She Became My Friend’s Mother-In-Law - Chapter 88

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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 88. Last Struggle (1)

A little while ago.

Rosena, still under house arrest, secretly headed to Elise’s room.

Since the Dowager Duchess was hosting a tea party, the Duke’s Mansion was relatively quiet.

In the meantime, she planned to search through Elise’s suspicious desk.

‘I prepared this in advance for this day.’

Rosena smiled sinisterly as she pulled out an old brass key from her bosom.

A few days ago, she had secretly stolen it from the waist of a dozing maid.

The poor maid had her wages docked for losing the key.

Well, that wasn’t Rosena’s concern.

‘Today, no matter what, I’ll find the Dowager Duchess’s weakness.’

Whether she handed it over to Cecilia.

Or used it to blackmail Elise.

This time, it was her turn to stand above everyone.

“Phew…”

Standing in front of the door, Rosena caught her breath.

Then she carefully inserted the brass key into the keyhole.

Click

The door opened easily.

‘As expected!’

Rosena entered the bedroom with an expression full of excitement.

The bedroom was, as always, excessively tidy.

This time, she headed straight to the desk without hesitation.

‘Now it’s time to use this.’

Rosena pulled out a wire from her bosom.

She inserted it into the drawer lock and carefully moved it around.

Click. Click.

At the metallic sound, Rosena glanced toward the doorway.

Fortunately, no signs of people could be felt from the corridor.

Clank!

And finally, the drawer opened.

‘Got it!’

Rosena’s eyes gleamed.

Inside the drawer was a piece of parchment and a brooch covered in soot.

Naturally, her gaze went first to the jeweled brooch.

‘Amethyst?’

A large amethyst stone embedded in the center was shining brilliantly.

Rosena picked it up and laughed softly.

“Mariana Hays”

The name engraved on the back of the brooch.

It was a name she had never seen in the family records.

Then naturally, this was—

‘The Duke’s birth mother.’

It seemed she had really caught something big.

Rosena held her breath as she read the parchment beside it.

“Elise Hays promises to pay Thomas Crowley 1,000 crowns if he faithfully carries out her orders.”

Starting with this sentence, the contents written on the parchment were truly shocking.

The location of the villa where Mariana was staying.

To start a fire at night and disguise it as an accidental death.

And finally, instructions to retrieve the brooch from the scene.

A conspiracy that Elise had orchestrated in the distant past was written in detail.

‘Crazy…’

Rosena covered her mouth.

Her fingertips trembled slightly.

Of course, she knew that Elise was a murderer.

But actually seeing the evidence with her own eyes.

The fact that she could have really been the next victim hit close to home.

Rosena felt a chill down her spine.

‘That damned old woman. I won’t let this slide.’

She tucked the parchment and brooch into her bosom.

She was busy thinking about how to use these things effectively in the future.

Just then.

“Aaaaah!”

Rosena’s shoulders flinched at the sudden scream.

Soon realizing it came from outside, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Rosena carefully approached the window.

‘What? Why is she acting like that?’

A woman was sprawled on the ground wailing.

Around her, she could see several ladies including Cecilia and Elise standing.

‘Hmm…’

Curious, Rosena pressed her face closer to the window.

At one glance from Cecilia, the servants roughly dragged away the woman who had collapsed on the ground.

‘Come to think of it, that woman.’

Wasn’t she the woman who had recently pretended to collapse and forced her way into the Duke’s family?

She seemed to have boasted loudly about seducing the Duke.

And the Dowager Duchess had said she would support that.

‘But it looks like she failed.’

Stupid people, of course that would happen.

The Duke isn’t the type of man to be distracted.

Rosena clicked her tongue.

She couldn’t hear the words clearly.

But Elise had a frustrated expression.

And Cecilia had a face full of triumph.

It was all too clear who the winner of this situation was.

‘Hmm…’

Indeed, as far as she knew, Elise had never beaten Cecilia before.

