It was raining at the Klaus mansion.

This investigation into Riona Klaus was by the Emperor’s strict order.

To thoroughly investigate the truth and punish severely.

There had never been such a brazen identity fraud in Turecian history.

“……”

Thus, in front of the imperial investigation team members was not only Count Liheim, but one more person.

The black hair was slightly wet and the golden eyes were glowing coldly.

As they arrived in front of the Duke’s residence, the servants hurriedly opened the doors.

“His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived.”

The employees and soldiers of the Duke’s household lowered their gaze before him.

Lying about identity fraud in front of royalty is an even greater crime, and two days ago Riona had lied in front of him, impersonating the princess of Smichen.

So he was also the best witness to this identity fraud scandal.

**

The sound of rain could be heard outside the window.

Esika handed Yuri the document she had placed on the desk.

Yuri’s face lit up when she saw the title of the document.

It was what Yuri had desperately wanted.

Yuri, who had not hidden her hostile feelings, suddenly changed her face and spoke tearfully.

“Esika……”

“Congratulations on achieving what you wanted. I hope you’ll deliver it to His Grace the Duke.”

Now, once this divorce request is agreed upon, the position of Duchess will be vacant.

The most likely candidate for that is Yuri herself, who is carrying Callian’s child.

Of course, the Grand Duchess would oppose, but it would be much easier than when Esika was here.

“……I didn’t have such bad feelings towards you.”

Yuri approached Esika and took her hand.

It was much colder than the Esika’s hand she knew, but there was no time to pay attention to such things.

“I just…… loved His Grace the Duke. That I got pregnant before you, that I won his heart first…… it was unavoidable.”

Yuri’s hand holding Esika’s was trembling.

Esika’s heart, which had even written a divorce request, must never change.

“Even if you divorce and live alone, I’ll always support you. Esika.”

“……”

“You were a great rival and my friend.”

If Esika leaves the Klaus Duke’s residence and she becomes the Duchess, Yuri had no intention of letting Esika live.

She had no plans to handle things carelessly like the falling Grand Duchess.

Yuri believed that she could raise Klaus again.

“Esika, thank you. My child will be grateful to you too.”

Yuri expressed her gratitude to Esika with sparkling eyes.

And as she let go of her hand……

Thud-

Esika’s hand fell to the floor with a thud.

Yuri’s eyes shook violently.

“……Esika?”

Because Esika, who had been sitting and holding her standing hand, had dropped her head.

Esika’s body was limp like a corpse.

She had been fine just a moment ago, so what on earth happened?

Just as Yuri stepped back a couple of steps in surprise.

Bang-

Esika’s room door opened roughly.

And there was Sella at the forefront, with several soldiers behind her.

Sella rushed urgently to Esika, who had lost consciousness and was slumped in the chair.

Yuri staggered as her shoulder was roughly pushed by Sella, but there was no time to protest to her.

“My lady! My lady! What happened?!”

Because Sella shouted as if screaming.

“My lady!! It’s Sella, please open your eyes.”

Sella shook Esika’s shoulders, but Esika did not open her eyes.

Sella, with tears in her eyes, ordered the soldiers.

“Quickly arrest that woman. She must have poisoned my lady!”

Hearing those words, the soldiers approached Yuri in unison.

Yuri waved her hands with an expression like she was about to faint in surprise.

“No… No…!”

But Sella’s next exclamation made it impossible for Yuri to escape.

“A divorce request…… You threatened my lady to write that!”

“No! Esika wrote that herself!”

But there was no way Yuri’s struggle would work.

The soldiers grabbed Yuri’s arms with firm hands.

Yuri struggled.

“Esika! Esika said she would divorce His Grace the Duke! I didn’t write it! I didn’t poison her!!”

But the doctor who rushed in immediately examined Esika’s condition.

And declared.

“Judging by her cold extremities and blue lips, she has clearly been poisoned!”

The commotion occurring in Esika’s room spread throughout the mansion.

And this news also reached Riona, who had been stamping her feet at the news of the Crown Prince’s arrival.

Riona asked with wide eyes.

“……That damned Esika?”

A smile reflexively spread across Riona’s pale face at the news of Esika being poisoned.

Is there such good news.

“Yes. The culprit is said to be Yuri.”

But at the words that Yuri was the culprit, the tip of Riona’s eyebrow twitched.

