chapter 1 (Prolouge)
Her name was Kim Sieom, and she was fifty-nine years old.
All she wished for was a daughter-in-law like a real daughter and grandchildren as adorable as little rabbits.
She was an extremely ordinary and modest Korean mother-in-law, and the mother of two sons.
After losing her husband early, she raised both sons alone.
It hadn’t been easy, but now both of them were fully grown adults with respectable careers.
As a mother, it was practically the same as having completed her lifelong duty.
However, there was one thing.
To be honest, there was exactly one lingering regret.
Her sons’ marriages—and more specifically, her daughters-in-law.
Especially the second daughter-in-law!
The eldest son still wasn’t married, but the younger one was, and every time Madam Kim Sieom looked at her second daughter-in-law, her chest tightened and the back of her neck throbbed.
The girl just seemed gloomier the more you looked at her, with a way of dragging down the mood of everyone around her.
She hadn’t liked her from the first impression.
A stiff tone without an ounce of charm, and the shabby background of being an orphan seemed to seep out from her face and body alike.
So what if she earns more money than my son? She wasn’t raised properly.
You think the smell of poverty soaked into her bones disappears just because she makes a little money now?
Honestly, what exactly does he even see in her?
Unable to understand, she’d asked her son, and his answer had been:
“Because she’s kind.”
But looking at the way she acted these days, she didn’t even seem kind anymore.
If anything, her gentle, soft-hearted son had clearly been deceived into marrying her.
Still, now that they were in their third year of marriage, the infatuation must finally be wearing off.
Acting that unattractive—of course my son would start thinking about other women.
If a wife is like that and her husband doesn’t think of other women, can you even call him a man?
She’d only approved the marriage because the girl at least seemed obedient…
Ahem.
Anyway, the troublesome second daughter-in-law problem was finally about to be solved.
And on top of that, in a world divided between nobles and servants, she herself had become a noble, freeing her from all the dreadful housework.
No, wait—not noble. They called it aristocrat here, didn’t they?
Her second son had explained it to her, but she was already starting to forget.
“Seongmin, what was it we did again?”
“It’s called transmigration. Group transmigration.”
Right, transmigration.
She had transmigrated together with her sons.
They were now living in a completely different world with new bodies and new identities.
Since her second daughter-in-law apparently hadn’t transmigrated with them, what could be done?
She would simply have to find a new woman better suited for her second son here instead!
One month earlier.
While traveling, the airplane suddenly plummeted from the sky.
On board were Madam Kim Sieom, her two sons, and the manager who worked at her second son’s café.
Thinking they were truly about to die, they screamed—
And when they opened their eyes, they were in another world.
Here, Madam Kim Sieom was an aristocrat called Baroness Florence.
According to her second son, aristocrats were like the yangban nobles of old Korea—people who lived while being served by servants.
And her son had been right.
A magnificent mansion filled with luxurious furniture.
Expensive tableware she had once only been able to admire from afar now filled the cupboards.
Most of all, whenever she watched the servants constantly bustling about without a moment’s rest, a smile never left Madam Kim Sieom’s face.
So this is the reward for living honestly and diligently all my life!
Her body and face had changed too.
The new face, with its brightly colored eyes and hair, felt unfamiliar, but she liked that she was younger than before.
Madam Kim Sieom was thoroughly satisfied with everything.
“How do you know so much about this?”
“Dain used to talk about it sometimes. She said transmigration was a thing—that people could suddenly gain a new life.”
And the thing that pleased her the most—
“Right. What about Dain?”
“Dain is…”
Her eldest son had become Baron Florence, and her second son had become the baron family’s younger son…
But only Dain, the second daughter-in-law, was missing!
And the manager whom Seongmin had secretly shown interest in instead of Dain was missing too.
Though she had more charm and seemed like she’d make a somewhat better daughter-in-law than Dain, the manager still wasn’t satisfactory in Madam Kim Sieom’s eyes.
“So both of you are unmarried in this world?”
She couldn’t have been happier.
In this world, she would absolutely find daughters-in-law she truly liked.
“Oh my goodness, what incredible luck!”
Madam Kim Sieom cheered joyfully.
The imperial ball was being held in grand splendor.
Dressed in a dazzling gown, Madam Kim Sieom accepted a champagne glass from a servant.
Through the transparent glass, her sharp gaze swept over the noble young ladies.
Apparently, people here often fell in love at balls and got married.
If there was a lady you liked, you asked her to dance and got to know her through conversation.
And apparently, when marrying, the bride’s family even brought a dowry.
That’s only right. If a man is going to feed and house her for life, shouldn’t she at least bring money when she comes?
Feeling pleased, Madam Kim continued her observations.
Let’s see… where are girls suitable for my eldest and youngest sons?
Not long before the ball, she had worked hard memorizing the aristocratic hierarchy despite her poor memory.
All for the sake of her sons’ marriages.
Even among nobles, she wanted women of higher status if possible.
Or, even if they were lower-ranking nobles, women with large businesses and enormous dowries.
Now then, suitable brides for my eldest and second sons would be…
It was then.
While Madam Kim was scanning every corner of the ballroom with narrowed eyes in search of daughters-in-law, she spotted a scene.
She hurried over and smacked the shoulder of her eldest son, who was shyly asking a baron’s daughter to dance.
“You brat!”
“Ah! She’s young and pretty, so what’s wrong with that?”
Even though he was nearly forty, her eldest son Byeongmin still couldn’t break his habit of chasing women in their twenties.
She’d nagged him endlessly not to run after young girls and instead think practically!
Dragged into a corner of the ballroom, Baron Florence couldn’t hide his disappointment.
