Chapter 141: Fight

Nicole couldn't bear to look at Prudence. She knew she had done something terribly wrong; her life was in ruins. After Prudence left, Priscilla sobbed briefly before quickly following her from the room. She didn't want to remain in the same space as Isolde.

Isolde sat down, her gaze cold and stern. “Hanging yourself—quite bold, I must say,” she remarked with a mocking tone. Nicole turned away, her throat hoarse, weakly replying, “Go away. I don’t want to see you.”

Faith, with swollen red eyes, entered. “Miss, it was Isolde who saved you,” she said.

At this, Nicole turned, forcing a tearful smile onto her pale face. “Who asked for your fake kindness?” she muttered.

Isolde responded coldly, “I saved you because I didn’t want to be blamed. Your maid ran to my room shouting that I’d killed you. I promised not to make a scene, but you went and tried to kill yourself. Can you really blame me? Some things just can’t be kept quiet.”

Nicole glared at her with fiery anger. “Why… why did you beat Braden so badly?”

Isolde paused. “When did I ever beat him badly?”

“You still want to deny it?” Nicole craned her neck, speaking painfully, struggling for breath.

Hattie stepped forward calmly. “I don’t know what your grandmother and mother told you, but I witnessed everything that night. It was your brother and sister who drugged Clark and arranged for a woman to ruin his reputation. I saved Clark, and as for your brother, it was his accomplice, Kameron, who beat him. Many people in the tavern can testify. What does this have to do with you? If you don’t believe me, feel free to ask around.”

Nicole inhaled sharply, tilting her head back. The rope marks on her neck were more apparent as disbelief crossed her face. “No… You’re lying.”

Isolde found it absurd that Nicole had attempted suicide over this. Even if Nicole believed Isolde responsible for Braden’s injuries, at most she should resent her, not kill herself.

Isolde stood and pulled Faith aside. “Your name is Faith?” she asked.

“Yes,” Faith replied, her earlier resentment replaced with respect.

“Who did Nicole meet before she tried to kill herself?” Isolde asked.

Faith considered. “When she returned from the dining hall, Michelle stopped her and said something. I feel those words, though meant to comfort, must have hurt Nicole deeply.”

Isolde’s eyes flickered. “What did she say?”

Faith repeated the overheard conversation: “Michelle said Priscilla was unfair, that she never considered Nicole’s feelings, and that everyone outside was calling Nicole a husband-killer, telling her to die.”

Isolde clenched her teeth. “So it was Michelle, huh?” She’d thought Michelle was behaving herself, but here she was, stirring the pot again.

Isolde turned to Esme. “Nurse, go comfort her. I can’t bring myself to speak kindly to her in her state.”

The nurse nodded and addressed Faith. “Go get some water; use the bowl from earlier.”

Faith hesitated before leaving. The nurse gently helped Nicole drink. “This Consumption Pill is precious, made by the Queen Mother herself. She gave Oliver five, and Oliver gave one to the County Princess. Even the County Princess didn’t want to take it herself, but she gave it to you.”

Nicole, still weak, sipped the water. The sensation burned her throat, but the liquid helped, even if it stung.

“Foolish child, trying to die over something so small. What will you do if you don’t learn to cope?” the nurse sighed, her face full of affection. Nicole’s eyes welled up as she fought back tears, overwhelmed with emotion.

“I…” Nicole started, but tears came first, silencing her. She felt only hurt and resentment, unsure where to begin.

The nurse continued, her voice soft yet stern. “Hattie’s words were true. Your brother deserves everything he’s gotten. If it weren’t him, it would’ve been Clark. Who else did you want to see fall? The heavens are watching. Good people won’t always suffer, and bad people won’t always win. Your brother tried to ruin someone’s reputation and destroy their future, but in the end, he’s only ruined his own name and his future. That’s karma.”

Esme watched, then furrowed her brows. “I know you didn’t hang yourself over that. I heard what Faith and the County Princess said. What Michelle said was all lies. No one’s said a word about you. These past few days, people have been coming to propose, but your grandmother and mother have been rejecting them, hoping for someone from a marquis’s family. But is that really the right path? A marquis’s household has its own problems—people vying for power and status. With your temperament, if you really joined such a household, you’d be dead within a year.”

Nicole’s face paled. “My fiancé… he…”

Esme smiled gently. “The Queen Mother, when she first married the late King, he died within three days. Should we say she’s unlucky in marriage too? But she and Bradley were happy for many years.”

Nicole flushed, understanding. She softly muttered, “How can I compare?”

“People are all the same. There’s nothing to compare. At least you come from the Vance family, with parents who are alive. Even if they’re biased, you haven’t suffered much. The County Princess, on the other hand, was abandoned at an estate, lived in hardship, and fought to survive. Everything she has now is earned by her own strength. Despite everything, the world still says terrible things about her. She was rejected in marriage, and rumors of her relationship with her teacher circulated. If people were to die from misfortune, she would have been dead a thousand times over. You can’t give up so easily.”

The nurse patted Nicole’s shoulder softly. “Think carefully, and rest now. I’ll leave you to your thoughts.”

At Normont Chamber, the commotion outside was heard, but Michelle didn’t send anyone to check. Matilda stayed the night at Normont Chamber, as Geoffrey no longer visited her room. Most nights, she stayed there.

When Faith screamed outside, both Michelle and Matilda heard it. Michelle’s eyes flashed with malice as she sipped her coffee. She had no intention of sleeping tonight.

“Michelle, what do you think we’ll gain by driving Nicole to suicide?” Matilda asked uneasily.

Michelle’s gaze turned icy. In the dim light, her scarred face still held an undeniable allure. “We want them to tear each other apart. No matter who loses, we’ll be able to handle it.”

Matilda sighed softly. “Even if one side loses, we may not be able to handle it. You don’t understand the power of Prudence. That little Isolde is more capable than we think.”