They left Diana’s side, no longer speaking recklessly, knowing they would only lose by making an enemy of the Winchester family.

Originally, Diana should have been the one to speak up, but she was completely speechless and unable to make any retort.

The fact that their words weren’t entirely false weighed heavily on Diana’s heart. Seeing her tense expression refusing to soften, Lady Cavan tried to comfort her.

“Don’t worry about what they said. They’re just jealous. They’re all young ladies who were interested in Lord Lauderdale.”

As Lady Cavan said, the young ladies who picked fights with Diana were all those who had lingered around Edwin and tried to speak with him before his engagement to Diana.

Though she knew this fact, Diana felt miserable that she couldn’t refute even them. It was the truth, after all.

“It’s… true.”

With no reason to hide it anymore, Diana finally voiced what she hadn’t been able to tell anyone.

“Pardon?”

“My relationship with Lord Lauderdale is indeed precarious.”

“W-what happened? Do you think it’s because of Lady Queensberry that your relationship went wrong?”

“…”

She had done nothing wrong. The problem was Diana, who tried to steal another woman’s man. But unable to say that, she couldn’t give any answer.

Noticing Diana’s hesitation, Lady Cavan carefully spoke.

“Lady Queensberry isn’t the type to steal another person’s man. I’m not saying this to take her side, so I hope you don’t misunderstand.”

“Have you spoken with her?”

“Yes. She’s a lively and spirited woman. A bit unique too.”

“Is she kind?”

“Yes. She’s not the type to burden others. Rather, she’s the type to step forward and help. You could call her generous.”

Lady Cavan had a good eye for people. Her praise meant that Lady Queensberry was a decent person.

So that must be why Edwin had feelings for her.

If she had been a bad woman, Diana would have felt reluctant to let Edwin go, but it was the opposite. That was somewhat fortunate. Even if Edwin’s heart had changed, it seemed there was no reason to resent Lady Queensberry.

“Thank you for telling me.”

Though a gloomy rain fell in her heart, Diana smiled at Lady Cavan.

* * *

Though Diana was the one who first suggested breaking off the engagement, her physical condition deteriorated day by day to the point where anyone would think she had been rejected.

She wanted to believe in Edwin. She knew she should, but with no contact from him, her emotional suffering was immense. She tried to stay positive, but she had no appetite and couldn’t even eat properly.

‘Lord Lauderdale has gone on an expedition to the border region. He’ll be absent from the Imperial Palace for a while.’

She had wanted to meet Edwin directly to talk, but he continued to be absent from the palace. Considering this was the first time he had been absent for such a long period, it seemed that quite a troublesome incident had occurred in the border region.

‘What about Lady Queensberry?’

‘She hasn’t been showing up at social gatherings lately either.’

Edwin was absent from the Imperial Palace due to work, and Lady Queensberry was probably not showing herself for personal reasons, but strangely, Diana couldn’t think of them separately.

‘There is no one more precious to me than you.’

The more she ruminated on Edwin’s words, the more her heart ached. She had thought he was sincere, but had it just been an impulsive statement?

Diana withered day by day, and concerned about her, Duke Winchester made an unexpected suggestion.

“The rumors about you aren’t good these days. How about staying at the villa for a while?”

“I agree with that opinion. Leaving the capital for a while seems like a good idea right now.”

The Duchess also supported his opinion.

The fact that even her mother was involved meant that criticism directed at Diana regarding the broken engagement was surely pouring in from everywhere.

She could imagine what the young ladies she had encountered in the square a few days ago were excitedly gossiping about.

They had probably been spreading rumors that Diana had committed a grave mistake, leading to the breaking off of her engagement with Edwin. And there would be people who supported them.

But the villa? Even when she tried to change the future, even when she struggled, things seemed to flow similarly.

Her father had spoken out of concern for her, but his suggestion only confused Diana. It felt like a reminder that changing the future wasn’t easy.

Would she die if she went to the villa?

The Winchester family owned about ten villas. So she wouldn’t have to go to the villa where she had died in her previous life, but she had an ominous feeling and didn’t want to go to any villa at all.

