The Survival Strategy of the Contract Duchess - Chapter 2

It felt as if I were walking through a grand mansion from medieval Europe. The place was so beautiful and mysterious that it deserved a proper look, but I was too distracted. Ever since I opened my eyes, I had been focused on following the middle-aged woman who appeared first in my sight.

Eventually, I was led back to where I started by the man known as the Duke.

And now, I was on my way to a real wedding ceremony.

The hallway was long. My white wedding dress, simple yet elegant, brushed along the floor as I walked. Towering pillars lined both sides, and the authority of the House of Ignote was clearly felt just by walking down this path.

In front of what seemed to be the ceremonial hall stood a tall man. He had jet-black hair and striking blue eyes.

Even in this serious moment, I couldn’t help but stare in awe. He was breathtaking. The grand decorations and the blazing sunlight around him faded from view. His presence overwhelmed everything.

Then our eyes met. When I saw the cold expression on his face, I shivered.

Every time our eyes connected, I felt as if he was looking deep into my soul. I started to wonder if he somehow knew that the bride’s soul had been replaced.

Hesitantly, I moved to stand beside him. To make things worse, the ceremony hall was much larger than it appeared from the outside, and it was filled with people dressed in bright, extravagant clothing.

Everyone smiled or looked cheerful, but I could see through them. Behind their smiles, I noticed a layer of cautious suspicion.

The heavy atmosphere made it hard to breathe. I froze in place. Then a deep voice came from above.

“You shouldn’t look so stiff, bride. Relax your face.”

Of course I was stiff. Who wouldn’t be?

I hadn’t even experienced proper college life. I had only just started using my ID card, and now I was getting married. How old is he, anyway?

The sadness had already passed, and now, even in this overwhelming situation, I found myself wondering about small things like that. Perhaps it was because sadness and despair were nothing new to me.

“The contract is valid. So make sure you fulfill it.”

He had mentioned something like this earlier. A contract.

Marriage is supposed to be about two people falling in love and choosing happiness together. It was clear that the original owner of this body had not been headed toward such a future.

I felt a strange mix of guilt and sympathy for Lady Sasha Ivern, whose body remained while her soul had likely lost its way.

It would have been difficult enough to receive love meant for someone else. But if this was simply a marriage based on a contract, then maybe it would be less painful.

“On this blessed day, we begin the wedding ceremony of Duke Kyler Ignote and Lady Sasha Ivern.”

A voice rang out from inside the hall. The man wore white ceremonial robes and spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. The noise among the guests quickly quieted. As the Duke began to walk, I hesitated for a moment, then followed one step behind.

We walked down the central aisle and stopped beneath a large statue of a goddess. I carefully positioned myself beside him. The officiant continued speaking, saying something about the goddess and the start of marriage, but I barely understood the words. Just then, I heard the Duke click his tongue. Surprised, I turned to face the guests.

Their stares were clear and direct. They glittered with judgment, dressed in gowns and jewelry that sparkled under the lights.

The Duke’s overwhelming presence and the dazzling surroundings slowly dulled my fear and replaced it with quiet surrender.

Was this life truly any different from my past one? Back then, no one was beside me. Now, someone stood next to me, but that was the only difference.

Had I truly believed, even for a moment, that this new life was some kind of gift? What had I done to deserve that?

“Under the radiant wings of kind Nelly, may everlasting harmony dwell within the noble House of Ignote.”

As the officiant finished the declaration, the crowd bowed their heads and spoke in unison. “May harmony dwell within.” I glanced to the side. The Duke’s jaw was firm and his posture so upright that it gave off a strong sense of dominance. It felt like he was looking down at the world from a higher place.

As the noble house second only to the royal family, the Ignote family held unimaginable power. Even during that short ceremony, I began to understand just how much authority surrounded me.

My thoughts became a tangled mess as I stepped out of the hall, my face filled with quiet confusion.

The man who had now become my husband led me out. I followed him without direction, my head spinning with thoughts I couldn’t sort through.

One sentence kept echoing in my mind.

I have crossed dimensions and become Lady Sasha Ivern and soon, I will spend my wedding night with Duke Ignote.

I had been tense, worried I might need to walk around greeting the guests after the ceremony. But just as that fear grew, the same middle-aged woman appeared in front of me like a guide.

After a few quiet words from the Duke, she stepped forward. I followed her into the mansion once again.

She introduced herself as Rose and led me to change out of my wedding dress. I ate, bathed, and quietly followed her instructions.

Every room I entered was wide, polished, and luxurious. They looked like places where daily life would never truly exist.

“This will be your room for tonight, Lady Sasha,” Rose said.

She stood before a door on the third floor and turned to me. The space was so large that I felt dizzy. I hesitated, wondering if I should turn back and head downstairs. But Rose noticed my hesitation. Biting my lip, I forced myself to follow her.

“This is the Duke’s chamber. Tonight, you will stay with him. Your personal room will be shown to you tomorrow.”

So, this was finally his room.

As I stood there, frozen with nerves, Rose walked away without a sound. Even the head maid carried herself with elegance, like a noble. The Ignote family truly was extraordinary.

The room was decorated in deep navy and gold. It was tasteful, refined, and calm. It perfectly suited the man who lived here. I let out a quiet sigh.

As the evening light faded, shadows filled the room. The endless thoughts that had clouded my mind all day suddenly disappeared the moment I stepped into the bedroom.

There was only one problem now. One very real and immediate problem standing in front of me.

