The Cursed Regent's Fearless Substitute Bride

I woke up in a strange body, only to find myself being violently laced into a blood-red wedding dress.

The Ashford family had finally remembered their abandoned daughter, but only to use me as a disposable substitute.

They were forcing me to marry the terrifying Prince Regent in place of their precious darling, Seraphina.

The Prince was rumored to be a cursed, crippled monster who had already outlived three dead brides.

Everyone knew this wasn't a wedding; it was a brutal death sentence.

When I confronted my "father," he coldly told me it was my duty to sacrifice my life so his real daughter could marry the Crown Prince.

They thought I was just a weak, useless pawn they could ship off like cattle.

They expected me to cry, beg, and accept my tragic fate.

But I wasn't that timid girl anymore. I smiled at my so-called father and held out two fingers.

"Alright, I'll marry him."

I watched their faces pale as my smile widened.

"But not for free. Two hundred thousand gold lions."

After extorting my own family, I took the carriage to the Prince's castle, where they tried to humiliate me by making me enter through a tiny servant's door.

Instead of submitting, I walked over to a thousand-pound marble gargoyle statue by the main entrance.

I ripped off my veil, lifted the massive stone beast with my bare hands, and smashed the heavy iron gates to splinters.

"Go tell your master his bride has arrived."

I let the words sink into the dead silence.

"And if he doesn't open this gate, I will tear it down myself."