"Hurry up, hurry up!! Why are you so slow!!"
The poor maids flinched at my father's angry scolding.
The maids applied powder to my face, their already quick movements of hands even more rapid.
I couldn't help but feel dissatisfied inside, even though I just gave them my face because I felt sorry for them.
'Is this necessary? No matter how much you try to dress me up, his resentment towards the royal family will never subside.'
My father, His Majesty the Great Emperor, used to torment the young Grand Duke Kishian so viciously that he would be tamed from a young age so that even when he became the Northern Grand Duke, he would never dare to speak out against the imperial family.
But the Grand Duke... Kishian was not someone who could be tamed so easily.
He pretended to be tamed to survive and grew stronger until he became the Grand Duke of the North.
So, three years ago, their relationship was finally reversed. My father had grown old, but Kishian had grown into a young Emperor who ruled the North.
And he didn't miss the sweet moment of revenge that came to him.
"How could I turn away from the suffering of His Majesty, who is like my own father? I will gladly go out to subdue the demons."
These were the words that Kishian spoke in front of my father when a large-scale monster rampage occurred and even the imperial power was in danger.
When he heard that, my father was very happy. And at that moment, Kishian threw out a cruel condition that shattered my father's joy.
"However, it will be a difficult journey that will require me to risk my life, so before that, I would like to take your daughter as the Grand Duchess. Please allow me to marry Her Highness the Second Princess Letie."
That is. Kissian demanded my father's most precious treasure in exchange for saving the empire from crisis.
The father was furious at the young rascal who dared to steal his treasure, but he had no choice but to agree to the marriage.
Because at that time, even the royal knights were dying helplessly in the face of the monster rampage.
In the first place, the demons were a disaster caused by the karma of the first Emperor. If this fact were known, the imperial power would also be in danger due to the public anger, so there was no other way.
So, Kishian was satisfied and prepared to go out to subdue the monsters.
But what he failed to account for was that my father's obsession and affection for Letie went beyond common sense.
My father was a man who would gladly sacrifice his less precious daughter to protect his treasure.
So I, the less precious daughter, pretended to be Letie, deceived the man who wanted Letie, and spent our first night together.
And now, three years later, my father was preparing for the exact same 'switching scam'...
"It is finished, Your Majesty."
After hearing the maids say it was over, I looked into the mirror.
Pale blonde hair, just like Letie. A transparent skin just like Letie's.
The white dress that Letie usually liked to wear.
In addition, I started to smell like daisy flowers, which I usually enjoy, and even I looked just like Letie.
My father seemed to think so too, nodding his head in satisfaction.
Soon he sent away all the maids leaving only the two of us behind and quietly opened his mouth.
"You're quite smart, so I'm sure you'll figure it out, but I'll say it again Just because I'm worried."
"Yes, father."
"He's a monster."
"..."
"He returned alive from the terrible battle against the monsters, and even survived the subsequent attack by the assassins sent by our side."
I almost sneered. If you knew he was a monster, you wouldn't have provoked him, but rather appeased him Why did you send someone like me?
You shouldn't touch an enemy you can't defeat.
So, before Kishian could come back and demand Letie be sent away, he should have never even thought of killing him...
But my father, who loved Letie so much, made such a foolish decision that he incurred the monster's wrath.
And as the monster came running towards him, baring its fangs, he was about to throw the fake into its mouth again.
"Deceive him thoroughly."
"..."
"Never let anyone find out that you are Elona. The day you are found out, not only you but also me and Letie will become targets of that monster."
If you're that worried, why don't you just send the real Letie like Kishian wants? I was about to say that, but I just laughed.
Because there would never have been a choice for my father to give up Letie in the first place.
Above all, I did not want to risk my life by staying in the palace.
Deep down, I wanted to escape.
Here in the palace, in this miserable life where I have to live in Letie's shadow.
"I know, me too. Don't worry, my identity won't be revealed."
After hearing my answer, he patted my shoulder with a relieved look on his face.
Then he led me to the knights standing outside.
On the way to Kishian under their escort, my thoughts naturally became more and more intense.
'It's okay. If he was just angry that they sent an assassin, he would have attacked the palace right away.'
My father promised to give Letie to Kishian if he defeated the monsters, but when he actually finished defeating them, my father sent not Letie but an assassin to Kissian.
If they had attacked the palace right away after suffering such an insult, I would have nodded, acknowledging that it was deserved.
However, Kishian did not invade the palace and made a deal, saying that if he gave Letie to him now, he would return quietly...
'Maybe he also... '
On that cold winter night when I had sex with Kishian, he looked at me with affectionate eyes after the act was over.
He occasionally replied to my letters to appease him as he went on a campaign.
I hoped that he would remember the feelings at that time and not be too harsh on me, and got into the carriage.
Soon, the sound of horses trotting was heard and the carriage began to move.
The pure white carriage used for royal weddings passed through the gardens carrying me.
And they moved all the way to the main gate where Kishian's army was encamped.
Rattling.
When the carriage came to a stop, I opened the carriage window curtains slightly.
There appeared to be thousands of soldiers.
Soldiers who would attack the palace at any moment with a single command from Kishian were staring in the direction of the palace with bleak eyes.
And among them was a man with a familiar silhouette.
Pure, pitch-black hair and rare golden eyes.
As expected of a northerner, he has a tall stature and a well-built body.
I could tell from afar. He was the enemy of my family, who had stubbornly returned from the River of Death several times.
The enemy of the family I slept with was looking right at me. Without blinking.
“Kishian...”
Did he hear his name flowing out of my lips without me knowing? His steps moved in that direction at exactly the right time.
Accordingly, my heart, which was already beating fast, now started pounding so loudly that it felt like it was going to burst.
I looked away from the window and straightened my posture again, trying to look as calm as possible when Kishian opened the carriage doоr.
The sound of heavy footsteps approaching at a leisurely pace stopped right next to the carriage.
I clenched my fist.
Soon the carriage door will open and he will examine me. To make sure that this time the Emperor has properly sent the 'trade goods' as I requested.
'Because it's a trade item...'
I let out a self-deprecating laugh at the analogy that came to mind. It was so regrettable, almost comical, that I had come to compare myself to an object.
“Letie.”
The cold winter air poured into the wide-open carriage.
Just as cold as that, a low voice came to me as well.
I looked at him, pretending to be indifferent.
"...You have changed."
He's changed. A lot.
The man who had embraced me so affectionately three years ago seemed to have lost even that small warmth as he overcame the threat of death. His gaze toward me was dry.
I stared into those bleak eyes that contained not a single shred of emotion, then forced myself to turn my head away.
Because I felt like I saw something dark inside that I shouldn't have looked into.
But he seemed unwilling to tolerate even such a minor resistance. His rough, calloused hand grabbed my chin.
I couldn't resist that touch and had to stare at him.
"Letie... no, my wife."
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