“She’s from a baron family too, she’s young, she’s pretty. What’s wrong with her?”
“What do you mean ‘a baron family too’? We’re people with knowledge from another world! Are they the same as us? Smart people should associate with smart people!”
At that moment, someone else approached the baron’s daughter and asked her to dance.
Byeongmin immediately frowned.
“Another guy took her! Ah… she looked so pale and soft. I really liked her. Mom, why don’t you worry about Seongmin instead?”
“You know, if only you’d been born with better status, I truly think you could’ve become president—or even king! You didn’t fail because you lacked ability, but because your mother couldn’t support you enough. Both you and Seongmin were incredibly smart as children, you know? That’s why you need brides worthy of you!”
Just then, on the second floor of the ballroom—
The large doors opened, and the herald announced loudly:
“His Highness the First Prince and Her Highness the Princess are entering!”
At those words, Madam Kim’s head whipped around like a hawk spotting prey.
Because the woman at the top of her daughter-in-law candidate list had appeared.
The princess herself.
Apparently, the first prince—currently the strongest candidate for the next emperor—adored his younger sister greatly.
If she married the princess to her eldest son, they would become members of the imperial family and gain the future emperor as powerful backing.
Reading his mother’s gaze, Baron Florence muttered:
“Mom, we’re only barons—”
“So what? Aren’t we all nobles here?”
What did either of her sons lack?
They were just too kind and humble to be ambitious enough for their own worth.
Then—
“Lady Riden McCurry of House McCurry enters!”
The ballroom, which had calmed after the prince and princess appeared, began buzzing again.
Following everyone’s gaze toward one spot, Madam Kim looked to the second floor as well.
There stood a young noblewoman dressed magnificently.
Moonlight-colored hair and clear sky-blue eyes.
Everyone stared at her.
But the astonishing thing wasn’t merely her beauty.
Beside her stood none other than the Empress herself, acting as her chaperone.
“Her Majesty the Empress is personally acting as chaperone?”
“Who exactly is that young lady…?”
Recognizing her, Madam Kim narrowed her eyes.
Riden McCurry.
After the count and countess died suddenly, she’d thought the family had completely collapsed, but lately there had been rumors of marriage talks with a ducal house.
A ducal family wouldn’t want an orphaned girl as a daughter-in-law for no reason. There has to be a reason.
The answer was obvious.
Money.
Enormous wealth—enough to tempt even a ducal family.
Thus, her plan was simple:
The princess for her eldest son.
The count’s daughter for her second.
Girls like that, all dressed up with money but no real upbringing, are easy to handle.
Thinking that, Madam Kim proudly lifted her chin.
The count’s daughter she’d been waiting for had appeared, so it was time to act.
Before some other man asked her to dance first, she was about to push her second son forward—
“Dain…?”
Her second son suddenly walked toward the count’s daughter himself, looking possessed.
“Why’s he calling for someone who isn’t even here? Honestly… he’s too sentimental for his own good.”
Madam Kim clicked her tongue at the name of her second daughter-in-law slipping unconsciously from his lips.
Never once imagining that the count’s daughter was actually Jung Dain herself.
“Lady McCurry, please grant me the honor of the first dance!”
“No, please choose me!”
“Even if it isn’t the first dance, please at least write my name on your dance card, radiant lady!”
“Ha… this really isn’t easy either.”
Arriving at the powder room, Dain let out a sigh of relief.
Exhausted from the swarm of men around her, she had escaped the ballroom barely five minutes after the ball began.
Though she’d gained a second life as a noble lady draped in expensive luxuries, it wasn’t exactly easy.
Still…
No trash mother-in-law, no brother-in-law, no husband—this new life is amazing!
Compared to her previous life, this was paradise.
At that moment, while Dain secretly grinned to herself, a long shadow fell behind her.
Gasp!
“M-Mother?”
The woman who appeared was Samantha Kenwolf.
The duchess of House Kenwolf, the most powerful family in the Eastern Empire.
And the woman who had almost become her mother-in-law.
“My dear, I’ve been searching everywhere for you and finally found you.”
“For me?”
“Yes. No one has been bothering you again, have they? Like Baroness Florence did before.”
At the same time, Samantha Kenwolf’s eyes turned cold.
But as though nothing had happened, she instantly smiled and presented a velvet jewelry box with an expression that said she had long awaited this moment.
Inside was a dazzling diamond tiara.
But Dain had already broken off the marriage with the ducal house.
If I accept something like this, I won’t be able to escape!
Turning pale, Dain waved her hands frantically.
“M-Mother, I’m still not used to dancing. If I wear something this precious and accidentally drop it while dancing—”
“Oh?”
Tilting her head in confusion, Samantha blinked.
“If something I gave breaks in the hands of one of my people, why would that matter? I can simply buy another.”
Of course it matters!!
Dain screamed internally.
I don’t want to become one of your people! Your son is one of those regretful male leads!
Naturally, she thought of Ethan Kenwolf, the protagonist of this novel and the man who had almost become her husband.
For some reason, his dark eyes that always looked at her with a strange, subtle expression lingered in her mind…
“There’s no need for us to get along. This is merely a political marriage where both sides exchange what they need, so let’s just fulfill that purpose. Nothing more.”
Whenever she remembered those cold, indifferent words, no matter how handsome he was, she could only harden her resolve.
And above all—
If her previous in-laws had been ordinary in-laws, then the ducal family truly deserved the title of in-laws.
She had already survived one storm of married life, barely keeping her head above water while living like the dead.
And now again? Somewhere even worse?
Faced with her future mother-in-law, whose eyes gleamed as though trying to capture her, Dain squeezed her eyes shut in terror.
