‘Was I dreaming…? Did I hallucinate…? What was that?’

Daisy got up from the bed and looked in the mirror. The person standing in the mirror wasn’t the Daisy who worked at a clothing shop but a twenty-year-old noblewoman.

“No, that wasn’t a dream…”

Had that been a dream, she wouldn’t have felt the coldness of the river so vividly or felt the emotions of her past memories so intensely. She sat back down on her bed and looked at the calendar hanging above the dressing table.

Year 885.

Feeling glad that she was still alive, Daisy breathed a sigh of relief. But a moment later, she suddenly remembered something and checked the calendar again.

“Today… is the day,” she murmured blankly.

Daisy had traveled back in time—back to the day her misfortune started.

“The marquis, Killian de Essel, is going to come today.”

She made a tight fist. In her flashback, today was the day her misfortune began. It was after this visit from Killian de Essel that her life changed for the worse. Had he not taken this house and kicked her family out onto the street, she would’ve never met Allen.

“It won’t happen twice.”

Allen’s horrifying face flashed in her mind, followed by the memory of the moment she was thrown into the river after getting stabbed in the stomach by a robber.

Allen and his fiancée were standing on the other side of the river. His fiancée was laughing out loud as she watched Daisy.

‘Allen just let me get killed… What a jerk! Never going to see him again as long as I’m alive. I’m never going to forgive him. Don’t ever want to get killed so miserably again…’

Daisy was boiling with anger. Allen had always disrespected Daisy and treated her like a slave. He’d even hit her. ‘Why did I act like such a fool? Why couldn’t I say no to Allen? To such a worthless jerk.’

‘I’m never acting like a fool again. I’m going to protect myself… and those around me.’

In her flashback, all three sisters had tragic lives. Rose died a few years after getting married as a result of a heartbreak. Jasmine had to work at a lowly job just like Daisy.

There were days when the two sisters cried for a long time holding each other’s hands that had become rough over time.

Suddenly, Daisy jumped up from her seat and opened her cosmetic drawer.

“First, Marquis Killian de Essel—I need to stop him.”

With the few cosmetics she owned, Daisy began to put makeup on her face. She lengthened her eyelashes and wore red lipstick; the color Rose hated because she thought it made her look cheap. As Daisy had lovely, soft features, just a little bit of bright makeup was enough to give her a whole new look. The rosy makeup on her youthful face added a hint of seductiveness and made her appear more glamorous.

Next, she opened her closet.

Most of the clothes she owned were simple dresses made of cotton or muslin. Daisy’s family was noble-in-name-only and wasn’t wealthy at all.

She pulled out the wine-colored dress, which looked most presentable out of the bunch, and her dancing shoes, which were the only pair with heels.

Daisy wasn’t tall, nor had she a sexy figure. However, she had a slim waist and a decent-sized chest, which gave her soft, feminine curves. She breathed in and straightened her back. Looking like this, she should be able to attract a man’s gaze for once in her life.

“You’re dressed like a whore. Well, I guess you need to try your hardest to sell yourself somehow since you’re the least attractive one among us,” said Rose quietly when she noticed Daisy standing by the railing. Rose, who looked as beautiful as elves in legends, sparkled even more when she was being harsh. She always picked women apart saying that wearing too much makeup made one look cheap and vulgar, and bright colored dress made one look like a whore. The only true, classy beauty was her. Daisy coldly ignored Rose’s comments.

‘Rose, I’m still not sure if I was dreaming or hallucinating, but you abandoned us.’

In the dream, Rose coldheartedly abandoned Jasmine and Daisy. She married into a wealthy family but never helped out her sisters. Rose felt ashamed of her sisters and ignored them. Come to think of it, Rose had always been that way. She always took the best things for herself, even when the family only had modest means. Their father always took Rose’s side since she was most likely to marry into a wealthy family. Daisy wasn’t even allowed to have Rose’s leftovers. Rose took even the few accessories and dresses that belonged to Daisy, telling her she had no use for those since she was the ugliest.

‘Come to think of it, the reason why Allen could abuse me like that was because… I had low self-esteem. Allen disrespected me because I was not respecting myself. I was an easy target.’

In her dream, she came to that realization at the end of her life. The reason why she was an easy target for a man like Allen was because she did not value herself. That made her fall prey to men like Allen, but her realization had come too late—her light was already flickering by then.

‘It’s because growing up, I’ve always been told that I wasn’t good enough, unlike my sisters—especially by Rose and father…’

Daisy looked Rose straight in the eye and said, “Don’t talk to me like that, Rose.”

Things are going to be different this time, Daisy thought to herself.

“Rose, your whole world is about high society and men. All you think about is your popularity. But there’s a lot more I can do better than you, and I have a much wider view of the world. Maybe I’m not as attractive as you, but as a person, I am a more decent person than you.”

Daisy talked back to Rose for the first time in her life.

“What did you just say to me? If it weren’t for me, no one would even know your name in high society!”

“My name is known because you introduce me to everyone as ‘Daisy, the ugliest of the three sisters.’ I don’t need that kind of reputation.” Ever since they were kids, Rose had always been mean to her sister Daisy. Whenever spotlight from men fell on Daisy, Rose had to take that away and be the center of attention. Even on the day of Daisy’s modest debut to the society, Rose had to be the star of the debutante ball.

At times Daisy wondered why Rose acted like that, but she let that go soon afterwards. Rose was better looking than her, and one day she was going to marry into a rich family and support the family.

