Chapter 001
“Get married, Charlotte.”
At the Noah family’s dinner table.
The words that came from the head of the table made all the utensils freeze mid-air.
An unnatural and cold silence followed.
It was far from the warm, cozy atmosphere you’d expect from a family meal. The one to break the chilly silence was a young man with black hair sitting to the right of the head.
Clink. The young man, Quincy Noah, put down his utensils with a displeased smile and spoke up.
“…It’s true that Charlotte is of marriageable age, but this is a bit sudden, Father. It’s only been a week since she collapsed and recovered. Shouldn’t she rest a little longer?”
“This isn’t something we can afford to waste time on.”
Dominic Noah, the middle-aged man at the head of the table, cut Quincy off.
“Alfonso Linus Eduard. I’ve received information that he’s submitted a prenuptial vow to the temple.”
A prenuptial vow.
At those words, Quincy’s expression hardened slightly.
“…Are you saying Duke Eduard is planning to get married?”
“Yes. The information came in right after he submitted the prenuptial vow to the temple yesterday.”
Currently, all marriages on the continent are overseen by the temple.
And with the tradition of submitting a prenuptial vow to the temple in advance, it’s a clear sign that a marriage is definitely on the horizon.
“So far, there hasn’t been any family with close ties to Eduard, so he’s probably starting to look for a marriage partner now. Soon enough, word will spread that he’s submitted the prenuptial vow to the temple.”
Once the word gets out, everyone will be scrambling to propose to Duke Eduard.
“We have to snag Eduard before that happens. This is an opportunity we can’t afford to miss.”
Dominic’s voice was calm as he explained the situation, but his intentions were crystal clear.
“Marry Alfonso Linus Eduard, Charlotte.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
But before Charlotte could even respond, Quincy scoffed coldly.
“Do you really think Eduard would accept a proposal from the Noah family? He’s the kind of man who wouldn’t even glance in our direction.”
Who was Eduard?
Alfonso Linus Eduard, the head of a prestigious noble family and cousin to the current emperor, Benoit III.
And the Noah family? They stood on the complete opposite end of the spectrum.
Backed by the temple and fueled by vast wealth, the Noah family was notorious for all sorts of illegal activities.
Their ruthless reputation had earned them the label of villains.
And now, talk of marriage between Eduard and the Noahs?
It was beyond absurd—it was downright bizarre to even suggest it.
“There’s no way it’s possible. Even if we send a proposal, Eduard will just reject it.”
With other families, they might pressure them using the Noah name, but Eduard was too powerful for that kind of basic tactic to work.
“If it’s impossible, then we just need to make it possible.”
But Dominic remained unfazed as if he had expected Quincy to say that.
Bang. Dominic slammed his fist down on the table.
His green eyes, sharp and cold like a snake’s, belied the wrinkles on his face.
“Part of the southern maritime trade rights that we’ve monopolized with the temple has recently been taken over by the emperor. This means the emperor is starting to tighten his grip on us.”
Just when it seemed impossible to escape this crisis, Eduard decides to get married.
“If we marry into the Eduard family, not even the emperor will be able to touch us.”
On the flip side, if they missed this chance, it was clear the emperor would only squeeze the Noah family harder.
“This marriage must happen, no matter what!”
“Father, but—”
“Enough. Shut your mouth, Quincy. You wouldn’t dare challenge the head of the Noah family just because you’re the heir, would you?”
Dominic’s fierce presence made a crack in Quincy’s usual smile.
But just as the tension was about to escalate, the red-haired woman who had been silent on the left side of the table finally spoke up.
“I’ll do it. Stop arguing.”
“Charlotte!”
“No need to shout, brother. If it’s something the Noah family needs, then it must be done. That’s how things work for us, right?”
“As expected, Charlotte, you understand perfectly. Can you make Eduard yours?”
Dominic’s face showed satisfaction as Charlotte’s eyes curved into a smile.
“Of course. It’s easy for me.”
Yes, it really is easy.
After all, Charlotte had made Alfonso bow down to her once before.
She knew exactly what it would take to make him submit.
The only difference now was that the goal was different from back then.
“In the past, I always followed the family’s orders no matter what…”
But now, after coming back in time, things were different.
Charlotte let out a short cough, and as she slowly crumpled the napkin she had used to cover her mouth, the red bloodstains were hidden in her grasp, unseen by anyone.
With her true feelings neatly concealed, Charlotte smiled sweetly as if nothing had happened.
“Just watch.”
This time, she was determined to save Alfonso.
* * *
Sometimes, love is a tragedy. It’s a simple truth, but for Charlotte, it was especially true.
The reason was clear. She had never seen anyone happy who loved destruction.
Charlotte Noah. She was destruction itself.
A flame that consumed everything she loved without stopping.
The day she first realized that, she lost the one she loved.
“…Why?”
A cracked voice escaped from her parched lips.
Her green eyes, always sharp or cruelly captivating, had lost their focus.
The cynical expression, always so good at hiding her true feelings, cracked.
Charlotte Noah, the infamous villainess known for both her cruelty and beauty, asked with a pale face:
“Why did you kill my husband, Quincy Noah?”
She demanded the reason for the death of the man she loved so deeply from the only family she thought she had.
At the sound of his name, the person standing across from her finally turned to face her.
A young man who looked strikingly similar to Charlotte.
With a smile, he spoke softly.
“Your words have gotten sharp, haven’t they, Charlotte?”
“Just answer me!”
Unlike Quincy’s calm demeanor, Charlotte was almost forcing the words out of her throat.
She couldn’t speak properly while standing still.
Just a few hours ago, she had seen her husband’s lifeless body.
Alfonso Linus Eduard.
He had never once smiled at Charlotte, yet she had fallen for him completely.
The man who shattered Charlotte’s belief that she could never give her heart to anyone.
“I will never love you, even if we are married.”
And for the first time in her life, Charlotte felt regret.
Three years into their marriage, and now Duchess Eduard, Charlotte deeply regretted marrying Alfonso.
Why?
Because she had fallen in love with a man who utterly despised her.
Their marriage was nothing but a political arrangement for the Noah family.
As soon as rumors spread that Duke Alfonso was looking for a wife, the Noah family sent a proposal.
Of course, the Eduard family fiercely opposed it.
For Eduard, the emperor’s right-hand man, to be approached by Noah, who openly disregarded the emperor’s commands?
It was like a weasel trying to marry a wolf.
They found it ridiculous and insultingly obvious that Noah was just trying to latch onto Eduard’s prestige, so they rejected the proposal with open contempt.
But the Noah family—or rather, Charlotte—didn’t back down and targeted Alfonso relentlessly.
There was no grand reason.
“It was the family’s order.”
So Charlotte sabotaged Alfonso’s marriage prospects, setting up traps to create scandals between them.
“Did you hear? The villainess of the Noah family and Duke Eduard are involved.”
“Apparently, quite a few people saw them entangled in the lounge.”
“Goodness, how scandalous…”
As these rumors spread, Alfonso had no choice.
No other family would marry him, and his family was in desperate need of an alliance.
In the end, he had to exchange vows with the woman he despised in front of the altar.
So, it’s no surprise that Alfonso ended up hating Charlotte so much.
And the fact that he fell in love with another woman instead of his wife was also…
