🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter : 5
Rachel thought Cian suspected Theodore of treason. She believed it was an attractive proposal to him—helping her gather clear evidence that her husband had not committed treason.
It was true that in the past she had suspected Theodore of rebellion, but not anymore. Cian already knew that Theodore was not involved in rebellion, but in infidelity.
‘He wants evidence of infidelity. He wants to gather proof without getting his own hands dirty. And if necessary, he’ll want to use me as a witness. If this woman truly intends to divorce him, that is.’
He lowered his head and fell into thought.
‘Is she the type who pretends to be lacking while secretly plotting everything? Then she’s far more intelligent and meticulous than expected. I’ll need to learn more about Rachel Elrosa—what kind of person she is, what she wants.’
A thrill ran down his spine. It had been a long time since he met someone so calculating.
Cian always felt a sense of pleasure when he encountered someone with exceptional abilities in any field. His close friend and merchant guild master Stefan, the guild leader Whizius, and his aide Nick had all become his people in that way.
‘Rachel Elrosa might be an even greater strategist than Stefan or Whizius. How interesting.’
For now, he decided to go along with Rachel’s wishes. He needed time to observe her properly.
“I accept. However, I still don’t fully trust you.”
“Quite right. It would not do for someone of your stature to trust others so easily.”
“I will verify what you told me for now.”
Fortunately, Rachel nodded readily.
“Of course.”
“Then it’s my turn to ask questions. Why did you summon the guild’s informant? Was it to obtain a gift for your husband, as you originally requested from the guild? If you truly wanted a divorce, there would be no need to prepare such a gift.”
“You are very sharp.”
Rachel widened her eyes as if genuinely impressed.
“You are correct. That request was merely a pretext to summon a guild informant without raising suspicion from my husband and the butler.”
“I see.”
“Please act as if Your Grace accepted my request. I cannot directly commission a real request to Your Grace, but I need to avoid their eyes. I would also like you to charge me accordingly.”
Cian nodded calmly.
“That is not difficult. I was already here as a guild informant from the beginning, so I will formalize the request properly. There will be records in the guild, which should help avoid suspicion.”
“Thank you.”
“Then, is it correct that you wish to prepare a special gift for your husband to celebrate your wedding anniversary?”
Rachel nodded.
“Yes. I don’t want him to realize I’m preparing for a divorce. I want to give him a gift that suggests I still love him and believe in the stability of our marriage.”
Cian narrowed his eyes beneath the blindfold.
As expected. She was the type who concealed her nature and acted with extreme precision.
He wondered what expression she was making right now. Even with his eyes covered, he could still distinguish positions and movements, but facial expressions and emotions were difficult to read. It was a pity.
“I am not familiar with high society or aristocratic life. Your Grace is a man of much higher status than I am, so I thought you would know what kind of gift would be appropriate.”
This matched what Cian had already investigated.
“Please prepare a gift for your husband. Something rare, highly valuable, and worthy as a symbol of love.”
It was not a difficult request.
Cian nodded.
“Understood. I will find something suitable.”
“Thank you. The payment… it may be insignificant to Your Grace, but I will make sure it is sufficient.”
“Very well. I will contact you again, so please wait. However, if anything you told me turns out to be false, you will face an army.”
“I have never spoken a lie, so there will be no need to face an army.”
At that moment, a knock sounded.
Cian quickly knelt in front of Rachel and bowed respectfully.
Rachel was startled, but did not say anything.
“Madam, it is Cal. Are you still in conversation?”
“Oh, yes! The discussion is a bit long. It’s a rather difficult-to-obtain item.”
“…Understood. Please call me when you are finished. I have something to say.”
“Alright. I’ll wrap things up soon.”
Listening closely, Cian heard the sound of footsteps walking away. Only when the surroundings became completely silent did he stand up.
“…The butler?”
“Yes.”
“He is quite rude. His mistress is speaking with a guest, yet he knocks for something as trivial as ‘having something to say.’”
“That is just how he is. Don’t mind it. I will handle it soon.”
