Chapter 3:

Betrayal (2)

Her arms trembled uncontrollably, and tears streamed endlessly down her cheeks.

They were the two people she had trusted and loved more than anyone else in the world.

And those two people had betrayed her together.

“Say something! Anything!”

Cecilia couldn’t bear their prolonged silence.

She wished Evan would deny everything, even now. She wanted him to fall to his knees and beg for her forgiveness.

She wanted him to tell her that he had momentarily lost his mind, that she was the only woman he truly loved.

If he had said just that, perhaps she might even have forgiven him.

But the response she received was entirely unexpected.

“Haaah…”

After pulling up his trousers, Evan got to his feet, roughly scratching his head.

With an irritated expression, he approached Cecilia.

“Hey, didn’t I tell you not to come into my study?”

“…What?”

Cecilia couldn’t believe her ears.

Evan was looking at her with a deeply furrowed brow, as though she were something filthy.

“Can’t you just let me live in peace? Do you have any idea how suffocating it is to live in my own house because of you?”

He had been caught cheating, yet he was shamelessly blaming Cecilia instead.

She was left speechless.

Rosena was no better.

“Evan, don’t be too harsh on Lia.”

She approached Evan and gently took his arm, as though trying to calm him down.

Then she turned toward Cecilia with an apologetic expression.

“I’m sorry, Lia. You must have been terribly shocked.”

Rosena gazed at her with an expression full of sympathy.

Up until that moment, she was still the Rosena Cecilia had known.

But what came next was even more horrifying than Evan’s shameless attitude.

“Still, I did give birth to a child for you two. Can’t you just let this go?”

“What? You gave birth to our child?”

“That’s right. Since things have come to this, I’ll even give you a second child! Let’s just keep living happily together, all of us, just like we’ve been doing until now. Okay?”

Rosena nodded innocently, her eyes widening as though she were saying something perfectly reasonable.

Her attitude was so far beyond common sense that Cecilia felt a chill run down her spine.

“You expect me to raise the children the two of you have together?”

“Why? You’ve always doted on our Jeremy, haven’t you? Just keep doing that. What’s the problem?”

“You’re insane. Both of you are completely insane.”

“Damn it! Hey! That’s enough!”

Evan shouted, raising his palm threateningly.

However, he soon let out a sigh and lowered his hand.

“Cecilia. You said you loved me, didn’t you? Then shouldn’t you be able to love my child, too?”

“…What?”

“Think about it. What the ducal family needs is a child who carries my blood. It doesn’t matter who gives birth to the child—”

Slap!

Evan’s deranged argument was cut short by a sharp slap across his cheek.

For a moment, silence filled the room.

“You… You just…”

“Oh my! Evan! What happened to your face?”

Evan’s head had been knocked to the side. Looking utterly bewildered, he touched his reddened cheek.

Rosena, acting as though she had been the one slapped, made a tremendous fuss and glared at Cecilia.

“Lia! How could you slap someone who has business meetings to attend? He has another meeting tomorrow! What will people say if they see his face like that?”

“Ha! This is exactly why I can’t bring myself to love you! You have absolutely no feminine charm. Just look at how brutish you’re being! …Hey! Where are you going?”

Cecilia was breathing heavily. Unable to endure another moment, she turned around and headed toward the stairs.

Evan immediately rushed after her and grabbed her arm.

“Where do you think you’re going? How dare you turn your back on your husband while he’s talking to you?”

“Let go! I’m going to tell everyone about the shameless things the two of you have been doing!”

“What? You little—!”

Evan’s face turned bright red as he roughly yanked her toward him.

“Have you lost your mind? Are you that desperate to disgrace your husband’s name?”

“Let go of me!”

“Where do you think you’re going?!”

“Evan! Lia! Please, calm down! Both of you!”

The three of them struggled, their bodies becoming entangled in the commotion.

Evan’s grip loosened for a brief moment, and Cecilia was just beginning to wrench herself free.

Thud.

Suddenly, someone shoved Cecilia hard in the back.

“…Huh?”

Before she could even understand what had happened, her body was lifted into the air.

Instinctively, she reached out to grab the railing, but her hands grasped nothing but empty air.

The startled faces of Evan and Rosena flashed past her vision.

Crash!

A sharp impact exploded across her back.

Bam!

A moment later, her waist slammed against the edge of a step.

But her body didn’t stop there. She continued tumbling down the stairs before finally being thrown onto the floor below.

