CH 40

Rachel Rodelio was born to a noble family in the countryside on the eastern edge of Asha. Her father, known for dropping birds in the air,*** was desperate to get his young daughter into a ducal family.

(TL/N: It means he doesn’t care about his daughter’s well being.) ***

He had also heard an embarrassing rumor that Empress Ramelia had turned Duke Bledel into a eunuch. However, it was thanks to that rumor that in the noble circles where fortunes rise and fall, they hesitated to marry their precious daughters off to the Duke. He saw this as a chance.

Seeing it as his last hope, he spent what little wealth he had to bribe people and make connections that would help him.

After careful preparation, he presented his daughter to Duke Bledel in the guise of an accident. Platinum hair dazzles, mesmerizing wine-colored eyes..

Though her family was of humble origins, her striking beauty and indulgent nature were enough to win the Duke’s heart.

Rachel hated the idea of marrying an older Duke with a child, but she had no choice but to comply with her father’s wishes in order to build their family name.

Cunning, she used Duke Bledel’s favor to get what she wanted. Her spending grew larger by the day. The luxurious life was sweet.

Even the snobbish ladies of the great houses spoke to her, and strangers, no matter where they lived, sang her praises and brought her costly bribes.

As Duke Bledel’s influence grew, Rachel grew more bossy. Even Duke Bledel, no stranger to politics and power, was relatively lenient with his young wife. When Lucia was born shortly thereafter, he acted as if he would give her his liver, gallbladder, and all.

As soon as Lucia was born, her blood ran cold as he watched him secretly take a paternity test but she never showed any sign of discomfort.

She always pretended to be oblivious and whispered her love to him with an innocent face. Sometimes she’d catch a glimpse of his maniacal red eyes on his ex-wife’s daughter and it would give her the creeps, but it was a deal.

A deal where she would be his meek and docile wife and give him a lovely daughter, and in return, she would be the most valuable woman in the world.

With Duke Bledel under her skirt, Asha was hers for the taking, and for a while, she was happy.

Rachel also had circumstances that she couldn’t talk about. In her eyes, Duke Bledel was nothing more than an inept old man who couldn’t even do his night duties properly. Though she had managed to acquire a precious daughter, her aging husband never satisfied her.

As the years passed, she could do nothing to quench her simmering lust, and she grew tired of her life. One day, the Baroness, a frequent visitor, spoke bluntly to her.

“It’s too cruel for women like us to set our eyes on one man for the rest of our lives,” she said. “We need occasional diversions to keep a marriage going.”

Rachel took the Baroness up on her invitation to attend a book club, a place where ladies unhappy with their marriages could enjoy the company of young, virile men.

Rachel’s eyes sparkled at this new world she had never known. From then on, she began to flirt with men other than her husband.

With so much wealth, it was easy to make any man she liked her own. Sometimes she switched partners with other ladies, sometimes having several at once.

Rachel found a strange pleasure in the fact that she, a duchess whom everyone looked up to, was engaging in such indecent behavior. This close and secretive life revitalized her.

Rachel grew bolder and bolder. Her outside indulgences continued at the ducal residence. Taking advantage of her husband’s long absence, she invited her new lover to stay with her.

She dismissed all the servants and wandered naked through the manor, making love here and there. Their white cheeks flushed red in the rusted air, and their sticky flesh was slapped together with a lustful grinding sound.

She was gasping for air as she reached a hot climax when she heard an unidentifiable sound.

Thud.

It was coming from the entrance to the staircase leading upstairs. Feeling strange, she turned her head and came face to face with a pair of frightened violet eyes. It was Letenia.

The child who resembled her husband’s ex-wife, only more obnoxious. Lethenia was hiccupping, stunned, having witnessed everything her stepmother and the strange man had done.

It irritated her that she could see Mary Bledel even in that image.

She knew. She knew that everyone was ruffling her feathers but pointing fingers behind her back. The poor damsel in distress who’d somehow managed to become a duchess with one look, or the poor woman who’d been sold by her father to a man who wasn’t even a man.

