Chapter 3

A Clever, Perceptive Man Without Greed

“There is no need to send Madam Bird.”

Viscount Tyrone narrowed his eyes.

“Madam Bird may be strict and rather fond of nagging, but everything she says is ultimately for your own good.”

Still, his expression soon relaxed, and a smile returned to his face.

Viscount Tyrone smiled pleasantly.

“The succession ceremony is right around the corner, isn’t it? You need to be careful.”

Ironically, though both his eyes and lips were smiling broadly, not a trace of laughter escaped his mouth.

The corners of his eyes curved, but the pale yellow irises within them revealed scrutiny and vigilance rather than amusement.

Silence descended.

The servants held their breath as the sharp tension lingered between them.

Knock, knock.

“My lady. The refreshments are ready.”

“…Come in.”

Porcelain teacups and desserts were neatly arranged on a round table of deep wine-red wood.

Isabella had specifically requested them before entering the drawing room.

With a gesture, she dismissed everyone inside.

“All of you, leave us.”

Delis wanted to remain behind in case something happened, but under Isabella’s firm gaze, he reluctantly withdrew.

Soon, the drawing room was empty.

“Please, have some. These are high-quality tea leaves.”

Isabella offered Viscount Tyrone tea.

He merely glared at the white teacup without moving.

It did not matter whether he drank it or not.

Isabella did not bother offering a second time.

Instead, pretending not to notice anything, she simply lifted her own cup, steam curling gently from the hot tea.

Viscount Tyrone’s pale yellow eyes followed her elegant movement with persistent intensity.

More precisely, he was staring at the teacup in Isabella’s hand.

Unlike his own plain white cup, Isabella’s bore a vivid blue rose emblem—the mark signifying the true bloodline of Brwin.

“And I heard you have been looking into marriage prospects for me again?”

Viscount Tyrone’s gaze, which had been fixed sharply on the blue rose, shifted toward Isabella.

She remained unfazed beneath his intense stare and leisurely waited for his answer.

The topic she had just brought up was the second reason she had rushed back here.

Viscount Tyrone, who had looked somewhat stiff, relaxed his expression and tugged one corner of his mouth upward.

“I had hoped to be the first to give you the good news, but it seems you’ve already heard.”

He seemed quite pleased by the change in subject.

“It is something I arranged with your best interests in mind. Unless there is already a young gentleman you have feelings for, why not meet Marquis Fitzroy?”

So it finally begins…!

Marquis Fitzroy.

That name made Isabella’s blood run cold just as much as Viscount Tyrone’s did.

Driving her toward madness.

Poisoning her.

Sabotaging her carriage.

Across her previous three lives, he had been the man most actively involved in bringing about her death.

The fact that Viscount Tyrone was now pushing Marquis Fitzroy toward her meant that the life described in the original novel was finally beginning in earnest.

And it also meant that she did not have much time left to live.

Emotion surged violently inside Isabella, as though she might explode at any moment.

But she barely managed to force it down.

After everything I did to get this far…

I only need to endure a little longer.

The finish line is right in front of me.

For this very day, she had spent the past five years desperately amassing wealth to satisfy the Emperor’s greed, gradually gathering allies, and blinding the eyes and ears of the Council of Elders who stood against her.

Isabella slowly steadied her breathing and looked at Viscount Tyrone.

“It is impossible for a woman to inherit a family in the Billoa Empire, is it not? Unless, of course, you take in a husband who marries into the family.”

His insinuating words clouded Isabella’s mind like the temptation of a devil.

“If I receive approval from His Majesty the Emperor and the family’s Council of Elders, I can officially become the heir.”

Isabella straightened her back and countered Viscount Tyrone with the response she had prepared in advance.

She had already heard this argument three times in her previous lives.

But Viscount Tyrone did not back down easily.

He paused briefly, perhaps not expecting her answer, but soon began admonishing her in a leisurely tone, as though lecturing an ignorant niece who knew nothing of the world.

“My, my. Surely you, who were educated by the finest scholars in the Billoa Empire, cannot know less than your uneducated uncle.”

He chuckled.

“You’ve become rather good at making jokes.”

Viscount Tyrone tapped the rounded armrest of the sofa with his wrinkled hand and laughed aloud as though he had truly heard something amusing.

“The law may say that one can become heir with the approval of the family elders and His Majesty the Emperor, but when has reality ever worked that way? There has never been a single case in the Billoa Empire of a woman inheriting a family.”

