"Sign here."
The man who slid the contract across the table was breathtakingly handsome.
His sharply defined nose and deep, intense eyes made his face look like a work of art. Every feature, crisp and sculpted, was flawless, like pieces of a perfect masterpiece.
His arrogance felt natural, even justified, as if it belonged to someone who had every right to look down on others.
Just looking at him made Ione feel dizzy, as though her mind was drifting. She clasped her hands together in front of her chest and took a deep breath.
The man, mistaking her reaction for nervousness, looked at her...
He let out a short laugh.
"Just sign, and everything you want will come true."
His eyes didn't smile—only the corners of his lips lifted slightly. The smile held no real emotion.
It was almost mechanical, like it had been rehearsed.
Still, the smile was dazzlingly beautiful. Even though Ione knew exactly who he was, her heart skipped a beat.
Adrian Van Preses.
The empire's one and only Grand Duke, soon to be Ione's husband, and eventually, the man who would kill her.
The male lead.
*****
Not long ago, Ione had been a completely ordinary office worker in South Korea -- Choi Eun-young.
Her last memory as Choi Eun-young was reading the final page of The Monster Grand Duke's Wife after getting home from work.
> "Like snow piling up softly and quietly, their happiness would grow deeper with every passing moment."
She smiled as she read that impossibly perfect happy ending, then closed her eyes.
She thought she had simply fallen asleep.
Her head was spinning, but she figured it was just because she was tired.
But when she opened her eyes, she saw a stranger, a foreigner she had never seen before, sobbing and wailing in front of her.
"Oh, my God!"
There wasn't even a hint of insincerity in the foreigner's tearful joy at seeing her awake.
Eun-young had no idea what was going on, but strangely, the situation didn't feel unfamiliar.
…Could it be… possession?
If that were the case, everything suddenly made sense.
It was odd, though—she hadn't even been hit by the usual "possession truck," yet here she was, seemingly possessed.
Instead of saying something like, "Excuse me, but who are you?" Eun-young kept her ears wide open and listened.
> "Ione! Oh heavens, you're awake! We truly thought we'd lost you!"
The name: Ione.
> "A baron's family who can't even summon a priest? To think the prestige of House Clarke has fallen this far…"
Full name: Ione Clarke.
The young lady of a declining baron's household.
> "Even while bedridden, your mother did her best to care for you… I was so worried about what would happen to the both of you…"
A baron's daughter from a fading noble family, with a sickly mother—Ione Clarke.
Listening to the man's sobbing voice, Eun-young finally realized exactly whose body she had possessed.
The Monster Grand Duke's Wife.
It seemed she had been possessed by the very story she'd been reading just before falling asleep.
And not just any character—but Ione Clarke, the Grand Duke's former wife, who meets a gruesome end.
Thankfully, it wasn't a story she had read ages ago and barely remembered—but still, the role she landed in was far from ideal.
Ione Clarke was an utterly hopeless character.
> "She tried to kill the male lead, who inherited the power of a dragon..."
In the Imperial Family, a child blessed by a dragon was born once every generation.
Ione had been the wife of such a blessed Grand Duke.
The man was perfect—his lineage, abilities, even his looks. There was only one problem.
He barely felt emotions.
That emotional void was the result of a restriction placed directly by the dragon who had blessed the Imperial bloodline.
Long ago, the founding emperor of the empire saved a dying dragon's life.
Once the dragon regained its health, it wished to repay the favor. The emperor made a request:
> "Please share your immense power with me. And allow it to be passed down to my descendants as well."
The dragon hesitated.
To let humans wield the power of a dragon... It was more dangerous than handing a sword to a three-year-old.
So, the dragon placed a restriction.
To prevent the blessed from misusing such overwhelming power, it sealed away their emotions.
However, the founding emperor was a clever man.
He asked the dragon for one condition to prevent his descendants from living as emotionless beings forever.
If they could find their fated partner, their emotions would be awakened—a deeply romantic condition.
Thus, those blessed by the dragon and given the title "Van" would instinctively set out on a long journey to find their destined partner, hoping to reclaim their sealed emotions.
But the male lead, Adrian, was different.
He was born with the most powerful strength in history—so much so that his emotions were so faint, he didn't even feel the instinct to seek out his fated partner.
Eventually, his older brother, the Emperor, couldn't stand by any longer and stepped in.
Using countless banquets and imperial tours as excuses, he arranged for Adrian to meet many people. But Adrian never showed the slightest interest in anyone.
Then, a major incident occurred.
Adrian ruthlessly killed those who tried to manipulate the Emperor for their own gain. From that point on, he gained the infamous nickname "The Noble Beast" and became an object of widespread fear.
Still, the Emperor didn't give up.
