Awakened by Betrayal
Chapter 01
“Your husband doesn’t love you.”
In the lush garden of the duke’s estate, two women stood facing each other.
The pale-faced woman in a luxurious red dress was Esica Klaus, the Duchess.
Born into wealth, she had dazzling silver hair and deep blue eyes.
Standing in front of her with an unwavering gaze was Yuri Anesis—the daughter of the nanny who had raised Esica and her only childhood friend.
Yuri’s lips moved slowly.
“The one he loves…”
Esica’s blue eyes reflected Yuri’s calm expression.
With golden hair and crimson eyes, Yuri spoke with a gentle yet sorrowful voice.
“…is me.”
The sound of rustling leaves filled the silence.
Esica’s blue eyes trembled with shock.
“I think he has another woman… What should I do?”
It had only been three months since she had told Yuri about it.
Yuri had followed Esica to the Klaus Duchy after her marriage, acting as her trusted companion.
Yuri was by Esica’s side when her mother-in-law, Liona Klaus, mocked her as “a merchant’s daughter who bought a noble title with gold.”
When her husband, Duke Kalian Klaus, treated her with cold indifference, Yuri had been her only support.
“But now… Yuri has betrayed me?”
Esica had first suspected something was wrong when she learned Kalian had purchased an Alet ring—a symbol of eternal love between lovers.
At first, she had hoped it was for her.
But a month passed, and Kalian never mentioned it.
And now, on Yuri’s left ring finger, an Alet ring gleamed—identical to the one Kalian had bought.
“…!”
Shock paralyzed Esica. Her trembling hand slowly lifted.
And then—
Slap!
A sharp, echoing sound rang out as Esica slapped Yuri across the face.
“Yuri! How could you…!”
Clutching her aching chest with one hand, she was about to lash out with furious words when—
“Still unable to control that temper, I see.”
A cold voice interrupted her.
Esica turned to see Kalian Klaus standing beside Yuri, holding her steady.
His brown hair gleamed under the sunlight, and his violet eyes were filled with frost.
“…Kalian…”
Esica’s eyes wavered.
Duke Kalian Klaus—one of the empire’s three great dukes and her husband.
Tall and imposing, with a chiseled physique and an unmatched handsome face, he was a man who drew admiration wherever he went.
When she first married him, she had thought she had won everything.
“Because of your tantrums, the maids who have served their entire lives in this household are quitting one after another. And now you’ve even raised your hand against your own friend?”
Kalian supported Yuri gently.
The same hands that had never once reached out to Esica in affection.
“How much longer must I tolerate this behavior?”
Esica could feel it in his cold gaze.
He despised her.
She was the daughter of Baron Brigitte, a merchant who had suddenly risen to nobility through wealth. Kalian, born into the most esteemed ducal lineage, was fundamentally different from her.
From interests to habits, they had nothing in common.
But despite their differences, Esica had believed they could be a good couple.
After all, Kalian was the very embodiment of the perfect man she had always dreamed of.
For three years, she had endured his indifference, hoping that one day he would acknowledge her.
And yet, the reward for her patience and effort was this betrayal.
“…Kalian! You have no right to say that to me…!”
“Don’t say my name again.”
His frigid voice silenced her.
Yuri’s lips curled into a smirk.
As if mocking all of Esica’s foolish hopes.
“Let’s go, Yuri.”
With a whisper, Kalian placed his hand on Yuri’s shoulder.
Esica could no longer hold back her fury.
She lunged at Yuri, determined to rip out her hair.
It was the only revenge she could take.
But before she could reach her, Kalian’s strong arm blocked her path.
“Let go! Let go of me! I’ll kill her!”
Esica screamed in rage.
Kalian’s icy voice cut through her fury.
“You are exhausting. And pathetic.”
Kalian pushed Esica away with all his strength.
“Ahhh!”
Esica fell backward and hit the ground hard. A sharp pain struck her head, and her blood seeped into the grass. At that moment, all she wanted was to die.
She was sick for ten days and nights.
At first, Esica thought she was seeing illusions. But they weren’t dreams or hallucinations—they were memories of her past life.
In her past life, she was called “Cheon Yeong-ryeong,” and she had lived in the martial world of the Central Plains. She was the reckless daughter of the cult leader of the Heavenly Demon Sect.
She had fallen in love with the Emperor of an empire, giving up her free life in the martial world to become his woman in the palace.
“Dokyoung, I… I love someone.”
