Chapter 3
Her arms trembled violently, and tears streamed endlessly down her cheeks.
They were the two people she had trusted and loved most in the world.
And yet, those very people had betrayed her together.
“Say something! Anything!”
Cecilia couldn’t bear the silence between them any longer.
She wished, even now, that Evan would kneel and beg her forgiveness, saying it wasn’t true.
That he had momentarily lost his mind, but that the one he truly loved was only her.
If he had just said that, maybe she could have forgiven him.
But what came next was an unexpected response.
“Haah.”
Evan adjusted his pants, scratched his head, and stood up.
He approached Cecilia with a look of annoyance.
“Hey, didn’t I tell you not to come to the study?”
“…What?”
Cecilia couldn’t believe her ears.
Evan scowled at her as if she were something dirty.
“Just try living comfortably, alright? You’re making it suffocating even in my own house.”
Even after being caught in an affair, his shamelessness in blaming Cecilia left her speechless.
Rozena was just as appalling.
“Don’t be too hard on Ria, Evan.”
She approached Evan and gently grabbed his arm as if to calm him.
Then she turned to Cecilia, wearing a deeply apologetic expression.
“I’m sorry, Ria. You must have been shocked, right?”
Rozena’s face reflected nothing but pity and concern.
Up to that point, it was the Rozena Cecilia had known.
But the words that followed were even more horrifying than Evan’s shameless attitude.
“Still, I even bore your child. Can’t we just let it slide this time?”
“What? You bore our child?”
“Yes. Since it’s come to this, I’ll even have the second one! Let’s all just get along like we always have, okay?”
Rozena nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world, her eyes wide open.
Cecilia shivered at such an utterly unnatural attitude.
“You expect me to raise the child you bore?”
“Why not? You’ve always been so kind to our Jeremy. Just keep doing that, what’s the problem?”
“You’re insane. Both of you are completely insane.”
“Ugh! Hey! Enough already!”
Evan raised his hand and shouted.
But then he sighed and lowered it.
“Cecilia. You said you love me. Doesn’t that mean you can love my child too?”
“…What did you say?”
“Think about it. What the dukedom needs is a child with my blood. It doesn’t matter who bore them—”
Slash!
Evan’s insane logic was cut off by a slap from Cecilia.
For a moment, silence fell.
“You… you just—”
“Oh my, Evan! What’s the matter with you!”
Evan turned his head, touching his reddened cheek in disbelief.
Rozena, meanwhile, acted as if she had been hit, fanning herself in mock outrage and glaring at Cecilia.
“Ria! How could you slap someone who runs a business? There’s a meeting tomorrow! What would people say if they saw this?”
“Hah! That’s why I can never get attached to you. Look at how brutish and unladylike you are! …Hey! Where do you think you’re going?”
Gasping for breath, Cecilia turned and headed for the stairs.
Evan rushed over and grabbed her arm desperately.
“Where do you think you’re going? Turning your back on your husband?”
“Let go! I’m telling everyone about your shameless acts!”
“What? This is—”
Evan’s face flushed as he roughly tugged at her.
“Are you crazy? You want to disgrace your husband?”
“Let go of me!”
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Evan! Ria! Calm down! Please!”
The three of them tangled in a struggle.
Evan’s grip loosened for a moment, and Cecilia tried to push him away.
Thunk.
Suddenly, someone shoved Cecilia hard on her back.
“…Huh?”
Before she could even understand what happened, her body lifted into the air.
Instinctively, she reached for the railing—but only grasped empty air.
In a blur, she saw Evan and Rozena’s shocked faces.
Thud!
A sharp impact ran through her back.
Bang!
Her waist hit the corner of the stairs.
Still, Cecilia’s body didn’t stop, tumbling down the stairs and crashing to the floor.
“Ah… ugh…”
Collapsed, Cecilia’s body shook violently.
She saw Evan and Rozena staring down at her, their faces showing confusion at the sudden accident…
‘…No.’
Cecilia clearly saw Rozena behind Evan, smiling faintly.
“You… you…”
Cecilia tried to speak through her broken body.
But only ragged breaths escaped between her parted lips.
“Oh my, Cecilia! What have you done!”
Rozena rushed down the stairs, screaming as if she herself had been shocked.
But the words she whispered were chilling.
“Oh? I told you to break her legs… looks like she’s done for now, huh?”
Rozena’s eyes gleamed with triumph as she looked down at Cecilia.
“The matriarch even heard about Jeremy and told Evan to divorce you quickly. Things worked out easily.”
‘The matriarch… even grandmother abandoned me?’
Cecilia gasped, looking up at Rozena.
But what came next was even more shocking.
“You foolish girl. Why were you so stubborn? Are you going to die by a friend’s hand, just like your parents?”
“W-what did you say…?”
Rozena grinned grotesquely at Cecilia’s shocked expression.
Assuming Cecilia was about to die, Rozena rattled on gleefully.
“Yes, the Fanning Count and Countess. My father made that happen. I even manipulated the will in advance, so we enjoyed the wealth of the Fanning family.”
Cecilia’s eyes trembled at the unbelievable truth.
After her parents’ accident, she had been taken in by Count Osburn, her father’s friend.
Thanks to him, she treated the Osburns as her second parents.
And now, Rozena had killed them to seize the Fanning family fortune.
“Not even your parents’ daughter, yet you inherit the duchess’s seat? Don’t worry, I’ll make sure your sacrifice isn’t wasted.”
Rozena’s smile was chilling as she stroked her old friend’s cheek.
Then, she suddenly changed her expression and shouted toward Evan.
“Evan! What are you doing? Call someone! Now!”
But Cecilia’s eyes were already slowly closing.
All the truth had come out, and she was about to meet death—it was unbearably unfair.
‘No, I can’t… I need another chance…’
She desperately tried to stretch out her arms.
She wanted to grab anything to stand up.
But it felt as if her body was already sinking into water.
“….”
Eventually, her hand fell limply to the floor.
“…Huff!”
Cecilia gasped and opened her eyes.
A large chandelier glimmered softly above her, and the gentle scent of roses brushed her nose.
‘A dream…?’
The shock and pain that had pressed on her just moments ago were gone.
‘How…? I was definitely dead…’
Could this… be heaven?
Confused, Cecilia glanced around and noticed a large mirror.
“My goodness!”
Unconsciously, she looked into it and screamed.
The reflection showed an incredible sight.
A pure white wedding dress adorned with intricate embroidery and delicate lace.
A tightly cinched corset at the waist, a sparkling tiara, and a flowing veil.
It was her appearance from five years ago, just before her wedding.
“H-How… how is this possible?”
Cecilia touched her cheek with trembling fingers.
Then, a cheerful voice spoke from the side.
“Miss! It’s almost time for you to go!”
Cecilia turned her head, speechless.
Her eyes widened in shock.
“Wendy…?”
Wendy had been the maid who faithfully attended Cecilia until her wedding.
Though she had been devoted, Wendy belonged to the Osburn household and could not accompany her after marriage.
Later, she had left to care for her sick parents, and Cecilia hadn’t heard from her since.
“W-Wendy… how have you been? How’s your family? Are they all well?”
“Pardon?”
Unlike Cecilia, Wendy tilted her head in confusion at their reunion after five years.
“Why are you saying this, Miss? Until yesterday, you were preparing for the wedding with me.”
“…Wedding? Whose?”
“Miss, what do you mean? Today is your wedding with Mr. Evan!”
