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

“You are as beautiful as ever, just like the way I loved you.”

Tristan whispered those words into Vanessa’s ear with a sweet smile.

Words he had suppressed since the day they met again after a long time.

Did you even know? Do you have any idea how I felt every time I faced you?

Ever since the day Vanessa abruptly cut off contact, Tristan hadn’t been able to forget her, not even for a moment.

Even when he learned she was getting married, even when he faced death on the battlefield, she was always at the center of his thoughts.

Although he couldn’t fully express the feelings he had harbored for the past seven years, he hoped that at least some part of his sincerity would reach her. Tristan earnestly wished for this.

But it seemed Vanessa intended to act as though she didn’t know.

“I-I don’t understand what you’re talking about at all.”

Of course, Tristan wasn’t the type to back down because of that.

“I’m hurt by such words, Vanessa. Please, treat me comfortably like before. You used to always call me by my name.”

Despite his honest words, she maintained a calm expression, as if she wasn’t flustered.

But one can’t hide the subtle tremor in their eyes.

Tristan was sure of it. Vanessa was being swayed by his words.

Though he couldn’t be certain of exactly what she thought of him… for now, this much was enough.

At least she hadn’t completely forgotten about their past.

‘Perhaps I should retreat for now.’

In any case, she had already signed the contract, so Vanessa couldn’t run away or hide from him anymore.

There was no need to burden her excessively at this moment.

Instead, it would be wiser to slowly but surely close in on her, preventing any escape.

There was plenty of time before the contract expired.

Tristan intended to see it through to the end.

Noticing the nervousness she couldn’t hide, Tristan spoke softly.

“Though I have long dreamed of this reunion and do not wish to let you go so easily… you seem quite shocked, so I suppose I must yield for now.”

“…”

“I’m sorry for causing you confusion. But I am glad. Even if you spent the last seven years forgetting about me… at least today, you’ll think of me a lot.”

“…Your Grace, the Duke of Locke, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“I truly missed you, Vanessa.”

With that, Tristan smiled once more.

Vanessa pressed her lips together, as though unsure of what to say.

“As much as I’d like to escort you myself, doing so might make you uncomfortable. I’ll call for a servant.”

He called for the servant waiting outside and gave him an order.

“Escort Lady Winder safely back to her estate.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

As the servant appeared, Vanessa hurriedly followed him with quick steps.

Watching her flee, Tristan fell deep into thought.

In truth, the reunion Tristan had long dreamed of wasn’t like this.

But on the day he went to meet Vanessa, using the 10 billion that Liliana had received as an excuse, Tristan was met with cold reality.

The last time he had spoken with Vanessa was seven years ago.

It had been as long as twelve years since they’d last seen each other in person.

For all those long years, he had missed her without fail, every single day… but when they finally met again, Vanessa didn’t seem pleased at all. In fact, she seemed uncomfortable.

*‘The Duke of Locke is truly rude, coming to another’s estate at such a late hour.’*

She pretended not to know him. Vanessa had made it clear with her attitude that she was acting as though she didn’t remember him.

Tristan quickly realized.

Unlike him, Vanessa wished to erase their shared past, as if it had never happened.

She was anxious, fearing that I might bring up the past.

‘Does she hope that I’ve forgotten all of our past feelings?’

Tristan realized that if things continued like this, she might run away before they could even have a proper conversation. So, he decided to act the way she wanted.

He suppressed his rising affection for her and thoroughly hid his feelings, treating her as if he, too, had forgotten the past and interacting with her only in a professional manner.

Fortunately, unlike his younger days when he couldn’t hide his emotions, Tristan had grown into an adult who could now wear a mask.

Vanessa was deceived by his act and appeared relieved.

However, seeing the calmness return to her face didn’t make Tristan feel any better.

Even though he had accommodated her wishes, the look in her eyes showed she still wanted to avoid him.

Even during the brief moment when they were going over the contract today, Vanessa gave the impression that she desperately wanted to leave.

‘If I let her go like this… I may never see her again.’

She would surely handle matters related to the import contract through a representative, avoiding him entirely.

But Tristan had no intention of letting things end this way, despite how sorry he felt for her.

That’s why he had resorted to an absurd pretext.

