Chapter 1
“Has everyone heard the news?”
Whoooom.
It was a whisper in the air.
The worn window frame, precariously fastened to the stone wall, shuddered and moaned as the wind rattled it.
People briefly cast their gaze toward the source of that ominous sound, only to avert their eyes again as if nothing had happened.
“Are you speaking of His Grace the Archduke’s bride-to-be?”
Clatter.
Another voice chimed in, and this time the tapestry on the wall rustled and flapped, caught in the draft.
The cold wind even snuffed out a few of the candles.
“Ahem.”
“Well, this building is rather…”
An awkward silence settled over the gathering.
A few opened their mouths to make lighthearted remarks but, recalling that this decrepit and unimpressive structure had been designated by the Emperor himself as the wedding hall, quickly held their tongues.
Someone else, hoping to steer the conversation, picked up the thread about the bride.
“Does anyone know what kind of woman she is?”
“I heard she’s from an insignificant family.”
“I was told she’s a commoner.”
Their gazes naturally drifted toward Archduke Haswell, who stood quietly in a corner, waiting for the bride’s entrance.
“What a waste.”
A young lady sighed in a hushed, wistful tone.
Instead of rebuking her for such careless words, the others silently agreed.
His dark hair, which shimmered with shades of blue under the light, and the silver-gray eyes beneath it, swept elegantly across the room.
A face so perfectly symmetrical it seemed as though a god had calculated every angle with painstaking precision, sharp and unyielding.
A body so powerfully built and refined, it could easily serve as the ideal for a statue of a legendary hero.
The title of the Empire’s First Archduke radiated around him like a halo.
Even amid the Emperor’s blatant slight, standing in a forgotten corner of a crumbling old temple, his presence refused to be diminished.
If anything, it was his imposing presence that made the shabbiness of the venue almost fade from memory.
‘What good is it to be that exceptional?.’
So exceptional that he might as well be a poisoned chalice.
Just as it was the Emperor’s will that today’s wedding be held in such a building, so too was it by the Emperor’s hand that Dominique Roman Haswell, the Empire’s First Archduke, would marry a woman so far beneath him.
‘If she weren’t such a lowly match, the marriage would never have been permitted.’
The Emperor sought to keep all noble families in check, but none faced the kind of scrutiny and suppression directed at Dominique Roman Haswell.
There were even rumors that the previous Archducal couple’s deaths had been orchestrated by the Emperor himself.
Unable to endure the suffocating pressure any longer, the Archduke had declared that, at the very least, he would choose his own bride.
And the Emperor, seemingly pleased with his choice, had granted his blessing without hesitation.
“Well, for His Majesty to approve so quickly…”
She must be quite beneath him indeed.
As the crowd bit back words too dangerous to voice aloud, the one who had first spoken resumed with a different topic.
“No, the thing I meant to ask about was something else.”
“What was it?”
“None of you have heard? About the Mad Dog.”
“You don’t mean the Mad Dog of Ehrenberg, do you?”
At once, every gaze in the room turned toward the line of high-ranking nobles gathered to celebrate the Archduke’s wedding.
Sharp, probing eyes landed like arrows upon the Ehrenberg ducal house, standing at the fore.
“She’s missing, isn’t she?”
“I heard she was sent to a convent.”
“The only thing certain is that the Ehrenberg family has disowned the Mad Dog.”
A flicker of unashamed delight crossed the faces of the guests.
In this gloomy building, it was a rare, welcome amusement to have someone to offer up as fresh gossip.
“I always knew Kyrie Ehrenberg would end up like this.”
“She ran wild, with no sense of propriety or consequence.”
“It’s about time she was punished.”
Kyrie Ehrenberg, otherwise known as the Mad Dog of Ehrenberg, was infamous throughout the social world.
Far from the model of grace expected of a noble daughter, she had earned her disgraceful nickname through her malicious, uncontrollable behavior.
Accused of poisoning her stepmother, she had obsessively pursued the Crown Prince, causing one scandal after another.
Her wickedness reached its peak when, instead of her, the Crown Prince chose her younger sister, Elise.
“The stunt she pulled last time was truly something.”
“They say she tried to kill Lady Elise.”
“To poison your stepmother, then your own sister… utterly depraved.”
Until now, no matter how vile her behavior, no punishment had touched her.
But this time was different.
Word had spread that the ducal house had finally made a decision.
“With that woman gone, His Highness must be at ease at last.”
“And the Duke of Ehrenberg and his sons as well.”
“The entire family had suffered on account of her.”
The onlookers’ gazes moved from the imposing face of the Duke of Ehrenberg to the strikingly handsome faces of his sons, and to one other face standing beside them.
That man too, though little more than sour grapes at the Archduke’s wedding, drew nearly as much attention as the groom himself.
“His Highness shines as always, doesn’t he?”
