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Chapter 7
Why Do You Keep Acting Like This?
“Two million marks? Seriously…? What kind of necklace costs two hundred million won?”
Diabella barely stopped her jaw from dropping.
Well, if it was a family heirloom, maybe it would be worth that much. No, no—that’s not the important part right now.
Diabella curved her eyes and smiled deeply.
“Ah, I see. Lady Miles, you certainly know quite a lot.”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
Instead of panicking in the situation she herself had intentionally created, Diabella was smiling sweetly at her. Angelica looked flustered.
“You know exactly that the necklace was a family heirloom, and even its price.”
“Ah, that’s because… the Marchioness told me…”
“I did? I didn’t even know it was a family heirloom myself. Since even the Marquis never told me, how could I possibly have known?”
“……”
Angelica’s face turned deathly pale.
She bit her lip and darted her large eyes around nervously. Then, the moment her gaze met Raymond’s, tears began pouring down her cheeks.
“Sniff… I just happened… sniff… to find out by chance. Is that such a terrible thing? Sob…”
Unfortunately, simply knowing about it wasn’t enough to corner Angelica.
Diabella bitterly admitted that to herself.
But considering the poison incident from before, it was obvious that Angelica had played a major role in encouraging Diabella’s past misdeeds.
For example, maybe she had known all along that the necklace was an heirloom but deliberately kept quiet while urging Diabella to secretly sell it because it was valuable.
Still, even so…
Selling the necklace. Extorting the villagers with that ridiculous bell tax. Staging a fake poisoning scandal when her crimes started coming to light…
Those had all been things the original Diabella had done with her own hands.
Even if someone encouraged her, she could have simply not done them. Instead, like an idiot, she committed outrageous acts that were bound to be exposed immediately.
‘Ugh, this is so embarrassing.’
It was incredibly unfair to bear the blame for things she hadn’t done simply because she woke up possessing someone else’s body.
And the schemes weren’t even clever—they were embarrassingly shallow.
She couldn’t even hold her head up from secondhand shame.
“So then, what are you going to do to me now, Marchioness? Are you going to whip me and exile me, just as you did to others? Sob… sob…”
Angelica collapsed onto the ground, weeping.
‘She’s figured it out. She knows it’ll be hard to accuse her of anything.’
And even in the middle of this, she didn’t forget to bring up Diabella’s past crimes again.
What persistence.
I know. I know it too. But it’s unfair, isn’t it?
She acted innocent and kind, soaking up everyone’s praise while quietly nudging things so Diabella became the villain.
And in the end, she even switched the poison so Diabella would die.
Then afterward she’d take the place of Marchioness and become the heroine?
Not happening that easily.
“At this point, what could I even do to you, Lady Miles? I’m only a little disappointed that, since you knew so much about the necklace, you didn’t mention it between close friends like us. Though of course, I’m sure a kind and virtuous lady like you would never knowingly stay silent on purpose.”
Diabella lowered her shoulders and fluttered her lashes with a deeply wounded expression, as if she were truly hurt.
She looked pitiful and heartbroken.
Angelica, who had still been pretending to sob, simply blinked at her blankly, clearly never expecting Diabella to respond like this.
‘What? You’re the only one who’s allowed to act weak and pitiful all the time? But when I do it, suddenly you’re shocked?’
Diabella sneered inwardly.
It would be difficult to completely reverse public opinion now that the original Diabella had already committed so many wrongs.
Still, disappearing quietly with only money in hand left a bad taste in her mouth.
‘At the very least, I should toss a small stone into the calm lake before I leave. I don’t expect Raymond to punish Angelica over suspicions this small anyway. This is enough for now.’
After that, Diabella simply walked past Angelica—who had resumed tearfully sobbing once the situation started turning against her—and Raymond, who kept looking back and forth between them with a face full of confusion.
“Call the coachman.”
“Yes, my lady.”
And as though the two of them were no longer worth even acknowledging, she turned her back without so much as a farewell and moved to leave.
“Madam, won’t you ride together with me—”
As Raymond tried to follow after Diabella, Angelica stumbled delicately in front of him while wiping her tears.
“Marquis, would it perhaps be possible for me to ride with you in your carriage? One of my carriage wheels is unstable, and the ride is uncomfortable.”
Diabella snorted at Angelica’s voice as she seized the opportunity to approach the Marquis.
What a shallow move.
Not even amusing.
‘The two of you really do suit each other perfectly. Good luck with that.’
She shot Raymond a glance filled with exactly that sentiment and continued walking.
“Lady Miles.”
Without taking his eyes off Diabella, Raymond called Angelica’s name in a low voice.
He fully understood the meaning behind the look Diabella had given him.
Absolutely not.
That was absolutely not what he intended.
He had ignored the ridiculous misunderstandings of the villagers, but he could not allow even Diabella to think such things.
He needed to settle this now.
“Yes, Marquis.”
Angelica answered sweetly.
“I will deliver the punishment I have postponed until now.”
Raymond’s voice turned cold.
“The mere fact that you committed actions which could bring harm upon the Marchioness—and even the Marquis household itself—is enough that I cannot overlook it. Therefore, I hereby order the Baron Miles family to return half of the territory previously granted to them.”