“Something…… is strange……”

The maids were putting a shawl back on Riona’s dress.

The smile that had momentarily appeared on Riona’s face was fading.

“They say Yuri threatened Esika. To write a divorce paper…… And then it seems she poisoned her.”

“Seeing Yuri’s conduct, it seems quite possible.”

“You fools.”

The maids flinched at Riona’s sharp reaction.

Riona’s eyes glowed darkly like a viper.

“Esika being threatened by that stupid Yuri and even getting poisoned? ……That’s nonsense.”

It was quite possible for the Esika of the past.

Because Esika of that time was innocent and stupid.

But the recently changed Esika had chilled even Riona’s guts several times.

She broke through the schemes Riona had cunningly prepared and returned them to her intact, or several times over.

Even though she knew Riona’s origins, she hid it and delivered it all at once like this, showing that she had already surpassed her.

So there’s no way such a one-dimensional threat from Yuri would work.

“……Esika did it.”

Riona muttered with a pale face.

It felt like a cool breeze was blowing even though the window wasn’t open.

Riona Klaus, she was once the villainess who dominated the family, but now there was a presence in this house that felt even greater than her.

Like a huge monster rising from the ground, that malice was enveloping this mansion.

“Esika Klaus used her head.”

Riona said, biting her nails.

The Klaus Duke’s family is now in decline.

Riona’s identity has been exposed and everyone must be laughing at Klaus.

And today, the Duke’s mistress carrying her husband’s child forces a divorce on the Duchess.

On top of making her write a divorce request, she tries to kill her by poisoning.

‘My goodness, how can there be such a vicious woman?’

‘Duke Klaus too…… He can’t even protect his own wife from his mistress.’

‘But doesn’t this incident remind you of the past? The previous Duke Klaus’s legal wife also left the mansion because of Riona Klaus.’

She seemed to hear the murmuring voices of people.

Esika exposed Riona’s bloodline and brought down Klaus’s honor.

And the situation happening now is surprisingly similar to what happened in the previous Duke Klaus’s household decades ago.

Riona of lowly blood, stealing the legal wife’s husband and threatening her to leave.

Yuri of lowly blood, stealing the legal wife’s husband and trying to kill her.

Just as the baby in the womb of Yuri, a criminal who tried to kill the legal wife, would be difficult to be seen as Klaus’s legitimate bloodline, now people will have the same thought looking at Callian Klaus.

Esika…… is not just cutting off branches but trying to uproot.

A perfect revenge against Yuri Anesis.

And against the Klaus Duke’s family……

“……!”

When her thoughts reached that point, Riona’s guts chilled.

What kind of picture had Esika Klaus been painting?

And where…… is that picture trying to go?

Riona’s heart was beating ominously.

Her breathing is getting faster and faster.

**

Esika uncovered the truth about Riona through Hans.

But that wasn’t the only task she entrusted to him.

Hans found a maid who had left the mansion not long ago.

It was a maid who had nearly been beaten to death on Riona’s orders, but whose life Hans had saved by sneaking her out.

From the moment she heard that news, Esika planned for today.

It would suit Yuri well to receive back exactly according to the evil deeds she had committed.

Esika sent a mental message to Sella when Yuri entered.

‘Come lead the soldiers. Say I’m not feeling well.’

Esika had used mental messaging with Sella about twice before when needed.

Mental messaging is a technique of transmitting one’s voice into another’s mind without speaking, using internal energy, and it’s not such a difficult technique.

Even a novice can do it if they can use internal energy moderately.

Of course, the people here don’t know about it.

Sella went to fetch the soldiers and Esika leisurely dealt with Yuri.

In fact, it was difficult for Esika, who had already acquired immunity to most poisons, to be poisoned.

But having seen countless poisoned people, it wasn’t difficult to imitate it.

Just control the pulse slowly, make hands and feet cold, lips blue, and……

Push the iron energy mixed in the blood to the body’s surface as much as possible.

Then it becomes a poisoned state indistinguishable even when a doctor comes.

Yuri had already been investigated by the ministry for writing a false letter that was no different from forgery.

So it’s also possible that she threatened the legal wife to write another false divorce request.

Although her eyes were closed, Yuri’s struggles echoing loudly in the room were quite enjoyable.

“It’s not me! It wasn’t me!”

Now it was time for her to receive back the sins she had committed.