The wicked woman is roasting coffee beans again today.

Chapter 2

Upon hearing Lynet’s words, no one dared to speak. Watching the three of them, unable to utter a word as if they had secretly indulged in honey, Lynet crossed her arms leisurely.

Then, she began to detail the incident from her room, choosing to describe it at an 18+ maturity level.

“In my room, sitting on my desk, were my sister and Fer, holding her legs.”

“Stop!”

Just as Lynet was about to describe what she claimed to have witnessed as if she had seen it herself, Kenneth interrupted her.

Then Edgar yelled out.

“Hey! I told you to only read romance novels in moderation! See, you talk nonsense because you read those useless novels when you’re bored.”

“I read romance novels, not adult ones. I wouldn’t be able to explain in detail what I just did if I hadn’t seen it myself, right?”

“The necklace you’re wearing right now, Esther, was a gift from Fernando. You can even go to the accessory shop at 2-8 Sky Street and ask. He bought it as a gift for my sister.”

“No, that’s not true. This was a gift from a friend.”

“Well, that’s a lie. Who is that friend, then?”

“Uh, it’s Ember, Countess of Als…”

“Let father look into this. He’ll send someone to the accessories shop with Miss Ember of Als, and we’ll find out soon enough. Of course, you’ll have to stay here.”

Esther, who was about to turn to leave, paused at Lynet’s words. Her motherly green eyes began to flutter, and Lynete snorted at the sight.

She didn’t like the way she was acting in front of her, pretending to be nice and oblivious while doing all sorts of nasty things behind her back.

If Esther wanted to enjoy Fernando’s company, she could simply marry him. What was the need for such deception?

“Esther, is what Lynet said true?”

“No. That’s not possible.”

“Then stay here. I will send someone to verify this. If it turns out to be a lie, Lynet! You know there will be consequences.”

Lynet, shrugging her shoulders, smirked at Esther’s discomfort.

“What will you do if what’s said turns out to be true?”

“Then… the marriage will, of course, be annulled.”

“And then?”

“And then, well…”

Kenneth couldn’t immediately answer, though he sighed deeply. Expecting a subsequent action, Lynet had asked, but the situation’s shamefulness seemed to weigh heavily on Kenneth if Lynet’s words were true.

“How shocked must I have been to have fallen down the stairs then? And you’re not going to take any action?”

Of course, Lynet hadn’t actually been so startled by the scene that she ran away and fell. It was simply because she was wearing unfamiliar high heels and had slipped.

However, there was no need to explain every detail. She had to break up with Fernando somehow. That way, she wouldn’t be executed for the sin of becoming a demon of malice and killing the two of them.

“Oh, Father, I need to use the restroom.”

“Go ahead. There’s a restroom here.”

Lynet pointed to the restroom inside the study, causing Esther to bite her lip.

Seeing this, Edgar furrowed his brow slightly. Even though Lynet often didn’t listen well, she had never stooped to this level of mockery.

“My sudden urge to go seems to have disappeared.” 

“You’re trying to get out somehow, but even if you’re sick, it won’t work, so stay put.”

Esther, who usually played the role of a sickly beauty with a very strong body, chewed her red lips.

In the meantime, the servant, under Kenneth’s command, dashed off in two different directions.

“Sigh, how did things end up like this?”

The elder daughter looked visibly anxious just by looking at her. In contrast, the younger daughter seemed very relaxed. Anyone would think that Esther was the one who had cold feet. But Kenneth wanted to believe in his elder daughter until the end.

He thought that if his younger daughter caused trouble, marrying the Count of Als would put an end to it. He desperately wanted to believe that Lynet was talking nonsense.

Just then, news arrived that Fernando had come.

“Count. Fernando is here to see Lady Lynet.”

“I think he’s here to see my sister, not me.”

“What?”

“Never mind. Just call him here.”

Lynet’s words made Kenneth nod. The butler, Nixon, promptly brought Fernando up.

“Ah! Everyone is here.”

Amidst the chilly atmosphere, the adulterer Fernando leaped in cheerfully. Lynet smirked at Fernando, who knew nothing and laughed innocently. She wondered why she ever liked such a useless guy enough to sacrifice her future for him.

“What were you talking about? Since I’m soon becoming part of this family…”

“We were talking about you and our sister.”

“Huh? Me? Talking about your sister?”

Fernando blinked as if he couldn’t understand English.

“Fernando, Lynet said something strange. She claimed that you and Esther had a relationship in Lynet’s room.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

Seeing Fernando greatly exaggerate his surprise, Edgar narrowed his eyes slightly. Fernando’s blue eyes trembled like leaves on a willow tree in the winter wind.

“Is what Lynet said true?”

“No, that’s impossible. I’m about to marry Lynet; how could I…”

Fernando tried to dismiss Lynet as if she were just a madwoman who had recently regained her senses.

When Fernando tried to belittle Lynet, calling her insane, Edgar narrowed his eyes even more.

“Come to think of it, our Lynet often met with Esther when she was in a coma.”