“A hawk can never be happy in a cage, Yeong-ryeong.”
Though her loved ones tried to stop her, the world of women in the palace was just as cruel and full of schemes as the martial world.
To survive the war of the concubines, she had bloodied her hands countless times. Eventually, people began to fear her, calling her the “Ruthless Queen of the World, Cheon Yeong-ryeong.”
Yet, the only thing she truly wanted was that man’s love.
But new women kept entering the palace, and the Emperor, who once swore he would give her his heart, grew tired of her jealousy and stopped visiting.
In the end, she fell victim to a scheme and was locked away in a cold, abandoned palace. She withered away like a dried flower.
Her last memory was of unbearable pain, as if her whole body was burning, and a man’s sorrowful scream.
She couldn’t remember how she died.
“Yeong-ryeong, I… I…”
Esica woke up, drenched in cold sweat, after ten days in bed. The blurry surroundings became clearer.
“Ugh…”
She covered her mouth, her body trembling. Her face was full of shock.
Her weak body felt nauseous, but the memories of her past life remained vivid.
‘This world… it’s exactly like the book I read in my past life.’
Back then, as Yeong-ryeong, she had passed the time reading a Western novel while wasting away in the abandoned palace. No one, except for her loyal servant, knew about that.
The novel was called The Flower of Tyresian. It was set in the fictional “Tyresian Empire.”
The main character was Crown Prince Resvan Deon Lucien. The Klaus family supported the second prince and was against him.
Esica Klaus, in the book, was the wife of Kalian Klaus. She was the only daughter of the rising noble Baron Brigitte. Because she was wasteful and ill-tempered, she was divorced after five years of marriage. Shortly after, she took her own life.
The woman Kalian married right after divorcing Esica was…
“Yuri Anesis.”
Esica’s childhood friend, who had once been a maid in the Klaus family.
Yeong-ryeong recalled the part where Esica cursed the Klaus family until her last breath.
“This woman… she’s just like me… It’s strange, like we’re sisters.”
A woman who had everything, only to lose it all for love.
Was there any fate more tragic?
Yeong-ryeong had felt sympathy and comfort reading about Esica.
She wasn’t clever, nor was she ruthless, nor did she have the power to control her enemies, but in the end, her fate was the same as Yeong-ryeong’s.
And now, Yeong-ryeong had become that Esica.
A woman who would be abandoned by her husband, lose everything to her childhood friend, and take her own life in despair.
And Kalian…
His face and presence were eerily similar to the Emperor she had loved.
Had he also reincarnated as Kalian, just as she had become Esica?
Perhaps that was why she had clung to him so desperately.
‘In the past, I was Yeong-ryeong. Now, I am Esica. If both are me…’
Her once timid posture straightened with newfound resolve.
‘I won’t regret my second life.’
Most of all, her blue eyes no longer held fear or hesitation.
In the dark room, only her piercing gaze shone brightly.
Sella, one of Esica’s maids, entered the room carrying a piece of dry bread and a cup of cold water.
Since the news of the duchess waking up had spread, the grand duchess had given strict orders:
“She must be punished for causing trouble in the house. Bring her only stale bread and cold water.”
The room was dimly lit.
The grand duchess had always disliked Esica, calling her an unworthy commoner, and didn’t even allow her to have proper lamps—she had to rely on candlelight.
“What time is it, and she’s still sleeping?”
Sella clicked her tongue, looking at the lump under the blanket.
“So lazy.”
The Duchess of Klaus was nothing more than a pathetic woman who did nothing but cry and complain.
Whenever the maids mocked her, she would tremble in anger but couldn’t do anything about it.
All household supplies were under the grand duchess’s authority, so Esica’s life was made even more difficult by upsetting the servants.
Every time a maid quit, the grand duchess made sure to blame it on Esica, ruining her reputation completely.
At this point, when Esica saw the stale bread and cold water, her big blue eyes would probably fill with tears again.
‘Sella… The bread is too hard… Can’t you bring me something warm?’
Maybe she would even beg.
‘Should I make her kneel? When will I ever get a noblewoman to beg me again?’
Smirking, Sella bent down and grabbed the blanket, yanking it away.
She expected to see a curled-up Esica underneath.
“…?”
But the bed was empty.
Only a messy pile of blankets remained.
At that moment, something cold touched Sella’s throat.
She was so terrified she couldn’t even scream.
Yes yes revenge time!