Guidelines for the Perfect Goodbye - Chapter 60
‘No…’
That was too wicked.
As she was shaking her head in refusal, she suddenly stopped and her eyes sparkled.
‘If it’s not discovered?’
If the act of wickedness wasn’t discovered?
There were women who, unable to bear the sorrow of parting, truly threw themselves to death.
Couldn’t she pretend to be like that?
‘Pretend.’
Right.
She could just pretend.
Caroline harbored feelings for Ulysses—but she didn’t love him enough to die for him.
She had always played the role of a devoted woman, conscious of societal views, as if love was everything.
‘I love my fiancé so much.’
‘I could even throw my life away for him.’
She often uttered such phrases. As a result, Caroline was known in society as ‘the lady who loves only one man devoutly.’
With the news of the breakup now, it wasn’t just about love failing.
She had set the stage so grandly that she couldn’t possibly meet another man!
‘I can’t just let it end like this. Ulysses is all I have.’
If she broke off with Ulysses, Caroline had two choices: maintain the title of a devoted lady and live a single life, dying as a lonely old woman, or prepare to be mocked while yearning for a man out of her reach.
Both scenarios were perfect setups for becoming the laughingstock of society.
‘I dislike both.’
She always had to appear perfect in front of others. A blemish was unacceptable.
Better to bear the shame at home than for the breakup news to spread in society.
‘I probably won’t die from falling from the second floor.’
Caroline set her mind to this big decision and walked to the balcony. It was the first act of wickedness in her life.
Deliberately positioning herself on the right side of the balcony where she could hang onto a tree, Caroline looked down to gauge the spot where she would fall.
Although it was only the height of the second floor, it felt as distant as if it were the twentieth.
‘Ah, it’s too scary after all.’
Her hands clutching the balcony railing trembled.
‘I can’t do it…’
Caroline hesitated, repeatedly lifting and placing her toes over the edge.
At that moment, just as she was about to give up in fear, she locked eyes with a figure sitting on the fountain in the garden, with purple hair.
‘Cecilia?’
Then, Cecilia, leaning against the railing, awkwardly waved at her.
Caroline instinctively raised her hand in response but froze.
‘Cecilia saw me.’
“A witness…”
Why hadn’t she thought of it?
There was a brilliant way to achieve her goal without having to fall from the balcony.
***
Cecilia was feeling at ease for the first time in a while.
The attempted poisoning that had stirred the Coffret Manor had safely ended, and her objectives were achieved.
‘It’s regrettable that Guinevere lost half her sight.’
But feeling regrettable about it didn’t purely mean she was sympathetic.
If Guinevere’s current state became known in society, her network might shrink.
‘It seems Father has effectively quashed the rumors about the poisoning… but if Guinevere returns to the Rosencrantz estate, it’s only a matter of time before the fact that she acquired a disability spreads. Physical aftereffects can’t be hidden for long.’
Despite their pretensions of refinement, there’s no place as obsessed with appearances as the aristocratic high society.
Some families would immediately distance themselves upon noticing Guinevere’s situation. Thus, this certificate would turn into nothing more than a piece of paper.
‘…Was it a foolish choice?’
It was preventable. Yet, Cecilia did not stop Bernarda’s revenge.
Not because she wanted to curry favor. She merely wished for Guinevere to pay a fitting price for her misdeeds.
She remembered Bernarda, who had cried until her forehead bled and her nails came off when Nathan became disabled in her previous life.
Cecilia knew that piercing emotion. Therefore, she did not stop her.
But Bernarda remained her enemy. That fact had not changed. Thus, such exceptions would not occur again.
‘Guinevere Rosencrantz won’t crumble just because she lost an eye.’
Guinevere had a natural talent for turning her flaws into strengths. In that regard, Cecilia herself had much to learn from her.
Surely, she would brilliantly overcome this obstacle too.
She wouldn’t have considered her for a chaperone if she couldn’t even handle her own affairs. Guinevere would manage on her own.
The real problem was herself.
