---
The first time it happened was two years ago.
I've been trapped inside this book ever since.
I am Jang Mina — a music major who loved nothing but piano keys and trembling strings.
My family never approved of my dreams, but it didn't matter.
Music was the only thing that ever filled my chest with warmth.
That night, two years ago, on my way back home, I was reading this very book.
I didn't notice the road.
I didn't notice the truck.
I remember the impact…
but not the pain.
The fear I should've felt didn't compare to the terror of waking up inside the novel as the duke's daughter — Mariana Sylvanor.
I didn't know if my real body died or if it was still breathing somewhere.
All I knew was that I was trapped… expected to live a life that wasn't mine.
Their etiquette, their stiff rules, their speech, their clothes…
I was like a butterfly lost in a stone garden.
Then, one day, Prince Raphael saw me.
And—like a twist of fate—he asked for my hand.
The book never mentioned that marrying him would break the storyline.
But I was wrong.
A week after our wedding, I slept beside him like any normal couple…
and woke up at the very beginning again.
This world resets whenever I "fail."
Like a cruel game.
I stopped fearing death long ago.
Repetition numbed everything—
the scolding from my father,
the endless expectations,
the loneliness.
Only Hanyul treated my feelings seriously.
He's the one person I could say I truly loved in this world.
So when I heard people whispering about me earlier, it barely stirred anything inside me.
I had forgotten something important, though—
today was a variable the book never wrote.
A coat settled over my shoulders.
I looked up.
It was Jin-ho.
His eyes, steady and calm, didn't match the judgment of everyone else.
He didn't say much—just placed a hand over my shoulder and guided me forward.
"Shouldn't we head back, Lady Mariana?"
His voice was gentle, almost careful.
My cheeks flushed before I could stop them.
A small laugh escaped me—
a new reaction, a new emotion I wasn't used to in this world.
"Come on, Roora," he called softly without even turning.
Roora followed quietly behind us, guilt drowning her steps.
"My lady…" she whispered.
I turned with a small smile.
"Yes?"
"Aren't you… upset?"
A short, bitter chuckle slipped from my lips.
"Why would I be? Things like this happen all the time. This society crushes women without a second thought—whether you're a noble or not. Being the duke's daughter doesn't give me protection, only stricter rules."
I sighed, looking ahead.
"But time always silences them again."
We walked through the corridors filled with unspoken tension.
What will happen when the others see me like this?
Jin-ho was clearly thinking the same thing.
His mind was already calculating ways to protect me.
But he also knew that stepping too far would destroy something—
himself… or me.
We finally entered the manor.
No greeting.
No warmth.
Of course.
The universe wanted me to be scolded.
Inside, Hanyul and Seongjin stood ahead of us.
Behind them, Prince Raphael spoke with the duke.
Every head turned.
Silence rippled through the hall.
If the moment were a pond, then mud was already rising from the bottom.
---
The three swallowed hard, bracing themselves for the storm they knew was coming.
And they were right.
The four men rushed toward them at once.
Hanyul completely misunderstood the scene—Jin-ho's coat over Mariana's shoulders, his hand on her as if trying to steady her.
A gesture far too intimate for a servant and his lady.
He shoved Jin-ho away harshly. Jin-ho staggered back, eyes widening in confusion.
Sungjin stepped toward him immediately, worry in his voice.
"Are you hurt?"
He turned to Rora with the same concern, and she shook her head silently.
Hanyul's voice trembled.
"Mariana… who did this to you?"
Tension thickened the air.
Then Hanyul snapped, his tone shaking with threat.
"How dare you touch her? Or drape your coat over her? Someone explain before I kill him."
Sungjin exploded.
"Do you even realize who you're threatening—here, in front of the prince?"
Hanyul spat back, "And what concern is that of yours?"
Sungjin barked, "You're starting an argument based on an assumption—!"
He stopped only when Jin-ho gently tugged his sleeve and shook his head.
That quiet look was enough to smother the fire inside him.
