SMR | Chapter 37

~Chapter 37~

“You mean you’re going to just accept that disgrace, even though it wasn’t your fault?”

“It’s not something I can just shake off right away. And like you said, this scandal is the reason I’m famous—so I thought I might as well use it.”

Tricia’s brow was still furrowed. While fame could be useful, letting a misunderstanding like being called a loose woman spread unchecked could be dangerous.

“I worry you’re still too naive. High society has two faces. It can be immoral at night, but must appear pure during the day.”

Once you cross the unspoken line, people will turn on you in an instant. Everyone will act together, pointing fingers and pushing you out. And if that happened, Harriet’s return would mean nothing.

But Harriet had a different perspective.

“I became certain of something at the Vanderbilt party—that curiosity is an incredibly powerful force.”

She had felt unsure that night, but after the party, several invitations had arrived for her. They were for small tea parties, and interestingly, they all included a request to “keep this invitation a secret.”

Even though being seen with Harriet could damage their own reputations, these people were just too curious to resist.

“I was already seen as a scandal maker before, so I was surprised to only start getting these kinds of invitations now. Then I realized—it’s probably because, back then, I was full of frustration and kept defending myself. I didn’t seem like someone who’d say anything interesting.”

“And now?”

“Now that people think I spent a year in a convent reflecting on my past, maybe it looks like I’ve accepted it all. So they probably think I’m someone they can finally talk to.”

“They just want to hear all the juicy details of your scandals, huh?”

“Exactly. Otherwise, why would they invite someone with such a bad reputation? I’ll happily attend and check things out.”

Trisha tapped the armrest of her chair, then asked again,

“But your scandals weren’t even your doing. What are you planning to say at these parties?”

At that, Harriet’s eyes lit up.

“Maybe I can twist those stories into something that works in my favor.”

Right now, people trusted Bella and her uncle much more than her. If she just blurted out the truth, it could backfire.

But words were a strange thing—without lying, she could still say what people wanted to hear and steer the story toward the result she wanted.

That was exactly the kind of tactic Roxana had drilled into her.

Trisha seemed to think for a moment after hearing that, then nodded slowly.

“Hmph. It’s your life, so do as you wish. But keep this in mind—people will try to use you to get to me.”

“I promise I won’t do anything to embarrass you.”

“We’ll see.”

Having said all she needed to, Trisha got up and left the sitting room.

Left alone, Harriet let out a small, awkward laugh. Before heading upstairs, she decided to tidy up the room a bit and began setting the chairs back in place.

That’s when she found a thick blanket under the chair Trisha had been sitting in.

‘It’s summer—why is there a lap blanket here?’

It was a little odd, but Harriet simply folded it neatly and placed it back on the chair.

***

“Here’s the information you requested on the Listerwell viscount family. It covers most of the last 20 years.”

The man who had been smoking on the Vanderbilt terrace returned after a week and handed a thick file to Cedric.

“Good work. The next likely party is at the Sheldon count’s estate. Check it out in advance.”

“Yes, sir.”

Less than five minutes after meeting, the man vanished again.

This was how the intelligence network Cedric had personally built, operated. Edgar, who had co-founded with him, was the only member who stayed in close contact—most others worked alone. Even the members didn’t know each other’s identities, and whenever they met to exchange information, they kept it brief.

Thanks to that, no one knew it even existed. And yet, it was likely the most powerful information-gathering network in the empire.

‘Twenty years of data… but it’s not as thick as I expected.’

Cedric flipped through the documents like he was reading a novel.

Cedric had never found other families’ trivial histories interesting before—but strangely, the information about the Listerwell family was easy to read.

There were surprisingly dramatic events, enough to make him wonder if everyone lived through moments like these.

The first of them was clearly the tragic death of the former head of the family, Arthur Listerwell.

“June 28, 1866 — Arthur Listerwell and his wife drowned. Location: Center of Lake Tasia, Albrecht Park.

One week later, bodies were found at Saint Antoine Park across the lake.

…With no official will, the title passed not to his daughter, Harriet, but to his younger brother, John.”

Cedric vaguely remembered hearing about a drowning accident at Albrecht Park. He recalled that boat rides had become less frequent afterward.

The document detailed the circumstances of the accident fairly thoroughly.

“John Listerwell was the first to witness the accident and call for help. However, by the time help arrived, they had already sunk…”

Boating accidents weren’t uncommon—but fatalities were rare since people usually stayed in shallow waters.

Yet for some reason, Arthur and his wife had pulled far into the deeper part of the lake.

Maybe they were too distracted by the scenery to realize how far they’d gone.

Cedric could almost picture the cheerful picnic turning into a scene of tragedy.

But was it really a tragedy for everyone?

“For John Listerwell, it must’ve been lucky. Arthur, who supposedly adored his daughter, died suddenly without leaving a will.”

Two years before Arthur’s death, the law had changed, allowing daughters to inherit titles —but only if the previous head left a clear will.

And even then, extended family members often opposed it and overturned such decisions.

Since the law had only recently changed and Harriet was only twelve at the time, she likely didn’t even know she had rights. In the end, her uncle took everything.

Cedric flipped through the pages quickly, skimming until Harriet’s name came up again.

But from age twelve to seventeen, Harriet barely appeared in the records.

Instead, there were frequent mentions of Bella.

“Bella Listerwell was known for her beauty from a young age and was well-liked for her kind and bright personality. Even before her father inherited the Listerwell title, she often appeared at parties with Harriet…”

“By age fifteen, Bella began receiving serious attention from men, with early marriage proposals…”

“Bella frequently interacted with these men and played a central role in social circles…”

In short, Bella had been popular since childhood.

She was surrounded by men and women alike, admired by everyone.

People even judged their own social standing by how close they were to her.

“She sounds like a classic ‘queen bee,’” Cedric thought.

But others didn’t seem to see her that way—there were hardly any negative rumors about Bella.

“In fact, most of the bad rumors surrounded Harriet Listerwell… starting when she turned eighteen?”

When both cousins turned eighteen, Harriet suddenly started getting attention—but not in a good way.

“…The man’s name was Julian Faith (second son of the Viscount Faith). Harriet Listerwell, who secretly admired him, intercepted a letter Julian sent to Bella and replied in her place…”

That was the exact story Cedric had overheard at the party.

After that, Harriet was frequently linked with men.

Like with Julian, she tricked men using letters pretending to be Bella —receiving flowers and gifts from them, and even attending masquerade balls with Bella’s invitations, pretending to be her and getting involved with men in questionable ways.

Even Tez Roark, the one who claimed to have been “dishonored by Harriet” at a polo event, had met her at a masquerade ball, mistaking her for Bella and getting intimately involved.

After reading all that, Cedric tilted his head in confusion.