Chapter 3

After I gave him the lamp, Tobias broke off our engagement and vowed to take Mary as his wife.

My little gift for him was hidden in the lamp for a long time. Then, it was finally revealed today, but everything had changed.

Tobias's voice trembled, as if he had more to say.

But just as he started to speak, Diana suddenly gasped and reached out, clutching his sleeve. "Tobias, my ankle hurts so bad."

Tobias instantly turned around, scooped her up, and hurried away, looking completely panicked.

Before leaving, he gave me a nasty look. "Mary's whole family is gone because of you, and now you want to hurt Diana too? If anything happens to Diana, you'll pay for it with your life!"

I watched their backs as they left, feeling a thousand tiny needles of pain prickling through my heart.

But once the pain passed, it felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

I thrust the painting into the charcoal brazier, letting it burn to ashes along with all those years of love.

Stepping over the shards of colored glass, I walked away without ever looking back.

Just as I stepped out of the courtyard, one of Diana's maids stopped me and pressed a note into my hand.

It read, "Rebecca, thanks for finding me such a perfect future. I'll be taking your place as the future Lady of Hanover Manor."

It continued, "Since you've decided to leave, don't ever come back. If you ever show your face in front of Tobias again, I'll make you regret it."

I took a deep breath and tore the note into tiny pieces.

As I was leaving, I saw five or six doctors jostling each other, rushing inside in a hurry.

There were a few familiar faces among them.

A few years back, I was gravely ill and nearly died.

Tobias personally sought out several renowned healers, even dropping to his knees and begging them to save me.

At that time, everyone was terrified of the misfortune from my sickroom, so nobody dared to come near me.

But Tobias was the only one who didn't care if he got sick himself. He stayed right by my side.

I could still remember how he looked back then.

With that childish face, he tried his best to smile and gripped my hand tightly. "Rebecca, don't be afraid. I'll always be here with you."

He'd say that to me every single day. Those words were what kept me going.

Back then, I never would have imagined the boy who once treasured me would come to hate me to the core.

I sighed and glanced at Diana's maid.

I said, "I won't show up again, but tell her this. I was able to pull her out of the gutter once. If she ever hurts Tobias, I can just as easily send her back."

The maid nodded and went to deliver the message.

When I reached the gates of Hanover Manor, Sarah was nervously craning her neck to look inside.

Seeing her, I forced a smile. "Why are you in such a hurry?"

Her face was full of resentment. "Lady Rebecca, Lord Tobias snatched away the remedy your mother left you!"

I froze for a moment.

That pill was no small matter. It could heal severe diseases that were thought to be incurable. Even when I was gravely ill, I couldn't bring myself to use it. And now, Tobias had just taken it from me.

I instinctively wanted to turn back and get it.

But the moment I turned, I ran right into Tobias's look of utter contempt.

Tobias said coldly, "Rebecca, think of this pill as your compensation to Diana."

I met his gaze, and all I felt was a bone-deep weariness.

I gripped Sarah's hand and just nodded. "Alright. From now on, there's nothing left between us. I'm leaving."

Tobias's face darkened, his lips pressed into a hard line as he locked his gaze on me.

I turned and walked away without hesitation. The moment I stepped out of the city gates, a court officer from the palace showed up at Hanover Manor. The royal council has sent words.

Tobias listened, looking confused, and quickly asked the officer what this was all about.

The officer answered gravely, "It's about the truth behind the execution of the Tudor family back then."

Tobias froze for a moment, then frowned.

"What do you mean? Wasn't the whole Tudor family destroyed because Rebecca set them up?" Tobias demanded.

The officer blinked, confused. "What's that got to do with Lady Rebecca?"

The officer explained, "Back then, the Tudor family tried to use Mary Tudor to frame Hanover Manor for corruption. If Lady Rebecca hadn't caught on in time, a huge injustice would've gone down."

He added, "But since nobody really knew who the Tudors truly were, the truth couldn't be made public."

Tobias pressed for more details.

And just like that, the truth from all those years ago unfolded before his eyes.

Back then, I was ready to call off my engagement to Tobias.

When I came to Hanover Manor with my parents, I caught sight of a familiar figure.

Mary was so agile. She vaulted over the wall and headed straight for Tobias's study.

I thought I must be seeing things.

I grew up with Mary. How could she possibly have such skills?

I couldn't help myself. I quietly trailed after her.

I watched as Mary slipped a letter into one of the books.

Once she was gone, I darted inside, found the letter, and tore it open. To my horror, it was a traitor's letter.

There was even a detailed map of the borderland defenses drawn on it.

My heart froze over. In a panic, I snatched up the letter and ran straight to my father, spilling the whole story.