That wasn’t the only suspicious thing.

Even the words relayed by the aide this afternoon were like that.

‘Her Highness has designated a maid as her personal attendant. They stay in the same space constantly, and even engage in friendly conversation.’

Upon hearing those words, Cedric let out a sardonic sneer.

Rebecca trembled at the thought of any woman being in the same mansion as Cedric, no matter who it was.

This applied not only to the servants, but even to Bianca, Cedric’s late-born younger sister.

That’s why that young child had been sent to take refuge alone in a townhouse in the capital.

There’s no way such a woman would…

But the aide continued to relay strange news.

‘That’s not all. One maid said that she helped lift her arms when changing dresses.’

‘…?’

‘And when putting on shoes, even though she brushed against the maid’s hand, there was no scolding at all.’

Cedric and the aide stared at each other’s faces for a while with expressions of disbelief.

‘And above all…’

At this point, the aide hesitated for a moment.

He looked as if he could hardly believe the words he was about to say himself.

‘The maids say she seemed to be in a much better mood than usual.’

‘…In a good mood?’

This was right after talks of divorce had come up.

Normally, this would have been when Rebecca’s obsession with the ‘imprint’ would have reached its peak.

But that woman was in a good mood?

The more Rebecca acted out of character, the more complicated Cedric’s thoughts became.

‘What on earth is she scheming this time?’

Rebecca Twins.

She was an opponent who could not be let down one’s guard against until the very end.

To Cedric, the current tranquility felt like the calm before the storm.

‘Whatever she’s planning, I must definitely divorce her this time.’

Cedric’s eyes sharpened as he brushed back his wet hair.

He immediately got up, hurriedly put on a robe, and stepped out the door.

Whatever Rebecca’s intentions were, he had to find out this time.

* * *

“Oh, perhaps you don’t like the scent? Should I add a different fragrance?”

Mina, who had been pouring lavender oil into the bathtub, asked hesitantly.

She seemed startled when I let out a sigh.

Although she still watched my reactions and sometimes spoke in a timid voice, Mina’s expression looked much more comfortable than before.

“No, it’s good.”

“Ah, you like it…”

Mina awkwardly raised the corners of her mouth.

It must be surprising to hear Rebecca, who always lived complaining and throwing tantrums, say something was ‘good’.

The horns that had sprouted on her head earlier had now disappeared.

According to Mina, young mixed-blood demons often sprout horns when their emotions become intense or when they’re frightened.

I stared blankly at Mina’s face, which still retained traces of girlhood.

Then, suddenly struck by an uneasy feeling, I narrowed my eyes and asked.

“You didn’t mix any poison in the oil, did you?”

“Oh no, of course not.”

“Well, I’m still the Duchess after all. It’s not the right time yet, is it?”

“Yes, not yet.”

Mina grinned broadly.

…That child has a talent for saying chilling things in a cheerful manner.

I sank deeper into the warm, fragrant bathtub.

‘Sigh… The situation has become more complicated than expected. How should I survive from now on?’

To avoid incurring Cedric’s antipathy any further, I needed to divorce him immediately.

However, if I divorced and left this castle right now, I would be as good as dead.

I needed time to gain the favor of the mixed-blood demons.

‘Is there a way to both divorce Cedric and gain the favor of the mixed-blood demons…’

It was then.

Another maid entered and bowed respectfully.

“Your Highness, His Grace the Duke has come to visit.”

“Cedric?”

I blinked in surprise at the unexpected visitor.

‘I just started bathing…’

Mina seemed even more surprised than I was at Cedric’s appearance.

“Oh, wh-what should we do, Your Highness? Should I prepare a dress right away? No, no! First, we should dry you off immediately and then quickly do your makeup…”

Mina started to panic, wiping her wet hands on her apron.

“What are you talking about? I just started bathing, I should at least finish roughly before going out.”

“Pardon? But Your Highness… Will that be alright?”

Mina looked at me strangely, as if my nonchalance was odd.

“Whenever the Duke comes, you always stop everything and rush out immediately.”

“…I do?”

Mina nodded with a puzzled expression.

“Yes, that’s why we always had to quickly prepare you so that you could receive the Duke at any time.”

“Oh my, did I really do that…”

“…Your Highness, is the rumor that you’ve lost your memories true?”

Mina asked worriedly.

However, I could only touch my cheeks awkwardly.

Literally, my face was burning with embarrassment.

‘The original Rebecca might have done that, but now that I think of it as my past, it’s mortifying beyond belief. Ugh…’

It seems Rebecca used to run out barefoot whenever Cedric came looking for her.

‘Cedric is fatally handsome, but still. What am I, a 5-minute standby team?’

I didn’t want to do that.

I didn’t want to waste the high-quality scented bath that Mina had worked hard to prepare, and above all.

I was no longer the previous Rebecca who desperately longed only for Cedric’s love.

‘Alright, from today I’m quitting the Cedric 5-minute standby team.’

I spread my arms wide in the bathtub and gestured to Mina.

“Continue. I’ll go out when we’re finished.”

Mina hesitated, rolling her round eyes.

