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

The person who imprisoned Count Henry in the original work wasn’t me, but Jeremyon.

Jeremyon, upon discovering that I was not the one who killed his father, later uncovered the Count’s crimes.

This led to quite a significant incident in the latter part of the original story.

As the Count was taken away, Cedric burned with a desire for revenge against Jeremyon.

At first, he denied reality, but when his father’s execution was decided, he became enraged. Eventually, he aimed to take Jeremyon’s life.

Unaware of these circumstances, Jeremyon was caught off guard and fell victim to Cedric. Fortunately, he survived, but he sustained serious injuries from the incident.

Upon hearing the news that Jeremyon had nearly died, the kind-hearted Lilliana took care of him. This occasion slightly improved the previously strained relationship between the two.

‘This is the flow of the original story, so… something similar could happen to me.’

Thus, from the day I imprisoned Count Henry, I had been secretly investigating Cedric’s movements.

Unlike in the original, the target of his revenge would be me instead of Jeremyon.

I diligently checked whether he was purchasing weapons suitable for assassination or following me.

And the result was right here.

I skimmed through the report filled with information about Cedric.

Indeed, it seemed he was preparing various things to take my life.

‘At this point, he must be ready to kill me… but he hasn’t acted yet because the Count’s fate hasn’t been decided.’

It seemed he was dreaming of the slim chance that his father would escape execution…

But I can say with certainty: that won’t happen. The Count not only tried to kill my husband but also aimed to kill me.

Even if such a thing were to happen, I won’t let it be. He must be punished.

‘They said the verdict will come in two days.’

Then, Cedric would likely execute his plan around that time.

But I have no worries.

I had already completed all my preparations against him.

While Jeremyon may have fallen to Cedric, my case is different.

‘I’m not a soft person like Jeremyon.’

I smiled confidently. Now, all I had to do was set a trap to catch him and wait.

Once I eliminate the threat that is Cedric…

‘Then I’ll tell Lilliana. I enjoy being with her too.’

As much as I wanted to be honest right now, I couldn’t because there was a possibility Liliana would get involved.

‘So please wait a little longer, Lilliana. I’ll call for you once I sort things out.’

Thinking of that lovely girl, I stood up.

“Vanessa Winder! Vanessa Winder! That damn woman!”

The mansion of the Henry viscount family, a collateral branch of the Winder count family.

Inside, a man who seemed to have just come of age was shouting wildly.

His name was Cedric Henry.

He was the only son of Count Henry, who had been arrested on charges of attempting to poison Vanessa.

“Because of that damn woman…!”

Cedric exhaled harshly and collapsed onto the floor.

Just a few minutes ago, he had managed to maintain a somewhat calm state, but there was a reason for his sudden anger.

It was the news that had just reached him about his father.

‘My father is to be executed…’

Cedric’s uncontrollable rage bubbled up.

‘Why should my father be executed in the first place? The ones at fault are those Winder bastards!’

Count Henry was accused of two crimes. The first was instigating the death of the previous Winder count, and the second was attempting to murder his wife, Vanessa Winder.

But Cedric couldn’t understand why that meant his father had to be executed.

The real villains were those greedy Winder family scum. They had amassed so much wealth yet refused to share even a bit with the collateral branches, like a bunch of greedy pigs!

“My father was just trying to punish them! Why does he have to die!”

Crash!

He threw a lamp, shattering the glass everywhere.

Shards flew into his hand, causing blood to spill.

Seeing the bright red blood reminded him of someone’s face.

Vanessa Winder.

That insane woman with blood-red eyes that were grotesque.

The root of all the trouble.

In that moment, Cedric made a resolution.

‘Yes, I’ll kill her. I’m fully prepared. I just need to execute it. And if I kill that damn woman… everything will be resolved!’

His father, who was about to be executed, would surely want this.

Revenge was undoubtedly the best filial duty he could perform.

“…Just wait a little longer, Father. I will kill that crazy woman.”

It was then, while he was murmuring alone in the dark corner of the room.

Knock, knock.

There was a sound of someone knocking on the door.

Startled, Cedric grabbed a knife and hid it behind him.

