When I Quit Being A Wicked Mother-in-law, Everyone Became Obsessed With Me

***

“…Huh.”

Alexei let out a long sigh.

It was really strange.

Lately, whenever he stood in front of his wife, his heart kept racing uncontrollably.

‘I managed to escape for now…’

He glanced up at the second floor.

Anriche and the children must be chatting quietly up there.

‘Anriche.’

Every time he thought of that name, he felt restless.

Alexei pressed his forehead, trying to calm himself down.

‘First, let’s place the order.’

He strode over to the counter.

The staff member standing there widened her eyes when she saw him.

“Excuse me, sir?”

“I’ve come to… place an order.”

“Ah.”

The staff member smiled awkwardly.

“Next time, please ring the bell from your table. We’ll come to take your order directly.”

“…Understood.”

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Alexei’s neck flushed slightly.

Now that he thought about it, it seemed Anriche had tried to stop him when he had gone downstairs to place the order.

Just then.

“Son, do you want anything to eat?”

What?

That voice sounded oddly familiar.

Alexei turned around slightly.

“Let’s go upstairs first.”

What entered his line of sight was the fluttering hem of a dress climbing the stairs.

A young man was following behind a middle-aged lady.

In an instant, Alexei’s eyes narrowed.

***

‘When in the world will the Duke return?’

Anriche glanced down at the stairs.

Ever since Alexei suddenly said he would go down to order more, there had been no news from him.

The children had already finished all the snacks in front of them.

“Mom, is Dad getting us more snacks?”

Elliot, scraping the empty brownie plate with a disappointed expression, subtly looked to Anriche for an answer.

Anriche shook her head firmly.

“We can’t have any more today.”

“What? But Dad said he was going to order something new, so there should be new snacks coming, right?”

“Well, we can just take it home.”

“……”

At her steadfast defense, Elliot’s face turned sulky.

But Anriche simply took out a handkerchief from her pocket.

“Elliot, come here.”

Anriche beckoned Elliot over.

“You’ve got ice cream on your lips.”

“Umm.”

As Anriche carefully wiped the child’s lips with the handkerchief…

“Anriche?”

Huh?

Whose voice is that?

Anriche turned around with a puzzled expression.

The Marchioness of Sachsen was staring at her with wide eyes.

And standing next to her was a young man…

“Mother, and…”

Dennis Sachsen.

Anriche’s younger brother and the current Duke of Sachsen.

Now that she thought about it, this was the first time she had seen him since her reincarnation.

“…It’s been a while, Dennis.”

“Sister!”

The Duke of Sachsen smiled widely at Anriche.

He then glanced down at Liliana with a sidelong look.

“This child is… Elliot’s fiancée, right?”

“……”

Perhaps feeling a bit intimidated, Liliana cautiously looked up at Anriche.

To reassure her, Anriche gently stroked the back of the child’s hand.

“Elliot, Liliana, say hello.”

Anriche spoke in a somewhat disapproving tone.

“This is the Marchioness of Sachsen and the Duke. They’ll be your maternal grandmother and uncle, Elliot.”

“Ah, hello!”

Liliana jumped up from her seat and bowed deeply.

Following her lead, Elliot also stood up, putting his hands together to greet them.

“Hello.”

“Good.”

The Marchioness of Sachsen looked down at the two children with satisfaction and then fixed her gaze back on Anriche.

“By the way, Anriche.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“When will you be sending out the invitations for the engagement ceremony?”

Her tone implied that she had no doubt she would be invited.

Anriche’s eyes widened as if she had heard something absurd.

“What? Why do I have to send you an invitation?”

“…What?”

In that moment, the Marchioness of Sachsen couldn’t believe her ears.

“Oh my, Anriche!”

The Marchioness exclaimed in disbelief.

“I’m Elliot’s maternal grandmother! And Dennis is Elliot’s uncle!”

“That’s right, and you’re saying you won’t send us an invitation?”

The Duke of Sachsen chimed in mischievously.

Encouraged by his remark, the Marchioness began to barrage Anriche with words.

“I’ve heard you’ve acted callously toward the Rondini family!”

The Rondini Baron family.

That piercing word drained the color from Liliana’s face.

At the same time, Anriche’s expression hardened drastically.

“But to think you would do this to your own blood…!”

“Mother.”

“Really, can you just not invite us?”

The Marchioness of Sachsen looked at Anriche with a triumphant smile.

“You know it too, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“About that Countess Everitt, whom you cherish so much.”

Suddenly, the topic shifted to Liliana.

Liliana flinched, as if struck by a whip, and tensed her shoulders.

The Marchioness of Sachsen stared at Liliana with a cold gaze.

“She still hasn’t solidified her position, has she?”

Uh, Mother…

Liliana’s lips quivered slightly.

The Marchioness let out a sneer and continued.

“In that situation, what do you think people will say if the Duke of Sachsen doesn’t attend the engagement ceremony?”

“Mother.”

“Don’t you think they will think the Duke of Sachsen doesn’t welcome the Countess Everitt?”

Liliana clenched her fists tightly.

The knuckles on her delicate hands turned white.

“In that case, it won’t bode well when she debuts in society either.”

“Ah.”

At that moment, a blatantly mocking voice rang out.

“Are you really talking about this in such a loud voice, when you’re supposed to be knowledgeable about it?”

Although a partition had been set up to create a private space, the voices were still audible.

Moreover, it was structured in a way that allowed them to recognize who the other person was.

As evidence, the Sachsen couple had immediately recognized Anriche’s group.

Anriche did not hide her disdain as she declared, “Mind your own business.”

“What did you say?”

“Why should our Liliana care about her relationship with Sachsen?”

At the unexpected response, the Marchioness’s eyes widened in shock.

“There’s no need to care, as the Valois will cherish Liliana just fine.”

Anriche raised her chin defiantly and declared firmly, “Whether it’s you or Dennis, can you stop meddling?”

“Anriche, how rude!”

“The ones who acted rudely first were you and Dennis.”

But Anriche was already speaking as if she had made up her mind.

“Honestly, I don’t see why Liliana should seek recognition from other families, including the Duke of Sachsen.”

“Isn’t it obvious? How important reputation is in society…!”

“Well, it seems you’re forgetting something important, Mother.”

Anriche looked at the Marchioness with a chilling gaze.

“Liliana is the next mistress of Valois.”

The cold tone made the Marchioness flinch involuntarily.

Anriche did not flinch and simply spoke her mind.

“That means Liliana only needs to be recognized by the people of Valois.”

“Anriche…!”

“And we already recognize Liliana.”

Since we already recognize Liliana, she doesn’t need anyone else’s approval.

It was an extremely arrogant declaration.

However, it was also a statement that suited Anriche remarkably well.

The only family that could stand shoulder to shoulder with the royal family was the House of Valois.

And the one and only mistress of the House of Valois was Anriche herself.

“No one has the right to speak on behalf of Liliana. Furthermore,”

Anriche cut off her words sharply, staring coldly into her mother’s eyes.

“Anyone who opposes Liliana is opposing the next mistress of Valois.”

Before long, the Marchioness’s pupils began to tremble as if there had been an earthquake.

To her mother, Anriche smiled coldly.

“To think that Valois would just stand by and do nothing regarding this behavior is an extremely naive thought.”

“A-are you threatening us right now?”

“Why do you think it’s a threat?”

But just then, a calm voice interrupted.

“My wife is merely stating a fact.”

It was Alexei.