He began secretly recruiting "volunteers" to meet the Grand Duke, offering extravagant rewards: noble titles, vast sums of money, and even a full pardon for any crime—just once—as compensation.
And so, Ione Clarke volunteered.
She did it to afford medicine for her ailing mother.
At first glance, it sounded like the story of a heroine—but Ione was merely a supporting character.
A villainous side character who fell in love with the Grand Duke at first sight, clung to him desperately, and eventually descended into darkness.
> "If I can't have him, no one can!"
After turning dark, it seemed she lost not only her reason but her intelligence as well. In the end, she attempted to kill the Grand Duke and was executed for attempted regicide.
"I'm not dying like that."
Adjusting to the possession didn't take long.
But perhaps because of how overworked she had been in her past life, all she could think about was wanting to rest.
That was all.
What remained in her was boredom and a desire for peace and quiet.
She was on the verge of dying—who cared about the male lead?
Once she finished sorting through her thoughts, Ione didn't even glance in the direction of the capital.
Instead, she focused all her attention on caring for her mother, hoping to prevent House Clarke from going bankrupt due to the cost of medicine.
Perhaps her sincerity had paid off—her mother's condition began to improve. Thanks to that, the family, which should have been crushed under massive debt, was able to survive.
Everything was going smoothly.
Until Ione's filial devotion became widely known—and she was nominated as a candidate for the Grand Duchess.
Who in the world asked them to stick their nose where it didn't belong?!
Sigh...
The memory made her even more frustrated.
"Is something bothering you?" the Emperor's voice called out.
Only then did Ione realize what she had been doing.
She was just about to become the Grand Duke's wife, exactly as in the original story.
Ione looked first at the Emperor, then at the Grand Duke.
Unlike the fresh green eyes of the Emperor, the Grand Duke's blue eyes shone coldly—almost like lifeless weapons.
She should have been afraid of that inhuman expression.
And she was supposed to be.
Finally tearing her gaze away from the Grand Duke, Ione clenched her teeth.
Wow, this is insane.
A beauty that crushed her survival instincts.
She had firmly vowed not to get caught up in the original story... but it wasn't easy.
If even she, who knew the entire ending, felt this way, then the original Ione, who knew nothing, must have been utterly helpless.
If she didn't stay sharp, she'd end up just like the original Ione.
"Miss Clarke, if something's on your mind, or if there's anything you want, please don't hesitate to tell me. I've done my best, but surely I've fallen short in some way."
What?
Ione's ears perked up at those words. This was an opportunity.
It was the perfect chance—not to get trapped, but to create an escape route.
"Then, Your Majesty…"
"Oh, yes. Don't hesitate to say whatever's on your mind, Miss Clarke."
Encouraged by the Emperor's gentle voice, Ione mustered her courage and spoke.
"Please limit this marriage to three years."
Because the heroine is supposed to appear three years from now.
"Limit it to three years...?"
The Emperor's face, which had been kind moments ago, hardened coldly as if it had been a misunderstanding.
With the smile wiped off his face, he looked remarkably similar to the Grand Duke right beside him.
Facing their ruthless expressions, it struck Ione how much they really were twins.
She took a shallow breath.
Unlike Adrian, the Emperor seemed more sensitive, and Ione had mistaken his demeanor.
What the Emperor showed her was not kindness, but mercy.
The sudden realization sent chills down the back of her neck.
But Ione knew this.
If she showed fear or hesitated, she would be punished severely for her insolence.
Clenching her trembling hands, Ione forced a smile on her tense cheeks.
"If you permit, I would like to explain my reasons."
Though his expression remained chillingly cold, the Emperor nodded. Swallowing hard, Ione began to speak.
"If I am truly the fated partner, that would be a joyous thing, but If I am not the fated partner, then the Grand Duke would have no reason to keep me by his side. But if he divorced me shortly after our marriage, there would surely be rumors."
No sooner had Ione finished speaking than the Emperor burst out laughing.
Who ever said divorce was permitted?
The meaning of his laughter naturally translated itself in Ione's mind.
"Your Majesty, I believe it wouldn't be right for me, who is not truly his partner, to hold the Grand Duke forever, especially for the sake of the empire's future."
"...But what if you are the Grand Duke's partner?"
She was caught!
Perhaps because of her mention of the empire's future, the Emperor's expression softened noticeably, allowing Ione to continue more easily than before.
"That may or may not be true. So please set a time limit, Your Majesty. After about three years, if the Grand Duke declares I am not his partner and casts me aside, no one could blame him."
"But there's no guarantee the true partner will appear in three years."
"In that case, how about extending the contract by one year each time after the first three years? If the real partner shows up later, I will step aside immediately."
Her smooth responses were flawless and surprisingly advantageous for the Grand Duke.
The Emperor narrowed his eyes.
"What is the reason Miss Clarke is going this far?"
Why else? To avoid dying.