The Swordswoman’s Revenge Story After Rebirth
Chapter 34: William Arrives
Michelle and Eleanor stormed back to the Velvet Wing, fuming. Michelle was so furious she could barely breathe. “That little wench! How dare she be so brazen? She doesn’t even look at me anymore!”
Eleanor, teary-eyed, clung to Michelle’s arm. “Michelle, what do I do? Am I really going to end up a concubine?”
Michelle shot her an exasperated glare. “You should never have used that rice-cooked-into-porridge scheme. Now you’re trapped. And as if that weren’t enough, you just had to drag William to the Duke’s estate and make a spectacle of it! You’ve made it impossible to back out now. Foolish, aren’t you?”
Eleanor sniffled, feeling wronged. “How was I supposed to know she’d suddenly get smart? I thought if we pressured her, she’d accept being a concubine. What right does she have to be Marchioness of Eldermere? William doesn’t even like her! Margaret doesn’t like her either!”
Matilda, seeing Eleanor’s distress, quickly soothed her. “Alright, enough scolding. She’s already miserable. We need to think of a solution.”
Michelle was still fuming. “What solution? The Valen family probably regrets breaking off the engagement now, but if William wants to propose elsewhere, Margaret will never allow it. That would make them look bad. The only way…” A sinister glint flashed in Michelle’s eyes.
“What?” Eleanor asked eagerly.
Michelle took a slow breath, her voice calm but laced with venom. “The only way Margaret would give up on that little bitch and arrange a different match is if she were either dead… or disgraced beyond repair.”
Matilda’s brief hope faded, and she scoffed. “As if that wasn’t obvious? Ryker and your uncle thought of that long ago. That’s why they sent you with the medicine. But now that it’s failed, there’s no better plan.”
Michelle’s lips curled into a cold smile. “If poison won’t work, we’ll have to try something else.”
“Hurry,” Eleanor urged, her stomach churning. “I can’t wait much longer.”
Matilda turned to Michelle anxiously. “What’s your plan?”
Michelle calmly adjusted her hairpin, her expression icy. “Tomorrow, I’ll visit Uncle.”
Matilda and Eleanor exchanged glances, both filled with malice.
Two days later, William arrived at the Duke’s estate, requesting to see Isolde. Isolde hadn’t expected William to come looking for her. When Noelle reported his arrival, she could hardly believe it.
“Should I send him away?” Noelle asked.
Isolde idly twirled the cup in her hand. “Why would I refuse? Let’s see him.”
“I’ll help you dress up,” Noelle offered.
She pulled on a simple cyan dress, tied her hair into a loose bun, and slid a plain jade hairpin through it. Her earrings were simple teardrop pearls—not extravagant, but refined.
William waited in the side hall, growing impatient. This visit was both his mother’s request and his own decision. Ever since Isolde had been granted the title of County Princess, his feelings had been complicated. He didn’t like Isolde. In fact, he found her unbearable. But this engagement had been arranged by his father, and now that Isolde had done nothing wrong—worse, she had even earned merit—the Valen family had been the ones to break off the engagement. Nothing terrified William more than his father’s anger. So, even though he loathed the idea, he had come.
He assumed that Isolde must still be desperate to marry him. She used to look at him with such pathetic adoration, her eyes filled with admiration that made his skin crawl. To smooth things over, to keep Eleanor as his concubine, and to avoid his father’s wrath, he was willing to take Isolde as his wife. Surely, she just needed an opportunity to bow out gracefully. By coming here, he was already granting her a great honor. He was doing her a favor. And yet, as he waited, irritation simmered beneath his composed facade.
Finally, after fifteen minutes, Isolde arrived with a maid at her side. She wore a simple cyan phoenix-tail embroidered gown—new, but understated. Her hair was coiled into a high bun, secured by a single hairpin. There was no makeup on her face, yet her skin was smooth and luminous, her features sharp and clear.
When their eyes met, for just a fleeting moment, something flickered in her gaze. William froze. Was this really Isolde? The last time he had seen her, she already seemed different, but he had dismissed it as his imagination. Now, however, she seemed like a completely different person.
“William,” Isolde’s voice was calm, with a faint trace of indifference. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”
William slowly gathered himself, straightening his sleeves as he composed his thoughts. “I came to ask—do you still wish to marry me?”
Isolde’s smile was serene. “Has the Valen family not already called off the engagement? What meaning does this question hold now?”
William’s expression darkened slightly. “The engagement was broken off due to a misunderstanding.”
“There was no misunderstanding,” Isolde said, settling gracefully into her seat. “You never wanted to marry me in the first place. Why force it? I have no desire to wed you.”
His brows knitted. His tone grew sharper. “Are you saying you want to annul the engagement?”
Isolde chuckled softly, staring at the face that had once been so familiar to her. This was the man she had married in her past life, the one she had once believed she would stand beside until death. Yes, in the end, their love had turned into a fight to the death. “Annul the engagement,” she mused. “The way I see it, if you hadn’t called it off, I would have…” Her gaze sharpened. “William, I don’t want you.”
William’s hands clenched into fists. “You think you can reject me?”
“Of course, I can,” Isolde replied with a smirk. “You fancy Eleanor, don’t you? Why should I want a man who would settle for her? If you had real ambition, at least you would have pursued a princess. Maybe then, I would have chased after you.”
“Shut your mouth!” William snapped. “Eleanor is ten times the woman you are!”
“Then marry her,” Isolde said lazily. “Why are you here?”
William’s pride burned. His words turned venomous. “If not for my father, I wouldn’t even be speaking to you. A woman like you—I wouldn’t take you even if you were handed to me for free.”
Isolde remained completely unfazed. “Then you should leave. Noelle, see William out.”
Noelle stepped forward and bowed. “William, this way.”
William’s face went pale. He had never expected this. He thought that as soon as she appeared, she would eagerly throw herself at him like before.
“Isolde,” he snarled. “You’ve been playing me. Playing my father!”
At that moment, Ryker’s shadow flickered at the door. Isolde laughed coldly. “I have never deceived the Marquis of Eldermere. When I accepted this engagement, I was sincere. But before I could even step into your home, you were already rolling in the sheets with my cousin. What was I to do—graciously endure the humiliation? If you want me to marry into the Valen family, fine. But Eleanor must be a concubine. Otherwise, there is nothing to discuss.”
William’s jaw tightened. “If Eleanor becomes a concubine, you will marry me?”
“If she’s a concubine, I’ll enter the Valen family.” Isolde’s smile was laced with hidden meaning.
William’s fists tightened before he gave a sharp nod. “Fine. Just wait.”
With that, he turned on his heel and stormed out. As he disappeared through the door, the chill in Isolde’s gaze turned to icy venom. Her fingers curled tightly against the armrest. No matter how much time had passed, she could not forget her hatred for this man.
“He’s gone,” Noelle murmured cautiously, glancing at her mistress’s face, which had suddenly turned cold and unreadable.
Isolde slowly exhaled, the frost in her expression melting into an eerie, knowing smile. “Good,” she whispered.
William’s visit had been unexpected. He was an arrogant, aloof man who never begged for anything. His arrival could only mean one thing—his father had triumphed and would soon return to Argentum. Just as it had happened in her past life.