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."
The Rumors
"Have you heard the latest rumors?"
Lady Tarran made sure she was standing close enough to the queen because her words had a certain purpose––she had to prove that she was doing what she was paid to do.
The annual wine-tasting gathering at Duchess Evelina Lanett's mansion was a highly anticipated event because only the chosen and most esteemed members of the nobility could receive the invitation to visit Evelina's mansion.
The royal family, without a doubt, belonged to the limited number of the chosen ones.
And as such, with only crème de la crème of the capital's high society present, it was a good opportunity for those involved to start spreading nasty rumors about one Melania Lafad, the unsuspecting victim of a secret, intricate plan.