On the first day of my rebirth, I turn straight into the bedroom of Don Raffaele Caruso and begin undoing my clothes.

In my previous life, I was in a marriage of convenience with his son, Matteo Caruso, but there was no love between us. We were notorious in Liberty City's mafia circle.

Matteo believed I was the reason he lost his first love. He thought I had deliberately gone into his room the night he was drugged with an aphrodisiac, trapping him in a marriage.

Hence, for eight years after our wedding, he stayed out drunk every night and refused to come home. Even when I went into obstructed labor and was on the brink of death, he never asked about me even once.

Then, the hurricane came.

A storm surge swallowed Liberty City. The harbor collapsed under the waves, and there was only one seat left on the evacuation boat.

Everyone thought Matteo would keep it for himself. Instead, he shoved me hard onto the boat. "Go! I'm giving you my chance to live, Chiara. If there's a next life, don't come saving me again. I just want to be with Lucia."

The next second, his body was dragged into the pitch-black sea. I survived, only to be hacked to death by a rival family afterward.

What Matteo never knew was that he wasn't the only one who was drugged that night. His father was too.

This time around, I step into the room just as the effects of the aphrodisiac take hold. Raffaele is currently forcing himself to endure it, his control stretched to the limit.

I walk over and say softly, "Let me be your antidote, Don Caruso."

"Ms. Ricci, something has happened to the signore!"

Before the pain of being hacked apart could fade from my mind, the housekeeper, Beatrice Santoro, rushed into my room, her face drained of all color.

I lowered my head. In my mind, all I could see were the faces of my two children, covered in blood, screaming as they clung to me.

"The Don is still at the family gathering," Beatrice said in a hushed voice. "The signore said he feels dizzy and can't catch his breath. He's resting in the east guest room right now… Ms. Ricci, could you go check on him?"

My steps froze. Cold sweat broke out on my palms. I had returned to the very day Matteo Caruso was drugged.

"Call Lucia Gallo over," I said quietly.

Beatrice froze. "What?"

"Stop wasting time. Matteo's been drugged," I said coldly. "If you wait any longer, dizziness will be the least of his problems."

In my previous life, the Consigliere said it wasn't an ordinary aphrodisiac. It was an ancient secret drug passed down through a rival family, known as Heartbane.

Once it took effect, only a woman with a specific blood type and constitution could neutralize it. Otherwise, the man would be left with permanent damage—sterility.

Meanwhile, I was the only one who could act as the antidote in the entire Caruso Estate.

Back then, Matteo stood up for me at school when I was being bullied. After graduation, against my parents' wishes, I hid my identity and willingly stayed with the Caruso family as his personal assistant. It was all so I could be closer to him.

So, when I heard what Beatrice said, I rushed into his room to check on him. However, Heartbane had already clouded his mind. He pinned me down onto the carpet without recognizing who I was.

I conceived that night.

I thought fate was finally bringing me together with the man I loved. I revealed my identity right away, bringing with me a massive fortune my padre had given me. I married into the Caruso family for the baby.

I thought it would be the beginning of love, but it was just the start of Matteo's torment.

He was convinced that night was a trap I had deliberately set. He believed I ruined his relationship with his first love and even drove her to jump to her death.

So, after marriage, he came home drunk every night, and that was if he even came home at all. Even when I was giving birth and hovering on the edge of death, he never once stepped into the hospital.

This time, after being reborn, I vowed to change the tragedy of my previous life.

I closed my eyes briefly and pulled my thoughts back, then turned and headed toward the basement level of the estate. That floor was off-limits to outsiders as it was Don Raffaele Caruso's private domain.

What Matteo didn't know was that he wasn't the only one who was drugged tonight. His father, Raffaele, was too.

I pushed open the heavy wrought iron door at the end of the corridor. Warm, damp air rushed at me.

Raffaele was leaning against the edge of a marble bathtub, his hair soaked and his brow tightly furrowed. His shirt was half unbuttoned, clinging to his rock-hard abs from the steam.

"Don Caruso, you've been poisoned," I said calmly. "I'm the only one who can safely get you through tonight."

He lifted his dangerous gaze to me, his voice hoarse. "Who sent you here?"

