Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“……”

I forgot to breathe for a moment.

The young ruler of the North.

That man had finally become real, standing before me.

It’s insane! Truly insane!

Under a thick black cloak, his broad shoulders and solid physique were clearly visible. He was tall, and his posture was perfectly straight. Just standing there, he exuded an overwhelming pressure that seemed to weigh down everyone around him.

And his face…

A sharply defined nose bridge, firmly set lips, and cold, sunken golden eyes. His face, framed by blond hair, looked both fierce and dangerous.

It was as if a blade was embedded in a field of snow.

I must be out of my mind.

I screamed internally.

Why did I pour all my personal preferences into his looks?!

I wanted to punch my past self, who’d poured her heart and soul into describing the Male Lead in front of the monitor.

Of course, fear was a separate matter.

Lionel Monsel was the man who executed Veronica in the original story.

His eyes already saw me not as a bride, but as some troublesome burden sent by the Royal Family.

“You must have endured hardships to arrive here.”

Listening to his low, cold voice, I felt a strange illusion, as if snow was softly falling.

I stared blankly down at the hand Grand Duke Monsel extended.

Grand Duke Monsel prompted me, calling out my name.

“…Princess?”

I barely managed to open my lips.

“Thank… thank you for such a magnificent welcome.”

My voice cracked slightly.

I swallowed hard, a dry knot forming painfully in my parched throat.

Grand Duke Monsel patiently kept his hand extended. Slowly, I placed my hand on his.

A pristine white kid-gloved hand rested upon a black leather-gloved one.

Just that alone seemed like an utterly ill-matched pair. This entire marriage from the very beginning was an ill-matched pair.

At that moment, the Grand Duke gripped my hand tightly.

I nearly let out an undignified shriek.

“The welcome is concluded; I shall now guide you to your chambers.”

“……!”

The Grand Duke strode forward, as if my answer held no interest for him.

My right hand throbbed painfully, but I tried hard not to show it. All my strength was needed just to keep up with his pace.

Isn’t this capture, not an escort…?

I was practically dragged into the castle.

Arching entrances, a vast, square Great Hall, and stairs and corridors covered in dark blue carpets whizzed past in a dizzying blur.

The castle’s interior was far larger and colder than I had imagined.

Thick stone walls, a high and dark ceiling, and ancient tapestries and hunting trophies hanging from every wall.

And amidst all those sights, the gazes of servants and knights followed me.

Finally, when we stood before a massive wooden door, the Grand Duke’s seemingly unstoppable stride came to an abrupt halt.

I held my breath, suppressing my unprincess-like gasps with all my might.

The Grand Duke turned to me and spoke, as if only just remembering.

“This is where the Princess will reside. It has been used as the Grand Duchess’s chambers for generations.”

“……”

“The wedding will take place in the chapel one week from now. Until then, you may rest sufficiently. Should you require anything, simply command the maids of the Grand Duke’s castle.”

The Grand Duke’s manner, delivering only the information I needed, was truly bleak and emotionless.

“Do you have something to say to me?”

I snapped my head up.

The Grand Duke was looking down at me with a cool, serpentine gaze. His golden eyes, sharply contrasting with his grey-brown pupils, seemed to pierce through a person’s innermost thoughts.

It’s only natural for him to look at me like that, considering he never wanted this political marriage from the start.

I belatedly pulled my hand away from his and said, “Thank you for the escort. But…”

“But,”

His low voice echoed my words exactly.

A sudden chill, as if a cold, rough hand had clutched my neck, made my spine stiffen.

…This man isn’t scary. Absolutely not scary!

I took a sharp breath, then almost shouted, “I, I apologize for causing trouble for the Grand Duke’s knights.”

“……”

“Because of my foolish actions, I lost my wet nurse and ladies-in-waiting. Your knights also suffered greatly on a winter night.”

The Grand Duke’s eyebrow curled upward.

It was an inscrutable gaze, difficult to decipher.

“So, what exactly are you trying to say?”