But Hanyul only snorted, igniting the spark again.
"Pathetic, obedient mutt."
Sungjin lunged, grabbing for his collar—but Mariana's scream split the air.
"STOP! All of you! You're in the presence of the prince!
Hanyul—be quiet. I'll explain.
Jin-ho and Rora helped me. Thanks to them, I wasn't kidnapped or harmed."
Her eyes were bright, her face flushed with anger, her breath coming hard—
like someone who had just outrun death.
Silvester muttered,
"You bring nothing but disgrace…"
That sentence shattered the last thread of control—
for both Rafael and Jin-ho.
Jin-ho stepped forward, voice trembling with rage he fought to contain.
"She did nothing wrong. None of this was her fault."
His eyes locked onto Silvester's, sharp and unyielding.
He spoke louder, harshly,
"Stop forcing your rules on your women! Did you even ask how she felt? If she was scared?"
"Jin-ho—enough."
Rafael's voice cracked with the last of his patience.
But Jin-ho didn't stop.
"Did you even think to ask Your daughter if she was—"
SLAP.
The sound tore through the hall.
Rafael had struck him.
Silence crashed down.
Everyone froze as if they were the ones hit.
Jin-ho didn't lower his gaze.
He breathed out, voice barely audible yet steady,
"But she wasn't wrong."
His defense of her was absolute—
so fierce it terrified Mariana instead of reassuring her.
This is what Hanyul should've said,
she thought.
Not someone who met me today…
Sungjin dragged Jin-ho away, the boy blinking back tears he refused to shed.
He knew exactly what awaited him for speaking out—
but letting them wrong her?
That was something he couldn't forgive himself for.
---
He rubbed the space between his brows and spoke calmly,
"Rora, tell me what happened."
He preferred asking her—
she was the only one who had stood there in silence, trying to gather her thoughts instead of losing them like the others.
Silvester spoke,
"Are you interrogating a maid? What if—"
Raphael shot him a furious look,
as if daring him to finish that sentence.
To him, the whole thing felt like a meaningless farce—
a scene that didn't make sense, and he wasn't even sure how it ended this way.
Rora bowed slightly.
"How about we continue this in your office, Your Highness?"
He sighed and ordered them to follow.
But Marianna's mind was still stuck on Jinho.
Rora leaned to whisper beside her ear, trying to reassure her,
"He will be fine. Move now, my lady—you need to fix this."
Her concern for him annoys me.
Why a servant of all people? I don't like the way she looks at him.
She deserves better—someone who makes her laugh, not someone who brings out this worried look.
Hanyul muttered to himself and followed them.
It seemed like everyone in the palace had heard what happened,
yet all they cared about was whether the young lady was unharmed.
Marianna had built good relationships with everyone, enough for them to feel sympathy for her.
On the surface, it looked as if her father cherished her—
but behind the dark walls, the truth was far darker.
No one will ever know your story unless they witness it.
And so she wondered how things would end for her this time.
When the three reached the office and closed the door behind them,
everyone sat except Rora—
but once she received Raphael's permission to take a seat, she sat beside Marianna.
She began recounting what had happened,
while Marianna nodded at her brother, urging him to believe the maid's words.
When she finished, a long silence filled the room.
Raphael exhaled.
"Do you have any idea whose face appeared before you two?"
Marianna answered,
"He was wearing black clothes… I couldn't see his face."
Silvester, awkwardly,
"And why men's clothes?"
Raphael snapped, clearly irritated,
"Those men's clothes are what allowed her to return home safely, Silvester."
He couldn't hide his annoyance at his uncle's attitude toward her.
And for the first time, Marianna heard Raphael defending her in such a tone.
In the past, whenever she faltered, Raphael had always been captivated by her beauty—
enchanted by her details.
That was why the Duke accepted giving him his daughter, granting him a high position and a great amount of wealth.
Raphael wanted Marianna to see him as a man—
and as her future emperor.
But now… this time, he was someone different.
He had truly changed.