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Chapter 28
In truth, Celia had been simmering with anger all along. Everywhere she turned, she kept hearing praise about Viola.
For a lowly commoner, she would always be bold enough to defy me, yet act so sweetly to others.
Everyone had clearly been fooled by that fake mask.
Even Conrad, who was usually sharp and perceptive, hadn’t tried to shield that woman before.
But Celia’s anger wasn’t simply rooted in personal animosity toward me.
There was a far clearer reason.
Ever since receiving a stern warning from Conrad to mind her behavior, Celia had been keeping herself in check.
Yet, by chance, she overheard a conversation between some maids that left her in shock.
“Hey, you know that little squirrel girl…? I heard she might actually be some kind of princess.”
“Really? You mean Viola? Oh, well… honestly, I kinda thought so. She has this untouchable air about her.”
“Squirrel girl?”
At first, Celia didn’t understand the term, but once she heard the name, she realized the conversation was about Viola.
Celia snorted in disbelief. A princess, really?
Not only was she putting on a facade of being kind, it seemed she was outright pretending to be royalty. No wonder people treated her so well.
Finally, everything made sense, and Celia felt a rush of satisfaction.
‘Ridiculous. That lowly, unmarried commoner couldn’t possibly be a princess.’
Celia pictured Viola in her mind.
Her spine held perfectly straight, her skin flawless, and her gaze direct as she spoke.
For a mere commoner… no, even if she didn’t want to admit it, she had a presence far more refined than many noblewomen.
Her posture was flawless, her movements natural, as if she had been taught aristocratic etiquette to perfection.
Celia flinched.
Could it really be…? Could she be a hidden child of some royal or high noble family?
Yet she shook her head violently.
The foolish maids might be deceived by appearances, but a true noblewoman like herself could not be fooled.
‘She has the audacity to pretend to be royalty. She wouldn’t start this without some plan.’
Surely, she must have learned somewhere how to pose as someone of higher status, win people’s favor, and ultimately aim for the position of a duchess’s wife.
A cunning scheme. But no matter how hard a lowly-born woman tried, she could never measure up to a noble like me from the Dorn family.
Foolish maids. Their low birth made them so easy to deceive with flattering words.
Then, a shocking thought struck Celia. Could it be…?
‘Could even this whole “apothecary” thing be a fraud?’
With the nerve to impersonate royalty, she certainly had the audacity for such a thing.
The pieces suddenly fell into place.
She had heard that becoming a certified healer was as difficult as reaching for the stars.
The enormous knowledge required and the exorbitant tuition fees made medicine and pharmacology the domain of the wealthy nobility.
But how could a poor commoner, abandoned by her husband no less, have the resources to study such things?
‘Impossible.’
The shocking truth that she was only now realizing made Celia shiver with both rage and resolve.
I must expose her. I must strip away that disgusting mask that fools everyone.
If I do this… perhaps this time, the Duke himself will notice me.
After all, I would have caught a rare fraud attempting to deceive the Duke’s household!
‘Yes. This is my chance.’
Cain had been away from the mansion frequently due to waves of monsters, so she hadn’t had the chance to catch his attention before.
But unlike the bleak past, he was now staying in the mansion.
This time, she must achieve something impressive to leave her mark on him.
‘But how do I find the evidence?’
Searching the mansion openly was out of the question. Ever since the previous warning, she felt that butler Conrad was keeping a close eye on her.
Celia was not careless enough to move blatantly under such scrutiny.
A noblewoman should always be able to see the bigger picture compared to commoners.
Then, an idea occurred to her.
‘Father!’
Unlike Viola, who had been abandoned by her husband, Celia had a father who would move heaven and earth for her if she asked.
She immediately wrote to him. Being a reputable count, he surely could find something out.
Luckily, Viola had one distinct feature: her rare pink hair.
Celia asked her father to secretly inquire if any royal families in foreign lands had children with pink hair.
Her father, who often traveled as part of diplomatic missions, was more than capable of gathering such information.
‘Commoners who have never even left the country would believe any claim of a foreign princess.’
But no true noblewoman could be deceived, not even by appearances.
It wasn’t long before her father sent a reply.
How dare a lowly commoner upset our beloved daughter?
Don’t worry, my jewel.
I have investigated thoroughly. Aside from the late princess of the Empire, there is no pink-haired royal anywhere abroad.
Commoners lie as easily as they breathe, but our Celia saw right through it, and I am so proud of you.
Ha! Just as she expected. Celia rejoiced; one by one, the lies were unraveling.
‘Surely this “apothecary” business is also a blatant lie.’
Unfortunately, her father’s investigation also confirmed that Viola had indeed earned her healer’s certification.
‘Impossible.’
Celia furrowed her brow. How could a lowly commoner, with no formal training, pass an exam that even nobles often failed?
‘Could she have bribed the examiners?’
When dismissing someone as poor and lowborn, Celia’s imagination ran wild without evidence.
No one could stop her now; even her father sympathized with her.
She continued her investigation relentlessly.
And today, at last, she caught a decisive clue.
She discovered that the Gamjong herb Viola recently brought into the mansion was not a harmless medicinal plant, but a poisonous herb.
‘I knew it! She really is a fraud!’
Her father explained that it was an extremely deadly poison, incurable, and capable of instant death.
Upon learning this, Celia stormed straight into Viola’s apothecary.
“Wh-what brings you here…?”
Viola greeted her, but Celia ignored her and marched straight to the workbench.
On the table lay the notorious poisonous herb.
Snatch.
Although it was dangerous to handle with bare hands, Celia, intoxicated by her sense of victory, grabbed it without hesitation.
“Ha! I knew it!”
To handle such a lethal poison openly in this mansion! Who was she planning to harm?
Viola, alarmed by the sudden action, tried to intervene.
“Wait, Celia! You can’t touch that! It’s extremely poisonous…”
Did she think I would be intimidated? Celia gripped the herb even tighter.
She would not hand over the critical evidence quietly.
“Pretending to be virtuous, huh? Just a fraud!”
“Huh?”
“I heard everything. This is supposed to be a deadly poison, right? And you intend to make medicine from it? Ha! If it weren’t for me, who knows what would have happened? Everyone’s being fooled by this fraud!”