“But it will take quite a while. I don’t think the Duke will wait that long…”

“Who told him to come without notice? And at this hour of the night, what business does he have with me?”

“Well, the Duke is Your Highness’s husband, and Your Highness is the Duke’s wife…”

Mina suddenly stopped speaking and seemed lost in thought for a while.

Soon after, her cheeks turned pink, and she bit her lip with an embarrassed expression, even twisting her body.

I wasn’t sure, but something tremendous must have happened in that small head of hers.

‘Mina, please calm down! It’s not like that!’

Rebecca had been rejected on her wedding night.

After that, she consistently demanded conjugal relations from Cedric, but Cedric, tired of her obsession, always refused Rebecca.

‘Such a Cedric wouldn’t have suddenly come to spend the night with me. I wonder why he came though.’

After pondering for a moment, I gestured to the maid who had come to inform me of Cedric’s visit.

* * *

“Your Grace, I apologize, but Her Highness has just started bathing…”

Usually, the message that followed was that she would be out soon, so please wait a moment. And true to those words, Rebecca would appear shortly after.

The problem was that each time, she would appear in lingerie, trying to seduce him.

That’s why Cedric was about to turn around as soon as he heard the word ‘bathing’.

However, the maid’s subsequent words were enough to make him stop in his tracks.

“She says she will try her best, but it will take quite some time. So if it’s not urgent, she asks that you not wait and return…”

The unfamiliar message, startling in its unexpectedness, continued.

“And she said to tell you that in the future, it would be best to refrain from visiting the Duchess’s chambers without prior notice.”

The maid kept tilting her head as she relayed the message.

It seemed even she found the words coming out of her own mouth unfamiliar.

Although he tried to act nonchalant in front of the maid, at that moment Cedric was extremely confused.

Since their last conversation about divorce, Rebecca’s behavior had been completely outside of Cedric’s expectations.

If it had been someone else, Cedric might have quickly accepted such a sudden change.

But this was Rebecca.

Just thinking about her made him feel like he was suffocating.

Rebecca’s obsession and possessiveness had become more extreme with each passing day, and now it had reached an unbearable point.

It was obvious that she would try to possess him by any means necessary.

Even if it meant putting on a thorough act like this.

“My wife could have told me directly. Tell her I’ll wait.”

So for the first time ever, he decided to wait for Rebecca.

He needed to meet her in person to gauge her intentions.

Only then could he prepare a suitable divorce plan accordingly.

Cedric was that desperate to divorce Rebecca.

.

.

.

How long had this unfamiliar wait continued?

A faint shadow fell over the teacup on the table.

When Cedric unconsciously looked up, his eyes met Rebecca’s, who was looking down at him with a smiling face.

“Cedric.”

It was clearly Rebecca’s voice.

But how could it sound so gentle and comfortable?

Moreover, she wasn’t desperately made up, nor was she in lingerie.

Rebecca, dressed in a neat cream-colored silk robe, just had a slightly flushed face, probably from being in the bathtub for a long time.

Under her red hair, which seemed to have been hastily tied up, her white nape still glistened with moisture.

The natural blush on her cheeks without makeup.

It was a fresh appearance he had never seen in their five years of marriage.

Cedric unconsciously turned his head slightly.

“What business brings you here?”

As Rebecca sat down on the sofa opposite him, a warm teacup was soon placed in front of her as well.

After taking a sip of tea, Rebecca slowly opened her mouth.

“It’s not that I mind, but I didn’t think you’d come looking for me at this hour without any business. I didn’t expect you to wait either.”

Her tone seemed to be reproaching his wait.

At that moment, Cedric recalled what the aide had told him.

‘Has she really changed as a person?’

For a moment, he even had such a thought.

But the wall of distrust built up over years was solid.

“I heard you designated a personal maid.”

“Oh, you mean Mina?”

“Mina?”

Cedric’s arched eyebrows rose high.

“…That’s unexpected. Didn’t you hate any woman in the Twins castle, no matter who it was? Even if it was a man, if they were close to me.”

“I’m going to stop such behavior now. It only makes me look foolish.”

Cedric doubted his ears.

‘Did that woman just say…’

He frowned at the unbelievable words, but only for a moment.

‘Ah, is this part of her plan too?’

The woman in front of him was Rebecca.

He had momentarily forgotten that fact, surprised by her continuous changed behavior.

“It’s a pity. If your realization had come a little earlier, it would have been good.”

“Indeed.”

Rebecca nodded compliantly.

‘She really doesn’t know when to stop.’

The muscles on Cedric’s clenched jaw stood out.

“What I mean is, even if you change now, I have no intention of withdrawing the divorce.”

By this point, Rebecca would surely be unable to hold back any longer.

Soon, all sorts of tantrums and clinging would start and continue all night.

Just as he was feeling suffocated at the mere imagination, it happened.

“The same goes for me.”

A voice too calm and clear.

It was certainly a response completely different from his expectations.

As if mocking Cedric for doubting his own ears, Rebecca emphasized once more.

“I’m definitely going to divorce you.”