DOOM 01

<Chapter 1>

The Duke of Daiern was dead.

The cause was a fall from a balcony while he was heavily intoxicated.

He was only forty years old—young enough that his death might have seemed unjust. Yet not a single person mourned him or felt genuine sorrow. Not even his young wife, nor his three children.

‘If anything, I wished he had died sooner.’

If he was destined to receive divine punishment anyway, wouldn’t it have been better if it had come earlier?

The one thinking this—

…is none other than his wife.

Liselotte Karin Daiern.

With black hair tinged with violet, pale white skin, and violet eyes, I was once considered one of the most beautiful women in high society.

But when has a noble marriage ever been decided by looks alone?

In truth, for someone like me—born into a baron’s family—to become a duchess was, by all appearances, an extraordinary stroke of luck.

Even if I was eight years younger than the duke, and, on top of that, his second wife.

The duke already had three children. Of course, none of them shared even a drop of blood with me—they were born between him and his first wife.

Even so, for the past ten years of our marriage, I had taken quite good care of the children.

That doesn’t mean I did anything particularly remarkable for them. But at the very least, I prevented that devil of a duke from abusing them.

Though he was my husband, the duke… no, that man wasn’t even worthy of being called scum.

Let’s set aside the fact that he was incompetent and an alcoholic.

He never hesitated to hurl every kind of verbal and physical abuse at his family—especially at his children, the very ones he should have cherished and protected.

During my marriage, I often entertained a certain thought.

‘If some miracle were to happen and send me back to the past…’

But such thoughts were meaningless hypotheticals. In reality, I had always had the option to annul the marriage through divorce.

I simply chose not to.

That’s right. Even if I were to return to the past, I would not avoid this marriage. Just as I have endured until now, I would live again as the Duchess of Daiern.

And it is not because I covet the title of duchess.

The lands and wealth of the ducal house? In truth, most of that had been built up by me after the marriage.

What I cannot give up—

…are the children.

Though I did not give birth to them, I embraced them in my heart, accepted them as family, and came to love them deeply.

As an adult. And as their mother.

I will protect them.

Just as I have done until now, until the day they come of age and can walk their own paths.

For now, my goal is to ensure that my eldest son safely inherits the ducal title.

By imperial law, the minimum requirement to inherit a title is to reach adulthood…

‘Three more years to go.’

It would not be easy. The name “Daiern” was a prize desirable enough to attract countless greedy eyes.

Moreover, with the duke’s death leaving the household practically defenseless, Daiern had become prey that wolves would eagerly drool over.

What they were after most of all—

was me, the widow who had suddenly lost her husband.

After all, anyone who married me would gain the opportunity to claim everything belonging to Daiern.

Its lands, its wealth, and even the ducal title itself.

‘I never expected things to turn out like this…’

I unconsciously pressed my dry lips together.

“I have no interest in the ducal title. Daiern’s wealth means nothing to me either. Nor do I intend to engage in childish romance. I merely…”

The man standing before me possessed a beauty so mysterious it was almost chilling.

His brilliant silver-white hair shimmered as though crafted from light, paired with a languid, enchanting smile that seemed to brush against my senses.

“…would be satisfied if we became the sort of relationship where I may kiss your hands, your feet… and your lips.”

The distance between us was dangerously close.

Each time his low, gentle voice slipped out, his breath brushed vividly against my skin.

“In return, I will continue to protect you and your children as I have until now. After all, if not for me, you are all destined to meet your deaths in two years. I believe that makes this quite a reasonable proposal.”

“……”

“What do you think, my lady?”

His gentle tone contrasted sharply with his crimson, almost bewitching eyes that seemed capable of piercing through me.

Perhaps because of that, a faint ache spread across my chest.

Even without any particular emotion, simply being near him made my heart tremble—such was his unreal beauty.

If I didn’t keep my wits about me, I might lose myself without realizing it.

I must never forget.

I am a married woman with three children to care for.

My trash of a husband died on the very day the social season began.

The Imperial Palace ballroom.

Nobles who had come up to the capital after months away were busy exchanging lively conversations to dispel their boredom. Most of it revolved around trivial gossip—such as a handsome noble visiting from abroad, or stories about his estate.

The Duke of Daiern and I entered the ballroom without delay. As expected, nobles quickly gathered around us.

“I heard the news. Another abundant harvest in your duchy this year?”

“My, Duchess, you grow more beautiful with each passing year.”

“How are the three children of the ducal house doing?”

The House of Daiern, with its high status and vast territory, was flourishing.

Its influence had grown especially strong in recent times, attracting attention not only from other nobles but even from the imperial family. Because of this, my husband, the duke, was in an exceptionally good mood.

Yes, he had been waiting for this very day for months—to boast before the nobles about the wealth and prestige he had accumulated over the past year.

However, that mood didn’t last long.

All it took was one poorly timed remark.

“But isn’t it true that the duchy’s current prosperity began after you remarried Duchess Liselotte? Perhaps the rumors are true—that the duchess is the one actually managing the territory? Ha ha ha.”

My husband’s face twisted instantly.

His pride had clearly been wounded.

I hurried to smooth things over, but his rising anger could not be suppressed.

Without warning, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me into a lounge. Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—the timing coincided with the start of a waltz, leaving the lounge empty.

