If You Wish For My Death (6 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 9
Veronica obediently put down her pen and came to sit beside him.
Harry scrutinized his daughter’s face carefully and spoke.
“Veronica, my dear. Are you really not unwell anywhere? Please be honest with your father.”
But no matter how he looked, there was no sign of illness in Veronica. Instead, she gave him a look that seemed to ask why he’d suddenly come and asked such a question.
“It’s just that… lately, you seem different.”
“How so?”
“Well, you seem very… mature.”
In truth, it wasn’t just maturity—he also sensed a strange, imposing aura—but Harry chose his words carefully for now.
Veronica, who had seemed to be thinking for a moment, pursed her lips.
“I’ve been childish until now. Despite being the daughter of Duke Hardness, I’ve acted far too unbecomingly. Even if you never showed it outwardly, Father, I’m sure I’ve caused you much frustration—perhaps even shame, wondering where such a daughter came from, wishing to slap me, and regretting having me.”
“No, no, not at all like that.”
Harry hastily waved both hands. He truly never felt ashamed of Veronica.
She was his only daughter, born at the risk of his beloved wife’s life—how could he ever feel shame? He’d never once regretted having such a daughter.
“You were just like any other child your age.”
“But there must have been times you wished you could pretend not to notice.”
“…”
He couldn’t deny that.
“Now, I want to become a daughter you can be proud of—someone worthy of being the daughter of Duke Hardness. That’s why I’m striving harder. And I must also become a fiancée worthy of His Highness Prince Cassian.”
At those final words, Harry grew gloomy.
“…Your father truly is sorry.”
He really should have delayed the engagement.
Veronica had never had an arranged fiancé.
While other noble families betrothed their children from a young age, Harry never did so. He rejected all such proposals.
He wished for Veronica to choose her own future husband.
He wanted her to marry someone she truly loved, not someone forced upon her.
It had been unfortunate that Veronica had pined so desperately for the Fourth Prince that she fell gravely ill with fever. He’d felt relieved when she said she’d let go of those feelings and found new love.
Though surprised and even bewildered by her unexpected choice, he’d accepted and moved on.
However, just because they’d become engaged didn’t mean the formal betrothal ceremony had to happen immediately.
They could have taken their time meeting gradually and built genuine affection before holding the ceremony—but the Emperor had acted far too hastily.
Worry clouded Harry’s face.
The engagement to the Fifth Prince seemed to have become a burden for Veronica. Could that be why she’d recently started acting so mature?
Harry’s heart grew even heavier.
She was only sixteen—still a child who needed adult guidance. Seeing this, Veronica gave a faint smile.
“Oh, Father. It was my own wish—I asked His Majesty myself.”
“We could have taken more time to reconsider.”
“I’m truly fine. I’m not acting like this because of pressure, so please don’t worry.”
But Harry’s anxiety only deepened.
And a few days later, an incident broke out.
A maid entered carrying a generous helping of delicious desserts. The young lady, their owner, sat on the sofa reading a book as usual.
Lately, Veronica hadn’t been eating her desserts much, yet snack time came punctually every day.
“Young Lady, today it’s strawberry pie.”
“Pour me tea first.”
“Yes, tea first.”
The maid turned the empty teacup and filled it with tea, then handed it to Veronica.
As Veronica sipped her tea, she didn’t even glance at the desserts.
The maid’s eyes drifted toward the strawberry pie. Its tempting appearance caught her attention.
Quickly, the maid took a piece and ate it. What had once been an act done only with Veronica’s permission had recently become something she did without asking.
She wasn’t alone—other maids had also started casually eating the Young Lady’s desserts as if it were perfectly natural.
After all, the Young Lady could always enjoy other delicious snacks, and as long as they flattered her a bit, she’d naively pretend to be generous and let it slide—so they weren’t afraid.
The maid who’d brought the dessert today was no different. She hastily devoured the pie.
Indeed, the pie—made carefully with expensive ingredients—was exceptionally delicious. The sweetness practically melted her tongue.
The plate was soon empty. The maid, stuffing her mouth until her cheeks bulged, suddenly sensed a gaze.
Looking up, she found Veronica already watching her, chin resting in her hand.
“Was it tasty?”
“Huh? Y-yes… it was delicious, Young Lady.”
Had she looked too greedy? The maid quickly chewed and swallowed, then wiped her mouth.
She worried more about her own unsightly appearance than about apologizing for stealing her mistress’s dessert.
Veronica stared intently at her face.
“How long have you worked here?”
“Oh, about three years.”
“I see—three years. That’s just about right.”
