I Thought It Was a Common Transmigration - Chapter 97

“By the way, Your Excellency…… did you ever mention to anyone else that you suggested that Lizé and I go out?”

“Who would I say such a thing to?”

Admittedly, it was hard to imagine the tiger-like Duke talking about his daughter-in-law and future daughter-in-law with anyone around.

‘Besides, it was Lizé who took me directly to the Millane Bookstore, so…… no, no, no, they could be accomplices.’

I observed the Duke closely until the end, then bowed politely and left.

Then I went to see Lizé, who was lying in bed, looking even more pale than I was.

“E- Edith!”

Lizé greeted me with a guilty look, tears pooling in her large eyes.

Beside her stood Cliff, his brow furrowed.

“Are you okay, Lizé?”

“I- I’m fine…… but because of me…… sob…… I’m sorry, I really didn’t see that coming.”

“Who would have expected such an accident? I mean, it’s kind of weird, isn’t it?”

I smiled, wiping Lizé’s sweaty forehead with the handkerchief beside me.

If anyone were to look at her, they’d think she was the one who almost died. She looks very unwell.

‘Was it such a shock that I almost died? Well, I’d be shocked if someone I went out with almost got killed by a stalker.’

I decided to be generous and assume that a normal person would be shocked.

But I still have a question.

“Lizé, by any chance, did you plan in advance to go with me to Le-Belle Marie?”

“No! When the Duke asked me to go shopping with you, it just popped into my head, because Le-Belle Marie is the only place I know.”

“Is that so?”

Cliff’s gaze toward me was becoming colder.

His mouth has been smiling since a while ago, but his eyes seem to have a thin layer of ice.

“You mean you never told anyone?”

“Never.”

“Okay. I’m not hurt, and the person who did this to me killed himself after he went on a rampage, so…… now dust yourself off and get up.”

I patted Lizé on the shoulder and stood up.

Lizé pushed herself to her feet, her face as if asking if I was done with my business.

“Edith…… are you sure…… you’re okay?”

“Hmm…… the fear of almost dying doesn’t go away quickly, but with Killian by my side…… I’m trying to get through it.”

“Sob…… I’m sorry.”

“Lizé. Don’t cry, Lizé. You don’t have to feel so guilty for something you didn’t do on purpose. Hm?”

I said it playfully, but if Lizé was the culprit, or if the author who created this whole situation was watching, they would get the meaning behind it.

‘I mean, you’re crying because you have your own reasons.’

As I stood up to leave, Cliff was glaring at me, his polite smile gone.

“You made it sound like Lizé put you in danger on purpose.”

“When did I?”

“Your words, your every word. Is that all you can say to Lizé who is shaking with guilt over something as small as going to the bookstore together and not finding you and leaving first?”

Cliff, being the male lead he is, will be the knight who protects Lizé until the end.

So even in a situation where Lizé is the suspicious one, he glares at me fiercely.

“Cliff, don’t! Please don’t! Don’t do that! Sob……”

Lizé grabbed Cliff, almost begging him.

It’s a sight I don’t understand at all.

Not Cliff standing up for Lizé, but Lizé overreacting to something like this.

It’s as if she’s doing everything in her power to make herself look like a victim. Either that, or she knows something and is afraid.

But first, I have to reply to Cliff.

“Is that all you can say to me, Cliff? I was the one who almost got killed, and this is the first time I’ve seen you since it happened, and you haven’t said a word to me about whether I’m okay?”

Cliff’s eyes widened, as if surprised by the unexpected counterattack.

But he did not give up.

“Think of all the cases you’ve been a suspect in, and Lizé never once blamed you!”

“I didn’t blame Lizé either, and that’s something you can point out to Lizé or me, but not an excuse for your rudeness, Cliff!”

Only then did Cliff shut up. Of course, he didn’t apologize to me.

“I know you still think I’m the evil woman of great rumor,  but I don’t have anything against you or Lizé. The reason I asked Lizé wasn’t to blame her, but to find out how that man could have appeared there.”

