𖹭 Chapter 2 𖹭
The reason the people of Hielo did not recognize Adriana as their Duchess was simple.
She was a southerner—of the Verano Marchioness family.
The southern stronghold, Thracia, and the northern center, Hielo.
The two territories had long been enemies.
Thracia was a maritime fortress that defended against sea monsters and pirates advancing from the southern continent, while Hielo was a land defense line that blocked monsters from the harsh northern mountains and northern tribes.
In other words, Thracia lay at the southern edge of the Nieve Empire, and Hielo at the northern edge—lands so far apart that distance alone bred hostility.
So distant were they that even magical tunnels connecting the empire had never been built between them.
Yet ironically, the two regions could not survive without each other.
Thracia needed the mana stones produced in Hielo, while Hielo would starve without the grain supplied by Thracia.
Two strategic military regions wasting their strength merely transporting sacks of flour and piles of stones—nothing but a complete waste of national power.
Frustrated by this situation, the Emperor hoped to resolve the issue through a political marriage.
[If Adriana Verano, sister of the Verano Marchioness, and Dietrich Brecht, Lord of Hielo, are married, not only will their imperial debts be forgiven as a reward for contributing to peace, but full financial support for the magical tunnel project and further investments will be provided.]
At the time, Thracia was in financial difficulty due to the sudden deaths of the previous Marchioness couple.
Then the Emperor offered to solve everything with a single marriage.
Adriana, fulfilling her duty as a noble’s daughter, willingly obeyed the imperial decree.
To be honest, when the order came, she was excited.
Dietrich Brecht, Duke of Hielo.
By status alone, he was almost the only marriage match who could stand on equal footing with Adriana.
They had memorized each other’s names and portraits first in the noble registry. During social seasons, they were seated near each other at gatherings, occasionally met in private, and sometimes shared memories.
If the Emperor had matched her with some disgusting old man, she would have been relieved—but instead it was Dietrich, her first love.
She even felt a sense of duty: to fulfill her first love and bring peace between the two territories.
She truly wanted this marriage.
She had to do it.
But all of it was Adriana’s naive wishful thinking.
There was no way a mere political marriage could erase centuries of regional hatred.
Adriana made many attempts to bring the two regions closer—bringing in musical instruments, books, and cultural exchanges—but no one acknowledged her efforts. Everything she did was met with scorn.
When she imported grain from the south to solve food shortages, rumors spread that she was deliberately causing disasters in the north to sell Thracian flour.
The people of Hielo blamed her for every calamity—the sudden snowstorm on her wedding day, the coinciding drought, the appearance of mutated monsters.
For three years, Adriana lived in Hielo as a stranger, never recognized as Duchess by her husband or the people.
And eventually, a riot broke out to drive out the “witch duchess,” and she was burned to death.
But then, a year ago, she opened her eyes at the archery competition ground.
At the time, Adriana did not realize this was reality.
She had never imagined the dead could return to life—or even regress one year into the past.
She simply thought she was living inside a fragile illusion, trying to do what she had never been able to do in life.
What she had always wanted to say to her husband, who constantly stayed outside under the excuse of hunting monsters.
What she had wanted to shout without restraint.
“I demand a divorce from Duke Dietrich Brecht.”
That.
Divorce.
The moment Adriana uttered the word, every face in the venue turned to shock.
Even the usually indifferent Dietrich showed a faint crack in his expression.
“What did you just say?”
“I no longer wish to continue my marriage with Your Grace. Please grant—no, I request your agreement to a divorce.”
“You know what this marriage represents. Do you understand that breaking it is treason against His Majesty the Emperor?”
“Yes. I understand better than anyone.”
That was why she had endured humiliation until now.
It was a marriage arranged by the Emperor himself. To overturn imperial will was treason.
Moreover, this union was meant to reconcile the two strongest military strongholds of the Nieve Empire and ensure peace. Breaking it would plunge the empire into instability.
The two greatest military powers turning against the Emperor at once would shake the entire political balance. It would also give other territories and tribes a reason to attack.
And the one who would suffer most would be Thracia—her homeland.
If Thracia, already stabilized with imperial help, were branded a traitor’s land, there would be no way for it to survive.
Adriana loved her homeland too much to abandon it so easily.
That was why she could not say it out loud.
But contrary to her fears, the two territories did not grow closer after marriage—they fought even more fiercely.
The north saw Adriana as a southern spy, while the south viewed Dietrich as a kidnapper who stole her away.
The magical tunnel project the Emperor had promised was never completed.
So what meaning did this marriage even have?
It would be wiser to end it without further damage.
“I will report it to His Majesty myself, and I will accept the punishment.”
As Adriana spoke calmly, silence filled the surroundings.
They realized her request was not a whim—but sincerity.
It was Dietrich who broke the silence.
“You were strange from the moment you insisted on joining that knights’ game, but this is beyond reason. I cannot accept your wish. Soon it will be your birthday—I will buy you jewels that satisfy you, and we will end this matter here.”
He spoke as if offering generosity, but Adriana had no intention of accepting.
“I am a daughter of Verano. If I want jewels, I can have them anytime. The only gift you can give me is a divorce.”
“Duchess.”
Dietrich called out in a low voice. The nearby knights flinched, but Adriana remained calm.
“Why are you suddenly asking for a divorce?”
“The fact that you think it is sudden is precisely the reason.”
In her homeland, Adriana had been called the jewel of the south and loved deeply. But after her marriage, rumors of her humiliation in the north enraged the southerners, who demanded her return.
Those rumors then spread north, turning into claims of territorial war, and the north retaliated by rioting to expel the “source of misfortune.”
If this was her second life, she had no intention of repeating it again.
And the simplest way to end all this chaos… was divorce.
“If you don’t understand, then look at how Your Grace’s knights see me.”
She looked around—and every knight who met her eyes quickly looked away.
After marriage, she had been completely ostracized.
Lords treated her like a spy sent from the south.
Teresa threatened to kill her if she did not divorce.
Maids assigned to her were there to monitor, not serve.
The people blamed her for monster attacks that had lasted for over a thousand years.
And above all… Dietrich himself—always leaving the castle under the excuse of monster hunting. Because her husband never stayed by her side, she was labeled a woman who could not bear an heir.
His indifference had made her lonely and miserable.
In truth, Dietrich himself was the greatest reason she wanted to leave this land.
If he truly did not understand, Adriana could list countless reasons until her dying breath.
And now was that moment.
“I will not become a traitor because of your whims. Stop talking nonsense and choose another wish.”
“If it is not divorce, you will grant any other wish without objection?”
“Yes.”
“Then make me one of Your Grace’s knights.”
“Adriana!”
