Can a fraudulent marriage be refunded?

“Shall I save you? Then… marry me.”

Go Ha-jin went out to con Chae Woo-seok, only to have his true identity exposed by him instead.

Woo-seok threatens Ha-jin and proposes a contract marriage, and Ha-jin has no choice but to join hands with him.

The stated goal of this contract marriage is to “give the Chae family a taste of their own medicine,” and after countless twists and turns, the two succeed in getting married and begin a turbulent newlywed life.

Will Woo-seok and Ha-jin be able to achieve their goal without getting caught by their families?

****

[Prologue]

In the heart of Seoul, a city of ten million.

Among its most exclusive neighborhoods, places where not just anyone can reside, there exists a concealed enclave so secretive that even the residents themselves cannot set foot there freely.

In Hannam-dong, with Namsan unfolding behind it like a folding screen and the Han River flowing quietly before it, lies that area.

Upon a vast tract of land measuring 4,429 pyeong (14,000 square feet), encircled by fortress-like walls that stretch endlessly, stands a grand estate. (Pyeong is a traditional Korean unit of area, often used in real estate to measure apartment or land sizes.)

At the very center of this land, so vast that the word “spacious” feels inadequate, stands Richesse, a structure that looks as though an entire French château had been transplanted whole.

This is the main residence.

The garden spread out before it, large enough that calling it a park would be more accurate, faithfully recreates the rear gardens of a Spanish royal palace, and it is remodeled every time the lady of the house changes.

Turning one’s gaze to the right of Richesse, a modern three-story building comes into view, its entire exterior wrapped in glass.

This is Soleil.

Inspired by an unreleased architectural design by Gaudí and reinterpreted through a modern lens, the building feels both geometric and strangely classical at once.

For reference, its construction costs alone rivaled those of the main residence.

To the left of the imposing main building lies a forest reminiscent of untamed wilderness.

Following a narrow road deep into the dense woods, one eventually encounters a solitary structure standing alone at the center.

This is La sante.

Compared to the two previously mentioned buildings, it might be described as “modest”, a two-story house.

Of course, calling it modest is generous; with six bedrooms and six bathrooms, further explanation seems unnecessary.

The spaces between the three buildings, each too large to comfortably be called a “house”, are filled with lawns, forests, trees, and ponds.

It was a landscape so naturally harmonious that it felt as though the buildings themselves had grown alongside nature.

Naturally, not only each structure but even the placement of every single tree was decided with the guidance of renowned feng shui experts.

From anywhere within the estate, not a single external light could be seen.

Likewise, it went without saying that outsiders could not peer inside.

After all, this was never a home built to be shown off.

You might ask what those buildings’ names mean.

From that very question, you have already lost the chance to become a member of this household.

If you dared to read them as written, as they sound, you wouldn’t even be insulted, you’d simply be thrown out.

But then again, an ordinary person like you would never have reason to face those buildings in the first place, so there’s no need to feel offended.

So who is this space for? The top 1% of Korea? Too many. Ten fingers? Please.

A single finger.

Yes.

This is the private residence of a family that possesses the greatest wealth and power in the nation.

Not the hollow authority of a five-year term public office, but true power, rooted in money, that moves the political and business worlds from behind the scenes.

It was their sanctuary.

That is why, whether Alpha or Omega, anyone hoping to be “chosen” by them and join the family had to be the very best of their era in some respect.

Only those with absolute, untouchable superiority could be acknowledged as members.

Ah, Betas are excluded.

To them, Betas are an entirely different species, unworthy of being treated as equals.

Omegas, too, struggled to receive proper treatment, albeit for different reasons, but that is something to be explored later.

In any case, becoming a member of this unfathomably wealthy and powerful group was as difficult as threading an elephant through the eye of a needle.

The sole method of admitting an outsider was marriage.

But among the children of marriageable age, two were already taken, leaving only one.

And that one was a delinquent so incorrigible that even calling him a bastard felt like a waste of words.

Despite that, there were more than enough people eager to claim his side, to the point that opportunists even flew in from overseas, drawn by the family’s wealth.

It made sense.

That remaining delinquent was, at present, the man closest to the position of heir.

Snagging him meant claiming the majority of the fortune they had amassed over generations.

Who wouldn’t be tempted, even if that last son’s personality was absolute trash?

“Straighten your shoulders, hyung.” (Hyung in Korean means “older brother” and is used by males to call other males. Koreans use this word to refer to their actual brothers, family members, or friends.)

The bastard urging me on with a bright, utterly unfitting smile was that one remaining delinquent, formerly remaining, that is.

Standing before the main residence, he wrapped an arm around my shoulders as I stood there tense, unable even to step inside the estate.

Why call such an affectionate-looking man a bastard?

I truly wished I knew.

I swear, not once had I ever fantasized about marrying this guy.

So why, why on earth, was I standing beside him instead of the countless Omegas who coveted his position?

Why me, someone who never wanted this?

“Smile, if you want to live another day.”

A low voice growled at my ear.

Our married life hadn’t even begun, and already I wanted to run.

I never asked for this fucked-up household!

The story of how such an irony came to be goes back several months.