Chapter 01
I was standing with Petras, breathless, in front of Room 706 of the Kaiser Hotel.
We had run so fast that my hair was a mess and my face was dripping with sweat.
The two of us were in the middle of a mission: to catch my husband, Duke Ricardis, and his mistress, the count’s daughter Radis Bulin, in the act.
“When the door opens, I’ll distract the Duke. You rush in and catch Radis right there, got it?”
Petras whispered.
I nodded silently. We had already gone over this ambush plan several times.
If we could just catch Duke Keith Ricardis and Radis Bulin together in that room, I’d be able to claim alimony—20 billion talans.
This was my chance, and I couldn’t miss it.
Knock, knock.
“Room service!” Petras called brightly.
But there was no response from inside.
“Try again,” I urged.
“Room service, sir,” he repeated.
Silence.
“What’s going on?”
“Strange. Maybe they’re not inside?”
As I muttered, Petras lowered the latch on the door.
“It’s not like the door would—”
Click.
“…!”
The door actually opened. Petras and I stared at each other wide-eyed.
“Maybe the room’s empty?”
“That’s odd. I was sure they planned to meet here today.”
While I was frowning, Petras stepped right inside. I followed behind him.
But the room was empty. No Duke. No Radis.
“Why aren’t they here…?” I sighed, feeling hollow.
“Are you sure it’s the right room? Not next door?”
“No, I checked. It’s definitely 706.”
“Then why is it empty?”
“I don’t know. Let’s pull back for now. Today’s not the day, I guess.”
Frustrated, I dragged my feet toward the door.
“I’ll check the bathroom, just in case. They might be hiding. And I’ll wash my face too—we’re both drenched in sweat.”
“Fine, go ahead,” I said distractedly, opening the door to leave.
Just then, across the hall, another door opened.
And out stepped… my husband.
“Duke…?” I blurted.
What was he doing there?
My eyes flicked to the number on the door he had just come out of.
700.
“…Ah.”
It wasn’t 706. It was 700.
Damn it!
I had relied on a cheap information guild because I couldn’t afford better, and they must have botched the job. Or maybe I had misread their awful handwriting. Either way, we had stormed the wrong room.
And now, I had missed the real scene of adultery.
I clenched my teeth in frustration. Radis must be in that room behind him right now. But since he had already seen me, there was no way he’d let me inside.
The Duke was staring down at me, as if checking whether I was really his wife, Rena Ricardis. Or maybe he was just shocked—relieved, even—that I hadn’t caught him in the act.
Annoyed, I straightened my back and met his gaze head-on. Usually, I acted like the obedient wife and avoided his eyes, but not today. Not with his mistress right there behind him.
“Rena Ricardis. Why are you coming out of that room…?”
Just as he began to speak, the door behind me opened, and Petras’s voice slipped out.
“Rena, you should wash up too. We both sweated so—”
He froze mid-sentence the moment he spotted the Duke standing outside.
“…Petras Raizel.”
The Duke spat out his full name as if biting down on each syllable. His glare was sharp enough to cut.
What the hell? Why was he acting angry? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?
Petras sneered.
“Good day, Duke. We meet again, outside a hotel room of all places.”
“You’re right,” the Duke replied coldly. “I just saw you and my wife walking out of the same hotel room together.”
What?
My eyes widened.
He was the one cheating, yet now he was accusing me?
Petras’s voice rose in outrage.
“What are you implying, Duke?”
“I mean exactly what I said. I just witnessed my wife and another man leaving a room together. Isn’t that what they call… adultery?” His voice was calm, but there was fury boiling underneath.
“…!”
I froze.
Did he really just say that?
And—did he just swear?
The noble, dignified Duke Ricardis muttered, “Damn it.”
My jaw dropped. I had never heard him curse before.
And then he added, his voice like a blade:
“Did you two just roll around in there? Sweating so much you needed to wash up?”
“…!”
No way.
In that instant, it hit me.
I had set out to catch his affair—
but instead, he had just caught me looking like I was the one having an affair!
This was insane. Absolutely insane.
I was the one about to shout—“Damn it!”
—
A Few Months Earlier
When I first opened my eyes in this world, I found myself sitting in the Duke’s study as Rena Palles.
How did I know the name?
Because right in front of me lay a marriage contract:
Party A: Keith Ricardis
Party B: Rena Palles
The ink was still fresh. I had taken over this body the moment the original Rena finished signing her name.
I almost cursed out loud. Why did I have to become her?
And worse—why right after she signed a contract with him?
Keith Ricardis.
The male lead of the romance novel I had read. The infamous “trash husband,” known by readers as “Duke Ricardie-Die.”
Comments had roasted him endlessly:
“Not even worth reselling as a used car.”
“This one’s not just a wreck—it’s scrap metal.”
Even I had once left a comment: “Reading about this guy makes me so mad I could die.” And it had gone viral.
And now, here I was. His wife.
As Rena Palles.
God, please tell me this is a dream.
