Chapter 46 “The red gemstones in this bracelet—they’re Sidhevan’s eyes.” A collective gasp escaped the room. Sidhevans, often called the “mermaids of the sea,” had crimson eyes so rare that just one was worth a high noble’s entire yearly budget. This bracelet held several. Terran, the guild master, glanced from the dazzling bracelet to the…

 Chapter 45 Tears welled up in his pale blue eyes, the color of hydrangea petals. Seeing the only person who truly knew my parents’ past brought my father’s face vividly to mind—and my late mother’s too. My father never spoke about her death. Not how she died, nor why. The only memory I had was…

 Chapter 44 “…” “Can you just get to the point? Why did you want to see me?” “…Who are you?” He stammered slightly, maybe because he didn’t know my name, or maybe out of sheer confusion. He bit his lower lip hard and asked, “Why do you have Bernice’s face?” He didn’t seem interested in…

Chapter 42 They could never be Irina’s family again. Alexis sighed. His gaze drifted slowly towards the drawer where the medicine bottles were kept. His decision to bring Irina back to the ducal estate had nothing to do with April’s carriage accident. It was because his heart was hardening, leaving him with only a year…

CHAPTER 41“That little bitch.” Barak shook his hand, which Irina had stomped on, in the air, his face twisting in displeasure.He was now forced to believe that she had no lingering attachments to the Duchy, no intention of taking April’s place. The Irina he saw today was not the Irina he thought he knew.She wasn’t…

Chapter 40 I took another sip of my tea, carefully placing the cup back on the table. The brief, delicate scraping of glass against the surface was the only sound for a moment. Otherwise, only the sounds of everyday life drifting in through the open window filled the silence. With a heavy sigh, Tamitarte closed…

Chapter 39  
 To Barak Heil Ryze, I was nothing more than a child desperately pretending to be April, hoping not to be abandoned. 
 I would never have risked my position by pushing April down the stairs. 
 Even if I had threatened her, there was no guarantee that April wouldn’t tell the Duke…

Chapter 35 Persephone, who had been wearing a kind smile, sighed softly, as if weary. 
 She seemed to think I was clinging to the engagement and trying to justify my reasons. 
 “I fail to understand why Your Highness won’t use the power you already possess.” 
 With the ducal house backing her, Rogian’s…

Chapter 34  “No matter how much His Majesty cherishes you, Lord Rogian, you are still a man. Let’s consider those words as if they were never spoken.” 
 At Duke Alexis’s remark, Rogian glanced at me, momentarily taken aback. 
 “Yes, indeed, given the circumstances, it would be unseemly to proceed. I appreciate your concern,…

Chapter 33  Adonis answered only with silence. The Countess of Betrice, not expecting a reply, clicked her tongue and turned her gaze away. 
 “Who does she take after to be this indifferent?” 
 “Mother, you’re home?” 
 At the sound of Adolf’s greeting from the second floor, the Countess’s frown melted into a bright…

Chapter 38  “Your mother said those words.” 
 The hand pressing down on Lian’s shoulder sparkled with claws poised, sharp enough to strike. 
 Alicia gave a derisive chuckle at the shocked expressions of the Duke’s household. 
 She had known since the day they cast Irina out, yet she hadn’t expected they’d lack even…

Chapter 37  “Judging by your reaction to her, it’s hard to believe you and Lady April were once close friends at the academy.” 
 Of course, he thought to himself, because the April he once knew was not the one currently in the Duke’s household. 
 He could barely fathom what had happened. Where was…

Chapter 36  After Irina departed, a heavy silence filled the office. It was clear that Persephone was carefully gauging whether my offer to help was sincere or not. 
 Today, April was not quite the April Hill Ryze they thought they knew. While they couldn’t say what effect the carriage accident had on her, the…

Chapter 32  “Haha.” 
 At last, she let out a soft laugh, a lightness breaking through her usually stoic demeanor. Her laugh signified agreement, as if acknowledging that the Count of Betrice was indeed such a person. But the amusement in her smile soon faded, her expression tightening, like one who had swallowed rough sand,…

Chapter 31 Between Adonis and Adolf, I wondered which of them would come out to greet me, but it was Adonis who appeared. The Count of Betrice likely chose not to come, having already shown me his sentiments. I suppressed a brief smile and offered a polite greeting to Sir Adonis as he walked up…