Entering the luxurious room, Ariana headed straight for the dressing room. Far more spacious than the room Ariana used, the dressing room was filled with multiple closets and display cases.
The display cases housed expensive jewelry that ordinary people wouldn’t even dare to dream of, but Ariana paid them no attention.
Ariana’s gaze was fixed on a closet in the very corner. A closet filled with clothes she no longer wore because they had gone out of fashion.
Ariana opened the closet door and pulled out a coat made of brown fox fur.
A cold smile hung on Ariana’s lips as she felt the soft and luxurious lining of the fur coat.
It was then that Ariana was about to tear the lining out of the coat.
“To sneak in and steal clothes in such a situation, you indeed have a lot of nerve.”
Her heart jumped at the languid voice coming from behind her.
She didn’t have much time. In a situation where she didn’t know when Rachel would return, she didn’t have time to deal with Cyrus as well.
If it weren’t for today, when the maids who always kept an eye on Rachel’s room left their posts to attend to the ladies at the tea party, there wouldn’t have been an opportunity.
But the fact that Cyrus had helped her in the crisis was true, so she suppressed her sudden annoyance. Ariana, acting as if nothing had happened, hung the coat back in the closet and turned towards Cyrus.
“Your Highness.”
“Trying to gather funds to escape, are you?”
“How could I possibly prepare escape funds using my mother’s belongings? I was just touching the fur coat I’ve always wanted to touch.”
“Why exactly when someone has died?”
“Because there’s no other opportunity.”
Cyrus examined Ariana’s face and then smiled faintly.
“You lie so well even in front of me.”
“Why would I lie in front of Your Highness?”
“I wonder. Are you going to run away now?”
“No, I have no reason to run away.”
“If you run away now, I can help.”
“If I disappear now, the Duchess will find a way to pin the blame on me.”
“You left a handkerchief in that place, belonging to the youngest Princess.”
“Even if the real murderer is Victoria, will she be punished properly? The handkerchief will only temporarily divert suspicion from me; as long as she has the protection of Count Seojehu and Duke Bronthe, Victoria will be safe.”
“There’s something scarier than punishment in this world. Have you thought of that too?”
Ariana swallowed a sigh.
Cyrus was clever, too clever.
When Rachel was eliminating threats, Ariana had always helped her from behind. Ariana had seen enough of how Rachel demolished her obstacles, so she expected her to use similar tactics this time.
In case the expected happened, Ariana had given a few instructions to Rozalin to ensure she wouldn’t quietly suppress the incident.
The first was to send a letter to summon Victoria near the pergola under Rachel’s name. Ariana had written the letter. She had never expected that copying Rachel’s handwriting while helping her in the past would be of help now.
The second was, in case of an unsavory incident, to quietly slip out of the mansion and spread the rumor that Victoria was the culprit.
Rachel would undoubtedly try to hide the handkerchief and manage the situation after sending the ladies away. Even if she called an investigator, it would be one under Count Seojehu’s influence.
If the incident was hushed up, Ariana planned to have Rozalin spread the truth.
With some ladies having seen Victoria near the pergola, Rachel wouldn’t be able to pin everything on Victoria without a scratch.
‘I’ve seen her methods, so I can think of the next move. I don’t know how long past memories will serve as my weapon.’
As Ariana said nothing, Cyrus spoke.
“The investigator has come.”
“…Already?”
“Yes. Surprisingly, the chief of the investigation department himself has appeared.”
“How…?”
A fleeting playful smile surfaced on Cyrus’s face and disappeared. Ariana’s eyes widened as she asked.
“Did Your Highness call for me?”
Cyrus gently lifted Ariana’s chin with his forefinger.
“You finally look your age.”
Caught off guard by his action, Ariana blinked her eyes and quickly stepped back, escaping his hand.
As usual, Ariana turned back emotionlessly, clasped her hands together, and asked.
“There must be a reason Your Highness bestows this favor on me. What use could I be to you?”
“Interesting. You think too lowly of yourself. Do you think you can be of any use to me?”
“I may not be of use now, but don’t you think I will be of use someday?”
An elegant and perfect smile appeared on his face, a smile with a purpose, one without a shred of sincerity.
Any other woman would have been captivated by that smile, but Ariana’s heart grew cold instead. His smile was strikingly similar to that of the Third Prince Herald.
The only reason to show kindness to someone else was to gain something, and Ariana knew this well.
She had been used and had died miserably before because she didn’t know this.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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