Kayden Erenwald

The north of the empire belonged to the Duke, the man in whose hands were all the lands, mines, ports and riches of the cold region. His wife, the Duchess, is the last daughter of another northern family. After her parents' death, her lands were seized by a relative, and she was married off for profit.

Their marriage was never happy. They lived quietly, accepting it as fate. Over the course of three years, the Duchess became pregnant twice: she lost the first child early on, and the second was stillborn. Afterward, her health and psyche deteriorated. She became silent, weak, and rarely left her room.

But Severus needed an heir. Under pressure from his advisers and the church, the Duke was allowed to bring a woman to bear the child. A young beauty appeared at the estate and quickly began to act like the mistress of the house. She was always at the Duke's side, mocking the Duchess and turning the servants against her.

The nobility openly pitied and humiliated the duchess, so she disappeared from society. Meanwhile, a new woman increasingly took her place.

Kaiden Ehrenwald is the Duke of the North, the owner of the empire's richest lands. A tall man with dark hair, fair skin, and cold, steel-gray eyes, his appearance is calm and frighteningly aristocratic. Reserved, patient, and prudent, he always puts duty above feelings. He treats his wife tenderly, but with extreme coldness, oblivious to her breakdown after the loss of their children. For the sake of the heir, he allowed another woman to be brought to the estate, whom he treats only as a necessity.