IDTBLT 02

Chapter 02

His Majesty the King.

The Viscount d’Autriche had found the most profitable buyer for his daughter.
He had no intention of letting this deal fail.

So, he spared no effort to shape his daughter to fit the King’s taste.

“I’ve heard His Majesty likes fragile, delicate beauties.”

That greedy voice echoed in Claudel’s ears.

Because of that one sentence, Claudel survived on just a piece of dry bread and a handful of greens each day.
She stayed up nights memorizing beautiful poetry and embroidered until her fingers blistered.

To have a songbird-like voice, she drank boiled water with strange herbs and trained her singing until her throat was hoarse.
She even learned ancient language—rarely used anymore except in the scriptures—and painted elegant pictures, the mark of a cultured lady.

And despite all this…
Claudel believed her father loved her.

He gave her good education.
He provided her food, clothes, and a place to sleep.

Even if that love felt harsh to her sometimes…
She convinced herself that he loved her.

No—
To be honest,
She couldn’t bear it if she didn’t believe that.

And so, the year Claudel turned eighteen…
The Viscount’s grand plan finally became reality.

“Claudel d’Autriche, presenting herself before His Majesty the King.”

She wore a dress that highlighted her slim frame—just as the King liked.

Claudel lowered her head before the King.

Silver hair, flowing gracefully like strands made of moonlight.
Blue eyes that shone coldly like an icy lake.
A fragile body that looked like it would crumble with just a single touch.

In front of the King, Claudel looked like a fairy sculpted from moonlight.
A beauty so faint and dreamlike, she might melt away at dawn.

The King rested his chin in one hand and closely examined the trembling young lady before him.

Soon, satisfaction flickered in his cold eyes.

“Beautiful.”

The King, Hermann, was exactly eight years older than Claudel.
And the flower that had been raised perfectly to his liking… he accepted it with pleasure.

That’s how Claudel stepped into a new kind of hell.

* * *

King Hermann immediately started searching for a man who could pretend to be Claudel’s husband.

At the time, the King already had a queen.
And by royal law, married couples had to be faithful to one another.

Taking an unmarried woman as a royal mistress was considered an insult to the sacred marriage protected by the goddess.

Both the temple and the people strongly opposed it.

So, the usual custom was to assign a fake husband to the mistress—
Someone who could play along and turn a blind eye.

The man the King chose was Baron Palmer.
In exchange for taking Claudel as his wife, Hermann promised to erase Baron Palmer’s debts.

However, before marrying Claudel off, Hermann made sure everyone knew she was his mistress.

[Hermann Roel Tscheringen Flandre]
He had his name tattooed on Claudel’s body.
So that anyone who lay with her would be constantly reminded that she belonged to the King.

And so, on their wedding night—

“Hah… even if she’s just a whore…”

Seeing the King’s name etched below Claudel’s chest, Baron Palmer gritted his teeth in anger.

Even so, he didn’t give up the chance to legally possess the most beautiful woman in the kingdom.

That night, Claudel fainted again and again from the pain she couldn’t bear.

Afterward, Hermann kept delaying his promise to erase the baron’s debts.
Baron Palmer’s treatment of Claudel grew more and more brutal.

Especially whenever Hermann called Claudel to spend the night with him,
Baron Palmer would turn into a raging demon, grabbing her by the hair in fury.

A year passed like that.

While out hunting, Baron Palmer died in a suspicious accident, thrown from his horse.

With no way to pay back the debt, the Palmer family collapsed completely.

There were dark rumors that the King might have had a hand in it—
But no one could confirm the truth.

Once again, Hermann married Claudel off to another noble family.

Because she needed to have a husband—
Only then could she continue to be the King’s mistress in a way that seemed “proper.”

The next chosen husband was Count Farnese, one of the most influential men in the kingdom.

Though he was born out of wedlock, he had pushed aside Lady Farnese, the rightful daughter of the house, and taken the title of Count.

It was said the King helped him a great deal to make that happen.

In return, Count Farnese offered the King rights to his iron mines,
and also agreed to act as Claudel’s fake husband.

However, aside from that deal, Count Farnese hated Claudel.

“A filthy harlot, daring to sit in the seat of the Lady of Farnese…”

His hatred was likely a form of self-loathing.
As an illegitimate child himself, he carried deep insecurities about his origins.

