With no surname of her own, Rosalie was raised as a nobody among the commoners in the orphanage. She pushed herself to become a genius guild master in the backstreets of her kingdom and achieve one goal: find her family and reunite with them. Her efforts finally bore fruit when her informants discovered a young lady who looked exactly like Rosalie and had the same rare pink hair. That girl was Elara Highmore, the sole heiress of Count Highmore. The revelation was a blow that shattered Rosalie. Not only did she have a twin sister, but the Count family — who had the means to find their lost daughter if they wanted to — had purposefully abandoned Rosalie in the orphanage. She was heartlessly replaced by her own twin, an heiress living a blissful life a few blocks away from the information guild. "Why did I have to live a life of poverty when I am a true heiress to the Count’s family?" Rosalie’s voice shook with betrayal as she asked her gathered informants. But none of them had any more information to give her. Determined to make a comeback and seek revenge on those who wronged her, Rosalie decided to kidnap Elara Highmore and blackmail the Count. Never could she have imagined that when she finally entered Elara’s room, her twin would be dying all alone with nobody around her. “Elara!” Even with the firm lock on her heart, Rosa was deeply shaken by the loss of her twin. She regretted coveting Elara’s life and decided to punish whoever it was that murdered her. Assuming that the culprit was someone in the Count’s manor, Rosa held her breath and waited for someone to knock on her sister’s door. Soon enough, someone did. “My Lady, you must come out and meet your guest this time. I assure you it is not your fiancé, the Marquess, so you do not have to pretend to be sick! We can’t dismiss a Duke from seeing you, after all, can we?” The maid giggled shamelessly on the other side of the door. A fiancé her twin sister didn’t want to meet, a maid who looked down on the Count’s sole heiress, and the only Duke in the kingdom coming unannounced and seeking an audience with Elara while her parents were not present. Rosalie was certain that one of them was the murderer. “…Tell him that Elara Highmore will be right there to meet with him,” she declared. Not long after, the entire kingdom fell into chaos with the scandals that swamped most of the noble houses. And Lady Elara Highmore — who was in the middle of all those scandals — vowed to destroy everyone who came her way. There was one exception to that rule: Duke Kael Dragomir who had a revenge plan of his own. Can mortal rivals become trusted allies? Will two people driven down the same dark path be able to gain each other’s trust and find the keys to unlock each other’s hearts?
"My fair Lady Highmore, your fiancé is a lucky man," the guard said looking heartbroken beyond reason before he left her.
"Thank you for your help!" she called cheerfully after him.
The International Affairs annex of the royal palace had an air of dignity and functionality. As Lady Elara Highmore prepared for her 'surprise visit,' she and Roxan were left in one of its unused offices. The room was spacious yet understated with polished wooden furniture and large windows that allowed sunlight to filter in and drawing shadow patterns on the carpeted floors.
"One last thing to do," Roxan murmured, meticulously checking the temperature of the tea and ensuring it was just right while arranging the refreshments she had brought in the large basket she had at hand. The table was set with blue and white porcelain cups and saucers alongside a plate of pastries and finger sandwiches.
Once everything was arranged to her satisfaction, Rosa patted Roxan on the head.