Prologue: A Bizarre Past Life

With a splash, the garden pond erupted, scattering water droplets into the air and startling the birds skimming its surface.

"Oh, the paragon of gentleness and virtue, the esteemed lady of the Dickson family, the dignified countess by imperial decree."

Selena stood on the bank, looking down with a smug, seductive smile at Miranda struggling in the water.

"Look at you now, how pitifully bedraggled you are—truly heartbreaking!"

"Why?" Miranda gasped as she surfaced, only for the murky pond water to rush into her mouth.

She had come despite her recent grief of losing her child, to comfort her sister, who had divorced.

Fearing that even the slightest glamour might offend, Miranda had chosen her attire with care—plain, understated, without a hint of gold.

Such thoughtfulness, such affection, she never imagined it would end with Selena pushing her into the water.

"Why?" Selena peered down at the disheveled Miranda, whose hair clung to her pale, desperate face.

A giggle broke from her lips, "Because you're in my way, and you must die! Without your death, how can I become the primary lady of the Dickson household, the honored countess by imperial decree? You were so pleased with yourself, weren't you? Coming here to gloat? Did you know why the Quincy family faced charges? Why I divorced?"

A shadow crossed Miranda's heart, yet she demanded, "Why?"

Her voice trembled, whether from the cold or the dread of the unknown.

"Because," Selena's smile widened, her delight palpable at finally seeing Miranda, her father's legitimate daughter, so utterly ruined.

"I am pregnant with the child of Sir Hans Dickson, your very husband, a knight who rose to nobility through your support!"

"That's a lie!"

Miranda's protest was cut short as water filled her mouth, her coughs turning her pale face crimson. Her husband had always treated her with respect—how could he...

"Don't believe it? What do you think this is?" Slowly, Selena pulled a delicate brocade pouch from her robe, and even more slowly, extracted a shimmering gold locket.

She savored every moment, her expressions vivid.

"You recognize this heirloom locket of the Dickson family, don't you? Given only to the principal wife. Guess why I have it? And this letter, surely you recognize this too?"

Thunderstruck, Miranda felt her mind blank.

How could she not recognize them? She had penned them herself, gifts for her husband, who had said, "Miranda, let me keep the locket for now. It's for the principal wife of the Dickson family, and seeing it reminds me of you. I'll keep it close in this letter, as if you're always with me."

His words echoed in her ears, yet here they were in another woman's hands.

And that woman was her own elder sister, born out of wedlock from her father’s mistress who later to marry her father!

"You—" Miranda's struggle ceased as she began to sink. Water rushed into her ears, nose, and mouth, crushing the air from her lungs. Then, as if possessed, she flailed madly, reaching desperately towards the surface for a sliver of hope.

Her hands found the pond's edge. Clinging for dear life, she managed to keep her head above water.

"Do you think you can replace me as the lady of the Dickson household just by killing me? Even if you were intimate with my husband, I remain his first wife. He knew I was visiting you today. If something happens to me here, do you think you can escape blame? Even your mother wouldn't spare you!" Miranda glared at Selena, her words resolute.

"And who do you think told you where I was, inviting you here?" Selena's confidence unwavered, her tone almost loving, as if whispering to a lover, "It was Sir Hans Dickson who wanted you dead. How else could I dare to act?"

With a step forward, she shifted her weight onto Miranda's hand, twisting her foot cruelly.

"What... what did you say?" Miranda stared in disbelief, not even feeling the pain in her hand.

Her husband... he wanted her dead?

She had been the legitimate daughter of the earl, and Hans Dickson was just a humble knight when they married.

She brought a dowry so substantial it required 124 carriers, and her conduct was exemplary—kind to her in-laws, attentive to her husband, overseeing the household.

In just four years, Hans Dickson rose from original knight to general even gain a Count, and their family's status soared.

But she never boasted of her contributions. When he was posted in the capital, she managed their affairs in the south, even painfully allowing him to take concubines to ease his life.

For four years, her care was meticulous, and now... he wanted her dead!

"Do you think Sir Hans Dickson truly loves you? He only valued your status as the earl daughter! Do you think the broken engagement with the Marquess William was a coincidence? As for my mother..." Selena's joy was sharp, her smile cutting like a knife.

 "Your lowborn mother was killed by my mother's hand, do you think she truly cared for you? "Sacrificing flesh to cure disease, "ha, only a fool like you would believe such tales!"

Miranda's eyes narrowed, her lips almost bleeding from the pressure.

Her mother... killed by her stepmother!

The humiliating broken engagement orchestrated by her stepmother and Hans Dickson! Her life, completely destroyed by these two!

Then, a sudden clarity, Miranda looked up, her eyes burning with fire. "My child..."

"You're not completely foolish. Why would Sir Hans Dickson want your child? And why would I allow your child to overshadow mine?" Selena caressed her pregnant belly, her smile radiant.

"I had planned to eliminate you and your child during childbirth. Unfortunately, you survived, leaving me no choice but to intervene myself!"

She had destroyed her mother, ruined her life, killed her child!

Fury and pain swelled in Miranda's chest.

Suddenly, with strength born of desperation, she grabbed Selena's foot and pulled her into the water. If she was to die, she would not go alone.

"Ah—" Selena hadn't expected resistance. Panicked, she screamed for help.

"Miss, what's wrong? Miss!"

Just then, the anxious voices of Mrs. Wilson and the maids Nora and Greta reached them.

Miranda remembered she wasn't alone; her servants had come at the sound of the commotion.

A sliver of hope—she wouldn't die in vain. If she survived, she would not let her attackers go unpunished.

But then—

"Mrs. Wilson? Nora? Greta—" Her cries choked off as she watched the familiar figures forcibly pry her fingers from the ledge, even breaking four of them.

They then pushed her back into the water, comforting a distraught Selena...

Mrs. Wilson, who had nurtured Miranda from her childhood as her nanny, now revealed her true allegiance.

She asked no more questions.

Wasn't everything clear now? Mrs. Wilson, Nora, Greta—they served not her, but another.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha—"

Laughing in disbelief at the absurdity before her, Miranda's laughter grew louder, turning shrill with bitterness and hatred, a curse upon those who had betrayed her.

It was all false, all a deceit!

The nanny and maids who had cared for her since childhood, the step-mother who had loved her, the straightforward elder sister, the gentle husband—all an illusion!

Miranda, oh Miranda, how blind have you been? For twenty years, what delusion have you lived under?

Her laughter grew sharper, blood seeping from her orifices, spreading across her pale, furious face.

With eyes blazing like hellfire, she stared at those on the shore, slowly sinking into the water, her hair unfurling, blood spreading in the water—a scene of tragic intensity.

To her last breath, she stared shoreward.

She watched them closely, vowing to remember everything she heard, to never forget, to never forgive those responsible.

If there were another life...

Even if it meant descending to the netherworld, becoming a vengeful spirit forever barred from transcendence... she would drag them down to hell with her!

The setting sun cast a blood-red glow over the secluded courtyard...