♡ TL: Khadija SK
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“You pretended that you had changed, but you still haven’t forgotten His Highness the Crown Prince and want to harass me as usual, don’t you? You still harbor love in your heart.”
“No. It’s just that I don’t want to stand against Miss Yvonne.”
Even though Annette knew that Yvonne wouldn’t believe her words, she still didn’t feel comfortable tormenting the female lead and ruining her life like the villains in novels.
So, she hoped Yvonne would be convinced by her words.
In order to change the course of this world and return to her own, Annette had to break the love between the two, yet she was hesitant to do so herself because she was the one who had witnessed Yvonne and Hugo’s love story as a reader of the novel.
“Please leave.”
Yvonne firmly pointed toward the door.
This time, Annette nodded.
“And one more thing. Don’t be kind without reason, and don’t live your life with excessive goodness. If you live in a room where you don’t even own ten dresses and can’t pick up a wounded animal from the street to treat it, your future will be extremely difficult. Now that I’ve made this clear to you, I will take my leave.”
Annette disappeared faster than she had appeared.
Yvonne stood there, bewildered, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
She was staring at the empty space when the household maid approached her.
“You should have informed me in advance that you were expecting a guest. Who will clean up all this mess now?”
The maid’s unreasonable scolding of Yvonne began once again.
These words pained Yvonne’s heart more than Annette’s harsh remarks ever had.
Annette had a reason to harass Yvonne—she saw her as the woman who had stolen Hugo, the man she had loved first before Yvonne appeared—but the maid had no reason to bully her.
People said that Annette was jealous of Yvonne, but in reality, it was Yvonne who envied Annette.
Rather, Yvonne envied Annette’s lifestyle.
No matter how many evil deeds Annette committed, the home she returned to at the end of the day was a palace, not a shabby room in the house of relatives who despised her.
Everyone feared her and didn’t dare utter a word in her presence.
On the other hand, what about Yvonne?
She had come to the city of Laider from the countryside, yet she was in a situation where she couldn’t even respond to the maid’s bullying.
Others described Yvonne as a lucky woman who had captured the Crown Prince’s love, but the reality was far different.
Her position was uncertain, as she hadn’t even received a marriage proposal from Hugo yet.
She knew better than anyone that marriage was impossible due to her social status.
But she was greedy.
Hugo gave her things sweeter than honey, while in her own room, it was difficult for her to even find a single sugar cube to sweeten her bitter, cold tea.
So, Yvonne was fascinated by the jewels and luxurious trinkets she had never seen before in her life, yet her pride prevented her from pursuing them.
That was why she continued to feel as if a painful wound was being prodded.
The moment Yvonne first saw Hugo, she instinctively felt that she had no choice but to love him, and that was exactly what happened.
However, the more they met, the more they felt strange emotions that people called love.
It was definitely mutual admiration, but it wasn’t pure or desperate Platonic love.
But regardless of what kind of bond they shared, the outcome remained the same.
Yvonne was well aware of the cost of a crown prince lusting after a poor woman just because of her beauty—beauty she could lose at any moment.
So, the only guarantee was the word love.
That was why Yvonne had to appear before the Crown Prince as a pitiful woman who devoted herself to Hugo with a pure heart, in order not to lose his temporary interest in her.
Because only in this way could she escape from the hell she was living in.
And as a result of all these thoughts…
…while Yvonne doubted her feelings for Hugo, she desperately denied Annette’s love for him in her heart.
Because otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to pursue Hugo due to her own principles and morals.
She had thought countless times about breaking up with him because of the guilt she felt every time she told him she loved him.
But on the other hand, unlike Annette, who lived a life of luxury, Yvonne couldn’t afford to let go of Hugo and return to her hell.
No, she had learned not to let go of him.
Although she was the daughter of an aristocrat who had lost his status and become a commoner, she didn’t want to lose her pride and beg to survive.
Her mind, which wanted to live comfortably, and her other mind, which did not want to break her parents’ teachings, were fighting at every moment.
Yvonne opened the box that Annette had left behind.
It contained expensive lace gloves.
Annette was just like Hugo.
If she didn’t like something, she could get rid of it in an instant and buy new ones. But Yvonne was someone who couldn’t obtain anything, even if she adores it.
The hand holding the glove tightened its grip while her eyes welled with tears.
Yvonne thought of Annette, who lived the opposite of her and did evil things, yet was more aristocratic than anyone else.
Yvonne continued staring at the beautiful gloves that she would never be able to buy in her lifetime, then looked at the maid who was cleaning the already clean floor while grumbling.
“Get back to work.”
“Who do you think you are to order me around?”
“Is this how you behave toward your masters?”
“I don’t see any master here.”
“I am also one of your masters. You should not treat me so rudely.”
Yvonne walked out onto the street, leaving the maid in shock at her reaction, which she had never shown before. She ran straight to the clothing store, put on all the clothes Annette had bought for her, and adjusted them to her size.
Yvonne looked up at the sky as she left the store after fitting her clothes.
Nothing had changed except that the sun had slightly set.
“Her Highness was right after all. There’s nothing wrong with having a few decent clothes.”
It was incredibly easy.