“That’s because she’s Lynet’s sister, of course. I was just trying to comfort her fragile heart.”

“Yes, you two were making out in my room, using my illness as an excuse, and didn’t you say that you liked it better when you could see me looking at you while holding onto my bed?”

“What the…….”

“People sometimes have moments where they’re not conscious, but their hearing works normally.”

“No, absolutely not!”

“No, really. Even animals wouldn’t do such a thing. How can someone in a coma hold onto the bed where their sibling is lying and engage in such an act?”

Just listening to the extremely detailed explanation from Lynet was enough to make Fernando and Esther turn pale.

Fernando excused himself, saying he had to run an urgent errand, but the door wouldn’t open.

“Father, Lord Bak, the door…”

“It won’t open until the truth of this matter is fully revealed.”

The smile faded from Fernando’s face as Lynet spoke kindly. He sat quietly on the couch and looked at Esther. Esther stood still, clutching the hem of her dress in nervousness, and fidgeted whenever Renate hummed.

A moment later, the two employees who had hurriedly gone out returned and spoke at the same time.

“It’s reported that a man matching Lady’s description bought a necklace at the accessory store.”

“Lady Ember has never given a necklace as a gift to the eldest miss.”

And that’s the end of the game!

Crash―

Father, please don’t exert yourself too much. You’re not just anyone; you’re an official, not a commoner. No matter how many times you hit it, the table won’t break; it’s your bones that might break.

“You rascal! You have an engagement, yet you have an affair with your fiance’s sister!”

Edgar, who was originally not very good-natured, grabbed Fernando by the collar. Fernando, caught in the grip of Edgar, shook dangerously, like the last leaf in front of a winter wind.

Thump―

Esther chose an incredibly clever way to faint. Lynet showed no pity for Esther’s collapse. She had been abandoned by her father in a past life because of a woman disguised as a sister and a man disguised as a husband. She was condemned as a villain and sentenced to death.

Even if she didn’t know about their previous lives, Lynet didn’t have the heart to forgive them; she just sat on the couch and waited to see what would happen next.

Fernando had been beaten to a bloody pulp by Edgar. Kenneth looked at his passed-out eldest daughter, sighed heavily, and ordered someone to take her upstairs to her room.

“You crazy son of a bitch, what are you going to do now?”

“B-brother, I’ll take responsibility and marry Lynet.”

“What kind of nonsense is that for a human being to say? To touch my sister and then spout such nonsense! What about Esther!”

“I-I’ll take responsibility for Esther too…”

“What are you going to take responsibility for? Marrying Lynet and taking responsibility, and Esther is supposed to be dealt with by the government, What’s that! You crazy bastard!”

It was typical of Edgar’s way of speaking. The problem was that he occasionally used this manner of speaking to himself as well.

It was truly unfortunate that he was a real brother, not a brother from a novel. The handsome real brother was practically non-existent.

“Edgar!”

“What? I haven’t beaten this asshole yet.”

“Let him go first.”

“Of course I’ll let him go; I’ll put him in a coffin!”

Reality, who was as cool as cider when he wasn’t being beaten, shook Fernando senseless. Edgar, who had panned Fernando until he was unrecognizable as a human being, looked at Renate, still fuming.

“Hey! Do you even deserve to be an angel with that kind of behavior? If you knew the truth, you should have told me right away!”

“I did tell you just now.”

Edgar, a foul-mouthed man whose sense of chivalry had long since died, put Fernando in a real wooden box and threw it at the hired help who had come with him.

“You son of a bitch, listen to me,” he said, “If you ever get divorced, it will be because of your infidelity. Otherwise, if you come to a party and I see you, I’ll beat you like a dog in front of everyone!”

Having thoroughly shaken Fernando, Edgar looked at Kenneth. Seeing Kenneth’s puzzled expression as he held his head, Edgar shook his head vigorously. He seemed shocked that his daughter’s fiancé, about to get married, had a relationship with his elder daughter.

“If you had listened to me, we wouldn’t have had to resort to such a complicated method to confirm the truth.”

“…”

“As expected, Father doesn’t trust me.”

Lynet, with a bitter smile, shook her head tremblingly.

“Hey! Your behavior…”

“No matter how bad my behavior may be, I wouldn’t engage in such acts with my brother-in-law.”

Edgar, who was about to say something in response to Lynet’s answer, sighed deeply and slumped onto the sofa. Then he looked at Kenneth, who was still groaning.

Sighing, Kenneth turned his attention to Lynet as if he’d gotten something straightened out in his mind. With her head still bandaged, she was in desperate need of reassurance.

“Very well, I will grant the annulment as you wish.”

Lynete smirked as Kenneth stood up to write a letter to Count Phyllis, asking for an annulment.

“And there was one more thing, don’t you remember?”

Kenneth stumbled over the question of what he would do if the truth came out, but she wasn’t one to let that stand.

“What do you want?”

Lynet grinned when the question she wanted came up.

“Please get rid of the woman who pretended to be my sister, right in front of me.”

“Dum spiro spero”