But that didn’t matter now. No matter what happened, Daisy wasn’t going to act like a fool anymore.

“What…?” Rose looked at Daisy in disbelief.

Right at that moment, the front door flung open. Daisy bent over and asked, “Do we have a guest? Is it a debt collector…?”

Jasmine ran in. Daisy took a good look at her sister. Even though they were always together in her dream, she was glad to see Jasmine looking young and devoid of the signs of a hard life.

Daisy looked down at the ground floor hall again. It was him.

Killian de Essel. His long legs strode into the hall.

“Killian de Essel…”

Their father hurriedly rushed out to greet Killian. Again, there was the conversation about repaying debt and an offering of one of the daughters. Everything was happening exactly like the first time.

“Take one of my daughters that you like best.” Their father pointed to the sisters just as he had done in Daisy’s memory.

Daisy straightened her back. And with red lipstick on her lips, she looked directly at Killian’s face and murmured quietly, “Duke Killian de Silvesten...” She did it slowly and very clearly so that he could see the shape of her mouth.

As Killian watched Daisy’s mouth, his eyes grew bigger. For a moment, Killian stared at Daisy’s face. Daisy didn’t take her eyes off him even for a moment.

Marquis Killian de Essel.

He was actually the first son of the empire’s sole ducal family, the House of Duke Silvesten—the wealthiest family that owned the most extensive territories in the empire and was at the center of political power.

Duke Silvesten had three successors. Killian was the first. Raised in Marquis Essel’s house, he was educated to become the duke’s successor. Marquis Essel was Killian’s family on his mother’s side. He and his two younger brothers had different mothers.

There were three heirs in the duke’s family; all three of them were estranged, and none of them had surviving parents.

When Daisy was twenty years old, the head of the Silvesten family was Duke Silvesten, Killian’s grandfather, but he went into seclusion prior to appointing a successor. It was said that he was in a coma and barely kept alive by magical devices.

Daisy tried to recall a memory from her past life. After being in a coma for three years, Duke Silvesten would die the year Daisy turned twenty-three, and his will would be made public.

The duke’s three successors, the three grandchildren, fought for the title of duke. The oldest, Killian de Essel, was the wealthiest, the cruelest, and the most notorious.

More than a few believed that Killian would inherit the title as he was the one befitting of it, although his notoriety for being cruel was just a bit of icing on the cake.

However, the content of the will was shocking:

I, Duke Filderes de Silvesten, bequeath the title to the oldest of my successors who have remained married for more than three years, and it shall be limited only to a genuine, loving marriage.

The will was so strange that there were all kinds of speculation. Some people thought that the duke had lost his mind before he passed away.

Some wondered if the will was written targeting Killian since he was widely known as being against marriage.

Killian’s father abandoned his biological mother, who was from the house of Marquis of Essel, and married the mistress he had for a long time. There were two children between his father and his second wife. One of them was only a year younger than Killian, and his identity was no secret even before the divorce. Then Killian’s father died in a madness of passion incident involving his second wife.

Such complicated family history instilled in Killian a fundamental hatred of marriage, and he had become famous for being against marriage. Actually, it had been said that he was against, moreover, any kind of relationship with the opposite sex.

Killian was single when his grandfather went into seclusion and made an announcement that he would most likely remain single.

In any case, no one knew the exact reason why the duke wrote his will that way. The only thing certain was that the duke had been in a coma for three years before his death. Daisy read all of this in newspaper articles.

Therefore, the title of duke was going to go to the second in line. The duke’s second grandson had already been married with a wife and children.

However, Killian could not accept the conditions and tore up the will.

Thus, the battle for the title of duke began. For a while, the capital turned into a war zone, and it was drenched in blood. Not even a single day passed without dead bodies being removed from its streets. From the city thugs of the back alley to mercenaries and even regular knights fought in the duke’s war, causing a bloodbath every day.

Naturally, the victory landed in Killian’s hands. The man, who owned a huge casino, was also the power player in the underworld that controlled the back alleys.

Killian killed both of his younger step-brothers with his own hands and obtained the title of duke. The remaining supporters of his predecessor in the capital were cleaned out. The incident was called The War of Ducal Succession.

The War of Ducal Succession was a huge event the entire country knew about. The imperial family acknowledged Killian as the duke’s successor.

The year Daisy turned twenty-four, Killian succeeded the title of duke and became another ruler of the empire that ruled over a vast swathe of territories. Afterward, he contributed greatly to the growth and maintenance of these lands. As he displayed his talent as a great leader, the memories of The War of Ducal Succession started to fade away.

‘What will happen in three years… I’m going to use this knowledge to make a deal with Marquis Killian de Essel, the future duke.’

To imply that she knew the contents of the will and used that fact to make a deal, that was what Daisy was after.

She would ask him to write off the debt.

Daisy swallowed hard. The reason for her makeup and dress today was not to seduce Killian but to attract his attention so that she could have a conversation with him.

‘He’s a dangerous man who will cause a bloodbath in the capital… but… I have to use what I know to make a deal.’

Killian turned his gaze away from Daisy. He looked indifferent. Killian rejected outright the Baron’s offer to sell one of his daughters. He turned around and started to walk out.

‘No! I can’t let him leave like this,’ Daisy ran down the stairs in a panic.

“Marquis Essel!”

Daisy caught up with Killian just as he was getting into his carriage. He lifted his head and looked at Daisy with his cold eyes.