“Then I intend to become the first, Uncle.”

“Bella.”

“You have always said that you are on my side. Wouldn’t this be the perfect opportunity to prove it?”

Perhaps the restrained anger in Isabella’s firm, clearly enunciated words had come through.

The smile disappeared from Viscount Tyrone’s mouth.

He fell silent and looked at her with indifferent eyes.

Isabella did not avoid his gaze.

The wealth she had accumulated through Fairy Garden.

The people she had drawn to her side with that wealth.

In this life, she actually had a chance of standing against her uncle.

It was different from her previous lives, when she had possessed neither money nor power.

“How wonderful that would be, Bella. But as you know, it won’t be easy. There is no question that I support you wholeheartedly, but the Emperor is another matter.”

She had clearly pressured him through both her words and her gaze.

Don’t just say you’re on my side. Show me through your actions.

If you do, I may even overlook everything you’ve done to me until now.

But Viscount Tyrone ignored her meaning entirely.

“What power do I have?”

He claimed the Emperor would refuse.

But the current Emperor, lost in the pleasures of alcohol and women, would not care who inherited the family.

As long as he was presented with something valuable enough to satisfy his vanity, and the candidate was put forward as an heir approved by the family’s Council of Elders, he would grant his approval.

Her previous life had already proven that.

Isabella looked at her uncle, Viscount Tyrone, with darkened eyes.

In the end, nothing had changed.

The story was proceeding exactly as it had in the original novel.

Soon, he would deliver the finale and make his exit.

“It would be much easier to take in a husband who marries into the family. It would also make you look more suitable as the head of the house.”

He paused.

“…Or you could simply hand the position of heir over to the closest collateral branch of your bloodline.”

A sinister smile spread across Viscount Tyrone’s lips.

Isabella’s refined face twisted with unbearable rage and humiliation.

The closest collateral branch of the bloodline.

Viscount Tyrone was openly referring to his own child, exposing his greed without even attempting to hide it.

It was the same devilish face Isabella had seen across three lifetimes.

To stand before the direct heir of Brwin and tell her to hand the succession over to a collateral relative was essentially the same as declaring that he intended to kill her.

Even though she had already known this would happen, she could not stop the rage from rising.

“My, my. What I just said was only a joke.”

Viscount Tyrone’s expression softened again.

“Do you really think your uncle would ask such a thing of you? I only said it because this situation is so frustrating, so don’t take it too much to heart.”

His smile deepened.

“You know, don’t you? I worry about no one but you, Bella.”

The coiled snake hid his true intentions once more.

But Isabella knew that he had meant every word.

“…Taking in a husband who marries into the family will not be easy.”

Isabella spoke coldly.

“Every member of the family’s Council of Elders would have to approve of him.”

She barely managed to suppress the nausea rising in her throat.

“There may be some concerns. I admit that much. But he is a man well suited to you. In time, everyone on the Council of Elders will come to understand that.”

Even though Viscount Tyrone undoubtedly understood the meaning behind Isabella’s words, he pretended not to and steered the conversation elsewhere.

If anything, he pressed her harder.

Roughly half of the entire Council of Elders had already fallen for Viscount Tyrone’s schemes.

But with the remaining half on Isabella’s side, she should still be able to block his plan and bribe the Emperor.

If she succeeded, she could finally escape the tragic ending that had repeated itself for reasons she still did not fully understand.

Viscount Tyrone stared down at the tea inside his white cup.

Then, in one motion, he threw it back and swallowed it.

He roughly set the cup down on the table and rose from his seat.

“I’ll be going for today.”

The action was so rude that it contained not even the slightest trace of courtesy.

As he was about to leave through the door, he turned back.

Then, as though something had suddenly occurred to him, he spoke.

“Ah, there seems to be a misunderstanding, Bella. No one wishes for my dear niece’s happiness more than I do.”

“……”

“After all, I am the guardian personally appointed by His Majesty the Emperor, am I not? This time, I am certain we will achieve a good result.”

A guardian appointed by the Emperor.

Even though Isabella had grown Fairy Garden into a massive source of wealth and now possessed more money than she could count, that title remained an unbreakable shackle around her neck.

And it was also Viscount Tyrone’s most powerful weapon.

“I’ll send you a gift soon. I’ve put a great deal of effort into preparing it, so I’m sure you’ll like it.”

His smile lingered.

“I sincerely hope you make a wise choice.”