“Ah… Ugh…”

Lying sprawled on the ground, Cecilia’s entire body trembled violently.

She could see Evan and Rosena staring down at her in shock.

Their faces were filled with bewilderment at the sudden accident…

‘…No.’

At that moment, Cecilia saw it clearly.

Behind Evan, Rosena was wearing a faint smile.

A smile of satisfaction.

“Y-you… You…”

With her battered body, Cecilia somehow managed to force her lips apart.

But all that escaped her mouth was a series of broken, choking breaths.

“Oh my! Cecilia! What should we do?!”

Leaving Evan frozen in shock behind her, Rosena screamed and hurried down the stairs.

But the words she whispered as she bent over Cecilia were chilling.

“Oh? I only meant to break your legs… But it looks like you’re going to die instead.”

Rosena looked down at Cecilia, her eyes brimming with triumph.

“Besides, the matriarch heard about Jeremy and told Evan to divorce you as soon as possible. Things worked out much more easily than expected.”

‘The matriarch… Even Grandmother has abandoned me?’

Cecilia struggled to breathe as she looked up at Rosena.

But the next words that came out of her mouth were even more shocking.

“You stupid bitch. You should’ve just listened. Looks like dying at the hands of a friend runs in your family, just like your parents.”

“W-what… did you say?”

Seeing the shock on Cecilia’s face, Rosena broke into a grotesque smile.

Perhaps because she was certain Cecilia was going to die anyway, Rosena began speaking excitedly, revealing everything.

“That’s right. I’m talking about Count and Countess Fanning. My father was the one who caused their deaths. And thanks to the will we forged in advance, we got to enjoy all that wealth from the Fanning family.”

Cecilia’s eyes shook as she struggled to comprehend the unbelievable truth.

After her parents’ accident, Viscount Osburn, who had been her father’s friend, had taken her into his home.

Because of that, Cecilia had regarded the viscount and his wife as her second parents.

And yet…

They had murdered her parents for the sake of the Fanning family’s fortune.

“Just like your parents, you even handed over the position of Duchess to me, didn’t you? Don’t worry. I’ll make good use of your sacrifice.”

Rosena wore a chilling smile as she gently stroked her former friend’s cheek.

Then, in an instant, her expression changed. Turning toward Evan, she began screaming.

“Evan! What are you doing?! Call someone! Hurry!”

But Cecilia’s eyes were already beginning to close.

To die at the very moment she had finally uncovered the truth behind everything…

It was unbearably unfair.

‘No… I can’t let it end like this… If only I could have another chance…’

She desperately tried to stretch out her arm.

She wanted to grab onto something, anything, and pull herself back up.

But it already felt as though her body were sinking beneath the water.

“…”

In the end, Cecilia’s hand fell limply to the floor.

“…Gasp!”

Cecilia’s eyes flew open as she gasped for breath.

Before her was a magnificent chandelier, its candles glowing softly. A faint scent of roses brushed against the tip of her nose.

‘A dream…?’

The shock and pain that had been crushing her just moments ago had vanished without a trace.

‘What’s going on? I was definitely dead…’

Could this be heaven?

Still bewildered, Cecilia looked around. Then her eyes fell upon a large mirror.

“My goodness!”

Without thinking, she stared into the mirror and let out a startled cry.

The reflection before her was impossible to believe.

A pristine white wedding dress adorned with elaborate embroidery and delicate lace.

A tightly fitted corset accentuating her waist, a sparkling tiara, and a veil flowing gracefully down her back.

It was her appearance from five years ago, just before she had walked down the aisle on her wedding day.

“W-what in the world is going on?”

Cecilia reached up with trembling fingertips and touched her cheek.

Just then, a cheerful voice came from beside her.

“My lady! It’s almost time to go!”

Cecilia turned her head and was unable to speak.

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

“…Wendy?”

She was the maid who had faithfully remained by Cecilia’s side until her marriage.

Although Wendy had been devoted to Cecilia, she belonged to the Osburn household, so she hadn’t been able to accompany her after the wedding.

Later, Wendy had left the viscount’s household to care for her ailing parents, and Cecilia had lost contact with her.

“Wa-Wendy. How have you been? What about your family? Is everyone doing well?”

“Huh?”

Unlike Cecilia, who was overjoyed at their reunion after five years, Wendy tilted her head with a puzzled expression.

“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden, my lady? We were preparing for your wedding together just yesterday.”

“…Wedding? Whose wedding?”

“My lady, what are you talking about? Today is your wedding with Lord Evan!”