Chapter 1:
The Price of a Name
The wedding day was supposed to be bathed in sunlight.
Yet standing before the mirror, I heard only one question echoing inside me—
would this marriage save me, or slowly destroy me?
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The white gown fits me perfectly.
The maids whisper among themselves, "She looks just like a duchess."
But they don't know—this dress is not my choice.
It is my fate.
Today, I am about to lose my name.
My family says this marriage is for honor.
For politics.
And I know—it is for survival.
I never had the courage to refuse the Montclair family's proposal.
The most powerful, the wealthiest, and the most feared family in the city.
Stories surround their heir—
they say he never smiles, never forgives, and never allows anyone close.
Even speaking his name makes people lower their voices.
Kael Montclair.
I have never seen him.
But tonight, I will become his wife.
My mother places a trembling hand on my shoulder.
"Endure it," she says softly. "For better days."
Better days.
I don't know what better days mean, if I have to hand my life over to someone else.
How can good days come from that?
And I cannot refuse this marriage—because my right to say no ended long ago.
Drums sound outside the door.
The guests have arrived.
Somewhere deep inside my chest, a hollow space opens.
Then, a shadow falls through the narrow gap of the door—
tall, still, terrifyingly calm.
A man enters.
Black coat. Cold eyes.
He looks at me as if he has already decided everything.
He steps closer and says in a low voice,
"From today, you are no longer just a bride—
you are Montclair."
Elara Montclair."
I forget how to breathe.
This marriage is not just changing my status.
It is about to change my entire life.