A man gilded in gold from head to toe.
There stood Crown Prince Lexion.
The satisfaction of receiving more attention than even the groom, coupled with his innate, sovereign aura, shimmered around him like a halo of light.
“Well, in any case, this means everyone can finally approach His Highness.”
Someone smacked their lips and murmured.
“Please, compose yourselves.”
A priest emerged, cutting through the murmuring crowd.
The people turned startled eyes upon him.
“The priest already?”
“Good heavens. The bride’s entering with him.”
In noble, royal, and imperial weddings, there existed a long and intricate string of rites.
The kind of procession so labyrinthine that even memorizing it was an ordeal, always concluding with a priest stepping forward to officiate the final marital vow. And yet, that very priest was now leading the ceremony from its onset.
Moreover, the bride, who should by custom have made a separate entrance, was following directly behind him.
“They must be eager to see this marriage concluded quickly.”
“No doubt it’s His Majesty’s will.”
Those who recalled precisely what this occasion signified fell silent again.
Only a few young noblewomen, brimming with curiosity, let their gazes sweep over the soon-to-be Grand Duchess clad in her outdated gown.
Though her face was obscured by a veil, her figure alone was… well, passable enough, they had to admit.
Even through a dress long fallen out of fashion, the bride’s natural grace could not be wholly concealed.
The soft glow of her pale décolletage and shoulders shimmered faintly, as though dusted with powdered pearls.
‘No matter. She’s a lowborn woman all the same.’
Such was the thought as fans fluttered restlessly, many deciding the woman had surely used that very body to seduce the Grand Duke.
A loose wind swept through again.
The bride came to a halt in her place, and the Grand Duke moved with indifferent poise to stand opposite her.
The aged priest before the altar quietly opened his mouth to speak.
“Is there anyone here who objects to this marriage?”
The niceties of blessings and formal pleasantries were cast aside, this was the heart of the matter.
A strange, weighty silence settled over them.
At length, the priest declared…
“Then, by the vow of a kiss, let the bride and groom complete this union.”
All eyes fixed upon the bride, veiled though she was.
This was, after all, no ordinary family, but the empire’s First Grand Ducal House.
And though this woman was lowborn and lacking, she now stood poised to claim the fortune of a lifetime, to be mistress of that household.
‘Who is she?’
No amount of pearl powder or glittering adornment could conceal the foul shadow cast by such a woman.
And just as cruel curiosity was beginning to gnaw at the veil, the Grand Duke slowly raised a hand.
As the white veil fell away beneath his long, unyielding fingers….
A sharp gasp cut through the air.
The atmosphere of the chapel froze instantly.
Silvery hair shimmered in the dim light, slender lashes trembling faintly beneath it, and beneath them, blue eyes.
A face of slender lines and sharply upturned, feline eyes.
By features alone, she might be called a remarkable beauty.
“Wait…!”
Even as someone cried out, the Grand Duke claimed the bride’s cherry-red lips with his own.
A figure leapt up from the guest seats.
“With this…”
As the priest continued his words, the Crown Prince, now risen from his seat, clenched his fists tightly.
Then came a voice so loud it shook the very walls of the chapel.
“Kyrie Ehrenberg!”
Immediately, someone from the Ehrenberg ducal house’s side also shot up from their seat.
Yet despite the uproar, the priest remained steadfast, his voice unshaken as he spoke.
“In the name of the Divine, I pronounce you husband and wife.”
The Crown Prince, and indeed, everyone else in the hall, turned deathly pale.
Only one man’s lips curved deeper into a smile, Dominik Roman Haswell, who had just kissed his bride.
And Kyrie, gazing at the man smiling down upon her, narrowed her eyes.
“Smile, Kyrie.”
“…”
“It’s a joyous day, isn’t it?”
The Grand Duke’s whisper brushed against her ear, warm breath ghosting over her skin.
“We need this marriage to be consummated.”
“…”
“You’ll gain your freedom, and I’ll gain the disgrace-ridden heir you’ll bear me.”
“…”
“A fair trade, wouldn’t you say?”
At those words, Kyrie offered the most brilliant smile of anyone present, turning her gaze toward the Crown Prince.
And the moment her eyes met his pallid, stricken face, she smiled even more dazzlingly than anything in that miserable chapel.
‘Not that I ever intended to keep that promise.’
She had no plans of ever bearing a disgrace-ridden child for the Grand Duke.
But she thought she might as well enjoy this moment.
If only for the sight of the Crown Prince gnashing his teeth.
And, perhaps, the face of the Grand Duke, smiling so openly at her.
“A good girl.”
She heard the Grand Duke’s murmur beside her.
Kyrie thought to herself, she had never once in her life been a good girl.
And so, she was already preparing to break this promise.
Which meant that this…
This was merely the beginning of a promise she would never keep.
