I wasn't expecting to die that day.
In fact, my only plan for the day was to re-read A Rose in the Duke's Winter for the third, no, fourth time. I had my snacks ready, my fairy lights on, and my hopelessly single heart prepped to swoon over that one scene where the emotionless Duke finally brushes Lady Elara's cheek.
Perfect, just perfect.
"Just one more volume," I whispered.
As I reached for the next book in my everlasting collection of romance novels, a soft creak echoed above me. My eyes flicked upwards.
Too late.
My overstuffed bookshelf trembled, tilted, then collapsed.
I didn't even scream. All I could think was:
"What a beautiful way to go".
The last thing I saw was the dazzling cover of familiar familiar-looking novel flying towards me like a romantic missile.
When I opened my eyes again, I was... cold.
Not metaphorically cold like "my crush just rejected me," but physically cold, like I had been dumped into a glacier.
I sat up with a groan, blinking through a foggy blur. My limbs felt strange, longer, and heavier. I was also covered in more fur-lined velvet than I remembered owning. The bed beneath me was massive, draped with silver silks, and the fire crackling in the hearth did absolutely nothing to warm the room.
Then I saw it. The mirror.
And I screamed.
Correction, I screamed, and the man copied me. Because he was me. Or rather, I was him.
Icy silver hair. Crimson red eyes. Jaw sharp enough to cut. Cheekbones carved by gods with an agenda. And a natural frown that looked permanently etched into his soul.
"Damn. This face is a walking health hazard." I thought to myself.
Before I could check myself out even more, the door swung open.
A maid stepped in. Perfect posture and crisp lines. "Your Grace, Lady Elara has arrived to discuss the engagement party that is happening in the following week."
My brain short-circuited.
"Sorry, could you repeat the name of the person that I'm getting engaged to again?"
"You are getting engaged to Lady Elara, Elara Rosevale, beautiful daughter of Duke Cedric Rosevale."
"Elara?? Where have I heard that name?"
A cold chill skated down my spine.
Of Course...
Elara Rosevale.
The sweet and bubbly heroine of A Rose in the Duke's Winter.
The one who melts the Duke's icy heart.
The one who takes the Duke's first kiss.
The one who's supposed to fall in love with me.
"And what is my name?" I asked slowly, dread pooling in my stomach.
The maid blinked, confused by the question.
"... Your Grace?"
I cleared my throat and gestured vaguely at my face. "Yes, yes, I know I'm devastatingly handsome, but humor me. Full name, please."
She straightened her posture, tone stable as ever. "Duke Darian Virehart, of house Virehart, Warden of the Northern Frost, Commander of the Shadow Guard, Keeper of the—"
Duke DarianVirehart.
That name echoed through my mind.
I wasn't some extra. Not a side character, or a villainess that has five different routes that lead to her doom.
I am the maid lead of A Rose in the Duke's Winter.
The emotionally stunted man with zero communication skills.
The one whose smile causes national holidays.
The one who wears a frown the whole time and still gets fan clubs.
And me?
I was Yuna Kim
22. Female.
A sucker for romance novels, and single for 22 years.
So why...
Why am I about to attend my own engagement party as the brooding malelead?!