Confused by the incomprehensible remark, the maid watched as Veronica suddenly stood up.
She picked up the teapot. The maid’s puzzled eyes followed her movements.
Veronica lifted the lid off the teapot.
“You’re lucky—the tea’s nice and cool.”
“Huh?”
Then, with a gentle smile, she poured the tea over the maid’s head.
“Kyaaaah! Young Lady! What are you doing?!”
The maid jumped up in shock. Her hair and clothes were already soaked with tea. Her face twisted with anger as she turned toward Veronica.
Drops of water dripped from the now-empty teapot in Veronica’s hand. She herself looked utterly calm—strangely so.
“That’s what happens when you covet someone else’s things so freely.”
“Are you doing this just because I ate a dessert?!”
At that, Veronica silently smiled again. A chill ran down the maid’s spine. There’d been rumors lately that the Young Lady’s behavior had grown strange.
As the maid instinctively stepped backward, Veronica threw the teapot beside her.
“Kyaaaah!”
The maid screamed, covering her head.
The teapot shattered loudly against the floor. Staring at the broken pieces, the maid looked up at Veronica in horror.
“I’ve known all along that you’ve been stealing my things. I even knew you deliberately avoided the expensive items to keep me from noticing—you mainly took things I didn’t seem to care about. Sometimes you’d sweet-talk me, saying it was for my sake, just to take whatever you wanted.”
“—!”
A startled look crossed the maid’s face. H-how could she know?
By then, the commotion had drawn other servants into the room. Seeing the scene, they asked what had happened.
“The Young Lady threw water on me first!”
The maid protested indignantly, claiming Veronica had lashed out at her without provocation.
When Harry heard the news, he summoned Veronica privately.
He first asked her what had happened. Veronica offered neither excuse nor explanation—only a calm, single sentence.
“I grew tired of it.”
Harry was considerably flustered, though this wasn’t the first time. He sighed inwardly—his daughter’s bad habits were showing again.
He’d thought she’d been quiet lately. Rubbing his forehead, he remembered:
His daughter had always been greedy, yet equally quick to lose interest—even in people.
“Veronica, you can’t treat people like that just because you’ve grown tired of them.”
“She displeased me so much I couldn’t bear it.”
“…I’ll assign you a new personal maid.”
“How about just dismissing her instead?”
“What?”
“There are a few more people I’d like to get rid of while we’re at it—will you grant my request?”
Faced with such an audacious demand, Harry couldn’t hide his astonishment. He spoke seriously.
“Veronica, you can’t decide those things so lightly.”
“You’ll do it for me anyway.”
“…Has something happened?”
“You’re asking that question again.”
“It’s just… you used to tell me everything, even little things, but lately you haven’t said a word, so I’m worried. It feels like there’s something going on.”
“Every girl my age has secrets she wants to keep, Father. You don’t tell me everything either—you hide the truly important things.”
“I only do that so I won’t worry you.”
“I’m the same.”
“If there’s… something really going on, just tell me.”
At his cautious question, Veronica gave a short laugh.
“What could I possibly be hiding? You know how fickle I am. You said I’d become mature, but I suppose that’s not really true after all.”
The conversation ended there. Veronica remained resolute to the end.
She even handed him a list of the people she wanted dismissed before walking away.
Harry fell into deep thought. Could there have been some untold incident?
Quietly, he investigated the servants named on Veronica’s list.
To his surprise, he discovered that among those attending Veronica, quite a few had previously shown negligence, caused problems like bullying, and yet had been overlooked.
Some had secretly taken estate property, and others had even stolen Veronica’s personal belongings.
Those Veronica had personally selected were also among this group.
Normally, managing the household was the lady of the house’s duty—but there had been no one to do so until now.
Harry decided to take this opportunity to cut unnecessary expenses by reducing staff and thoroughly tidy up the estate.
He provided formal letters of recommendation to those leaving and generously rewarded those who had shown loyalty.
Though it appeared a harmonious resolution for both those who left and those who stayed, the true story was likely known only to Veronica herself.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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this chapter was extremely sad. I like the fact that the author keep emphasizing on her past life, like not to let go her trauma. I i have read many fast pace regression novels when as soon as fmc finds love everything else just goes really fast and nothing else matters almost as if forgetting the revenge which was suppose to be the priority, so far loving this novel i hope they don’t ruin it.
I can totally understand the fmc she don’t want fake friends cause she already has a experience where she thought someone was her friend but they where only using her for her status. I mean its always hard to trust people when u been betrayed badly. I can totally understand her having trust issues.
she must be thinking something really romantic is going on between them. If only she knew what her favorite is scheming in that head of hers.