“Pardon? Marquis! This is unfair. Without any definite evidence, how could you—”
“How dare a baron family under my domain question my decision? Should I take Lady Miles’s words as the official stance of the entire Baron Miles house?”
“N-No! That is not what I mean! I only…”
“The only reason I stop at reclaiming half the estate instead of stripping your title entirely is because no conclusive evidence has yet been found. But if the investigation uncovers anything more substantial, you should prepare not only to lose your title—but your life as well.”
Angelica’s sobs grew louder as she collapsed to the ground.
Diabella stopped walking and looked back at her.
She felt absolutely no sympathy.
Then her eyes met Raymond’s.
The same Raymond who had been staring down coldly at Angelica.
His icy gaze wavered when it landed on Diabella.
But Diabella couldn’t understand why he was looking at her as though hoping for something.
Honestly, she was a little surprised he punished Angelica this quickly.
‘I wasn’t even expecting anything. But what now? Am I supposed to cry tears of gratitude and cling to your feet?’
A person who did wrong receiving proper punishment—
Wasn’t that simply natural?
Without any lingering attachment, Diabella withdrew her gaze and climbed into the carriage.
“Why do more flower baskets keep appearing every morning?”
Standing before the mirror while choosing a dress, Diabella asked as she watched a maid busily bring in another basket of flowers and sprinkle water on them.
Come to think of it, fresh flower baskets had been arriving in her room every morning for over a week now.
At first she ignored it, but even in such a large room, having seven flower baskets was excessive.
“Oh my, the Marquis has been sending them as gifts. Didn’t you know?”
I did not know.
Why is that man sending flowers?
And if he sends something, shouldn’t he at least say he’s sending it? How was she supposed to know whether they were gifts or not?
“I see. I hadn’t realized.”
“Isn’t he just so thoughtful? To care this much…”
“Throw them out.”
“…Pardon?”
“I have no hobby of decorating my room with flowers that are just going to wither. Throw them away.”
“B-But… the Marquis…”
Diabella slowly lowered her eyes toward the maid and raised them again, as though no further explanation was necessary.
Her long, thick lashes cast shadows across her face.
“Ah—y-yes! Understood!”
The maid trembled as she dragged all seven flower baskets out of the room at once.
She could have carried them one by one, but she looked terrified her head might roll off if she delayed.
Diabella pitied her a little, but let her be.
It’s not like I’d actually cut off her head.
Diabella snorted and proudly admired herself in the mirror.
‘Ah, I look amazing again today. Incredible. Villainess unnie’s face is perfection!’
There was no need to say much.
Simply by existing, people trembled before her.
One tilt of her head and they scattered in terror.
And if she spared them, they were grateful just to survive.
‘Who knew living as a villainess would be this easy?’
Humming happily, Diabella continued examining dresses.
Should she wear pale pink lace today? Or dark green silk? The sky-blue organza dress looked nice too.
‘Everything looks good on me. This is driving me crazy.’
The life of a beauty… ahaha.
Just as she was completely immersed in admiring herself in the mirror, a weak knock sounded at the door.
Knock… knock…
“What now? Open it.”
The maid helping her dress opened the door, and once again colorful flowers poked into the room.
“What are you doing? I told you to throw them away!”
This time Diabella truly sounded exhausted.
“T-That is… I’m terribly sorry… The Marquis s-s-saw me throwing away the flower baskets…”
“…And?”
Diabella’s brow twitched.
Did that Marquis bastard throw a fit because she sold the necklace before and now she was throwing away flowers too?
“H-He asked why, and… I-I accidentally told him that Your Ladyship dislikes flowers once they start wilting…”
“Seriously. You’re frustrating. Come inside and explain properly.”
The maid was so frightened she couldn’t even step fully into the room. Only the flowers she held poked awkwardly through the doorway while she trembled.
“H-Hiiik! I’m sorry!”
The maid outside shakily carried the flowers inside first.
Apparently she wasn’t trembling solely because she feared Diabella, because what she carried in was a massive flowerpot too large to hold in both arms.
“What is this now?”
“H-He said if you dislike flowers that wither, then he would send living plants from now on—gah!”
Diabella suddenly strode toward the pot, startling the maid so badly she clamped both hands over her mouth and collapsed to the floor.
Sniff, sniff.
Diabella approached the flowerpot and immediately smelled it.
“Could this perhaps be poisonous?”
“Pardon? No, there are no poisonous plants that look like this. It only smells nice.”
The maid helping her dress pretended to sniff the flowers enthusiastically alongside Diabella.
Then what exactly was his scheme in constantly sending flowers?
From the looks of it, he certainly didn’t seem to have any good feelings toward her.
Was this some kind of duel challenge unique to this world?
Diabella clenched her fist tightly.
Then, staring at her small but firm fist, she thought:
‘…Should I go ask him directly? Ugh, what a pain.’
By the time the maid carrying the flowerpot had gone completely pale from staring at Diabella’s raised fist, another visitor knocked on the door.
“My lady.”
The butler stood there with an unusually bright expression, holding something in his hand.
“The Marquis has sent additional funds.”
“Additional funds?”
