The Ugly Wife of the Shady Duke

Now then…”

The problem was the whereabouts of the director.

If Tom had decided to join forces with Grace, he would have undoubtedly wanted to demonstrate his worth to her by uncovering the location of the director. 

But he didn’t. He stated that it was impossible to trace the source behind the rumors and asked what he should do.

That meant even Tom Birkin himself didn’t know the location of the orphanage director.

⋆★⋆

‘It’s tough…’

Returning to the annex through the secret passage, Grace’s body felt as weak as a wilted flower. 

Her stamina was now only slightly higher than that of a baby deer.

‘I’m glad Tom Birkin didn’t question where the information in the note came from…’

The information she had handed over to Tom was about the location of a necklace.

The necklace, known as the “Blessing of the Sun,” was a precious heirloom passed down to the saintesses for generations. 

When the first saintess appeared in the empire, the reigning emperor crafted the most beautiful and valuable necklace in the world and named it the “Blessing of the Sun” to commemorate the birth of the saintess.

However, at some point, the temple stopped showcasing the necklace to the world, claiming it was for the preservation of the ancient artifact and to prevent theft.

‘But the truth is, it was already stolen, so they can’t make it public.’

The temple authorities do not want the imperial family to find out that the necklace was stolen. It was only natural for them.

If it were revealed that a precious gift from the royal family had gone missing, their position would be compromised.

‘No matter how much the temple claims to be detached from politics, they hold a significant position in the empire… They would get caught up in the rumors.’

Moreover, the necklace was a symbolic gift for the saintess, and Aria had only recently become the saintess. Even now, someone could deliberately use the disappearance of the necklace to question her qualifications.

‘In the original story, Aria discovers the fact that the necklace was stolen and receives help from Crown Prince Sylvester in her search.’

And Sylvester, acting on Aria’s side rather than the royal family’s, had little presence as a crown prince from the beginning.

‘…Oh, and Benjamin will help too.’

Grace felt her heart briefly sink at the thought of her husband, Benjamin, who always appeared in every major event in the original story.

‘No, it’s a good thing to help someone in need. Yeah, that’s right.’

The necklace was hidden in the basement vault of one of the illegal auction houses. If Tom were to subtly drop this breadcrumb of information to the priests, rumors would spread within the temple, and it would naturally reach those who knew the truth.

‘If push comes to shove, they can’t kill Tom Birkin since they don’t know the exact location of the necklace. They’ll have to secretly move him from the royal prison to the temple prison, even if they have to come up with another reason.’

And Tom Birkin can negotiate to make a deal to reveal the location of the necklace in front of the sacred stone-carved statue of the goddess.

The few authentic statues of the goddess were made from sacred stones, and once an oath is made in front of it, it can never be broken.

So, although complex or secular oaths were not possible, the oath Tom Birkin would make to them would be that if he reveals the location of the necklace to the temple, they will not directly or indirectly threaten his life thereafter.

‘Finding the necklace is more urgent, so the temple should agree to the oath.’

Grace thought it was great that she remembered the details from the original story in moments like this. Of course, there were times when it made her feel overwhelmed, but she tried to overlook that.

‘Some memories are vivid, while others come to mind easily. Is there a criterion for that?’

As she placed the candlestick back in its original position, she pressed her temples. However, pondering over it wouldn’t solve the problem at hand.

‘So much has happened today.’

Soon, when she meets Benjamin, she’ll suggest handing Tom Birkin over to the judiciary. Benjamin will probably respond that he had already been considering that.

Then they’ll have to capture the escaped director. Since he most likely spent all the money, they can forget about recovering any remaining funds. They need to ensure that he can never threaten the orphanage again, properly punish him, and then fully transfer ownership of the orphanage to Cleta.

‘Still, I think I’m doing quite well.’

Unlike the initial anxiety and tumultuous emotions, wasn’t today a day where things went smoothly?

Moreover, the violent and strange noises were now quiet. Grace lay on her bed, closing her eyes as if nothing had happened.

‘I wish I could always remain the same as now.’

If she could, she would be able to put in even more effort. Perhaps the original Grace felt this way too.

‘Did the real Grace also want to try her best but couldn’t?’

Maybe she couldn’t escape from this reality. After all, all of this must be real for the original Grace.

As Grace thought about it, she felt a sense of sadness. Even if she were to escape from this environment and reestablish relationships with the people around her, the real Grace no longer existed in this world.

‘Is it still okay?’

Grace closed her eyes.

‘Even if I believe that I am the real Grace and try to resolve everything…’

Would I be deserving of the love that would follow?

Do I deserve to receive it?