Even if I said this, Cliff wouldn’t stop being suspicious and wary of me. Cliff was like that from the beginning.

On the outside, he’s easygoing and generous, but on the inside, he’s wary of anyone who could compromise Lizé’s well-being. Because he’s the male lead.

I had enough of Cliff and turned to Lizé.

“Lizé, I think you’re more shocked by the fact that I almost died twice in such a short time, but don’t worry too much, it’s not like it’s going to happen again.”

“Yes……?”

Lizé, her cheeks wet with tears, stared at me in confusion. Cliff stared at me warily, waiting to see what else I would say to hurt her.

But I simply stated my prediction.

“It’s just, it doesn’t make sense that this happens so often.”

I don’t know how much power the author has left to control this world, if any.

“So don’t worry about it too much, and take care of yourself, Lizé. You’re worrying Cliff.”

“Yeah…… thank you, Edith. Thank you.”

Lizé wiped her cheeks and smiled weakly.

Yes, you are pretty when you smile.

So keep smiling like an angel like that, and stay put. Please.

***

The incident in which I was nearly killed by Fred Sicily was quietly buried thanks to Killian’s hard work.

Apparently, Fred’s rampage in prison before his death resulted in the need to rein in the mouths of the soldiers guarding his cell, which Viscount Sicily was quick to do.

It hadn’t been a day or two since Fred had become the family’s headache because of Edith, so the Viscount of Sicily, assuming that Fred had gone off on a tangent once again, paid the soldiers to silence them.

‘Well, he’s not wrong.’

The Viscount Sicily could hardly mourn his son’s death, for if word got out, it would damage him more than it would the Ludwig family.

Perhaps he thought it was a good thing he was dead.

‘It’s a shame there’s no way to find out who Fred overheard.’

Lizé was the most likely suspect, but given that the author was involved in this, the list of suspects grows.

It’s not just the ever-suspect Count Sinclair or Count Riegelhoff.

When I think of all the young ladies who glared at me during the ball, I can’t count on both hands the number of people who wanted me dead.

Maybe the author made it sound like a hallucination to Fred Sicily’s ears.

While speculation about who might have tipped off my whereabouts raged, the situation was changing rapidly.

Count Riegelhoff, who had openly shown his support for Archduke Langston at the National Day ball, had completely reversed his position as an imperialist and ally of Duke Ludwig. Now Count Riegelhoff is a representative of the Langston faction.

He began to make small complaints to Duke Ludwig, with whom he had been closely involved in business.

‘It’s about to come to a head.’

At this point in his confrontation with Duke Ludwig, Count Riegelhoff had crossed the river of no return.

‘It’s a train to the netherworld without brakes.’

It’s all well and good for you to live your short lives with passion, but I don’t want to be on that train.

But my will has no effect on the flow of the story.

An ominous letter, like a first-class express ticket to the netherworld, arrived that night.

‘W- w- what is that?!’

I was awakened from a light sleep by a strange noise that went tap, tap, tap, and I watched in disbelief as a black shadow outside my window pushed something through the window frame and disappeared.

‘Is there an episode like this in the original story?’

I thought back to the original story and realized that there must have been an episode like this.

‘Maybe it’s Shane’s letter to Edith……’

I had seen it in my dreams.

Shane’s letter was still fresh in my mind as he sent me a strange device to install on the back door of the mansion.

It was a letter that didn’t show the slightest concern for his sister’s well-being.

I took a deep breath and slowly walked over to the window and picked up the letter from the floor.

I tore open the envelope without a letter knife and pulled out the letter inside.

– Sooner or later, you will be abandoned by the Ludwigs.

It’s all your fault for failing to fulfill your role and betraying your family, but you are still a Riegelhoff, so I’m giving you one last chance.

If you wish to be Edith Riegelhoff again, hang a yellow ribbon on your window.

Death is the only fate for the unrepentant.

The sender of the letter was unknown, but it was obvious who had sent it.

‘It must be Shane, under orders from Count Riegelhoff.’

Every line, every word of the letter is full of lies, falsehoods, and deceit.