, unlike the original Evelyn, she could respond to Amelia without any trouble.

“I know I am lacking in many ways. But I will do my best not to bring any harm to the ducal house.”

Despite Evelyn’s calm response, Amelia only furrowed her delicate brows and showed a disapproving expression.

The one who replied instead was Duke Dunswell Liwonoc, who was standing next to Amelia.

“Very well, we shall see.”

Dunswell was a man renowned for his outstanding abilities throughout the empire. However, due to Amelia’s influence, he did not have a favorable view of Evelyn.

Just then, a knock was heard, and the door opened as a maid announced.

“Lord Dyffrin has arrived.”

The protagonist has finally made an appearance.

After the maid stepped aside, Dyffrin walked in.

With his beautiful platinum blonde hair, spotless smooth skin, and perfectly proportioned features, he wore the formal attire impeccably.

Evelyn mentally acknowledged that Dyffrin was indeed a handsome man.

Dyffrin exchanged brief greetings with his parents and then looked at Evelyn.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”

Evelyn nodded and followed Dyffrin.

They left the reception room and entered an empty room. Once Evelyn closed the door and the room was quiet, Dyffrin swiftly turned to face her.

“I want to make something clear before the wedding.” 

The reason Dyffrin was bringing this up at the wedding venue was that he had not met Evelyn at all since their marriage was arranged.

Dyffrin exhaled briefly and began to speak.

“First, don’t expect any changes in our relationship just because we’re getting married.”

“…”

“The only reason I’m marrying you is because of my grandfather’s will.”

Dyffrin and Evelyn had known each other since childhood. The late Duke of Liwonoc often arranged for them to meet.

That’s why Evelyn had been harboring feelings for Dyffrin for a very long time,  perhaps from the very first time they met.

But Dyffrin did not feel the same way about Evelyn. If one had to find a reason, it was because their personalities clashed like cats and dogs.

While Dyffrin was cynical and indifferent, Evelyn was sensitive and delicate.

Evelyn, who liked Dyffrin so much, often reacted to and felt saddened by his meaningless words, sometimes even shedding tears. Dyffrin couldn’t understand this about Evelyn’s sensitivity.

As this pattern repeated itself, Dyffrin reached a point where just looking at Evelyn made him feel exhausted.

With their relationship already so tangled, the one who had suddenly found herself in Evelyn’s body was also quite weary of the situation.

‘Ah, I don’t like this either.’

Yet, she could not simply cancel the marriage.

How could the daughter of a poor baron dare to cancel a marriage ordained by the late Duke’s will?

Dyffrin continued speaking.

“I won’t care about whatever you do, so I hope you won’t interfere with my affairs either.”

“…….”

“And you should know that I have no intention of laying a finger on you. Of course, we’ll be using separate rooms as well.”

Dyffrin recited what was about to happen to him, as if informing his employees of instructions.

Watching him, Evelyn thought to herself.

Living with a man like this, she might end up dead like the original Evelyn. Not from depression, but probably from anger.

Therefore, Evelyn had no intention of living with Dyffrin forever.

She already had a plan in mind.

Although Dyffrin is currently only a Duke Apparent, he will inherit the ducal title in 2 years after their marriage.

That would be the opportune time for Evelyn to part ways with him.

In the original story, when Dyffrin became the head of the family, he proposed a divorce to Evelyn, but because she was living in despair, they couldn’t get divorced.

‘I will definitely get a divorce then.’

And if possible, she would demand a hefty alimony.

To achieve that, she would need to act as if she cared for him during their married life, instilling a sense of obligation in him.

That sense of obligation would then be repaid with a substantial alimony settlement in 2 years.

As she was establishing her delightful plan, Dyffrin rubbed the back of his neck and spoke.

“And please, don’t cry today.”

At Dyffrin’s irritated words, Evelyn slowly turned her gaze to him. Her round eyes discreetly scrutinized him.

‘What would be the best way to instill a sense of obligation in this man?’

Just then, Dyffrin let out a deep sigh and pressed his temple. She remembered that he frequently suffered from headaches in the original story.

In fact, Dyffrin’s cold behavior towards Evelyn was also related to these headaches. Headaches tend to make people irritable and sharp.

Furthermore, Evelyn’s tearful or melancholic expressions only exacerbated his headaches. It was truly a setup that would make one sigh.

‘No wonder it’s a tragic story.’

But ironically, there was a very simple way to alleviate those headaches.

Hiding her smile, Evelyn let out a soft voice between her lips.

“Okay, I won’t cry. But…”

Evelyn reached out and gently took Dyffrin’s hand.