‘As expected, I should side with Cecilia.’

The corner of Rosena’s mouth lifted slightly.

If Elise was a sinking ship anyway.

It was wise to jump ship as soon as possible.

* * *

“That woman? She slept with a man old enough to be her father? How disgusting.”

“How can she walk around so shamelessly with her head held high?”

The commotion at the Hays Ducal House spread quickly throughout Brisen.

Wherever Tira went, malicious stares followed her.

Whispers and pointing fingers were a bonus.

“…”

Tira pulled her hat down low and hurried her steps.

After that day’s incident.

She had tried to quickly board a ship and return to her hometown, but—

‘Why can’t I board?’

‘We apologize. It’s our company policy, so please look for another ship.’

The shipping companies showed reluctance the moment Tira presented her passport.

They all turned her away with the vague excuse of company policy.

It was clear that Mrs. Ruth had used her financial power to intervene.

Naijel was also blocked from departing by ship.

In the end, he packed up all the expensive items from the hotel and fled.

Even Tira’s dresses and jewelry.

‘What a dirty and petty human being to the very end…’

Well, anyway, it wouldn’t be easy for Naijel to get by in a foreign land without proper capital.

But still, the one in the most difficult situation right now was Tira.

‘Damn it, where am I supposed to sleep tonight?’

She had been kicked out of the hotel too.

There was nowhere left to go.

To be dropped alone on another continent with no foundation whatsoever.

She was on the verge of tears from the overwhelming despair.

‘What am I supposed to do from now on!’

Tira wanted to stomp her feet and burst into tears right then and there.

Just then, words from passersby caught her attention.

“Look over there, it’s the Duke of Hays!”

The Duke?

Tira reflexively looked up.

In the middle of the street.

Rainer was getting out of a splendid carriage emblazoned with the Duke’s family crest.

And behind him, the Duchess was following.

Rainer took his wife’s hand and escorted her.

It was a natural yet elegant movement.

“Oh my, how perfectly they complement each other like a painting!”

She could hear other people exclaiming in admiration.

Cecilia was naturally linking arms with Rainer and smiling.

Her face looked happier than anyone else in the world.

The complete opposite of Tira, who had fallen miserably to rock bottom.

“…”

Tira gritted her teeth.

Until just recently.

She had believed without doubt that position should be hers.

The Duke’s smile toward his wife should have been hers too.

Tira trembled with a flushed face, then turned around.

And she ran off, roughly pushing through the crowd.

‘I will definitely take it away, no matter what it takes.’

She had nothing left to lose anyway.

If only she could get the Duke in her hands.

And if only she could drag down the Duchess, who was the root cause of all this, as miserably as herself.

She felt she could bear any price.

* * *

“Please help me. You promised.”

Tira went straight to find Elise.

With Margaret’s help, she was able to reach the Dowager Duchess’s bedroom while avoiding people’s eyes.

Well, if they hadn’t let her in, she would have caused a commotion and made things more difficult for the Dowager Duchess.

“If you abandon me like this, I’ll expose all the internal affairs of the Duke’s family to every newspaper in Brisen. That would put you in a difficult position too, Dowager Duchess.”

“…”

Elise sat on the bed, quietly observing Tira who was boldly threatening her.

It was amusing to see this vulgar thing dare to chase her down and cause trouble.

“Very well.”

Soon she nodded in agreement.

It wasn’t that she feared Tira’s threats.

‘A cornered rat bites the cat’s nose.’

People with nothing to lose are naturally frightening.

She planned to use the desperate Tira until the very last moment.

“Margaret, hand it over.”

“Yes, Dowager Duchess.”

Margaret, who was standing nearby, took out a medicine bottle from her bosom and handed it to Tira.

Tira looked puzzled as she received it.

“What is this?”

“It’s a sleeping pill. Have a maid put it in Rainer’s tea.”

Elise’s lips slowly curved upward.

“What you need to do after that, you understand without me explaining, don’t you?”

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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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