“I’m fine. I’ve just lost my appetite lately, but I’ll get better soon. Besides, I still have things to do.”

As the rumors about Diana worsened, the number of people who supported her opinion was gradually decreasing.

Changing a heart once it had turned wasn’t easy, but Diana was working to persuade them.

With so much still to do, how could she rest at a villa? She had absolutely no intention of going to a villa.

“That’s good to hear. Marie has been very worried about you.”

Since Diana had lost a lot of weight, Marie had apparently recommended rest to her parents out of concern.

“Tell her not to worry.”

Forcing a smile, Diana thought about her future.

It seemed she would soon break off her engagement with Edwin, and becoming the head of the family seemed impossible for now… She feared she might truly become entangled with Clive.

She had told her father countless times that she didn’t like him, and she tried hard to avoid him, but she couldn’t let her guard down. 

Hadn’t she felt several times that she would become entangled with Clive if she let her guard down even a little?

The suggestion to go to the villa must have weighed on her mind, because that night, Diana tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

She did fall asleep briefly, but kept waking up, and eventually, Diana got out of bed.

Perhaps looking at the stars in the night sky would make her feel better.

The moment she stepped outside the mansion to take a walk in the garden, she realized she heard a suspicious sound. Creeak. It was brief, but not something to ignore.

Was that the sound of a carriage?

A foreboding feeling struck her instantly. She considered waking someone else but decided against it. If she delayed, there was a high chance she would miss the suspicious individuals.

It would be better to check with her own eyes first, wouldn’t it?

The knights were always on standby in shifts, and their quarters weren’t far from the mansion, so they would quickly come running if she screamed.

Diana carefully approached the direction from which the sound had come. The sounds would appear and then quickly disappear as she took a few steps closer.

Diana’s eyes widened as she carefully observed the direction of the sounds. Two masked men were in front of a carriage.

Wasn’t that the carriage her parents frequently used? What were they doing there now?

The men sensed Diana’s presence and looked up. Even with their faces hidden behind masks, she could tell at a glance that they weren’t workers from the mansion.

Diana knew the faces of all the workers in the mansion. There were over 300 of them, and even though they sometimes changed, she remembered all of them, but these were faces she had never seen before.

The moment she spotted the suspicious individuals, an ominous premonition flashed through her mind. Could this be a repetition of the past?

Hadn’t she told her mother and father countless times to be careful with the carriage? 

Initially treating it as a light joke, the two had surrendered when Diana inspected the carriage every time they went out.

Afterward, as she had instructed, they always checked the condition of the carriage before getting in. So even if these men damaged the carriage, they would be discovered immediately. Were they unaware of this?

Various thoughts crossed her mind, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on such matters. The priority was to find out who these bold perpetrators were.

“Hello! Is anyone there? Please come quickly!”

Diana shouted with an urgent voice. She couldn’t let them escape. She needed to determine whether they were Clive’s minions or not.

“Eek, we’ve been discovered.”

Startled by Diana’s voice, the culprits began to flee. As Diana stamped her feet and watched them, knights who had heard her scream approached instantly.

“What’s the matter!”

Diana pointed in the direction where the culprits had disappeared.

“C-catch those men right away!”

“Understood.”

As soon as they responded, the knights quickly moved in the direction Diana had indicated. They swiftly captured the suspicious men, tied them with ropes, and brought them before Diana.

“They were acting suspiciously in front of the carriage. Please find out why they did it.”

“Understood.”

Though the knights would surely uncover who the real culprits were, the trembling in her body wouldn’t stop.

Wasn’t tomorrow the day when the Duke and Duchess Winchester were going to the Imperial Palace together? It was the day they would have an audience with His Majesty the Emperor, so how did the culprits know about it?

This meant there was an accomplice within the mansion.

What should she do? Was it impossible to change things no matter how hard she tried?

Feeling that the past was about to repeat itself, Diana felt a deep sense of helplessness. She could only hope, desperately, that the events of the past would not recur.