“Very well.”
“Then, Your Grace, it was an honor to have you visit. I hope to see you again.”
A soft rustle of cloth reached Cian’s ears. He could picture the slender woman performing a polite bow.
There was no need to be this courteous to someone who couldn’t even see.
Yet, despite that thought, he couldn’t suppress a faint smile.
Cian’s steps were light as he left the Elrosa estate.
After Cian left, Rachel collapsed into a chair in the reception room.
She rubbed her chest. She had acted calm, but she had actually been extremely tense.
‘I only knew he was a Grand Duke—I didn’t know exactly what kind of person he was.’
Based on everything praised endlessly by Dolorasa in the original story, she had assumed he was not a bad person.
Fortunately, Cian was more rational and reasonable than expected. If he had been someone impossible to communicate with, things could have gone badly.
She recalled when Cal had knocked. At the sound, Cian had immediately knelt without hesitation. It was astonishing.
‘Rank-wise, he’s second only to the Emperor, so how can he kneel so easily? And even after revealing his identity, he didn’t lower his speech or act awkward at all.’
So Grand Duke Cian truly was as remarkable as rumored.
‘Since he is Dolorasa’s father, he must be extremely handsome too. Even beneath the blindfold, his jawline and lips looked so refined.’
Dolorasa, the protagonist of the original story, was said to be extraordinarily beautiful.
Even Graham, the emotionless killer, had reportedly looked back at her more than once.
So her father must also be unbelievably handsome.
‘His voice and tone were calm too. Even while disguised, he carried elegance and dignity. Compared to Theodore, it’s truly night and day.’
As she sighed and lost herself in thought, Cal entered the reception room.
“Did the conversation go well?”
“Yes. I’ll hear from him again soon. Thanks to you. Thank you for calling him, Cal.”
“What kind of item did you request?”
“Hmm.”
Rachel blinked as if thinking.
“Actually, I didn’t specify exactly what item to get.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m not familiar with high society trends, so I told the informant to choose something appropriate. He said he would look into it.”
“Is that safe? He might bring back something strange.”
“What are you talking about? He’s a guild informant. And even if he brings something odd, it doesn’t matter. The guild master is a very strict person, isn’t he? His name was Whi… something.”
“Whizius.”
“I knew that.”
Rachel smiled instead of pouting.
“Yes, Whizius. If anything strange happens, he won’t let it slide. I trust them.”
“I understand.”
“By the way, Cal. What was it you wanted to tell me?”
Cal approached slowly and handed her a document. It was Martha’s dismissal notice.
“You dismissed Martha. Without consulting me even once.”
“Is that a problem? I am the mistress of House Elrosa, and I am responsible for hiring and firing the servants.”
In truth, Cal had been handling household affairs since the original Rachel showed little interest.
After a brief pause, Cal spoke quietly.
“Madam, everyone knows you are the most benevolent noble lady we have ever served. However, with a colleague dismissed and a stranger from the guild visiting, everyone is feeling uneasy.”
Not the most benevolent noble lady—more like the easiest noble to manipulate.
She wanted to retort, but Cal’s words were polite and reasonable. He did have a point.
It was certainly unsettling for the servants. Martha had been dismissed without issue until yesterday, and a stranger in a black hood and blindfold had visited from the guild. They might be wondering if they would be next.
Of course, that was only the surface reasoning—Cal’s true intent was entirely different.
Rachel clicked her tongue internally.
‘As expected of Cal. The man who helped that foolish Theodore maintain his affair for so long.’
Cal was smart and perceptive. He didn’t bluntly say, “What are you planning? This is suspicious. Did you notice the affair and send someone after Theodore?” Instead, he wrapped his intent in polite language to avoid backlash.
Right now, Cal was subtly pressuring her to say, “I won’t contact the guild informant again.”
The old Rachel would have easily fallen for it and apologized like this:
“Ah, I caused you worry. I’m really sorry, Cal.”
But the current Rachel had no intention of playing along so obediently.
“However… what should I do? I actually did it on purpose to make things worse.”
