A Shadow Cast in Paradise (23 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 13
Liana froze on the spot.
“You—how did you get here…!”
Her mind went blank.
She hadn’t even revealed her destination, yet here he was, in this remote place—precisely in Brillone.
For a fleeting moment, she hoped it was a hallucination, but the closer he stepped, the clearer he became.
Liana stumbled backward, away from his approaching figure.
She had to run. She couldn’t let him catch her.
Snapping back to her senses, she spun around and fled on instinct.
She had to get as far away as possible from the crimson flames devouring the harbor.
Shade watched her small figure sprinting into the distance.
“Ha….”
He raked a hand through his hair in irritation as he watched her desperately trying to escape.
Even after coming all this way, she still dared to think she could slip away.
She should know very well that no amount of frantic running would free her from him.
Yet, the sight of her stubbornly trying to flee was… deeply unpleasant.
Her desperate flight scraped something raw and deep within him.
Fine. Flail all you want, if it pleases you.
With long, ground-devouring strides, he followed close behind.
Liana ran with every ounce of strength she had.
Her breath grew ragged, and the acrid air seared deep into her lungs.
But he caught up to her in an instant.
“Enough wasting time.”
His large hand seized her, and Liana staggered under his grip.
At the same moment, a sharp gust of wind grazed her cheek.
Clang! The sound of a blade embedding itself rang in her ears.
“Don’t test my patience any further.”
Shade loomed over her, his eyes cold as he gripped the knife’s hilt.
The silver blade had lodged itself right beside her face.
Liana exhaled the breath caught in her throat and met the man before her eyes.
The air reeked of smoke, and hot gusts blew fiercely around them.
She could faintly hear voices in the distance, struggling to extinguish the flames.
It felt as though the very air around her was tightening its grip.
Her pale lips trembled faintly.
“…Why go this far… just for me?”
She couldn’t understand.
Liana was a fallen woman.
To anyone’s eyes, a worthless woman.
A woman who, left alone, would live a pathetic and pitiful life.
Yet, for the sole purpose of catching her, he’d burned every single ship.
Moreover, this was Marlehein territory—not even Shade Lester’s own land.
The Marlehein Marquessate would never let this pass.
Only a madman would do something so reckless.
But Shade looked at her as though none of it mattered.
“Thanks to setting fire to the rat hole, the little rat herself came scurrying out.”
“These people have nothing to do with this! You didn’t need to drag them in!”
Liana cried out, pointing toward the burning harbor.
The ship owners, sailors preparing to depart tomorrow, fishermen, and their families—
all of them had lost everything just because of her.
Yet Shade gazed down at her with indifferent eyes.
“What, do you feel sorry for them? Guilty for dragging them into this without their understanding?”
His brow furrowed irritably.
“Do you even have something like sympathy or conscience?”
He slammed Liana’s wrist hard against the wall, pinning her down.
Her wrist felt like it might shatter at any moment.
“You’re the last person who should be saying that, aren’t you?”
His words pierced straight through Liana’s heart like a dagger.
She had been running from her own sins.
Terrified of judgment, she’d hidden her powers; afraid of her past crimes, she’d faked her death, changed her name, and lived in hiding.
And yet here she was, shamelessly accusing Shade of wrongdoing, armed only with feeble sympathy and guilt.
When in truth, the one who’d committed the greater sin was Luise Ideana—herself.
“You’ll eventually return to being Ideana.”
Shade spoke as if prophesying.
“You can run again if you wish. But next time, I’ll burn the whole land down to find you.”
A flicker of madness shimmered in his quietly warning eyes.
His threat was no idle boast.
He was prepared to do anything to find her—and Luise Ideana would pile even more sins upon that name.
“When you walk through your darkest night, I’ll be there.”
Shade promised.
Liana saw the consuming flames blazing within his eyes.
She finally realized she had nowhere left to run.
Now that Shade Lester knew Luise Ideana was alive, the relentless hunter would pursue his prey to the end—and sink his teeth deep into her throat.
[This is the timeline separator]“The Duke, who stormed out at dawn yesterday, still hasn’t returned?”
Eklas frowned as he read the daily report from upstairs, sipping his tea.
They’d clearly agreed to depart for Ideana yesterday morning, yet Shade Lester had vanished like a ghost and hadn’t come back.
And this had gone on for a full day.
“He went out to look for that maidservant?”
Eklas repeated the fact he’d already verified several times.
“They say he even crossed into Marlehein territory.”
“That lunatic. In all my life, I’ve never seen anything so absurd.”
Eklas cursed at the empty air where Shade Lester wasn’t present.
“This isn’t like Shade Lester at all.”
“Indeed, it’s highly unusual.”
“I despise inconsistent people…”
Eklas set the report down on the table and fiddled with a coin from his pocket.
It was a habit he had whenever he was deep in thought or scheming.
‘So all this started the moment that maidservant appeared.’
Eklas recalled the dirty-looking woman Shade Lester had brought in on the first day.
Now that he thought about it, Shade had even let her into his bedroom that very first night.
Apparently, it hadn’t led to anything good…
“What was that maidservant’s name again? Liana?”
“Liana Serpens.”
His attendant Barnen dutifully supplied her full name.
Eklas tried to picture her face.
It was strangely familiar.
Her features faintly reminded him of someone.
