Chapter 2
One Proposal
Lucy, now branded as a violent divorced woman, worked endlessly to pay off her remaining debts and survive.
At first, finding work was almost impossible because of the nasty rumors that followed her.
Before her marriage, Lucy had occasionally worked as a tutor.
Even though she never attended the Empire’s elite schools, her sharp memory, quick learning, and kind personality convinced noblewomen to trust her with their children.
But after her divorce, people scoffed.
“How can such a violent woman take care of children?”
Time after time, she was rejected.
With no other choice, Lucy started using a false name—“Lia.”
Under this name, she found work as a maid in the Marquis of Serie’s household.
It was humiliating, but she had to earn money somehow, for the sake of her ruined family name.
Then, one day, a guest came asking for her.
“Are you Miss Lia?”
“Yes, I am. Why do you ask?”
“My name is H. Sorbier. Someone important wishes to meet you.”
“Me? Who…?”
“You’ll see when you come. I assure you, this meeting will be worth your time.”
The tall, polite man spoke so formally that Lucy, almost dazed, nodded.
“I’ll just change my clothes first. It would be rude to go looking like this.”
“Of course. Take your time. A carriage is waiting.”
Still puzzled, Lucy returned to her small room and quickly dressed in the cleanest gown she had left. She wondered the whole time:
Who on earth wants to see me? And why ask for “Lia,” not Lucy Beria?
Ignoring the snide remarks of the other maids (“Skipping work again, are we?”), she left the Marquis’s mansion and stepped into the carriage.
It can’t be Theodore or Miel, she thought grimly. After the divorce, both families had hounded her—Miel’s family to hide the scandal, Theodore’s family to silence her.
She shuddered at the memory.
The carriage stopped.
“We’ve arrived, Miss Lia.”
Lucy took the man’s hand and stepped down. She froze.
“…This is my old house.”
It was the Beria estate—her family’s once-proud home, stripped from them when her uncle squandered everything.
Why had she been brought here?
Inside, Lucy was stunned again.
The estate had been transformed. Gleaming jewels, priceless art, golden-trimmed doors—everything screamed wealth and power far beyond what her family had ever owned.
She was led into a grand room where a man sat calmly at a table.
When he turned, Lucy almost forgot to breathe.
Black hair, perfectly defined features, broad shoulders, and—most striking of all—golden eyes that shimmered like starlight.
Lucy instantly recognized him.
“Y-your Highness? The Crown Prince?”
The man smiled faintly. “I am Pierre Adesti.”
Lucy nearly collapsed from shock.
The Crown Prince himself… asked for me?
“What could Your Highness possibly want with me?”
“I called you here to make you an offer.”
“O… offer?”
“Yes. A proposal, to be precise.”
“…What kind of proposal?”
“It’s simple.”
“…?”
“Marry me.”
“…What?”
“I wish to marry you, Lady Lucy.”
“…M-marry?! Did you just say… marriage?”
“Yes. I am asking you to become the Crown Princess of this Empire.”
Lucy leapt to her feet in disbelief.
“Do you even know what you’re saying? I’m no noble’s daughter anymore! I’m just a commoner, a maid in the Serie household—”
“I know who you are. Lucy Beria.”
Her eyes widened. “How…?”
“I am the Crown Prince. Finding you wasn’t easy because you used a false name, but no one hides from me for long.”
Lucy felt her head spin.
Marry the Crown Prince? Become Crown Princess? Me—the divorced woman everyone calls violent? This is insane!
“This makes no sense!” she shouted.
But Prince Pierre only looked at her calmly.
“You are not the monster people claim. You are the victim of your foolish ex-husband’s mistakes. Don’t blame yourself for his betrayal.”
Lucy faltered. She drank from the water glass in front of her, trying to steady her breathing.
Slowly, her guard began to drop as she stared back into those golden eyes.
