A False Salvation For Lady

Chapter 1

1. The Worst Wedding Anniversary

Cordelia DuCaine was born in an era when all things once noble were crumbling.

The everyday life that used to earn the respect of the people of the estate, the refined manners between gentlemen and ladies, the 300-year legacy of her family—and the just as numerous rooms of their grand mansion.

“Good day, my lady!”

“These are roses sent by the villagers, miss. They’re thanking you for your recent charity.”

“Hardrian roses. A flower truly befitting our lady.”

Her violet eyes blankly recalled those days spent in the Hardrian Empire of the Old Continent, her homeland across the sea.

After settling in the New Continent with nothing but faith in her businessman husband, she had made a point never to think back to that past.

“What good does it do to remember a ruined family?”

Cordelia’s family, the House of Hastings, had been a prestigious noble line for over 300 years, but they fell into ruin due to poor investments.

Her father had passed away early, a nonexistent presence in her life, and her mother—driven to despair after dragging all their acquaintances into the same financial ruin—eventually took her own life.

The once-grand castle and estates, rich in history, were stripped away by creditors. At just twenty-two, Cordelia was even abandoned by her fiancé, a duke, who broke off their engagement.

“If only that had been the worst of it…”

She hated remembering the days when she barely scraped by working as a governess, constantly hounded by debt collectors.

And now, at twenty-four—what had become of her?

As the taxi carried her forward, Cordelia glanced at the 2-carat pink diamond ring glittering on her left ring finger.

From head to toe, she was dressed as regally as she had been in her wealthiest days as a count’s daughter.

This transformation was thanks to her marriage a year ago to Lucas DuCaine, a businessman from the New Continent.

People had whispered endlessly about how lucky a fallen woman like her was to marry someone like him.

They were right—but Cordelia wanted to believe that he had proposed because he loved her.

“You should get to work, Lucas.”

“Hmm, only after one more kiss.”

Under the moonlight, his platinum blond hair shone like silver, and his deep teal eyes gleamed with a predatory intensity.

With a striking face that radiated invincibility and a perfect figure made even more stunning in a three-piece suit—he looked like a man who feared nothing in the world.

A man like that—every morning, he kissed her as if he never wanted to leave, embracing her like a boy charging into the arms of his first love.

“I lost count of how many times I was flustered by that kind of affection in the beginning.”

Cordelia had never been one to express emotions openly. From a young age, she’d lived as the representative of the Hastings estate, and even in front of the most familiar of servants, she kept her feelings hidden. She wasn’t born with a naturally friendly or expressive demeanor, and in truth, she’d long accepted that about herself.

But just as a drop of color once absorbed into a white canvas can’t be removed, Cordelia wished this new life of hers would last forever.

Which is why—on this day, their very first wedding anniversary—

She felt utterly disgusted with herself for tailing her husband.

Right then, the taxi stopped in front of an unfamiliar building—the destination of her quiet pursuit.

“We’re here, Mrs. DuCaine. The Eisner Corporation Office, just like you asked.”

“Thank you.”

Sigh. Cordelia let out a sigh tinged with self-loathing as she glanced nervously around the area.

Wasn’t this place close to the slums of Hell’s Rem? A lawless zone plagued by turf wars and even daylight shootouts.

And her husband was here? She shouldn’t have let that woman’s words get to her.

Louisa Vanderbilt—the youngest daughter of the powerful Vanderbilt family, a giant in New Continent finance.

She claimed to be Lucas’s college friend, but constantly acted as if she knew more about him than Cordelia did. That woman had even dropped by their newlywed home uninvited more than once.

Cordelia had always found her to be a thorn in her side, but she endured it—for a while.

She had no family, no connections in this foreign land. Lucas was her only anchor, and she didn’t want to make enemies so soon.

But last month’s party had been the breaking point—when Louisa made it her mission to mock her outright.

“Oh my, has it already been a year since you got married? Time really flies, doesn’t it? But you, my dear, haven’t changed a bit.”

“…I’m afraid I don’t quite follow, Miss Vanderbilt.”

“You’re still the same clueless noble lady, that’s what I mean. You still don’t really know Lucas, do you?”

“It seems you’ve had quite a bit of champagne. Perhaps your escort—”

“That dress you’re wearing—do you know what money Lucas used to buy it? The very funds that destroyed your family.”

She should’ve just scoffed and walked away.

But the mention of her family had caught her off guard—and she’d missed her chance.

That woman had looked so delighted with herself—just remembering it made Cordelia’s stomach churn.

