The Wicked Wife's Dark History Keeps Coming Back To Haunt Her - Chapter 164

Count Conwell.

He was a madman, famous for his passionate adoration of the arts and beauty, to the point of fanaticism.

He attended every exhibition there was, but was indifferent to his own wedding anniversary or his wife’s birthday, and in the end, he was divorced for it.

He had told her to sell Emil’s paintings through the Delphinium Gallery.

‘So he’s been going around praising Emil’s artwork, then.’

Rebecca’s lips curled smoothly upward.

“Just thinking about how painful it must have been for him to reach this level of skill with his left hand, I couldn’t help but want to support him.”

“You truly are so thoughtful…”

Look at that.

Now there were people admiring her kindness.

Sure enough, breaking a perfectly fine arm and handing over a convincing backstory had been the right choice.

Soon, as these people spread the word of her goodwill, it would surely reach Her Majesty the Empress’s ears.

She felt a deep sense of satisfaction that Emil’s story was being mentioned even more than Henry, who was sponsored by House Bayern.

‘Now, if only something would happen to her body…’

Then the rift between the couple would deepen, and things would return to how they once were, with Nina as a tool to bolster her own self-esteem.

‘…But why are they looking at me like that?’

Rebecca’s smile stiffened.

She had just noticed people glancing her way with oddly unpleasant expressions.

Now that she thought about it, even those who usually acted friendly toward her seemed to be keeping their distance.

Was it because she’d been basking in the pleasure of imagining what state Nina must be in by now?

A vague sense of unease set in as she glanced around, pulling her lips tight.

Flinch.

Rebecca’s lips twitched minutely.

Her drunken husband was flirting with women.

Just moments ago, he’d been talking about the hunt with men from his own faction, so she’d only taken her eyes off him for a second.

“Madam, perhaps you should mind your own family matters and keep an eye on your own husband.”

What Nina said at the Imperial Palace flashed through her mind for an instant.

She straightened her back and approached Frederick.

“Honey, it looks like you’ve made some new friends. Would you introduce them to me?”

They say a man’s behavior depends on his wife.

Rebecca had no intention of acting jealous and ugly, as Nina had.

The more you did that, the more men got sick of women, as Nina’s example showed all too well.

“Aah, Wife, you’re here? This is…”

“Duchess Nord, since you’ve arrived, we’ll take our leave now.”

But the women quickly disappeared upon Rebecca’s arrival, smiling with relief.

It seemed they hadn’t been flirting with her husband after all, but had been forced to entertain him.

Her lips trembled with anger.

It takes two hands to clap, yet her husband was waving at empty air by himself.

Rebecca slipped her arm through Frederick’s and whispered,

“Honey, people are watching. You need to pull yourself together.”

“Ah, yes. Pull myself together, right…”

Just how much had he drunk to be so completely drunk?

How pathetic, that this useless man had inherited the duchy simply for being the eldest son.

Rebecca was trying to discreetly support Frederick’s body when—

“Oh my, Duchess Bayern has appeared.”

“I thought she must have argued with His Grace again since I didn’t see her, but I guess not…”

Fwip—

Rebecca turned her head.

The woman who ought to be doubled over in pain was instead entering arm-in-arm with Duke Bayern.

And not just that. Other people were by her side. Duke and Duchess Taylor, and even Marquis Killian, the Chief Justice, who everyone believed were all estranged from Nina.

Rebecca’s emerald eyes quivered.

How…?

Did her grandfather fail?

“Oh my, isn’t that the red diamond necklace Her Majesty awarded today around the Duchess’s neck?”

“Seeing how affectionate they are, I guess the rumors are true.”

“What rumors?”

“They say someone was sowing discord between the couple right from the start, that’s why they were on bad terms…”

“Sowing discord? Whoever it was, they must have been truly petty and low. How jealous must that person have been of Duchess Bayern…?”

Rebecca clenched her fists so hard her nails dug into her palm.

‘How jealous must that person have been?’

They probably didn’t really know anything, but those words, as if directly aimed at her, left a metallic taste of blood in her mouth.

“……”

Duke Bayern, beside Nina, gazed at her with incomparable affection, sweet as honey.

And compared to that, the pitiful Duke Nord by her side couldn’t even stand up straight, completely drunk.

The black-and-white contrast brought a bitter sense of defeat.

Long ago, when she’d debuted in high society, that woman had always been the one she was endlessly compared to. Now, after two years, once again…

A murderous glint began to flicker in Rebecca’s emerald eyes, a look she’d never had before.

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