“I was so distraught… I couldn’t even properly apologize to the knights.”

I swallowed a trembling breath.

“If you could arrange a time later, I would like to properly apologize for what happened that day.”

“……”

The Grand Duke chose silence.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. It was as if he was gauging how sincere my words were.

As expected, he doesn’t believe me.

I lowered my eyes to shake off the oppressive feeling. My eyelids twitched, trembling. It was even difficult to breathe properly.

But I still had to say it.

If I passed without even apologizing, I would only be repeating what the original Veronica had done.

Veronica, you shouldn’t have been so immature, even if you were!

To explain from the author’s perspective, Veronica’s escape incident was just a few lines of an episode.

It was necessary to give the Male Lead a reason not to like the princess.

Finally, the Grand Duke spoke.

“My people did not die, so you need not worry greatly.”

“……”

A chill ran through my stomach.

The Grand Duke wasn’t lightly dismissing the deaths of my wet nurse and ladies-in-waiting. He simply had no intention of offering me sentimental comfort.

“However, when you venture out in the future, I expect you to always be accompanied by knights.”

His gaze grew cold.

“Unless you wish to lose your life in an unfortunate place.”

As if he had nothing more to say, the Grand Duke gave me a brief glance and turned away.

His retreating back was utterly cold.

I stared blankly as he walked away.

Even after only a few glances and a brief conversation, I knew with certainty.

Veronica had already fallen out of the Grand Duke’s favor.

I unknowingly clicked my tongue. My mouth tasted bitter.

I should have just written it moderately. I had only intended to give a reasonable justification for the Grand Duke’s cold and distrustful nature.

And now I’m shooting myself in the foot!

Knight Commander Owen was already waiting for the Grand Duke in the office.

A month of arduous travel had completely exhausted Owen.

His body, deprived of proper sleep, had long since reached its limit, and his knight’s uniform, soaked with sweat, dust, and stains, was little more than rags.

Who knew accompanying Princess Veronica would be as grueling as war?

Bringing her to the North was like transporting a ferocious wild animal alive in a carriage.

The Princess would command the carriage to stop at the slightest rough patch in the road.

“How are you driving this carriage? I can’t stand this nausea!”

“My apologies, Princess. The road is rough with much mud. We will soon reach a paved road within the territory. If you could just bear with it until then…”

“How impertinent, speaking so out of turn! Why should I, a Princess, consider your puny circumstances?”

The Princess’s tantrums were endless.

If a servant was late with even a glass of water, she would glare with icy eyes, and if her tea was cold, she would smash the cup to the floor. She dismissed entire meals if the food wasn’t to her liking and woke everyone in the middle of the night to demand a room change if her accommodations displeased her.

Even as the knights cleared paths through snowstorms, the Princess, wrapped in a fur blanket, continuously complained.

“You incompetent, utterly disgusting, worm-like humans! When I become Grand Duchess, I’ll chop off your heads first!”

The escorts had to struggle to keep their faces from frowning. They never knew what insults would follow if they displeased the Princess.

Even now, he couldn’t fathom how they had endured the past month.

Lionel glanced at his cherished Knight Commander, then sat down at the enormous wooden desk. He spoke casually, as if making an offhand remark.

“You killed the Princess’s ladies-in-waiting and wet nurse in the snow and brought her back?”

“I apologize, Your Grace. I am ashamed.”

Owen bowed his head, his face stiff.

Two weeks prior, a great commotion had erupted within the Grand Duke’s knight order, who were escorting Princess Veronica’s carriage.

The Princess had abruptly disappeared with her wet nurse and ladies-in-waiting.

After a desperate search, the Princess was found collapsed in the forest, but her accompanying ladies-in-waiting and wet nurse ultimately froze to death that night.

When Owen relayed this fact, the Princess replayed his words with disbelieving eyes, then fainted on the spot.

After regaining consciousness, she exhibited mild symptoms of mental disorientation. She would mutter incomprehensible soliloquies or stare blankly into space.