There had always been rumors that something was wrong with Raffaele's health. In my previous life, he never had children of his own. Matteo was just his adopted son.

That was why Matteo remained the sole heir until now. But what if, tonight, Raffaele planted his seed? I was unusually fertile, which was how I conceived after a single night in my previous life.

I loosened the tie of my sleepwear and stepped into the water without another word, answering his question with my actions instead of an explanation.

The next second, he rose sharply, water splashing high. His strong arms closed around me, trapping me in place. His low voice brushed against my ear. "I don't care who sent you, but tonight, you're not leaving here."

The next afternoon, I stepped out of the basement wrapped in a tattered silk robe.

At the end of the corridor, Lucia was pushing open Matteo's door while holding a bowl of hot stew. Her makeup couldn't hide the traces of last night, and she walked awkwardly, probably because he hadn't been gentle with her.

Her eyes swept from my toes up to my collarbone. A smirk curved her lips, and she tilted her chin slightly. "Ms. Ricci, you must've been busy last night, chasing after men in Caruso Estate to let off some steam. Don't you think that's a little… degrading?"

I glanced at her calmly. "Are you talking about yourself?"

She sneered, "Don't kid yourself. Matteo told me last night that I'm the future lady of the Caruso family. And you? You're nothing."

I pulled my silk robe tighter, a faint smile lifting my lips.

The future lady of the house, huh? In my previous life, it had been a maid who helped Raffaele. She was paid off with a large sum and quietly sent away. This time, I was the one who went in.

I glanced at the bowl in Lucia's hands and raised an eyebrow. "Focus on taking care of your man, then."

Before I could leave, Matteo walked up from behind. He naturally slipped an arm around Lucia's waist and leaned against her, smiling as he murmured in her ear, "You must be feeling worn out. Why didn't you stay in bed a little longer?"

Lucia spoke sweetly, half-pouting. "I still have to go to work. I can't stay here with you all day."

Then, her eyes swept toward me. "Unlike Ms. Ricci, who seems like she has nothing to do. It really makes me jealous."

Matteo snorted coldly and lowered his head to coax her, saying, "She's irrelevant. And don't go working those jobs anymore, amore. You're mine now."

He then looked up at me, his tone sharp. "Did you tell the driver to bring her here last night?"

I stayed quiet.

He scoffed. "I'll give you that. But I want you to know your place. Don't ever think of taking what doesn't belong to you."

In that instant, I could feel the malice of two lifetimes crashing onto me at once. Every word he spoke stabbed straight into my chest.

Back then, I asked him if he truly wanted to marry me. He had sworn without hesitation and said, "Of course, I do. Just focus on the baby, okay?"

In that life, Raffaele was assassinated and died abruptly. Power within the Caruso family never fully transitioned, and the elders refused to submit to a young, unproven adopted son like Matteo.

Hence, Matteo used the businesses my padre had given me as wedding gifts to seize full control of the family. Once he had everything he wanted, I became useless. His so-called devotion was nothing more than a strategy.

Well, since he had chosen Lucia, I would allow this life to go exactly as he wished.

Raffaele was still alive in this life, and he was undoubtedly a much better choice. He could even bring the Ricci family to new heights.

With that thought, I smiled and nodded. "Got it."

I turned to leave, but Matteo suddenly stepped in front of me. His gaze locked on a red mark on my arm. It was a bruise left behind when Raffaele had gripped me the night before.

"Who did this?" Matteo questioned harshly, grabbing my arm and pulling hard. "Are you that desperate for a man? You can't even get through a night alone?"

The moment the mark was exposed, I pulled my robe tight with my other hand and stared at him coldly. "Let go."

His eyes reddened, as though something inside him had snapped. He slammed me against the wall and questioned, "Did you sleep with one of the bodyguards? You're disgusting, Chiara!"

I was just about to strike back when Lucia suddenly screamed and dropped into a crouch. "Mannaggia, it's hot!"

Matteo shoved me aside at once and rushed to her. The stew had spilled all over the floor. Lucia leaned pitifully into his arms, then shot me a triumphant look. I ignored them and walked away.