I was briefly overwhelmed by the size and beauty of the room, but when my eyes landed on the white bed, touched by the red light of sunset, a single thought rose above all else.

The wedding night.

Even holding hands or hugging was unfamiliar to me. And now, this?

When Rose had spoken those words, I had barely understood their meaning. But now that I was standing here, staring at the bed, I swallowed hard.

“I really can’t. Not yet. I’m not ready.”

“That is going to be a problem.”

I gasped. Just as I turned to leave, I ran straight into something solid. His voice, cool and steady, dropped down over me like ice. My shoulders trembled.

Slowly, I looked up.

His lips were perfectly shaped, his nose sharp, and his blue eyes looked down at me with a calm, piercing gaze.

Duke Kyler Ignote

His presence carried a heavy pressure, and his cold, emotionless blue eyes gave off an unmistakable chill.

He was so handsome it clouded the mind, but even those blurred thoughts came to a stop under his intimidating aura.

“I already told you this would happen. It was clearly stated in the contract. Running away would be a problem. Earlier, were you trying to escape because of this?”

Yes, if it were Lady Sasha, she probably would have. Unfortunately, I’m not her, so this is also very troubling for me.

I shrank back under his gaze and bit my lip, only for him to raise a finger and gently pull my lip away from my teeth.

The feeling of his touch on my lips, which had never known another’s hand, made my eyes fly open in shock.

“There is no turning back. I clearly explained that we must share the night.”

His quiet voice echoed in the room. I was pulled by both his words and the arm resting around my waist. Without realizing it, I was already sitting on the bed.

He moved without hesitation. Without any wasted motion, I was left completely exposed in front of him.

That was how the two of us spent our wedding night.

Knock knock knock

“Lady Sasha, are you awake?”

At the sound that signaled morning, her long lashes trembled slightly, then her eyelids slowly opened. She shifted under the blankets, only to freeze with a soft cry.

A sharp pain climbed up her back, reaching all the way to the base of her skull.

Yesterday, the master of this estate, Kyler, had returned. He was often too busy to come home regularly. Nights when he did sleep here only happened every few days, and even then, he usually left the next morning. But whenever he did return…

The mansion remained silent until Lady Sasha carefully sat up, moving slowly to ease the stiffness in her back.

“Rose, just prepare bathwater for now.”

“Yes, my lady. I will also have breakfast ready shortly.”

The calm voice of Rose from outside the room gave her a sense of peace. Lady Sasha rose from bed and dressed herself.

It had been ten days since the wedding ceremony on the first day she opened her eyes in this world.

This was the third time she had woken up in the Duke’s bedroom.

In those ten days, she had done nothing meaningful. No one had expected anything from her, so she simply passed the time, exploring the mansion little by little.

“Rose, when did the Duke leave?”

It still wasn’t easy speaking casually to Rose. She was an elegant, middle-aged woman who reminded Sasha of the kind of aunt she might have had if this were her real life.

“He had a light breakfast at dawn and left immediately afterward.”

Whatever kept him so busy, it seemed he was always on the move. It was impressive he even returned once every three days.

For some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to ask what he was doing. In a world she knew nothing about, everything felt uncertain.

“Call me if you need anything, my lady.”

Rose left with her usual grace. After a relaxing bath that helped relieve the soreness in her body, Lady Sasha had a simple breakfast.

She no longer worried about the food. The ingredients were familiar, and the cook’s skill was excellent.

Afterward, she wandered slowly around the first floor. Lately, she had spent most of her time near the fountain in the back garden, but today she headed toward a place she had avoided until now: his study.

The room had many windows and was spacious, with a large desk and a long meeting table. It was too wide to take in all at once.

She glanced at the desk, which was buried under piles of papers, then looked toward the stack on one end of the table.

“These look like letters.”

There were at least a dozen envelopes, each sealed with a wax emblem. But something about them didn’t seem like typical correspondence.

The soft, pearl-colored envelopes and those tied with delicate ribbons felt out of place.

They were clearly sent by women.

“Surely they aren’t love letters.”

Or maybe they were.

Lady Sasha, who had been aimlessly wandering like a ghost through the mansion, suddenly snapped into awareness.

There was only one person in this mansion who would receive such things. And if they were decorated so carefully, then they could only be one thing.

Love letters.

The Duke looked like a man sculpted by the gods, but he was the very definition of cold. He never smiled and seemed to have no idea how to start a conversation. Even in bed…

Remembering last night, Lady Sasha’s face turned bright red, and she covered it with both hands.

She could still clearly recall the way he had moved above her, the sensations he left on her skin. Every touch from him, in all three nights over the past ten days, had left an imprint on her body. For someone who had never experienced such closeness, the memories were vivid and overwhelming.

“Even so, he must be very popular.”

She didn’t dare open the envelopes. They weren’t hers, and the message behind them was already clear enough.

“Should I continue living as if I don’t exist, or should I take an active role in protecting this position?”

The person she had been before would have fought to protect it.

She had lived in a world where surviving without anything to hold onto had been almost impossible. She had no choice.

The only reason she had been able to enjoy ten peaceful days here was because she had married an incredibly powerful man. To survive, protecting this relationship seemed like the only option.

But what if…

“If this marriage was nothing more than a deception to enjoy privilege?”

The fact that it was a contract kept dragging her down.

Maybe I should open just one.

With eyes as sharp as if they might set the envelope on fire, Lady Sasha stared at the pearl-colored letter on the top of the pile.

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