Chapter 7

“Was it your doing? Were you the one who destroyed the peace of our family?”

“You don’t know why I volunteered to take care of our sick mother, do you? I heard her. She said our family is actually an Yveschapel, a fallen noble!”

Isabel grinned.

“And that a political marriage with the Grand Duke was arranged. You don’t have healing powers and I’m much prettier. So of course I thought he’d kill you and take me. In the first place, the Imperial family wanted to save the eldest daughter from the Yveschapel family and marry her to the Grand Duke because they wanted her healing powers.”

Isabel giggled when she saw Nicole’s expression full of disgust.

“Actually, I hated the house where we lived in hiding. And I was so happy when Jay died. What if I became a real noble’s wife and Jay or you were alive?”

“For that reason, Jay…….”

“What do you know? I mean, I didn’t want to die like you. Pretending to be nice, devoted. Since two years ago, I’ve seduced Grand Duke Valentine over and over again. I convinced him to marry me instead of you. I’ll mix my healing power with the blood of Grand Duke Valentine. But he…… Rather, he recommended me as someone else’s wife. Do you know what he said to me?”

〈I want to kill you if I could, but I can’t help it because my only wife is going crazy.〉

Now the last piece of the puzzle is put together.

Raul forced Isabel to marry the knight because Isabel kept seducing him.

“Everything was a lie. Even looking unhappy…….”

“Pretending to be beaten by my husband? You’re a fool. My husband, Ruto, is a fool. How can he touch a pretty girl like me? It’s not difficult to deal with a man like that.”

Isabel’s eyes sparkled with satisfaction and a faint madness.

“I wanted to get back to Grand Duke Valentine somehow. How can he refuse me? So I encouraged you to kill him using the poison of the night.”

“You, you…….”

Nicole was speechless.

“You made me do that for such a ridiculous reason? What for? You’re the devil.”

“Ah, the reason? Of course I have one. You don’t know after all this time?”

Isabel said sarcastically.

〈Outside of the world we live in, it turns out that there is a reason for everything that people in the capital city do. Each had a big and small scourge.〉

One day, Nicole complained to Isabel while drinking tea. Why do those words come to her mind?

“Gaston, I need that. Come here.”

Thump thump.

A man walked in. Nicole knew the man.

“The Marquis of Saratov, Gaston?”

Nicole was dizzy. Gaston was Raul’s archrival during his lifetime.

Compared to Raul, he lacked qualifications and brains. Nonetheless, he was appointed to the imperial family for a long period of time, as he belonged to the same seven prestigious families.

Exactly so in the past.

‘How could she? It hasn’t been a long time since Raul’s passing.’

Gaston was impeached by Raul after he was found to have committed numerous corruption cases and civilian killings.

However, considering that he was a noble, he was kicked out and was left to live on a local estate.

Rumor has it that Gaston was hiding a large amount of slush funds when he was kicked out.

‘And that man…….’

Gaston’s family, the Saratov family, has long coveted the power and property of the Yveschapel family.

So out of spite for Raul’s marriage to Nicole, he attempted to rape Nicole in a secluded garden at a party, but failed.

After that, he became an enemy of Raul.

“Did you finish your story well?”

Gaston spoke in a conceited tone.

“I was just telling her. Oh, you. I’m right. This operation will succeed. I told you, this way, you would definitely be able to return to the capital.”

Isabel made a sweet face and naturally leaned into Gaston’s arm and hugged him.

“Raul, that son of a gun, loved that poor woman, so our plan definitely worked. When I first heard it, I thought you were out of your mind.”

“Fufu, I’m not wrong. You and I, as descendants of the Yveschapel family, combined, will surely enjoy power as much as Grand Duke Valentine. The Imperial family will eventually have to accept it. When Grand Duke Valentine died, there were only a few talented people from the seven major families left.”

When she saw Gaston’s face, Nicole could no longer deny reality.

‘Then it’s really… Raul, he died for me?’

She remembered him acting rather rough in bed. When she cut her body, he licked her blood and bit her…….

‘He tried to take all the poison from the beginning.’

With a proud look, Isabel looked at Nicole’s crazed expression.

“You’re such a fool. Do you want me to tell you the truth about that day?”

At the coming of age festival for the youngest princess.

It was the peak of the ball.

The young Princess Celia, who had long had a crush on Raul, had a red face. This is because Raul disappeared even before she hinted at their engagement.

〈Grand Duke!〉

Then there was a man blocking Raul.

〈How did you get here? If you bother me again, I’ll cut your throat this time.〉

When he saw Isabel standing with a shy expression, Raul’s expression changed.

〈Is it true that the Imperial family said that they would exempt the Yveschapel family on condition of the marriage of Princess Celia and the Grand Duke?〉

〈Even so, it doesn’t matter to you. I married you off according to your sister’s wish which made you irrelevant to the Yveschapel family.〉

Isabel blinked.

〈But……. If the Yveschapel family is no longer considered traitors, will the world see them differently? A fragile person like her may not be able to live after divorce.〉

〈Get out of the way.〉

As if to be bothered, he walked in defiance of Isabel.

〈Are you heading home early for your wife? But she said she didn’t even want to talk to the Grand Duke. Grand Duke, Grand Duke…….〉

What Raul discovered was a letter tied to his saddle.