In my previous life, Lucia was involved with more than one man. Raffaele had even looked into it, which was why he never agreed to let Matteo marry her.

When she realized she couldn't marry into the Caruso family, she chased wealth instead. She went to Eryndor to target old widowers. Things ended badly, and she was abused and kept under watch. Unable to escape, she eventually killed the old man keeping her and then overdosed.

Matteo, however, always believed she had gone abroad for him and had fallen into depression. She killed herself out of despair.

He carried that regret for the rest of his life.

I rested a hand over my stomach and smiled faintly. This life, I had entered Rafaelle's room. I might not have gotten tested yet, but I knew my body well enough to know I would be pregnant soon.

The future heir of the Caruso family didn't have to be Matteo. Not to mention, he would never be fully neutralized from the drug, which meant he wouldn't be able to have children at all. I was curious to see how this would end for them.

Heartbane's effects were strong. To purge the remaining effects, Raffaele secretly went to the Caruso family's branch in Buresa for treatment.

Before leaving, he had traced everything back to the rival family and made a promise to me. "When I return, I'll do right by you."

I didn't ask how exactly he would do that. All I knew was that he wouldn't cast me aside as long as I was carrying his child.

His treatment would last for a week.

…

A few maids overheard my conversation with Lucia yesterday. They didn't catch the full context and ultimately spread the rumor that I had "tried to get into the signore's bed".

That same afternoon, Matteo announced, "The future lady of the Caruso family will be Lucia Gallo. Her word is my command."

With that, the mood of the entire estate shifted overnight.

"Have you heard? That assistant from nowhere supposedly took a bodyguard as her lover."

"She even claims to be a top university graduate. Sounds more like she used her degree as a cover to fish for money."

No one had seen me enter Raffaele's room that night, but rumors spread like venomous snakes. They coiled around me in a single night.

To curry favor with the future lady of the house, the maids began openly toying with me. The food sent from the kitchen had sand sprinkled into it. My blankets were soaked with water three days in a row, left so wet that I couldn't sleep at all.

"Looks like your sheets are wet again, Ms. Ricci," Lucia taunted, standing in my doorway with her arms crossed. She sported a fake smile on her lips.

I ignored her. I lowered my head and hung the damp bedding on the drying rack outside the stone corridor.

More and more maids started talking about me behind my back.

"I heard she slept her way through university to get scholarships."

"She wasn't in her room last night. Think she snuck into some bodyguard's room again?"

They were simply parroting rumors and spouting nonsense. Lucia wanted to use gossip to force me to leave on my own, but I had no intention of wasting my energy arguing.

When I returned to my room, I ran into Matteo at the corner of the corridor. He reached out and slammed me against the stone wall, one hand closing around my throat. "Do you really go crazy if you don't have a man for a night?"

His eyes were filled with that familiar mockery.

I couldn't break free. I turned my head and stayed silent.

"Puttana!" he spat out through clenched teeth. "A woman like you would do anything, wouldn't you?"

He suddenly grabbed my chin, squeezing so hard that my cheeks went numb. "What, trying to crawl into someone else's bed again? I can have you if I want, Chiara. But my future wife can only ever be Lucia. If you dare mess around behind my back—"

I slapped his hand away. "Stop talking to me like that."

He released me abruptly, then casually brushed his fingers over my cheek. He said in a low, suggestive tone, "Don't be mad. I know you like me. I can't marry you, but whatever resources you need, I can give them to you."

I frowned. "I don't need them."

His face twisted with sudden rage. He shoved me hard, sending me stumbling back as he shouted, "Didn't you come to work for me just to seduce me? You saw I was no longer interested, so you started fooling around with other men? Get out of the estate. A woman like you doesn't deserve to stay here."

That night, I packed my things, ready to leave Caruso Estate and wait for Raffaele to return. Carrying my bags, I stepped out of my room, only to find Lucia blocking me at the top of the stairs.

"Why must you steal my man, Chiara?" she seethed.

I didn't bother answering and turned to walk past her, but she suddenly screamed, "Ms. Ricci, no!"

Turning around, I saw her fling open the window at the end of the corridor. She jumped from where we were on the second floor.