Chapter 64
As Elliot saw the golden carriage of the Edmond family passing by, he decided to change his plan. He realized that the one riding in the carriage was not the Duke but the Duchess.
‘The naive Duchess will likely cooperate with me.’
Without hesitation, Elliot ran toward the carriage, and the startled coachman hurriedly pulled the reins and stopped the carriage.
“Whoa, whoa, what are you doing, acting so recklessly?”
“I apologize. I have something urgent to tell the Duchess.”
As Elliot approached the side of the carriage, the surprised coachman quickly followed and stood by. Ignoring him, Elliot politely knocked on the carriage door.
“Duchess, I hope you’ve been well. I am Elliot Eden, the Marquis of Eden. If you’re heading to the Duke’s residence, might you take me along?”
But the inside of the carriage remained silent. Despite being certain that the Duchess was inside, there was no response at all.
“Duchess, do you not recognize me? I am Elliot Eden, who married Susan Edmond.”
“…Marquis, I’m afraid you will have to take another carriage.”
“What… What do you mean?”
“I cannot travel with a man who is not my husband. I hope you understand.”
What could have happened for her to react like this? In disbelief, Elliot stammered as he watched the golden carriage begin to move away.
‘If the Duke finds out, all my plans will fall apart. I can’t let go of this money so easily.’
***
Returning to the Duke’s residence, Rachel kept an eye on Rita during dinner. However, seeing that she acted as usual, Rachel felt relieved.
‘It seems she still doesn’t know that the Marquis of Eden has come to the capital.’
It was strange that Susan urgently needed money, but even stranger was the fact that it was her husband, not Susan, who had come to the capital.
After finishing her meal, Rachel headed straight to her husband’s study. She decided to wait for Stefan to return late and tell him about the appearance of the Marquis of Eden.
The anger from being left alone in the carriage had also faded by then.
“Why is he so late today?”
After pacing by the window for a long time, Rachel sat briefly in a chair. She was exhausted from the rare outing and began to feel sleepy.
While repeatedly checking the time on the clock on the desk, Rachel finally dozed off. The comfort of Stefan’s chair had a lot to do with it.
Meanwhile, Stefan entered the study and suppressed a laugh at the absurd scene before him. His face, tired from the chaos of the day’s events, brightened.
‘To think the mistress of the house would fall asleep in her husband’s chair while waiting for him to return. Should I say it’s cute, or should I call her reckless?’
Stefan clicked his tongue lightly and approached Rachel. Her feet, dangling from the chair, caught his eye.
He carefully placed a footrest beneath her dangling feet. Even as she slept, the comfort seemed to reach her, and a smile spread across her lips.
Then, Stefan’s gaze shifted to her hand, which was gently resting on her chest. After her bath, she wasn’t wearing any rings.
‘Should I slip one on without her knowing?’
At that moment, Stefan remembered the garnet ring that he had received from Finn. He fiddled with the ring case in his jacket pocket.
Finn had fussed over cleaning and sanitizing the ring, complaining about how many people had handled it. However, now that it was so dirty, Stefan hesitated to give it back to his wife.
The ring, a special gift that matched Rachel’s purple eyes, had great meaning, but due to its imperfections, Stefan wasn’t satisfied with it.
‘It’s better to give her something else.’
He decided against giving the garnet ring back and placed the case back in the drawer. He then headed to the bathroom. He couldn’t hold Rachel in his arms in his current, sweaty, and dusty state.
As Stefan entered the bathroom, Rachel’s eyelids slowly lifted. She had opened the desk drawer that he had just closed and, upon checking the garnet ring inside the case, sighed.
‘He really went and retrieved the garnet ring. But it seems like he’s still angry with me, doesn’t it? He hasn’t returned it yet…’
Rachel, feeling disgruntled, wrinkled her nose and quickly got up from the chair. She moved to the sofa, intending to speak seriously with him when he came out of the bath.
When Stefan emerged from the bathroom, Rachel immediately stood up from the sofa. Stefan swallowed a bitter smile.
“My lady, you look very tired. Let’s talk tomorrow.”
“I just lost track of time waiting for you, my lord. There’s something urgent I need to discuss, so please don’t turn me away.”
“I’ve already heard about the merchant issue from Baron Burke.”
“Well then, I’ll just tell you about the Marquis of Eden.”
“The Marquis of Eden?”
As Stefan’s expression darkened at her words, Rachel carefully chose her next words.
“I met the Marquis of Eden on my way back to the Duke’s residence.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Stefan rushed over to her, checking her over without hesitation.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“I was in the carriage, and the Marquis of Eden was outside.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Is something wrong with Miss Susan?”
At her question, Stefan realized that his behavior had been rash.
“No, it’s nothing.”
“Just now, my lord, you looked as though you were frightened that I had been threatened by the Marquis of Eden.”
“….”
Unable to deny it, he nodded lightly.
“It seems the Marquis of Eden is hiding many things from us.”
“Hiding things?”
“I’m not sure yet. But it seems he approached Susan with some kind of intention.”
“Oh my goodness…”
Seeing her shocked expression, Stefan gently sat her down on the sofa and sat beside her.
“My lady, don’t be too surprised. There will always be people who covet the Duke’s family fortune.”
“But… The Marquis of Eden seemed like a good person.”
“He said he would investigate thoroughly, but someone determined to deceive can’t be easily outwitted.”
The bitter smile at the corner of Stefan’s lips seemed pitiful. Although they weren’t close siblings, it was natural for him to worry about his sister.
“I don’t think mother knows yet.”
“Really?”
“She seemed calm when I saw her at dinner.”
“But she will know soon enough. The Marquis of Eden will likely visit the Duke’s residence tomorrow.”
Rachel, startled, unknowingly tugged at his sleeve.
“For the time being, please stay at the Duke’s residence.”
“…?”
“If the Marquis of Eden visits and it’s just the ladies at the Duke’s residence, I don’t know how we should handle it…”
“The Duke’s residence has a butler and guards, so it’s safe.”
“No. You must stay.”
Seeing the blue glow in Rachel’s eyes as she looked up at him, Stefan gently patted her hand and agreed.
“I’ll do that, my lady. So, don’t worry.”
“Thank you, my lord.”
Stefan escorted Rachel to her bedroom, then returned to his study and wrote a letter to Finn. The message was that he would be handling affairs at the Duke’s residence for the time being and to send any urgent reports through letters.
***
‘Could it be… my fault?’
I couldn’t fall asleep easily, feeling anxious. I sat at the console and tried to organize the relationships around me.
I had thought of the regression as a chance and a gift from God.
Because of it, I was able to build a relationship with the Countess of Cotta, who had never shown interest in me in my past life, and I was also able to get closer to the servants at the Duke’s residence, who had remained indifferent.
I no longer felt hurt by the thoughtless words of my indifferent husband, and I was able to endure the hardships of life with my mother-in-law and sisters-in-law.
‘But what should I do if my actions are making others unhappy?’
Now that I was able to avoid the insults and jealousy I received from Rita through the regression, I realized that all of it was being directed at Hazel. It wasn’t intentional, but guilt naturally followed.
Thus, I found an excuse to teach Hazel about merchant work and helped her escape. It would be tough for her to learn the business for a while, but it was better than being mistreated by Rita.
‘Then, it’s Susan’s turn to be saved now.’