That was how the world saw her.

Rachel’s feelings of inferiority were directed towards Mary Bledel, who was both her husband’s ex-wife and the biological mother of Lethenia. Rachel met Mary by chance a long time ago.

Back then, she and her sister accompanied their mother to stay with a relative who was wealthy in the capital. She had come to ask for a favor: find her sister a husband.

Her mother had gone into debt and given a large sum of money to a woman who was a relative in name only.

Viscountess Rockail who took the money slipped away like a snake every time her sister was brought up. Once, Rachel secretly overheard house servants gossiping.

The reason she didn’t keep her promise was that her family was too insignificant.

Mrs. Rodelio and her daughters came to her when her husband, Viscount Rockail, was in trouble with his business and needed money fast.

At first, she was thrilled to receive a large sum of money, but later regretted it after the urgent need passed. Their social status and reputation were far below the level of her own family. She never anticipated that her carefully built noble image in the capital would crumble so easily.

It was around this time that the Duchess of Bledel, who had always been interested in her husband’s business, contacted her with an offer of patronage.

From that moment on, Viscountess Rockail’s attitude toward the Rachels changed dramatically. She worried that her reputation would be somehow tarnished if it became known that she was associated with a family of such nominal nobility.

Rachel hadn’t told her mother because she wanted to stay in the capital. However, tired of waiting, her mother took her eldest daughter to confront Viscountess Rockail, threatening to demand a refund if they didn’t find a suitable marriage prospect for her daughter.

The woman said she could not give it back, for she had fed and sheltered them in this fine house. Fearing she might be forced to return to her hometown, Rachel anxiously eavesdropped on their conversation.

At that moment, the esteemed Duchess Mary Bledel arrived at their house.

As a noblewoman as precious as the Empress, she should have been received by the host promptly. But when she arrived at the appointed time, she claimed to be unaware of her guests and waited outside for them to finish their conversation.

Her mother’s angry voice could be heard outside the parlor, making Rachel even more nervous.

“You have charming eyes like deep wine.”

Mary Bledel smiled softly and complimented Rachel’s eyes. Rachel felt a little embarrassed to hear such words from someone whose eyes were far more beautiful than hers.

At the same time, she felt shabby in her ragged dress in front of her.

Soon she was telling Rachel about the flowers that bloom in the capital at this time of year, and how the upcoming festival was like last year.

As a newcomer to the capital and new to everything, Rachel found the stories amusing. Later, she realized it was meant to reassure her nerves, but she felt a tingling sensation that she couldn’t explain.

Mary Bledel, whom she saw, was like being in a different world. Her mysteriously beautiful features, cultivated speech, and gentle smile gave her an air of nobility and grace, like that of a queen.

And a noble origin that she would never have had. She wondered what it would be like to be born like her. She felt envious, making her tear up.

It was something that she couldn’t imitate even now, who was in the same place as her.

Her stepdaughter, who looked so much like her, made her feel small and uncomfortable. It was a well-known fact that Duke Bledel despised Lethenia.

Rachel hated the child, too. When the Duke wasn’t around, the servants had to be cautious in the presence of the new madam.

Anyone who dared to look after Lethenia would be mercilessly beaten by the Duchess. To avoid offending her parents, Lethenia was confined to an attic on the third floor unless there was a special occasion.

As a result, the servants gradually forgot about her existence. No one cared about her in this spacious mansion.

Lethenia’s hiccups didn’t stop. Rachel looked at her and hissed, raising her index finger to her own ruddy lips.

She paused for a moment, then resumed the hot act. Honestly, she didn’t care if that girl saw it or not.

After all, her husband was within her grasp. She shouted louder, as if to make sure Lethenia heard her.

A surge of pleasure coursed through her body. There was no one to stop her at this moment.

No one could take advantage of her. If she wanted to, she could make them all bow down to her. Compared to herself, the most honorable person in the world, this child Mary Bledel gave birth to was nothing as a lowly worm.

The thrilling thought that this world, which had always been unfair to her, was now under her feet gave me a shudder.