Episode 1. Prologue
0. Revenge is Served with Money
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“I’d like you to grant me a divorce, Leticia.”
Clink.
The teacup rattled against its saucer.
Inside the sunlit conservatory, Leticia alternated her gaze between her husband sitting across from her and the delicate woman seated beside him.
The woman’s clothing, accessories, and even the perfume she wore—all of it…
“Leticia, the Marquis I’ll be working with this time is incredibly doting on his daughter. Could you help me pick out a gift for her? Women are better at these things, aren’t they?”
…were chosen personally by Leticia, at the request of her husband, Phaedan.
She had painstakingly selected only the finest items to avoid any embarrassment to her husband’s taste.
“I was planning to wait until after the Founding Festival out of consideration for you, but time is running short.”
“Phaedan—”
The woman beside Phaedan tried to stop him, reaching out as if to dissuade him.
But he grasped her frail hand, signaling reassurance, before delivering his news.
“Elise is pregnant.”
The warm gaze Phaedan directed at Elise quickly turned cold as he shifted his eyes to Leticia.
Not a shred of guilt could be seen in his expression.
“As you know, how many women want to hold their one-and-only wedding while heavily pregnant?”
Phaedan pressed Leticia for understanding and consideration, sliding a prepared divorce agreement toward her.
“I’ll make sure the alimony is generous, so take the time until the Founding Festival to sort out your feelings. There’s no need to drag this out unnecessarily, is there?”
Leticia stared quietly at the divorce papers in front of her before raising her hand.
At that, Phaedan stiffened, instinctively shielding Elise as though protecting her.
“I told you to fix that habit of yours—”
But Leticia’s hand moved not toward them, but to a gold call bell on the table.
As if mocking him, the bell rang out a crisp, clear sound.
Moments later, Leticia’s personal maid, Erin, appeared in the conservatory.
“You called for me, Madam?”
“Erin, please fetch my fountain pen.”
Leticia’s first words after hearing the announcement of her divorce were calm and composed.
‘Is she really accepting this so easily?’
Phaedan looked at her with suspicion.
The Leticia he knew would have cried, clung to him, or even struck Elise.
She was a woman who loved him blindly, after all.
But the Leticia before him now seemed indifferent—no, even serene.
A faint smile even seemed to play on her lips.
‘No, there’s no way she’s letting this go quietly. She must be plotting something.’
Phaedan, who had always felt a twisted sense of superiority when she cried and begged, found her current demeanor unsettling.
Soon, Erin returned with the fountain pen.
Contrary to Phaedan’s expectations, Leticia quietly signed the papers he presented without a word.
And then—
Clap. Clap. Clap.
“Congratulations on the pregnancy.”
She clapped loudly, raising both hands, her face lit up with the brightest of smiles.
“If there’s nothing else, may I leave now?”
“…What?”
Phaedan looked up at her, dumbfounded.
The woman he thought would beg him to stay was now rising, her demeanor suggesting she had no lingering attachments.
“W-wait! Leticia!”
Phaedan scrambled awkwardly to his feet, but Leticia turned away and headed toward the mansion.
However, footsteps followed behind her.
“Wait a moment, madam…!”
A voice, delicate and trembling like a bird’s, called out.
It was Elise.
“Do you need something?”
“I just wanted to speak with you. His Excellency was worried, but you’re not the kind of person to harm a pregnant woman, are you?”
Right?
Elise rubbed her still-flat stomach conspicuously, wearing a smug smile filled with veiled superiority.
“I mean, I—actually—”
But before Elise could finish her sentence, Leticia approached her briskly and whispered something in her ear.
So softly that only Elise could hear.
“I’ve disliked you from the start.”
“…!”
Elise gasped, startled, her breath catching.
“How… How does she know? Did she read my thoughts?”
Her eyes wavered fiercely as she stared at Leticia.
“Which is why you lied about being pregnant. To get rid of me.”
“H-how did you—”
“Go ahead, tell His Excellency. But who do you think he’ll believe?”
Smiling faintly, Leticia gazed directly at Elise, whose mouth flapped wordlessly in shock.
“I knew.”
“What…?”
“All of it.”
“What are you saying—”
“Actually, I know the future.”
Elise could only gape at Leticia, unable to comprehend her words.
“Go ahead, tell Phaedan. But who do you think will believe you?”
Leticia threw back the very words Elise would have used on her before stepping away with a radiant smile.
“Thank you—for taking out the trash on my behalf.”
Her smile was dazzling.
She turned and walked away, her heels clicking lightly against the floor.
Click. Click. Click.
The sound of her footsteps grew distant, as light as her mood.
Because today—
Today was the day she had been waiting for so desperately.
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