Charlotte Daphne.
The eldest daughter of Duke Daphne, and a villainess destined to be killed by her own husband.
This was the fate assigned to her—unchangeable and unavoidable.
Charlotte realized this very naturally when she was twelve.
“What the heck is this?”
At first, Charlotte didn’t believe the absurd story playing in her mind.
That she had reincarnated as a character in a novel, and not just any character, but the malicious ex-wife of the male lead.
Even more absurd was that the male lead of the novel was none other than the crown prince, Noctum Leupel!
He was a man described as perfect in every way, including magic.
Why would a man destined to ascend the throne upon adulthood end up as a duke and marry her?
It was, quite literally, an unbelievable story.
But the real absurdity began the following year, when Charlotte turned thirteen.
Suddenly, the daughter of her father’s mistress appeared, and Charlotte was stripped of everything she had.
The beautiful dresses and jewelry that were once hers alone, the lavish meals, and even her exclusive title as the duke’s daughter.
And, worst of all, her father’s affection.
Faced with her shrinking position, Charlotte grew desperate and eventually succumbed to madness, transforming into a wicked villainess.
She beat her subordinates for no reason and silenced it with money.
She took whatever she wanted by any means.
Then, at a debutante ball, she caught sight of the former crown prince, Noctum “Afros” the Duke, and fell in love at first sight, forcing a marriage with him.
“I find even looking at you repulsive. Do not expect love from me, my lady.”
Noctum coldly rejected her, ignoring her desperate pleas for affection.
Three years passed in such emptiness.
Then, one day, Noctum handed her divorce papers, stating he had found someone he truly loved.
Unable to accept it, Charlotte began tormenting his lover, Muse Callio.
Not only that, but she also decides to hire the hand of the shadowy figure to perfectly poison her…
‘Poor Charlotte. She doesn’t even realize she’s a marionette being used by me.’
But the shadowy figure, Adrian Verche, instead drives Charlotte into a corner.
He claimed that she was no longer of any use to his plans.
Afterward, she was led to the guillotine by her husband, Noctem, and her life ended with her neck being severed.
It was truly a story that could only belong in a novel.
‘No, even novels aren’t as messed up as this!’
Charlotte scoffed. At that point, she still thought of this as just a fiction.
But then, the summer of her 13th year arrived.
The daughter born of the Duke’s mistress came to visit the manor.
“Oh, my lovely daughter, Dana. I will give you anything you want.”
And just as in the fictional story she had dismissed, Charlotte was brutally abandoned.
There was no reason for it. It was simply an unchanging truth, like the rising sun and the setting moon. The Duke valued Dana, his mistress’s daughter, more than Charlotte, the legitimate daughter of his first wife.
The world moved just as the story in her head had played out.
It was then that Charlotte realized the severity of her situation and began struggling to escape her fate.
This continued for 1 year, 2 years, 3 years…
For over seven years, Charlotte lived to prove that she was not the villainess.
“Dana, I really think of you as my sister. Let’s get along well. If you want anything, I will give it to you. Everything is yours.”
She poured all her affection into her half-sister, trying to be a good sister.
“Father, I will go to the poor relief center. I want to help too.”
She diligently participated in charity work at the relief center and temple to ensure the well-being of the Empire’s citizens.
There were times when she even stayed indoors for a while to avoid gossip.
However, despite all her efforts, the result remained the same. People didn’t recognize Charlotte’s sincerity.
Instead, they saw her actions in a more malicious light.
The people of the Empire accused her of deliberately appearing at such places to mock them, calling her names.
Nobles spread rumors that Charlotte, confined at home, was learning dark magic to destroy the world.
“The Princess is slowly losing her mind. How disgraceful…”
“Tsk tsk, I wonder if she’ll cause a scandal someday.”
These were the shapeless stories passed from mouth to mouth.
But these rumors were more harmful to Charlotte than any sharp sword or threatening magic.
Even friends who believed they would always stand by her discarded her, treating her like a madwoman.
No matter how much she pleaded, no one believed her. Instead, they became more afraid of and disgusted by her.
‘Ah…’
At that moment, Charlotte realized something was crumbling inside her.
Yes, a predetermined fate is not so easily changed. The world had abandoned Charlotte.
What she was left with was a growing sense of isolation, slowly losing herself.
Still, Charlotte stood firm. It was too early to give up.
“Is the Princess the ‘that’ young lady from the rumors? Nice to meet you. I’m Adrian Verche.”
“…Nice to meet you. I hope we get along well in the future.”
Even when she had multiple exchanges with Adrian, the Marquis who had close ties with her family and the villain in the novel.
“Won’t you attend the ball today?”
“I… prefer staying at home. Please go enjoy yourself with Dana.”
“Tsk. If you have no charm, how will you be of any help to your family when you grow up?”
Even when she saw her father, who now only saw her as a tool, looking at her like this.
“Are you crazy? The Crown Prince is attending the ball today! How can you not go?”
“Just not feeling well.”
“Not feeling well? The incident where you drank and caused a ruckus outside yesterday is already in the newspapers! Ugh, I really don’t understand why you live like this.”
“…”
“What’s wrong? Why no reaction? How boring~.”
Even as she was treated with scorn by her half-sister, Charlotte endured steadfastly.
She thought that if she kept on like this, she might avoid the ending where she became the villain’s wife.
It was truly a hopeless effort.
‘I don’t want to die miserably.’
She didn’t want to meet her end abandoned by everyone.
But Charlotte’s wish was…
“How on earth did you manage to seduce the great Duke? How well did you do for him to propose to you?”
“What? What do you mean…?”
“I see you’ve been acting behind my back. Well, now I can say it was worth raising you.”
When she was thrown the proposal out of the blue, Charlotte completely broke down.
She thought that if she just didn’t make the first move with the Duke, she could escape the predetermined ending.
She believed that she could forget all the humiliation and scorn she had endured and live somewhere peaceful.
“The wedding will be in 6 months. Stay quietly at home. You never know which man you’ll be fooling around with outside.”
Even as her father, who had driven a knife into her heart, walked away, Charlotte only let out an empty laugh.
‘How foolish I was. If I could have changed things, I would have done so long ago.’
Her desperate struggles didn’t create a massive butterfly effect.
She was stuck, flailing for survival in a web, without finding a way out.
From then on, Charlotte became indifferent to her emotions and life.
After all, she was already living on borrowed time, so she was almost dead anyway.
Even after marrying the Duke, nothing changed. Charlotte looked at her husband with emotionless eyes, as though she had become detached from everything.
But it was strange.
Her husband, the Duke, a noble with royal blood, poured affection on her every single day.
“My dear, the weather is lovely today. How about enjoying some swimming together?”
“I’ve planted a birthday flower in the garden. It’s so beautiful, just like you. Let’s go for a walk sometime.”
“My dear, happy birthday! I’ve prepared a meal. Shall we eat together?”
Even though there was no room for him in her heart, he kept knocking at her door.
No matter how much she pushed him away, it didn’t work. The more she resisted, the closer he came.
It was a mystery. Noctem acted as if he had fallen in love with her at first sight.
Thinking back, he had acted this way from the beginning.
On their wedding day.
“Ah… you’re really becoming my wife.”
The Duke acted like a mesmerized man, staring at Charlotte’s face peeking through her veil.
He was captivated by her hair, then looked into her eyes and immediately sealed her lips with a kiss.
He held her hand as though it was a lifeline, and the kiss was as careful as if it were his first love.
Even Charlotte, who had always been calm, was shocked. The others must have been even more affected.
As expected, rumors spread that the Duke had been seduced by Charlotte’s dark magic, calling her a terrifying villainess