Who could possibly come here at this late hour? It could just be a passerby, but something felt off.

‘Could it be that Vanessa Winder has already caught wind of my plan?’

If it were that cunning woman, it wouldn’t be surprising.

Cedric quickly secured an escape route in case he needed to flee and opened the door.

However, the visitor was neither a simple passerby nor a knight sent by Vanessa Winder.

It was a man in a black robe, his identity unknown.

When he revealed an emblem engraved with a golden lion, Cedric collapsed in shock.

“Lily, you seem to be in a good mood?”

“…Is it that obvious?”

Unknowingly grinning, Lilliana felt a bit embarrassed and tried to lower the corners of her mouth. However, that effort didn’t last long. Just a few seconds later, a giggle escaped her lips.

“You’ve been skipping meals all this time, but today you’re eating well. Eat more.”

Tristan pushed a plate on the table toward Lilliana. On another day, she might have refused, saying she couldn’t eat, but today, Lilliana didn’t do that.

‘Since I promised Mrs. Winder…! I have to eat well and show her that I’m healthy next time.’

With a smile on her face, she picked up a piece of meat that had been cut up with her fork. Just as she was chewing, Tristan asked.

“Have you resolved things with Mrs. Winder?”

Oh! Lilliana was so surprised that she nearly choked. She had intended to hide what happened with Vanessa, but had she already been found out?

“Did you know?”

“I was just guessing, but seeing your reaction now, I’m sure of it. So, did you resolve it well?”

“Uh, yeah.”

Lilliana answered hesitantly. To be honest, not everything had been completely resolved.

‘Mrs. Winder did say she would call me again… but that’s all.’

She hadn’t yet received forgiveness or been granted permission to be close.

Still, Lilliana felt quite uplifted by the current situation.

Vanessa, who had once treated her coldly and said they should never see each other again, had changed even a little for the better.

Just the small hope that their relationship might improve made Lilliana happy.

“Your answer isn’t very clear, is it?”

“Yeah, the truth is, not everything is resolved yet… But… I feel like my sincerity reached the lady, even just a bit. I feel good. I think she didn’t push me away because she hated me.”

As she was rambling on, a sudden thought of something Jeremyon had said crossed her mind.

– My mother pushing you away… there must be another reason. It’s not because she hates you.

– Do you really think so, Jeremyon?

– Yeah, she’s that kind of person. I didn’t know it during the past seven years… but now I understand.

As he spoke, Jeremyon had fallen into a reminiscence. His black eyes were filled with regret for the past.

At that time, she hadn’t thought deeply because she was too preoccupied with him, but later, questions arose.

If, as Jeremyon said, there really is another reason why Vanessa is pushing her away… what could that possibly be?

Lilliana began to think of the things that could happen when she was close to Vanessa.

As a figure known as the ultimate villainess, it seemed likely she would receive disapproving glances in high society.

‘But what does that matter? I don’t care what fools who can’t even recognize how wonderful Mrs. Winder is have to say.’

However, Lilliana soon realized that even if she thought that way, Vanessa might think differently.

‘Could it be… that she was really worried about that?’

If her assumption was correct, Lilliana wanted to talk to Vanessa immediately. If she could just be allowed to be by her side, then that wouldn’t be a problem at all for her.

“Brother.”

“Yes?”

“I have something I really want to say to Mrs. Winder. But for some reason, I get so nervous that my mind goes blank whenever I stand in front of her… What should I do?”

“How about writing a letter?”

“A letter?”

“Yes, she likes exchanging letters. There are things that can’t be conveyed just by words.”

Normally, Lilliana would have questioned how her brother knew the lady’s preferences, but at that moment, she was too preoccupied to think about it.

“A letter… That sounds like a good idea. Thank you!”

Feeling pleased that she had found a good method, Lilliana nodded to herself.

“Should I go out tomorrow to buy some pretty stationery?”

There was plenty of stationery in the mansion, but since it was for Mrs. Winder, she wanted to put in as much care as possible.

Now that she thought about it, she had heard there was a store that sold nice stationery.

‘I should check that out.’

She was eager to write a letter filled with her sincere feelings as soon as possible.