DCEB | CH 23

Chapter 23: The One Who Killed Me

I didn’t know that being honest about my feelings could feel this good.

Like I was finally getting back at the painful moments of my past, I gently whispered to the young maid.

“I did it because it was pretty. This room is so beautiful and cute. I was just really happy. Are you still upset?”

“Uh, um…”

The child looked confused at my calm words, and that made me smile even more.

“I-I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. You thought I was insulting something precious to you, right? That’s understandable.”

Her face turned red again, but this time it felt like it was for a different reason.

I also felt like the people watching us had softened a little.

‘But that doesn’t matter.’

I decided to focus on the fresh, light feeling that came from being honest.

Yes, in this second life, I promised not to live with regrets.

Eleanor made that promise to herself again.

She wouldn’t pretend to hate someone she didn’t actually hate.

She wouldn’t yell when she didn’t want to.

But to live like that, she had to take care of a few things first.

“Alright, things seem settled now, so I think I can leave this to my maids. Marie, and everyone else—thank you.”

The maids looked at each other nervously, as if they expected something different to happen.

But Eleanor didn’t care about that either.

* * *

“This isn’t how it was supposed to go!”

The servants of House Carniel had been ready to torment the horrible woman from House Grace.

They heard she was spoiled, rude, and loud, so they thought it would be easy to wear down her patience.

But from the beginning, something felt strange.

Yes, the things she brought were luxurious and flashy, as expected,

But her personality was nothing like what they imagined.

“Didn’t they say she was terrible? That she was arrogant and short-tempered?”

Usually, noble ladies don’t put up with disrespectful maids.

That’s why the maids had acted so rudely—

Blocking her path with excuses, whispering insults behind her back—

All of it was to make her seem like she wasn’t fit to be the lady of the house.

That was the Duchess’s plan too.

But they failed.

“No one thought the Duke himself would get involved.”

Some of the maids bit their lips in frustration.

They never expected their master—the Duke—to treat her kindly.

“Even if she’s being patient now, we’ll keep bothering her. She’ll explode eventually.”

“She’s clearly hiding her real self. I bet she’s trying to impress our Duke.”

But even as they said that, the maids looked uncertain.

The woman always seemed calm.

Maybe she was just good at ignoring their rude behavior.

But still…

“Didn’t she seem like someone used to being hated?”

She looked too comfortable being ignored and judged.

“That’s not possible. Who does she think she is?”

Some of them remembered how she protected a maid who was supposed to be punished.

Others remembered how she calmly talked to the young maid instead of yelling.

“But maybe… the Duke doesn’t hate her after all.”

One of them mumbled.

The rest glared sharply.

“Hey, we’ve only known her for one day. Are you already giving up?”

“She’ll think we’re weak just because we let one moment slide. She’s from House Grace—our enemy!”

“Yeah. Don’t forget how many maids she brought with her from House Grace.

And the mountain of stuff she brought—she filled the whole storage room and even left things outside!

That’s her way of mocking this house!”

Their shaken confidence slowly turned back into suspicion.

They were fools to let their guard down even for a moment.

Especially when the Duchess fainted from anger!

“Yeah, Benson is right.”

Then a cold voice cut into their conversation.

It was Benson—the same maid who had shouted insults earlier.

“Sir?!”

A handsome man with a cold face and glasses stepped into the room.

He was tall and sharp-looking, with gray wolf-like eyes and black hair.

His name was Cruel—Duke Carniel’s young aide.

He only smiled gently in front of his master.

He looked at the chattering maids with an icy glare, then stared down Benson.

“Grace’s daughter. Where is she now?”

He couldn’t let this go.

For a second, his gray eyes flickered with hatred.

* * *

“Looks like everyone’s gone. Laura, Daisy—you remember what I asked you to watch, right?”

The two maids nodded silently.

Outside, the servants from House Grace were busy moving around.

And among them were two who needed to be watched carefully.

When Eleanor nodded again, the two quietly left.

No one dared to disturb the Duchess’s thoughts, so the others also left quietly.

Now Eleanor was alone in the room.

She didn’t want to, but her eyes naturally turned toward the door Marie had mentioned.

‘That door.’

The door that had once brought her so much pain.

Now it might become the path that connects her with him.

It was strange.

She felt both disgust and anxiety.

It didn’t make her happy.

At least, it shouldn’t.

“……”

But why did the door feel so close all of a sudden?

“When did I…”

Eleanor blinked.

Her white hand was already on the doorknob.

Like she wanted to open it.

She frowned deeply.

‘Am I really losing my mind?’

She flinched and tried to pull her hand away—

But then, a voice she hadn’t invited came from behind her.

“You shouldn’t open that door.”

Just from the voice, she could feel how cold and heartless the person was.

But Eleanor also knew how gently that voice could sound when speaking to a certain someone.

She’d seen it many times before.

She had always thought—

Ah, he really trusts and follows that person. He’s his master’s right-hand man…

She heard the man’s footsteps approaching.

Thump, thump, thump.

Her heart pounded loudly.

She didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

Glasses. He had a habit of pushing them up when he was upset.

A thin frame that didn’t suit a knight, but neat and sharp features.

Wolf-like gray eyes and pale skin that stood out under dark black hair.

All of it stuck in her memory like thorns.

‘Cruel.’

That man was her husband’s aide.

His right-hand man.

And…

“Just because you’re staying in the Duchess’s room, don’t think you’re truly the lady of this house.”

Her heart clenched with pain.

Cold sweat ran down her back.

She finally turned and blinked her eyes.

He looked exactly like she remembered—though maybe a little younger.

Her fingertips trembled. She couldn’t breathe.

His cold, twisted face dragged her back into her memories.

The dark prison.

The blood.

The betrayal.

The dagger that stabbed through her heart.

‘The one who killed me.’

The man her husband trusted the most.

The proof of her betrayal now stood in front of her—

Still alive.

Still smirking, like nothing had changed.