“Let go of me—! That’s enough, dear!”

“That’s enough? How dare you. Are you giving me orders?”

“That’s not what I—ah!”

In that moment, he threw me violently onto the floor.

My ankle twisted under my high heels, and I lost my balance, tumbling onto the marble floor.

“Ha! Every last one of them! How lightly they must think of me, the duke!”

Bang! Bang!

Furniture and walls echoed with threatening sounds as he kicked them in fury.

“Who dares say someone else governs my land? The territory of Daiern, the ducal title—everything belongs to me!”

I had no intention of denying that.

No matter what anyone said, he was the Duke of Daiern, and in the end, he would claim all the glory.

Still, I wasn’t the type to flatter him just to soothe his mood.

Especially not now, when pain throbbed sharply from my twisted ankle.

Seeing that I remained silent, he seemed to think he had subdued me. He looked down coldly and sneered.

“So you’d do well to remember this. While I am still treating you with respect, behave like a pretty doll. You understand what I mean?”

Respect? Since when was being treated like a doll considered respect?

I didn’t agree with a single word, but the timing was poor.

My disheveled state seemed to please him. As if his anger had subsided, he scoffed lightly.

“That should be enough of an appearance at the ball for you. You don’t look well, so return to the estate.”

“Wait. I still have matters to attend to with the nobles today—”

“Your duty is simply to smile like a flower at home and wait for your husband.”

“What?”

“I’ll send a maid in an hour. Don’t wander around the ballroom unnecessarily.”

His intention was clear.

He couldn’t stand the thought of me receiving even the slightest attention instead of him.

Without waiting for my reply, he left the lounge.

The sound of his footsteps faded away, blending with the lively waltz from the ballroom.

Left sprawled on the floor, I could only let out a hollow laugh.

Honestly…

‘What a personality.’

I hadn’t expected an apology for shoving me. But at least I thought he might offer a hand.

Well, for now, I had no choice but to wait in the lounge and return home with the maid.

My ankle was swelling more and more—I should at least rest comfortably.

Just as I tried to get up—

“Are you alright?”

A man’s gentle voice filled the empty lounge.

At the same time, a long, gloved hand appeared in my view.

I thought no one was here?

My gaze followed the glove upward.

And I found myself far more surprised than I had prepared for.

He was a man with dazzling silver-white hair.

How could a person be born with such a color?

It shimmered as if dusted with finely ground diamonds, emitting a mysterious glow. Even his long, curtain-like eyelashes were the same color.

His features were as delicate as a sculpture crafted by a god over years.

Only his eyes felt different—

a bewitching crimson.

“May I assist you?”

But the eerie color vanished the moment he smiled.

Was it just my imagination?

As I studied him, he looked slightly embarrassed.

“My apologies. I was resting due to a headache and missed the chance to stop your husband.”

“Ah.”

So he had seen—and heard—everything.

“…It’s fine. More importantly, I need to get up. I would appreciate your arm.”

“Gladly.”

But what he did next was entirely unexpected.

Before I could react, his arm slipped beneath my knees and back—

and in an instant, my feet left the ground.

“……!”

By the time I realized it, I was already being carried and gently placed onto a couch.

“Please wait a moment, my lady. Your ankle appears quite swollen.”

That wasn’t all.

After checking my ankle, he prepared an ice compress from the refreshments.

“May I take a closer look?”

“No, that won’t be necessary.”

Even if I had received help, I couldn’t show bare skin to a stranger as a married woman.

I politely declined.

As expected, he simply smiled and handed me the ice pack.

The pain eased slightly when I placed it on my ankle.

How ironic.

Receiving the care I should have gotten from my husband—from a man I had just met.

“By the way, I don’t believe I’ve seen you before in the capital’s social circles.”

Once things settled, I spoke again.

“I am Liselotte Karin Daiern, Duchess of Daiern.”

After introducing myself, I finally heard his name.

“My apologies for the late introduction. I am Count Yusef Obreim Alpheron. Please call me Sir Yusef. As you said, this is my first time in the capital.”

Though he was foreign, his manners were familiar.

He lightly kissed the tips of my fingers in the imperial style.

“Alpheron… I’ve never heard of it. So you must be that remarkably handsome foreign noble the ladies were gossiping about.”

“Handsome, you say? It’s embarrassing, but… I do hear that quite often.”

“So you’re not particularly modest.”

“If I were modest, it might offend those around me. I imagine you’re in a similar position, Duchess.”

It seemed he wasn’t just handsome—he was quite charming.

I almost found myself smiling, forgetting the earlier incident.

And from a closer look, though his face was beautiful, his shoulders were broad and his height impressive.

His smile, too, was striking.

“In any case, since it’s your first time in the capital, you should probably head to the dance hall and mingle with the other nobles. Is your headache better now?”

“Thanks to you, much better.”

Even his pleasantries were graceful.

The way he smiled with softened eyes made him all the more attractive.

Enough that I couldn’t help but compare him to my husband.

No—that would be unfair to Sir Yusef.

While my husband, though decent-looking, always carried himself arrogantly, Sir Yusef stood perfectly straight.

‘He looks to be in his mid-twenties…’

In that case, he must already be married.