She Became My Friend’s Mother-In-Law - Chapter 31
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 31. Exposure (2)
“I am the mistress of this house. And this is the only ducal house in Listea.”
At those words, the viscount couple’s faces hardened.
Cecilia coldly added.
“How dare a viscount family cause a disturbance in a ducal house—I could have you dealt with under imperial law, couldn’t I?”
“L-law? What do you mean…?”
The viscount couple, belatedly realizing the reality, stammered.
But Cloud still didn’t give up.
“B-but we’re your guardians! We came here to rightfully exercise our authority!”
“Authority?”
“That’s right! When you think about it, you becoming a duchess is all thanks to us raising you safely! You should naturally repay that debt!”
“Ha…”
Did they have the right to say they ‘raised’ her?
Should she be grateful for being beaten and mistreated every day, calling it a favor?
Cecilia was dumbfounded by Cloud’s shameless attitude.
Of course, if he had even a shred of conscience to begin with, he wouldn’t have acted so brazenly.
‘…And our parents wouldn’t have died that way either.’
Thinking of Count and Countess Faning, Cecilia’s expression darkened.
Seeing this, Cloud mistakenly thought she was feeling guilty.
He proudly stuck out his belly.
“Normally, I should receive 10,000 crowns for raising you, but considering our past relationship, I’ll specially take only 5,000.”
His grinning face was full of shamelessness.
It was certainly galling that Cecilia, not his daughter Rosena, had become the mistress of the ducal house.
‘No, actually this worked out better. Until Evan becomes duke, I can steadily extort money from this girl.’
Cloud was excited at the thought of siphoning off the Hays Ducal House’s wealth for himself.
Cecilia could clearly see his scheme.
‘What a greedy human.’
Cecilia glared at Cloud with disgusted eyes.
Of course, she had no intention of doing as he wished.
“I refuse.”
Cecilia said firmly.
“Even if I were to fall into hell, I would never throw you people a single coin.”
“What did you say!”
Cloud’s face turned red and blue.
Extremely agitated, he pointed fingers and shouted loudly.
However, Cecilia paid no attention, only looking at the clock on the wall and out the window.
‘It should be about time for them to arrive.’
Just then, a carriage passed through the gate.
Perfect.
Cecilia’s eyes sparkled.
Even then, the viscount couple were still raging in excitement.
“Just try it! We’ll go outside and report all of the Hays Ducal House’s shameless behavior!”
“If you tarnish your husband’s face, do you think he’ll look kindly on you?”
The viscount couple spat as they shouted at the top of their lungs.
Their voices echoed loudly from the drawing room through the corridor.
Crack!
Suddenly a sharp sound cut through the drawing room.
The viscount couple’s shouting stopped instantly.
Cloud and Trisha looked at Cecilia with stunned faces.
They were speechless at the scene before them.
“You, wh-what…?”
Cecilia was holding her swollen, reddened cheek.
Anyone could see she was someone who had just been slapped.
But this wasn’t done by the viscount couple.
“Are you crazy!”
Trisha exclaimed as if incredulous.
That’s right.
The one who slapped Cecilia’s cheek was none other than herself.
While the Osburn viscount couple were frozen by this unexpected action.
“Oh my…”
The sound of people gasping could be heard from the doorway.
When the viscount couple turned their heads, reporters holding notepads and pens were looking this way with surprised eyes.
They were the press corps who had just arrived for a special interview with the Duchess of Hays.
“M-Madam, are you alright?”
“…Yes.”
Cecilia quietly nodded while holding her swollen cheek.
It was a pitiful sight that would evoke sympathy from anyone who saw it.
‘W-wait.’
Trisha belatedly understood how this situation would look to others.
“N-no! This isn’t what it looks like…!”
Trisha frantically waved her hands while looking around at the people.
But all that came back were cold stares.
The reporters knew better than anyone about the bad blood between Cecilia and Rosena.
And now Rosena’s parents had struck the duchess.
Though Trisha desperately protested that it wasn’t true, not a single person believed her words.
Then, Cecilia, who had been quiet, slowly opened her mouth.
“…I will discuss with His Grace what appropriate compensation to give the viscount family regarding my marriage.”
Cecilia’s lips trembled.
Cloud and Trisha looked at her with wide eyes.
‘I-if you say that in this situation!’
It would only make the misunderstanding worse!
It was truly adding fuel to the fire.
The reporters murmured, and hands holding pens moved busily.
And then.
“Madam! I’ve brought people!”
Wendy, who entered through the door, said.
Sturdy ducal house servants followed behind her.
“We-Wendy, why are you here?”
The viscount couple opened their eyes wide in surprise.
But Wendy’s face showed no joy at seeing her former masters—only a cold expression lingered.
She said coldly.
“These are people who have harmed the duchess. Throw them out immediately.”
As soon as those words fell, the sturdy servants grabbed both arms of the viscount couple.
“L-let go! How dare you…!”
“W-we’re nobles! Do you think you’ll be safe treating us like this?”
The viscount couple screamed and resisted, but the servants didn’t bat an eye.
Trisha shouted while being dragged away.
“Wendy! How can you do this when you’re just a maid!”
“This is a ducal house. We cannot let stand those who harm the duchess.”
Wendy stood straight and spoke clearly for all to hear.
“You two are just like your old habits. Even when the Duchess was at the Count’s house, you beat her every day.”
At Wendy’s revelation, the reporters’ pens moved even more busily.
The Count couple’s faces turned pale, but the servants’ strong hands mercilessly dragged them out.
“Cecilia! Cecilia!”
The two called out Cecilia’s name one last time, but no one responded.
They were dragged out like baggage all the way to the gates of the Duke’s mansion.
Until the commotion passed, Cecilia stood quietly.
She trembled her lips and wore a pitiful expression.
However, in her eyes lingered a sense of victory toward the Osburn Count couple.
She turned to look at the reporters.
“…I’m sorry for the disturbance. Well then, shall we begin as scheduled?”
* * *
“Did you see that article? The Osburn Count couple beat the Duchess like that.”
“They say as soon as it was revealed she was the Duchess, they chased after her again and caused trouble?”
“So that’s why she was hiding all this time. How scared she must have been.”
The incident of the Osburn Count couple being expelled from the Hays Ducal House was featured prominently in the newspapers the next day.
The reporters poured out sensational articles that combined what they had seen with Cecilia’s words, Wendy’s testimony, and a bit of imagination.
This spread among people in an instant, and Cecilia was perceived by people as a ‘pitiful victim.’
The maids of the Duke’s mansion also whispered among themselves about this topic.
“The Duchess is really pitiful. How much she must have suffered.”
“That house, didn’t a large number of servants run away before?”
“No wonder, they’re nothing but trouble.”
Since Rosena wasn’t a good master either, the maids’ complaints had already accumulated.
In such a situation, with a scandal breaking out as well, the reaction couldn’t help but be bad.
“…”
Rosena, who heard the gossip, gritted her teeth and clenched her fists tightly.
If she could, she wanted to call those maids over, grab them by the hair, and give them a thorough lesson.
But this wasn’t the Osburn Count’s house, but the Duke’s mansion where that detestable Cecilia was the mistress.
If she caused any commotion, it would obviously reach Cecilia’s ears immediately.
Rosena glared at the backs of the maids.
‘If it weren’t for that article, I wouldn’t have been ignored even by such lowly creatures.’
Rosena gnawed at her nails.
Even at this moment, her parents must be having a difficult time because of the reporters.
Knowing this, she couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.
‘I’ll ask them to publish a correction article.’
Rosena immediately started walking.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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