Speaking nonsense about mutual trust, he ensured that she couldn’t escape from him in the future.

He knew it.

Vanessa didn’t want him to act this way.

But now, even Tristan couldn’t back down.

Fifteen years.

He had waited for her, ever since he was only ten years old.

‘Vanessa, now I must give in to my own desires.’

As she walked away, Tristan once again made up his mind.

This time, he would not let her go.

Several days had passed since my encounter with Tristan, but I still couldn’t clear my head.

His voice, confessing that his heart remained unchanged from the past, echoed in my mind all day long.

‘It’s already been seven years… and his feelings are still the same.’

I might have anticipated it, just a little.

Even though it had been a long time since we severed ties, I had occasionally heard rumors that he had rejected proposals and matchmaking.

‘But… there’s no way I can accept his feelings.’

I didn’t know how I should act going forward, and my mind was in turmoil.

But time wasn’t waiting for me, even though I hadn’t come to any conclusion.

Time flew by quickly, and I had already had two more bridal lessons with Lilliana.

And today was the day of the next lesson.

‘Come to think of it, Tristan isn’t my only problem right now.’

Over the past few days, another concern had arisen.

It was about Lilliana.

The initial purpose of the bridal lessons was to scare Lilliana and show her how fearsome of a mother-in-law I could be.

The plan was to make her decide it would be better to break up with Jeremyon than to endure the stress of dealing with me.

But now, I didn’t even have that chance. Lilliana had shown nothing but perfection in every lesson.

“Mother, I’ve finished making the beef bourguignon!”

“Alright, let’s see if it’s worth eating.”

Standing beside her, with her eyes shining eagerly for my evaluation, I took a bite of the beef.

As soon as it entered my mouth, I could feel the perfectly cooked tender beef blending harmoniously with the right seasoning.

I despaired and inwardly cried out.

‘There’s… there’s nothing to criticize!’

During the last few lessons, Liliana had been improving endlessly.

She was so diligent that she practiced what she learned from me at home, and the result was what I saw now.

She no longer needed me to show her recipes; she could cook competently on her own.

She had grown confident, and the fear she once had toward me had all but disappeared.

I had intended to make her feel small, but instead, Liliana had only grown.

‘Of course, I’m happy to see my child grow! Truly, I’m happy! But still…’

The original goal had long vanished, leaving me feeling frustrated.

And on top of that, her relationship with Jeremyon had only grown stronger.

It happened when she was preparing to make tomato spaghetti after the beef bourguignon.

Suddenly, Jeremyon barged in, saying he needed to talk to her, and took Liliana away.

‘Ha… have their relationship really changed from what it was in the original story?’

At this point, they were supposed to have a strained relationship, but they only seemed to grow closer.

They couldn’t even wait, pulling her away during lessons to talk! How passionate must they be?

Still holding the uncooked spaghetti in my hands, I sighed.

‘I can’t let this go. I need to see for myself just how close they’ve become.’

If they truly were in love… then I would have to give up on my original plan.

I’d have to stop urging them to break up and instead support the two of them.

Forgetting to put down the spaghetti, I headed in the direction they had disappeared.

But something felt strange.

The closer I got to them, the more I heard what sounded like a man shouting.

‘No way…’

I quietly tiptoed closer to where they were.

“Why! Why do you keep hanging around in front of me? What’s your reason for doing this?!”

“I haven’t been doing that.”

“Don’t give me that! You took money in exchange for leaving me, so why do you keep showing up? What’s your real motive?!”

“…”

“I hear you’re even taking bridal lessons now. Are you planning to marry another man after learning from my mother in my own house? Huh?!”

As I got closer, I could clearly hear the sound of their argument.

Jeremyon’s voice was rough, as if venting his anger, and I was about to open the door to stop him.

But at that moment, what I saw shocked me.

Jeremyon was gripping Lilliana’s wrist harshly.

He was holding her wrist so tightly that it had turned red.

“Jeremyon!”

The shocking scene made me lose my cool in an instant.

I slapped Jeremyon across the face with the uncooked spaghetti I was still holding.

Snap!

The spaghetti in my hand broke into two pieces, scattering in the air.

The clean floor was now littered with strands of spaghetti scattered everywhere.