Chapter 7
Cecilia finished speaking and quietly sipped her tea from the cup.
Rainer watched her intently, his sharp eyes scrutinizing every movement.
These were stories too intricate for a single woman, living as a lodger in a count’s household, to fabricate alone.
“If you still find it hard to believe, you should first confirm whether Duke Hays is truly deceased. You’ll soon know whether my words are fact or nonsense.”
She even confidently told him exactly what to do.
Rainer had no idea how to handle this woman.
“That’s all I have to say for now.”
Cecilia rose slowly, wearing a composed smile.
It was the expression of someone holding the winning card.
“Once my words are verified, we can discuss our deal again. I am staying at the Seymour Hotel, so if you feel like talking, you are welcome to visit anytime.”
“Phew…”
Once outside the duke’s residence, Cecilia let out a long breath.
Even she could barely recall what she had just said.
To speak so boldly in front of Rainer—this was behavior she would never have imagined in her past life.
‘By now, Rainer must be deeply considering it.’
Rainer hadn’t moved from his seat even as Cecilia stepped outside.
Whether his silence meant he would accept her proposal, she could not yet tell.
‘…It’ll work out. After all, this is just the gamble I started. Let’s trust my instincts.’
Cecilia nodded firmly, her expression resolute, and turned away without lingering any longer.
The next day, Rainer Hays’s carriage headed once again to the Hays estate.
“Seeing such a lowly face too often makes me feel my own dignity is slipping,” Elise greeted Rainer with a cold expression.
She didn’t even bother to hide that she found his visit unwelcome.
Elise had always been this way.
Though she had brought the nobleman’s illegitimate child for appearances’ sake, she had never shown him affection.
Instead, she revealed the worst of her character without restraint.
‘Just like your mother! Such shameless, filthy blood!’
The words she had spoken were always insults and scorn.
Rainer pressed his fingers against his eyes as memories of the past surfaced.
Everything in this moment irritated him.
Yet he had to confirm the truth.
If Cecilia Panning’s words were accurate, they would hold the key to turning the future in his favor.
“I’m here to see my older brother.”
“…What?”
For a moment, a flicker of unease crossed Elise’s eyes—a reaction she didn’t usually show.
Rainer noticed it immediately.
“As your younger sibling, I regret not properly visiting earlier. I’ll just see him briefly, so please don’t worry—”
“No, there’s no need!”
Elise blocked his way as Rainer rose from his seat.
Though she tried to appear composed, her clenched hands trembled slightly.
“Gilbert must remain completely stable. A vulgar man like you would only be of no help.”
“Is that so?”
Rainer gazed at Elise for a moment, then let out a small laugh.
Gilbert was exactly like his mother.
Always anxious, he couldn’t help but feel inferior to his much younger half-brother, and whenever Elise abused Rainer, he would stand by, snickering and egging her on.
As Rainer grew and began to gain prominence in the royal and social circles, Gilbert’s jealousy often got the better of him.
Rainer had no objection to the claim that he would not be helpful for Gilbert’s illness—assuming he was still alive.
“Who knows? Maybe seeing me would make a dead man rise in anger.”
“…What?”
Elise’s face stiffened at Rainer’s mockery.
“Dead man, huh? Watch your words. Gilbert—”
“Yes, he must be sleeping from his illness.”
With that double meaning, Rainer slowly rose to leave.
There was no need to enter Gilbert’s room.
Elise’s reaction said it all.
‘If Gilbert were alive, he would have proudly shown himself, mocking me even from his bed.’
But now, Elise could not respond, only huffing in frustration.
Watching the old fox seethe brought a smile of victory to Rainer’s face.
“Then I’ll be going now.”
He gave Elise a slight nod and headed toward the door.
Pausing at the door, he held the doorknob and looked back at her.
“But one thing, my lady.”
Elise glared at him, teeth clenched.
“If your hands are shaking so, can you even drink your tea properly?”
“You…!”
Elise leaped to confront him, but Rainer only smiled coldly and stepped outside.
“Lord Rainer.”
Outside the estate, Harry waited for him.
He had been to the public medical office on Rainer’s orders.
“I checked Selara’s childbirth records. As Miss Panning said, she gave birth to a son 22 years ago.”
“…I see.”
“Yes. They mentioned the father was a noble, but everyone assumed it was nonsense.”
Harry handed over an envelope of documents.
Rainer narrowed his eyes as he looked at the birth certificate with the name ‘Evan.’
“Does Elise know?”
“Not yet. We’ve secured the clinic’s discretion. The documents I gave you are the originals; all copies have been burned.”
Rainer nodded at Harry’s meticulous work.
If not for this, all his patience might have been wasted, and he could have been blindsided by Elise.
There was no denying that this was all thanks to Cecilia Panning.
Rainer climbed into the carriage, staring at the Hays estate as he pondered.
Now his mind was consumed by curiosity about one woman.
‘Cecilia Panning… who exactly is she?’
Two days later, Rainer visited the Seymour Hotel.
Cecilia, meeting him in the lounge, felt an inward thrill.
‘He came sooner than I expected.’
His presence meant he had verified everything.
Cecilia marveled at Rainer’s efficiency, having accomplished in two days what would take others far longer.
But she didn’t show it, simply smiling lightly.
“What brings you here, my lord? I hope it’s not just to have tea with me.”
“….”
Though she knew why he had come, Cecilia feigned ignorance.
Rainer met her gaze with a sharp stare.
“How can you not be afraid?”
“Pardon? Of what?”
“Of me, Elise Hays, and Gilbert.”
Rainer watched her intently.
“You must have kept everything tightly under wraps. I can’t imagine how you got this information.”
‘Ah, that’s what he was curious about.’
Indeed. Her knowledge went far beyond mere rumor.
Cecilia shook her head, a secretive smile playing on her lips.
“That, I cannot tell you. You haven’t given me anything yet.”
She pursed her lips slightly, lifting her teacup—a polite refusal to answer further.
‘There’s not much I could explain anyway.’
Who would believe her if she said she had been killed by Rosena and awoken back in the past?
Such words would have branded her as mad and sent her to an asylum.
“Ha… then I will only ask this.”
Seeing Cecilia’s firm demeanor, Rainer sighed and loosened his cravat slightly.
“Why did you give me that information? If you had ignored Evan March’s affair, you could have become the Duchess without fuss.”
Rainer was curious about her motives.
Why choose such a difficult path when there was an easier one?
For anger over a fiancé’s affair, Cecilia had given up far too much.
In Brisen’s noble society, public scandals over a husband’s mistress were rare.
Perhaps private retaliation like Elise’s, but not otherwise.
“The duchess….”
Cecilia set her teacup down, her expression bitter.
As Rainer said, when she first became the Duchess in her past life, she had nothing to envy.
But reality was different.
Her husband’s growing coldness and Elise’s relentless pressure with the child drained her day by day.
Ultimately, she had even been killed by Rosena.
The title of Duchess had been nothing but a gilded shell.
“That is not what I need.”
Cecilia straightened her back and spoke firmly.
