Saved By The Mad Duke
Aideen Ruan, though a royal princess, was always unwanted due to the circumstances of her birth. Born blind to a hostage concubine, she possessed an intriguing beauty; however, her disability rendered her utterly useless to the royal family. Even when the struggling Count Crueder reluctantly agreed to take Aideen as his wife to secure the royal dowry, her life failed to improve. A year into their marriage, Aideen's inability to produce an heir sealed her fate. The princess was destined for exile to the Temple, consigned to spend the remainder of her days in isolation and abandonment. Contrary to her anticipations, instead of the Temple, Aideen found herself within the cold walls of Duke Tillian Valentine's castle. Duke Valentine, the last scion of the once-revered Valentine family that ruled the Kingdom before the "Fratricide Rebellion", now presided over the desolate Northern lands. Faced with fear and confusion, Aideen expected her life to perpetuate its cycle of misery, only to discover that Duke Valentine might hold the key to a new opportunity, a chance at a life she had never envisioned. "You bewitched my body and soul. Put an intoxicating spell on me, shackled my heart to yours with your magic. If I could exchange my eyesight with you, I would do it just to make you see what a man dying from love looks like."
A Confidential Letter
"I think we should start with something simple, Your Highness."
Tillian smiled and moved a pile of unopened letters closer, positioning it right in front of Aideen. While very determined to finally dive into the depth of Duke's daily responsibilities in order to help him with his overwhelming workload, the princess still had to wait until the weekend for him to be rested enough to guide her through the intricate details of his routine.
The lady kept practicing her reading and writing skills and tried to keep up with her magic lessons just to make sure her excitement would not throw her off the track, but she could not help feeling exhilarated –– she would finally work together with Tillian; they would finally work as a real couple.
But now that she was sitting right next to him, enveloped in his intoxicating scent and constantly in contact with him, she was on the verge of exploding.