Chapter 59
“Did Catherine really say that?”
“She did. Isn’t it hilarious?”
Aicel’s eyes widened in disbelief. While things may have taken a wrong turn, everything Alicia had done had been solely for Catherine’s sake. Not to mention—she was her biological mother.
And yet she asked to have her thrown out?
Aicel rolled the thought around in her head for a moment—then suddenly burst into laughter, clutching her stomach.
After laughing for a while, the smile gradually faded from her face, leaving a cool chill in the air. Aicel raised her brows and spoke coldly.
“She’s really… worse than I thought.”
In a way, it was a relief. Now there would be no need to feel guilty about her plan to bring Catherine down.
“Like mother, like daughter, as they say.”
“Just like how a lovely daughter like me came from such a wonderful mother?”
“Heh, exactly.”
Aicel let out a small snort and snuggled into Diana’s embrace. Diana burst out laughing, finding her daughter so lovable. Then she pulled her into a tight hug.
Whenever she was with Aicel, she felt an overwhelming sense of happiness—enough to make her want to stay in this moment forever.
But when she closed her eyes, the memories of that day came flooding back.
The hard wooden floor. The sack that had been thrown in front of her. The cold, stiff corpse inside the sack.
Even though she had been blind at the time, she could remember everything from that day with vivid clarity—not through sight, but with every other sense.
By now, one would think the memory should have faded. But it never had.
Mom will protect you, Aicel.
If you don’t eat, you’ll be eaten. Diana gripped Aicel tightly, as if she would never let her go again.
“I’m curious how Catherine will respond.”
“Same here. And I doubt Alicia will sit quietly either.”
“Right. She’ll probably throw a tantrum.”
A glint of coldness flickered in Diana’s eyes. Now, only ruin awaited Alicia. Of course, that ruin wouldn’t come from Diana herself—but at the hands of Alicia’s own daughter.
How deliciously ironic. To be discarded by your own flesh and blood—and destroyed because of it.
Just imagining it made her want to laugh aloud.
“I’m looking forward to it. Alicia’s final outburst.”
How Alicia would act next was obvious. But Diana was willing to wait.
Alicia had already stepped into the trap she had laid. The more she struggled, the deeper she would sink.
“Let’s wait for that moment, Mother,” Aicel said.
“And when it comes—let’s laugh at her all we want.”
* * *
The office door slammed open.
Startled, Calypso looked up from his work to see who had entered so rudely.
“Calypso!”
It was Alicia—fuming with rage, her breath coming in short bursts.
Calypso stared her up and down with a baffled expression.
Did she even have a shred of shame?
She had been the one humiliated in front of everyone, but everyone also knew Alicia was Ernest’s personal physician.
Naturally, the backlash extended to the Grand Duke of Ernest himself. Because of that foolish woman, he had to bow his head and apologize to a duke known for cherishing his wife dearly.
Recalling that disgraceful day, Calypso frowned deeply.
He shouldn’t have taken her there in the first place. If it hadn’t been for Diana, he wouldn’t have brought Alicia, no matter how much of a fling she was.
Now, he wanted to sever even that relationship.
Contrary to his original plan, after Alicia gave birth to Catherine, he had briefly considered making her the Grand Duchess once Diana died.
But no matter how many times he reconsidered, she simply wasn’t fit for the title.
Even the plan to get rid of Diana had gone completely awry the moment Alicia started regaining her sight.
She had merely been a pawn, someone to use so he wouldn’t have to dirty his own hands.
Why keep a broken toy by his side?
Without looking up from the papers in front of him, Calypso let out a sigh and said:
“What do you think you’re doing, barging in like this with no manners?”
“Manners? Did you seriously just say that?”
Alicia barked at him, her voice brimming with resentment.
She understood that he couldn’t defend her in public. But how could he not come to her afterward—not even once?
Alicia sat on the edge of his desk, unleashing all the fury she had bottled up.
“While the woman you claim to love was being humiliated—this is what you have to say? Manners? Sure! What manners could a mistress possibly have?!”
Her voice grew louder, fuelled by indignation. Calypso recoiled in shock and jumped up from his seat.
“Quiet! What do you think you’re doing?!”
Even though they were alone in the office, he looked around nervously, worried someone might hear. He reached out and clamped a hand over her mouth.