Those pretty features and emerald-green eyes were just like…
‘Luise Ideana.’
He remembered a young lady he’d met long ago.
He’d only met her once, yet Eklas had never forgotten her face.
He’d always had a knack for remembering people’s faces and details.
But Luise had been exceptional even among them.
How could he possibly forget that exquisite beauty?
Besides, the one and only day he’d met her had also been an unforgettable day in his own life.
‘Because it was the day history changed.’
Eight years ago, when he’d accompanied his father to the Ideana Viscount’s estate for business, he’d first met Luise Ideana.
That day, Luise had personally proposed a transaction to the Vittel Trading Company—a transaction involving a slave: Shade Lupus.
[This is the timeline separator]Eight years ago, the Vittel family was merely a merchant house without any noble title.
His father, Willard Vittel, now lived comfortably in Sizzlyon, delegating all authority to his son, but by nature, he’d always been an exceptional and shrewd businessman.
To someone like Willard, the Ideana Viscount’s family—a House of Marquises—was an unignorable business partner.
At the time, eighteen-year-old Eklas had been learning the trade under his father and cultivating relationships with nobles.
That day marked the first time he’d accompanied his father to the Ideana Viscount’s estate for business.
Viscount Felix Ideana had been a dignified and refined nobleman.
Yet, there’d always been something unsettling about him.
Later, when he heard news of the Viscount’s treason, he finally understood the source of that vague discomfort.
Regardless, at that time, no one could have imagined the Viscount would ever betray the crown.
That day, uneasy about the transaction terms, Eklas had been discussing the deal with his father as they left the Viscount’s study.
“…Are we really going to keep trading with Lectar, Father?”
When Eklas asked worriedly, his father, Willard Vittel, raised an eyebrow as he glanced around cautiously.
They were still inside the Ideana estate, so he wanted to watch his words.
Just as they were about to leave the manor, someone abruptly blocked their path.
Standing before them was fifteen-year-old Luise Ideana.
The small, sickly-looking girl stood there with a shadowed expression.
“Miss Luise, I hope you’ve been well?”
When Eklas’s father, Willard Vittel, smoothly offered his greeting first, Luise lowered her eyes, gave a slight nod, and spoke.
“…Vittel. Could you spare me a moment?”
Willard blinked in surprise at Luise’s request.
She’d never asked for his time alone before.
“Of course.”
With no reason to refuse and curiosity piqued, Vittel readily agreed.
Eklas followed his father as they trailed after Luise.
Without any explanation, Luise led them to a certain room.
There, the Viscount’s knights stood guard over a large wooden crate.
Luise stopped before the crate.
“I’d like to sell this.”
She pointed at the crate.
“What is it…?”
As soon as the head of the Vittel Trading Company asked, the large crate suddenly lurched.
Startled, both men stepped back.
Luise bit her lip tightly and gave a silent signal to the knights.
The knights pried open the tightly sealed lid of the crate with a lever.
And inside—
“This… this is…”
Lupus lay bound in chains, drenched in blood.
His condition was so horrific that Eklas nearly gagged.
Only then did he realize the dark stain on the crate’s bottom was dried blood.
Clang!
As the crate opened, Lupus inside thrashed violently, as if in rebellion.
An oddly sweet fragrance mingled with the stench of blood rose from within the crate.
It was the first meeting between Eklas and Shade—who would one day become Duke Lester.
Male lead is a clingy little husband
One-line summary: The male lead is initially an arrogant, noble, love-deprived brat, later a cute, clingy, scheming little jealous one.
Introduction:
One day, Lu Yuner’s soul transmigrates into a female-dominant world. She enters the Imperial Academy and takes up the position of a doctoral instructor, teaching classes and grading schoolwork.
One day, she encounters the young prince Su Qingwan secretly skipping class from the male academy.
As a result, Su Qingwan is punished.
From then on, Su Qingwan sees Lu Yuner as a “thorn in his side”.
But before long, this “thorn” becomes the person he cherishes most, and he goes to great lengths to win Lu Yuner’s affection.
Mini scene 1:
One day, the sun is high in the sky but Su Qingwan still hasn’t gotten up for class.
Servant Xiaoyuan: “Young prince, it’s time for class. You’ll be late otherwise.”
Su Qingwan says arrogantly: “I’m not going. I am the esteemed prince, my status is so noble, why should I suffer this hardship? Besides, isn’t learning all this just to please women? Hmph, they’re not worthy!”
Mini scene 2:
After Su Qingwan falls for someone, he completely changes. He no longer skips class and diligently learns how to be a good husband and father. But he discovers that Sister Yuner is always surrounded by admirers.
Drunk and overcome with jealousy one day, he clings to Lu Yuner, crying beautifully like a pear blossom in the rain.
Su Qingwan: “Qingwan likes Sister Yuner.”
Lu Yuner: “Young prince, you’re drunk.”
Su Qingwan: “Qingwan isn’t drunk. Qingwan likes Sister Yuner, likes you so much, likes you to bits…” Before he can finish, Lu Yuner’s eyes flash with emotion and she leans in closer.
[Reading Guide]
1. The female lead is gentle, gracious, humble and polite but not weak. The male lead is initially an arrogant, noble, love-deprived brat, later a cute, clingy, scheming little jealous one.
2. 1v1, a bit torturous in the beginning but definitely sweet later on.
_____
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