Raul’s expression changed when he saw the letter.

༺━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━༻

“He was informed by letter that you were planning to drink poison and assassinate the Great Duke that night. He was given a detailed formula to see how the poison of the night works. I thought the Grand Duke would understand the poison quickly because he was well versed in various poisons.”

“…….”

Raul received a letter. The letter would have stated that Nicole had been poisoned and that he had to drink her blood and saliva and sleep with her to detoxify the poison.

‘I see. The poison of the night is a secret handed down only to our family. There was a reason Raul knew about the poison.’

That night the mansion was empty and Nicole remained alone waiting for him.

If he came home even a little later, Nicole would have been poisoned to death.

When Nicole realized it, tears flowed down her cheeks.

“Oh, oh, oh…”

Her stupidity and hatred killed her husband. On the spur of the moment

“Don’t be so sad, sister. I’ve always appreciated your dedication. But you know, I did work for our family. If I hadn’t reported us, we would have died living as a hermit, unknown to the world. It’s weird to die there with our family for the rest of my life.”

“This whole thing was your plan. Yes, it was.”

Isabel raised her eyebrows when she heard Nicole’s empty voice.

“No, how many times do I have to tell you? I wouldn’t have made such a stupid plan. I wanted to be the Grand Duchess. Anyway, I… I knew Raul was hopeless, so I had to decide. Now I’m determined to make my own fortune with my own hands. We’re on the same wavelength.”

Isabel said, looking pleased at Gaston.

“Do you think Gaston will keep his promise to you? Gaston just wants a woman from the YvesChapel family. Besides, you have a husband.”

Gaston was also known for being a womanizer, as he caused several violent incidents.

“Oh, my husband. Yes, if my husband is still alive?”

Nicole was silent for a moment at Isabel’s words.

“Ah, he’s addicted to hallucinogens. I’ve fed him for a long time. You know, I’m skilled with drugs.”

Drugs? At that moment, Nicole realized something.

“You, the neurotic drug you prescribed me…….”

“Did you notice that now? It’s a medicine that relaxes your mind if you take it for a long time.”

Isabel smiled when she looked at Gaston.

“You’re a fool. If I die, you’ll no longer be the sister of the Grand Duchess. You will be nothing more than the blood of a traitor. You can never be a lady.”

Nicole snapped back.

“Who said I’d be a Grand Duchess with my status now? I’ll buy a new identity soon. I’ll die with my husband. Besides, I’m a woman who can help Gaston’s future. Men value such a woman.”

“That’s right. A useful woman like you should be treated like a treasure. I got rid of Raul like a thorn in the side.”

The two giggled at each other lovingly.

“I’ll tell you one more interesting fact. Do you know how Gaston survived? The Imperial family wanted to get rid of you, Nicole. They’ve found a way to charge you with treason several times. That’s when Raul negotiated with the Imperial family. For saving you, he’ll save Gaston.”

The Saratov family, unlike the other seven families, was the second generation of imperial servants. In other words, they served for a considerable period of time as a close aide to the Imperial family and were responsible for managing the household’s messy affairs. So even in the imperial family, they couldn’t throw away Gaston at all.

In addition, the Imperial family always used Gaston as a checker for Raul, so they wanted to save Gaston just in case.

“By the way, it’s quite a waste. Given Raul’s death, I guess you were lonely at night? As expected, I should have raped you that night.”

Gaston looked at Nicole and said regretfully.

“What are you saying in front of me?”

Isabel pinched Gaston’s arm. Gaston smirked.

Isabel last spoke to Nicole.

“Sister, remember that. Life is about getting what you want at the expense of others. Stupid father and mother gave birth to me so beautifully for a reason. So that I can stand on top of others.”

Isabel laughed cheerfully.

“There is a card game that says the only thing that can catch the king is a clown. I didn’t know I’d use my stupid, insignificant sister like a clown to kill the hateful man who rejected me…….”

Isabel’s eyes were full of obsession, love, and hatred.

“Isabel, can I do it now?”

Gaston said.

“Yes, go ahead.”

Upon hearing Isabel’s answer, Gaston took out a key from the bag in his waistband. Then he entered the prison without hesitation.

“She’s stubborn, so you can hit her.”

“Heup, eup!”

Gaston crushed Nicole’s body on the floor. He covered her mouth and strangled her.

“Keuk! keuck!”

Nicole resisted by swinging her arms and legs. However, when she came to her senses, she already had the potion in her mouth.

“It’s a medicine that makes you dumb. You shouldn’t talk nonsense.”

Then Gaston covered Nicole’s nose with his big hand. In the end, Nicole almost suffocated and was about to die, swallowing all the medicine.

“Ugh! Cough, cough.”

Gaston threw Nicole down on the floor.

“I’m going now.”

Gaston looked down at Nicole with pride. Isabel waved to Nicole.

“Bye, sister.”

Squeak. The prison door is closed.

“How heartbroken would Grand Duke Valentine be, who worked hard to save Sister, to see this? Isn’t that right?”

She heard Isabel laughing.

“Uhu, eu, euhp!”

Her throat was burning. Her head thundered.

Most likely, the medicine’s effects were to blame. But still, Nicole reached out to Isabel in tears.

But her hateful fingertips grasped nothing. It was only able to reach through the iron bars.

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