So I Was the Persecuted Grand Duchess Destined to Die? Chapter 56

Chapter 56

“Aha… heh… hehe…”

Did I… do something wrong?

Did I laugh at a completely inappropriate moment without realizing it?!

Lady Diana’s face remained unreadable—perfectly blank.

When I tilted my head in confusion, she finally seemed to regain her senses.

“Hah!”

She snapped her head away, the tips of her ears burning bright red.

“F-fine! So the point is—an old woman intruding on young people having fun, is that it?!”

“What? Not at all…!”

Was she really angry?!

Ah… the unfathomable heart of an elderly lady…!

I stood there at a loss, but Lady Diana didn’t care in the slightest.

She turned sharply on her heel and strode away.

S-she walks fast…

“Should we… clear up the misunderstanding?”

I stared after her with the seriousness of someone attending a funeral when—

“Pfft!”

Apparently, my crisis didn’t look that dire to everyone else.

Katharina giggled and shook her head.

“No, Lady Renée. I don’t think you need to. Lady Diana just… needs time.”

“I hope so…”

“For now, let’s just enjoy this moment. It’s been ages since we had tea together. Stop burying yourself in books and show your face once in a while.”

With the calmest expression imaginable, Katharina popped a cookie straight into my mouth.

“Fiiiine…”

I chewed gloomily, forcing myself to set my worries aside.

Meanwhile—

Diana stormed back into the ducal castle, her face still flushed, her chest heaving.

Born noble, aristocrat among aristocrats.

Diana had walked the elite path her entire life and prided herself on having seen it all.

And yet—

Why?

Why did it feel like she was being dragged around by that tiny girl?

Is this how she bewitched Xenos?

Renée’s bright, cheerful smile—hehe—floated through Diana’s mind.

Well, men were weak to visual stimuli by nature. Of course her grandson would fall for it even faster than she had.

The inconvenient fact that said grandson was usually so emotionally inert he could rival a block of wood completely escaped her thoughts.

Hah. Behind that innocent face, who knows what schemes she’s plotting?

Trying to calm her racing heart, Diana quickened her pace.

Her destination: the Archduchess’s room.

As an elder of a noble house, sneaking into someone’s room felt distasteful—almost vulgar—

But—

“Ahem. This is… reconnaissance.”

Everything for Celeste. It couldn’t be helped.

Besides, wasn’t she a daughter of House Blanche?

And hadn’t there been ugly rumors—bastard, cursed, and the like?

Though… in person, she didn’t quite match what Diana had expected.

Still, that mint-colored hair like spun silver was proof enough of Blanche blood.

And that family’s blood was frivolous and sly by nature. Who knew what she was plotting behind the scenes? She could be sending letters full of secrets.

Having justified herself, Diana spoke quietly.

“Kal. Make sure no one comes near.”

“Yes, my lady.”

Kal, who had followed silently the entire time, answered crisply.

Diana entered the room without hesitation.

Click.

The door shut.

She scanned the room.

Nothing remarkable.

It had once been her own room; the layout was familiar.

Doesn’t seem interested in luxury.

It looked nearly identical to how she’d furnished it long ago for a future granddaughter-in-law.

She opened the wardrobe.

No new clothes? What has Katharina been doing? She could have at least taken her shopping when buying her own.

Only the dresses Diana herself had prepared—altered carefully to fit Renée’s small frame.

No unfamiliar outfits. No jewelry.

Is this frugality… or simply no concern for appearances?

Either way, the girl had a talent for unsettling people.

“Hmph.”

Still—there was no way she’d find nothing.

Naturally, Diana approached the desk.

Neatly organized. Spotless.

If there’s anything real, it’ll be in the drawers.

She reached for one—

“Hm?”

It caught slightly, like something was jammed inside.

Ha. I knew it.

Even as her suspicion seemed confirmed, an odd unease twisted in her stomach.

If there really was something…

she had a feeling she’d be deeply disappointed.

No. What nonsense. If there’s proof of betrayal, I punish her and throw her out. Simple.

A soft heart helps Celeste in no way.

With resolve hardened, Diana pulled again.

Then—

“?!”

A painfully familiar diary popped out, shoved free by the drawer’s recoil.

Diana’s eyes widened until they nearly burst.

“H-how is this here?!”

It was the notebook marked with the initials D.S.—Renée’s brand-new Treasure No. 1.

A romance-novel review journal.

And beneath it—

The Marquis’s Wife’s Thrilling Seduction winked up at her like a long-lost lover.

“Kyaaaah!”

Why is this here—?! Why?! WHY?!

A scream escaped before she could stop herself.

“Lady Diana! What happened?!”

Kal’s alarmed voice came from outside the door.

Diana panicked even harder.

Even if it was Kal, she’d rather bite her tongue off than let him see this.

“I-it’s nothing! I’m fine! Do not come in—absolutely not!”

After repeating herself twice, she took a deep breath—

then collapsed into the chair with a dull thunk.

The open drawer still displayed the books and diary in all their glory.

Why is this in the Archduchess’s room?!

Years spent guarding her dignity. Her flawless aristocratic image.

The “perfect model archduchess” Diana Celeste had a secret.

She was a trashy romance addict.

I once dreamed of a fatal, overwhelming love like this…

After marrying into Celeste for duty, her husband had been kinder than expected.

Over time, her addiction faded into something like an occasional indulgence.

But how could anyone quit entirely?

Once you’ve tasted dopamine, it never truly leaves you.

And secrets never stay buried forever.

Her husband had almost discovered it once—

“An interesting book. If you’re embarrassed, I can build you a private archive.”

Thanks to that mercy, she’d preserved both her hobby and her dignity.

But that was long ago.

Ten years ago, she’d sealed the library and forgotten everything.

And now—

“Cough… cough.”

Diana stuffed the diary and novel into the wide sleeves of her dress and left the room.

From the outside, there was no sign anyone had been there.

“Did your reconnaissance yield anything, my lady?”

At Kal’s sly question, Diana nodded vaguely.

“Don’t follow me. Go do your work.”

Kal obeyed instantly and disappeared down the corridor.

Only then did Diana hurry toward the forgotten library wing at the castle’s edge.

The neglected space had changed—clean, orderly, clearly maintained.

Someone had been coming here regularly.

Even I forgot this place existed. How did she find it?

Diana moved straight to the hidden section.

Rumble—

The bookcase slid aside smoothly.

Someone’s hands had been here.

“Hah. I should burn these with my own hands.”

She returned the books carefully and muttered like she was swearing an oath.

But standing there again stirred something strange.

“…It’s been a long time. What did I even write back then?”

Even though no one was watching, she cleared her throat.

Then she opened the diary.

One page.

Two pages.

She turned them—

“!”

Diana’s eyes widened at what was written there.