I think the duke and emperor pulled a freaky friday ang changed souls when they were young.
Thats why the duke (who is actually the emperor) was the one the mc met in her youth. Thats why he seems familiar to her, and why she isn't afraid of him- they're bonded. She is the lover from the past he's talking about. We also saw the real duke (now in the emperor's body) lose control and kill animals both in his youth and in the present.
Also, the swan-lady disrespects the emperor because she knows he's a fake. And the weird marks they found in the past on both the palace and the duke's residence were the marks of the soul-swapping ritual.
What we don't know is why did the the soul-swap happen, did the real duke envy his cousin and snap in his youth after being branded evil? In any case I kinda like how this tricks the reader to think that the former empress was evil, and makes the "northern duke" the villain of the story.
I think the duke and emperor pulled a freaky friday ang changed souls when they were young.
Thats why the duke (who is actually the emperor) was the one the mc met in her youth.
Thats why he seems familiar to her, and why she isn't afraid of him- they're bonded. She is the lover from the past he's talking about. We also saw the real duke (now in the emperor's body) lose control and kill animals both in his youth and in the present.
Also, the swan-lady disrespects the emperor because she knows he's a fake. And the weird marks they found in the past on both the palace and the duke's residence were the marks of the soul-swapping ritual.
What we don't know is why did the the soul-swap happen, did the real duke envy his cousin and snap in his youth after being branded evil? In any case I kinda like how this tricks the reader to think that the former empress was evil, and makes the "northern duke" the villain of the story.