And now, having to accept the King’s mistress as his wife?
It was enough to make his stomach turn.

Even so, the Count became obsessed with Claudel.

“Damn it, Claudel. Are you thinking about His Majesty again, huh?”

The Count suddenly grabbed Claudel’s shoulders in a fit of rage.

“You’re my wife!”

Anger, inferiority, twisted possessiveness—
All those emotions came pouring out onto Claudel without a filter.

So while living as Count Farnese’s wife, Claudel lived in constant fear,
as if walking on thin ice.

She kept her head low, trying to avoid trouble from both the King and the Count.

Meanwhile, the King grew irritated—
Watching Count Farnese dare to act possessive over his mistress.

“Count Farnese is clearly infertile!”

Trying to please the King, Viscount d’Autriche quickly accused Count Farnese.

“How can a defective man possibly be someone’s husband?!”

But in truth, the reason Claudel hadn’t gotten pregnant
was because she had been forced to take contraceptives for a long time while living as the King’s mistress.

Using that as an excuse, the King forced Claudel and the Count to divorce.

Count Farnese became a laughingstock, drowning in alcohol and cigarettes,
and ended up living like a broken man.

Soon after, the King called Claudel back to his side without hesitation.

So when Claudel returned to the King—
She saw it with her own eyes:

A clear smile carved on the King’s lips.

“Claudel.”

The King reached out and gently lifted her chin as she bowed.

The moment she met his snake-like, glinting eyes,
Claudel felt chills spread through her whole body.

“Remember this clearly. Even if other men touch you…”

His grip on her chin tightened slowly.

“You’re still mine.”

Forever.

That whisper, sticky like a swamp, made Claudel silently fall into despair.

* * *

After that—
Without even time to catch her breath, a third marriage was arranged.

Unlike the previous marriages, which were meant to cover up her position as mistress,
this one felt more like a deliberate insult to the other party.

“I’m just curious… when a man is forced to marry a woman who’s been held by others again and again…”

Hermann smiled kindly at Claudel.

“I wonder how Reinhardt’s perfect little face will twist.”

Reinhardt von Valdemar.

The Duke of Valdemar, head of one of the most prestigious noble families in the Kingdom of Flandre.
He was also Hermann’s younger cousin, toward whom Hermann had long harbored deep inferiority.

The Valdemar family had a longer history than even the royal family of Flandre.
They had produced many queens, and it wasn’t unusual for royal princesses to marry into House Valdemar.

And that’s not all—
Reinhardt was praised as the most perfect ruler in the past 100 years.
A leader trusted in the North and respected by the people.

Reinhardt possessed the popularity and moral reputation that Hermann never could attain.
So Hermann envied and tried to suppress Valdemar, even while feeling insecure about them.

Finally, he arranged this insulting marriage as a way to get back at him.

“Claudel, what you need to do from now on…”

The King whispered slyly.

“Play the role of the Duchess of Valdemar for as long as you can… and drag Reinhardt’s name through the mud.”

“……”

His tone made it clear—he had not the slightest doubt that Claudel was a disgraceful woman.
Even though it was the King himself who had taken her as his mistress and made her the subject of public shame.

“Still, it’s a pity to send you away. I won’t get to see you as often.”

Clicking his tongue briefly, the King narrowed his eyes like a snake.

“You’ll make me happy before you go, won’t you?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Claudel bowed deeply, hiding her crushing despair.

But deep down, she truly believed that Reinhardt would refuse the marriage.
Someone like him—so dazzling and noble—couldn’t possibly marry a “filthy wench” like her.

But then—

“I accept the marriage.”

Reinhardt made the declaration.

“This is outrageous!”
“You’re really going to let that woman into the House of Valdemar?!”

Not only Duke Valdemar himself, but all the vassal families under the duchy rose up in fierce protest.

Even other nobles said this marriage was going too far.

But Reinhardt answered calmly:

“Everyone knows, don’t they? The kingdom is already in deep turmoil.”

And it was true.

Ever since Hermann had taken the throne, the rift between the royal family and House Valdemar had continued to grow.
And it was the people who had been suffering as a result.

So Reinhardt came to a decision—
That he could no longer stand by and watch the conflict continue.

“If this marriage can mend the rift between the royal family and Valdemar…”

His voice scattered like a sigh.

“Then it’s a deal well worth making.”