Alicia smacked his hand away with irritation.
“What, afraid someone might hear us?”
“I was just busy.”
Calypso sat back down, casually flipping through his documents as if nothing had happened.
Alicia, trembling with emotion, collapsed into the nearby sofa.
He used to greet her with tea whenever she visited his office. They’d share a cup, laugh together, kiss sweetly, whisper their love.
Now… he wouldn’t even look at her.
Staring blankly at him as he read, Alicia muttered in a low, lifeless voice:
“You’ve changed.”
“What?”
“Do you even love me?”
Calypso slowly rolled his eyes toward her. Alicia looked as if she were bracing herself for a blow, her body trembling. But he didn’t even blink.
“I’m not sure.”
“What…?”
She echoed him, stunned.
“What do you mean, ‘not sure’?”
Her voice trembled uncontrollably. Calypso’s reply was icy.
“Look at the way you act. How could I possibly love someone like that?”
It was as if frost hung in the air around him. Alicia clenched the fabric of her dress tightly.
“I only did it for Catherine!”
“You? For someone else? Don’t be ridiculous. You’re just a doctor in this estate.”
“I’m Catherine’s mother!”
Alicia pounded her chest and screamed.
“No. As long as Diana is the Grand Duchess, she is Catherine’s mother. Not you.”
Her mouth fell open slowly in shock.
Calypso… couldn’t possibly be saying this.
How could someone change so drastically?
Words weren’t enough to sever the blood tie between her and Catherine.
She and Calypso had shared a passionate love, while Diana had only been a political marriage.
But now, Calypso was acting like he was on Diana’s side. When had he changed?
“…Then just make me the Grand Duchess,” she said.
“You think anyone can just be made Grand Duchess?”
“What…?”
Alicia’s red eyes trembled as his words flipped like a coin. Calypso, cold as ever, continued.
“I must’ve misjudged you. I didn’t realize you were this kind of woman.”
“I haven’t changed! I’ve always been like this—and you’re the one who loved me for it!”
Alicia shouted, her breathing ragged. Calypso shook his head in disgust. Then, like she wasn’t worth a response, he lowered his head back to the documents.
“You said you’d deal with Diana. You said you’d make me the Grand Duchess! I’m the woman who bore your child!”
But even with her desperate plea, his eyes remained fixed on his paperwork.
The sight infuriated her.
Alicia marched over and snatched the documents from his desk.
“Look at me, Calypso!”
“How dare you!”
Enraged, Calypso leapt from his seat, reaching to snatch the documents back.
Alicia gripped them tightly with both hands.
She resisted with all her strength, but a woman couldn’t overpower a man. Her body tilted forward.
“Ah…!”
As she stumbled, her elbow knocked over an ink bottle on the desk.
“No…!”
Calypso’s mouth fell open. Ink spread across the desk, soaking the documents he had been reviewing.
Alicia glanced nervously at him.
His twitching eyebrows betrayed his fury.
Realizing what she had done, she let go of the papers and stammered:
“S-Sorry…”
“Get out.”
“But Calypso…!”
“Now!”
At his thunderous command, Alicia opened her mouth like she had more to say—but lowered her head and quietly left the room.
She couldn’t lift her shoulders on the way back to her room.
She had always believed she was the true mistress of the estate.
After all, it wasn’t the Grand Duchess he loved—it was her.
But now, even that belief was crumbling.
The way Calypso had looked at her… it was the same way he used to look at Diana.
There was no more love in his gaze, no desire for her—only ashes remained.
No… I won’t let it end like this.
Back in her room, Alicia picked up a quill.
She yanked out a sheet of parchment and began scrawling furiously.
“I have no choice. I’ll have to move up the plan.”
She muttered to herself as she rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a small pouch.
She turned it upside down and shook it.
Gold coins spilled out with a clink onto the desk.
It was her emergency stash—something she had hidden away just in case.
She gathered the coins tightly in her trembling hands.
“If Diana dies, I’ll be the only alternative left.”
Alicia wrapped the letter and the coins together.
Then she wrote an address she had received long ago.
She stared at the prepared package and muttered like she was casting a spell:
“I will become the Grand Duchess.”
But her eyes—burning with greed—shone with the ferocity of a beast.