Yvonne had thought the sky would collapse when her pride did, but nothing happened to this world at all.
She had learned from her parents that she must always be kind and live a good life.
They told her to take pride in being the daughter of her noble father and to maintain that pride until death.
They told her that if she accepted help from the enemy without reason, she would pay the price.
“Come to think of it, my father is dead now.”
Yvonne’s father had lived with that mentality and died after losing his lands and committing suicide.
It had been extremely uncomfortable when she forced herself to admit her love for the Crown Prince, but it became easier when she yielded a little and embraced her arrogant and selfish mind.
Yvonne finally admitted it.
Her love for Hugo was impure, and she was, in truth, a selfish woman.
She was jealous of Annette, but she blamed her because she didn’t want to break her parents’ will and become selfish and unkind.
Something had begun to change in Yvonne’s heart.
She didn’t even realize that Annette had already touched her changing heart.
Annette’s words had influenced her in a very subtle way.
Yvonne burst into tearful laughter at herself, pathetic as she was, in the middle of the street.
The only thing that had changed by living like Annette was her wardrobe, which had become full.
But she did not want to be evil like Annette.
What was the point of being respected to your face while being pointed at and plotted against behind your back?
What if Yvonne did something Annette had never done before?
At that moment, a carriage sped past a stunned Yvonne.
The moment she screamed, unable to avoid it…
“Watch out!”
Someone saved her.
***
The five days Annette had promised her aunt Cassilia had passed.
It felt like a long time because the last few days had been eventful, but in reality, it was not long at all.
In particular, these five days were a very short period for the Scheringen family to gather all their blood relatives, who were scattered across the empire.
At the very least, many relatives were gathered in the capital, Laider, thanks to the social season, allowing the key figures to convene in the meeting hall today.
Many people flocked to the palace one after another—whether close relatives, distant kin, or even aristocrats with loose ties to the family.
Upon entering the palace, they stopped in front of the giant eagle tapestry.
The eagle standing on the crescent moon evoked awe in strangers and pride in the hearts of the Scheringen family.
For decades, the eagle had gazed into the eyes of those who came and went from the palace.
Likewise, in Scheringen’s lands, the cries of eagles could be heard day and night in the sky.
Those gathered in groups of three or four mocked Annette’s audacity or questioned her sanity when she declared that she would become the new head of the family today.
This was after each of them had considered who might become the new family head and aligned themselves accordingly.
“She said she would inherit the title of Marquise, yet she hasn’t even brought the family head’s ring. I heard she quarreled with Lady Cassilia over it, but that only shows her lack of ability to lead the family even before starting the succession war.”
“The real problem is that a woman decided to become the head of the family. The previous family head, who loved her so much and appointed her as his successor, was an even bigger issue. I have opposed his reckless decision ever since.”
“She should have continued chasing after the prince she loves or submissively married some man. How dare a girl with nothing special besides her pretty face attempt to stand above us men.”
After chatting for a while, the moment Cassilia passed by them, all the whispers quieted at once.
When Cassilia cast a sideways glance at them, everyone instinctively lowered their heads.
Cassilia was never any better than Annette.
There was plenty for people to say about a woman whose husband suddenly died, who took her son with her, left her husband’s family, and began living alone.
Now that she had arrived, the subject of gossip would shift from Annette to Cassilia.
The eagle hanging on the wall had heard everything about the past—even back then when Cassilia cried bitterly and was punished by her furious father for wanting to become the next head of the family decades ago.
“If we had known in advance that Burkhart would die young, it would have been better for Cassilia to become the head of this family. Perhaps her husband would have made a more suitable family head than that reckless girl.”
(T/N: Burkhart is Annette’s father’s name.)
“I remember seeing her scream as a child, asking why she couldn’t become the family head. That child’s eyes were filled with hatred, and so were her words.”
Amidst the loud chatter of the attendees, a moment of silence spread through the place.
Annette had arrived at the palace.
She stepped down from the large carriage and entered with pride.
Unlike the others, who wore extravagant clothing to flaunt their wealth, Annette was dressed in a simple black dress, the same kind she had worn at the cathedral, reminding them of a funeral atmosphere.
But this time, she wasn’t wearing a veil, and her face was fully exposed.
Her innocent features and firm demeanor made her graceful steps stand out.
As she walked with effortless elegance, those who had spoken ill of her just moments ago broke into a cold sweat.
She didn’t even look at them, yet it felt as if she was screaming in their faces.
They knew she possessed something that made them feel this kind of tension.
She had the eyes of her father — those of a predator eagle soaring in the sky.
Before her, everyone swallowed dryly, all realizing it at the same time.
Annette was no longer the hot-tempered little harlot she used to be.
She had become the mature heir who could dominate them with a single glance.
After exchanging gazes without a word, they all rushed toward the banquet hall.
Their instincts warned them that something terrible would happen if they entered the hall after Annette.
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T/N: I’ve honestly started liking Yvonne a lot ^^
She’s not perfect, but she’s definitely not a bad person either… There’s something about her that makes me believe she’d shine as a female lead ಥ_ಥ
She has so much potential to be captivating, with her strengths and flaws adding to her charm ꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡
I hope nothing bad happens to her ( ˘ ³˘)
