I Became the Mother-in-law of the Regretful Female Lead

Cedric, who had been confined, was visited by the same person who had delivered a letter to him not long ago. This time too, his face was hidden by a black robe, but Cedric immediately recognised him.

It was an all too familiar situation.

Cedric recalled the night a few days ago.

At first, he had considered the man to be nothing more than an unwanted guest, a suspicious figure.

However, the emblem he showed quickly made Cedric realise who he was dealing with.

‘This is unmistakable…’

He had never seen it in person, but as a citizen of the Empire, everyone knew what the golden lion symbolised.

At first, he was puzzled.

‘Why would such a noble person come to me? Surely not…’

But his small doubts soon turned into great expectations.

‘Yes, this is an opportunity! A chance to be in the good graces of the Empire’s next Emperor!’

To think he had come to Cedric and revealed Vanessa Winder’s weaknesses—surely, he despised that woman as much as Cedric did.

If Cedric executed his tasks well, he might just find himself in the Emperor’s favour.

‘And if that happens… I might have a chance to save my father!’

This wasn’t just a mere royal—this was a man with real power, almost like the ruler himself. He surely had the means to pardon even those on death row.

And so, Cedric did exactly as he was told.

‘But now, look where I am…’

If it hadn’t been for that letter, none of this would have happened.

‘I would have successfully killed Vanessa Winder and completed my revenge. This isn’t my fault.’

He wasn’t to blame for being imprisoned here. That man owed him an escape.

At that moment, the man in the robe looked down at the seated Cedric and spoke.

“The guards tell me you caused a scene, boldly invoking his name.”

The voice was sharp, almost on edge.

For a moment, Cedric felt fear, but he chose to stand his ground. After all, there was no flaw in his logic as far as he could see.

“Yes, I simply did as I was instructed. Everyone says I’ll end up on the executioner’s block like my father. Doesn’t that strike you as odd? Please, I beg you, save me!”

“To be precise, you didn’t even manage to follow those instructions.”

The man muttered quietly as Cedric poured out his plea, but his voice was so low that Cedric missed the comment.

“Pardon? I didn’t quite catch that.”

“It’s nothing. A reasonable argument. As you’ve said, you’ll be released.”

“Really? You mean it?”

Cedric was stunned at how easily he got the answer he wanted. But, thankfully, the man didn’t seem to be lying.

“There will be no guards waiting for you when you leave.”

With that, the cell door swung open.

Cedric was finally free.

“Thank you! I’ll never forget this debt!”

With those words, he bolted out of the prison.

The man watched Cedric run away with a pitiful expression on his face.

“Ha… His Highness, honestly…”

He thought back to the conversation he’d had with his master before arriving here.

“Cedric Henry is causing chaos in the prison, using Your Highness’s name. If you wish, I can take care of him myself.”

“No need. If he wants to be released, then… fine, grant him his wish.”

“Pardon? Why, Your Highness? The man failed a simple task. What use is he to you?”

As the man waited for his master’s answer, the Crown Prince let out a sly chuckle.

“Hahaha! So you’ve turned out to be rather naïve. Do I seem like I intend to let him live?”

“Then…”

“There are plenty of people who’ll kill him, even without my intervention. You know how vile Vanessa Winder is. No need to dirty my hands.”

The Crown Prince’s golden eyes, a symbol of nobility, gleamed ominously.

“And besides, it’s entertaining, isn’t it? How deluded he is, thinking he’s free. He has no idea what’s coming next.”

With that, his master smiled, a snake-like grin stretching across his face.

When I heard Cedric Henry had escaped, I scowled without thinking.

“Incompetent guards… How did they lose someone I handed over to them?”

Bang! I slammed my fist onto the desk, scattering the papers that were on it.

This situation was beyond ridiculous.

How could Cedric Henry have escaped their grasp? What kind of incompetence was this?

I frowned deeply, pondering the matter.

‘Surely… someone else had a hand in this. No, I might be overthinking it.’

Cedric didn’t seem to have any connections that would help him escape prison.

But it wouldn’t hurt to be cautious.

‘Even if Cedric doesn’t have any allies… I certainly have plenty of enemies. It’s possible one of them helped him.’

One person came to mind.

Someone who had no connection to the Winder family yet had consistently been an obstacle to Vanessa Winder and had troubled the protagonists throughout the original story.

The Crown Prince of the Empire, Leo Ignarium.

Just thinking of that snake-like face made me feel nauseous.

‘I can’t say for sure if he’s behind this… but I should be wary of him.’

After quickly organising my thoughts, I gave an order to my servant.

“Make sure this news doesn’t reach Lady Locke.”

“Yes, I’ll make sure the entire household is on alert.”

“Good. And as for Cedric Henry…”

The servant and knights in the room were waiting for my next words with tense anticipation.

“Find him, dead or alive. I want him on his knees before me.”

“Yes, madam! We will carry out your orders!”

With a resounding reply, the servants rushed out of the room.

‘So, he dared to lay a hand on Lilliana and then run away?’

My Lilliana still hadn’t fully recovered from her injuries… How dare Cedric think he could escape after all that?

Clenching my fists, I made a vow.

‘I’ll make sure he regrets not staying in that prison.’

It was time to show him why they called me the villainess.

“Huff, huff! Damn it… Damn those fools!”

Cedric cursed as he gasped for breath, running as fast as his legs would carry him.

Escaping the prison had been the easy part. Freedom, or so he thought.

But now, he was on the run.

‘Where can I hide?’

At first, he considered going back to his estate. There was plenty of money stashed in the vault; he could take it and flee abroad.

However, when he reached the outskirts of the estate, he saw armed knights surrounding the place.

He didn’t need to guess who had sent them—the insignia on their uniforms was all too familiar.

‘Vanessa Winder…! That woman again!’

She must have deployed the knights as soon as she heard of his escape.

‘Of all people, I can’t be captured by her! She’s insane!’

Left with no choice, Cedric abandoned the idea of returning home and desperately searched for another place to hide.

After wandering aimlessly for what felt like an eternity, he finally found somewhere—underneath a bridge.

‘Nobody comes down here… I should be safe.’

It seemed like the perfect place. No one would notice if anything happened down here. The ideal hiding spot.

Exhausted from his frantic run, Cedric let out a long sigh and prepared to sit down.

But just as he was about to rest—

“Ah!”

A powerful hand grabbed the back of his neck. The sudden pain made Cedric cry out, thrashing in panic.

“Who, who are you? What do you want from me…?!”

Could it be one of the knights sent after him? Unable to turn around, Cedric couldn’t see his assailant. He tried to act innocent, as though he were just a helpless civilian, but his captor clearly knew who he was.

“A criminal wandering the streets in broad daylight… Now, that’s a bit of a problem, isn’t it?”

The intense pressure was crushing him as if he were about to suffocate at any moment. Gagging, Cedric continued his struggle.

“Let… let go! Let… ugh!”

But there was no way he could overpower the man’s sheer strength.

“Not only did you try to mess with Vanessa, but you also dared to lay a hand on my sister.”

The man threatened him menacingly, but Cedric couldn’t even hear his voice.

Without even understanding the identity of his assailant, Cedric began to lose consciousness under the dark bridge. In the darkness, blue eyes gleamed—a hunter’s gaze.