“Your family’s investment in that coal mine back in the Old Continent, remember? It was supposed to be a sure thing—until oil surged and every noble in the Empire started going bankrupt.”

“I’d appreciate it if you refrained from insulting my family, Miss Vanderbilt.”

“Aren’t you even curious how incredible Lucas had to be? How a company no one had heard of—Eisner—ended up monopolizing oil like this?”

“…”

“Oh dear, I’m so sorry. You really didn’t know anything before you married him? You know even less than I do?”

With a sweet smile, Louisa extended a slip of paper. On it was the address of the company “Eisner.”

“Consider this a gesture of goodwill. You should visit. Lucas has meetings with his inner circle there every Thursday morning.”

“Thank you for your unsolicited advice. I hope your champagne hangover isn’t too harsh.”

Back then, Cordelia had turned her back without taking the note—haughty and composed. Why would she be swayed by the words of a woman with a sweet face who was clearly desperate to sleep with her husband?

Besides, she knew the name of the corporation Lucas managed—it wasn’t Eisner.

If he were involved in coal or oil, no matter how much she loved him, wouldn’t that have felt… unsettling?

But that woman, unhinged as she was, turned out to be alarmingly persistent.

Later, she sent Cordelia a newspaper article about Eisner.

The company had been accused of spreading malicious rumors about a coal mine—though the case had ended due to a lack of evidence, the photo in the article nearly made Cordelia faint.

“The people in this photo…!”

The men accused of spreading the rumors were none other than Lucas’s subordinates—the same ones who had attended their wedding.

Their rough appearances had been hard to forget.

Hadn’t she been told that they’d worked with Lucas for years?

“No… This can’t be.”

She told herself that just this one out-of-character act—this unseemly bit of spying—would crush her doubts once and for all.

But as she entered the lobby of the Eisner building, an employee came out to greet her right away.

“I’m here under Miss Vanderbilt’s reservation.”

“Yes, of course. Please follow me, Mrs. DuCaine. Your husband has already arrived.”

“…”

Her heart thudded, hot and heavy with a growing sense of dread.

“No. This is just one of Vanderbilt’s nasty tricks. If anything seems off, I’ll leave immediately.”

She still hoped this wedding anniversary could be a perfect day.

She wanted—truly wanted—to finally put her feelings into words and tell Lucas just how grateful and happy she’d been for the past year.

Lucas… even though I came to you with nothing—not even a proper dowry—you always treated me with warmth. Thank you. Because of you, I was able to find courage in this new land.

And I know I don’t really deserve to say this, but… I truly, deeply love you.

But the closer she got to the meeting room, the colder and stiffer her feet became.

That was because the voices leaking through the crack in the door were disturbingly familiar.

“Hahaha! I can’t believe a day like this actually came! The nobles are sucking on their fingers now—it’s hilarious!”

The men laughing crudely were her husband’s subordinates.

They’d always acted so courteous around her—she had never heard them speak this way before.

“Honestly, that coal mine? If it hadn’t been shaken up, it might’ve been tougher.”

“But thanks to Mr. Lucas’s groundwork, the mine collapsed. Half the Hadrian nobility went down with it.”

Her heart dropped like it hit the floor.

Especially because the soft chuckle that followed the praise… was her husband’s voice.

“All that? Why are they making such a fuss over something so easy?”

“But Mr. Lucas, how much longer do you plan to keep the missus as your wife?”

No. They couldn’t be talking about her, could they?

“Didn’t she live like a maid after her family went bankrupt? But then you went and did that at the goddess’ party… hahaha.”

“Sure, she was pretty. But let’s be honest—she was so desperate, it was pitiful.”

Cordelia clamped her hand over her mouth.

It was true—she had been desperate when Lucas came to the Empire.

At the time, the family who was sheltering her had started pressuring her to become a second wife.

“Someone like you is nothing but leftover goods,” they’d said.

That was why she wore a hand-me-down dress, one size too small, and attended the party anyway.

But in their eyes, she must’ve looked like a woman frantically trying to catch a man’s attention.

The shame of that memory returned in full force, crawling over her skin like ants.

Then came a voice she recognized—William Seymour, Lucas’s closest college friend and also his subordinate in business.

“I heard you deliberately spread the word to the Hastings side—that it was a sure-win investment, even worth betting everything on.”

“It’s a free market. Grown adults can invest however they want. How is that my fault?”

“Still, did you really have to bankrupt the entire Hastings family?”

“…I had to.”

Unlike the others, who were caught up in the thrill of it all, Lucas’s reply came in a calm, almost indifferent tone.

“I had to push them that low… so that a lowborn bastard like me could ever dream of touching a noble lady.”