Can an Enemy Become Salvation? (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 16
Suhel closed the distance to Ivenel in a single stride, as if exerting pressure. As he approached, she had no choice but to step backward.
But even that was blocked by the bookshelf, leaving her no further room to escape.
He completely cut off her retreat, braced one arm against the bookshelf, and looked down at her.
“With this, you should finally understand. There’s nothing you can do here, my lady. So don’t do anything. Don’t struggle desperately to change things. Just do exactly as I tell you.”
Despite his harsh words, Ivenel remained silent to the end—but she didn’t avert her eyes from his.
Her complete lack of visible disturbance only angered Suhel further.
He would have felt less irritated if she’d simply bowed her head before him or protested, asking why he was treating her this way.
That was precisely why he’d chosen not to actively threaten her but instead to do nothing at all.
To isolate her completely—and to make her feel bone-deep helplessness, the utter inability to act.
Only then would Ivenel feel even more wretched.
“Don’t waste time on such pointless things. Think about how best to use your ability. That’s the full extent of your worth, my lady. Don’t forget—you’d already be dead if not for that power.”
Leaving behind that sharp warning, Suhel turned to leave the library, leaving her behind. But then Ivenel’s voice reached him belatedly.
“Did you ever ask me what I felt after reading those books?”
He stopped at those words and turned to face her.
Ivenel stared straight at him with eyes as fearless as when they’d first met. And this time, she stepped forward toward him first.
“I’ll admit it. As Your Majesty said, I truly knew nothing. And….”
Countless thoughts filled her mind, but facing Suhel’s hostility, only one sentence came to her lips.
“I’ve realized once again that merely being someone from Aodin is a crime here in Caries.”
For an instant, ripples stirred in Suhel’s eyes—as if he’d been struck where he was most vulnerable.
It was precisely because she’d spoken those words so calmly that it stung even more.
“After reading those books and hearing Your Majesty’s words, I can’t help but admit it myself.”
Since Ivenel didn’t deny that those past events had nothing to do with her, her heart felt considerably calmer.
After all, time couldn’t be turned back. The past couldn’t be undone.
But if she remained trapped solely in that past, as Suhel had said, she’d truly be unable to do anything. She hadn’t come this far just to become a puppet moving only as he wished.
“And once again, Your Majesty is mistaken. My worth is something only I can determine.”
Suhel showed a distorted smile at her confidence.
“My lady is terribly mistaken about her own position. Or… perhaps you’re clinging to that belief just to avoid facing reality. What you’re doing is nothing but hypocrisy.”
“It seems it’s Your Majesty who’s mistaken right now.”
Ivenel repeated to him the exact same words she’d once said to Demil. She didn’t care whether he understood their meaning—nor did she feel the need to correct him.
“No matter what Your Majesty says, I’ll do everything I possibly can.”
Suhel left the library, leaving behind her declaration—but her words, admitting that her very existence was a crime, kept echoing in his ears.
“Haah….”
The moment he disappeared completely, Ivenel’s legs gave out, and she sank down right where she stood. She’d spoken boldly, but her tension had reached its peak.
Strangely, dealing with Suhel always drained her utterly—perhaps because he never hid the hostility he felt toward her, unlike anyone else.
“Maybe I should’ve just held my tongue.”
She’d tried her best not to provoke him unnecessarily, yet here she was, pride getting the better of her again.
Ivenel absentmindedly ran her fingers through her hair and began tidying the scattered books. In the process, her inner thoughts slipped out.
“Why does everyone I meet keep misunderstanding me? What exactly am I supposed to change?”
She returned straight to her room, mentally exhausted and eager to fall asleep quickly.
“Miss, it’s Lia.”
“Come in.”
Just then, Lia arrived, and since it was their first meeting of the day, a wave of gladness washed over her. She’d been worried about how well Lia was adjusting.
“How’s work? Are people giving you a hard time?”
“It’s not as difficult as I thought. Back at the ducal residence, I served you alone, but it’s different now.”
“That’s exactly why I’m more worried.”
She wanted nothing more than to keep Lia close by her side, but realistically, that wasn’t possible.
Sensing her concern, Lia spoke in an even more cheerful tone.
“It’s better than I worried it would be.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Actually, I’ll be leaving the palace soon for a monster hunt.”
“Really?”
Seeing Lia’s worried expression, Ivenel gently reassured her.
“It’s fine. I expected something like this. So I’ll be busy for a while—I have a lot to prepare.”
“Just focus on your preparations, Miss. I’ll do my best in my own position too.”
“Alright.”
Hearing Lia say that eased Ivenel’s mind somewhat.
After checking on Ivenel’s sleeping arrangements, Lia looked down at her blistered hands—worked raw from a day without rest.
‘Thank goodness Miss didn’t see this.’
She couldn’t possibly bring herself to tell Ivenel what had happened today. And now, hearing about the upcoming hunt, she wanted even more to ease her mistress’s worries.
That was the best she could do right now.
[This is the timeline separator]Ever since the decision was made to join the monster hunt, Ivenel’s life changed completely. Every minute and second felt insufficient as she rushed about tirelessly.
After making such a bold declaration in front of Suhel, she was determined to prepare thoroughly—she refused to be treated as useless.
She trained physically at dawn, practiced horseback riding in the morning, and honed her archery in the afternoon. As soon as all her training ended, she headed straight to the library to study the hunting grounds and monsters.
Her destination was the Pertti territory in the northwest of Caries, guarded by the Count of Pertti—one of the noble houses granted special authority—against the monsters emerging from the forest.
Though the Pertti lands weren’t particularly mountainous, they were characterized by solid, rocky terrain, with numerous ravines and deep gorges scattered throughout.
In the meantime, she also filled in gaps in her knowledge about this world. Fortunately, reading and writing posed no difficulty at all.
Her training with Demil went smoother than expected. At first, she’d suffered severe muscle soreness, but after several days, she’d begun to get the hang of it.
He focused solely on teaching her, which actually helped her greatly. Of course, that didn’t mean they’d grown any closer or friendlier.
The same went for the knights she encountered nearly every day.
Though they couldn’t openly complain—having lost the bet—they completely ignored her, treating her as if she didn’t exist.
So absorbed was she in her hectic schedule—cutting back even on sleep—that she hadn’t crossed paths with Suhel once since their encounter in the library.
From her perspective, that was truly fortunate.
Meanwhile, she quickly adapted to life in the imperial palace. She’d also grown so accustomed to the contemptuous whispers of others that it had become part of her daily routine.
“Time’s already gotten this late.”
Ivenel checked the darkening window outside and stretched. Then she rose from her seat and left the library.
Whenever the library’s collection proved insufficient, she’d come here—just like now—to find the necessary materials. In her hands were two books.
Since Emil had said she could use the library’s books freely, she’d started carrying them around as if they were her own.
“I want to know how past monster hunts in the Pertti territory went.”
She needed detailed information—where and how many monsters appeared, how many troops were deployed—but she couldn’t find any such records.
She doubted the knights or Demil would willingly share that information either.
Dragging her thoroughly exhausted body back to the palace after a full day of exertion, she happened to run straight into Suhel.
“Oh….”
It was their first meeting since that day, and an awkward silence hung in the air—though, to be precise, only she felt that way.
Having already made eye contact, Ivenel couldn’t pretend not to see him, so she spoke first.
“You’re coming from your office, I take it.”
Without a word in reply, Suhel walked into the palace, and she followed behind him, feeling embarrassed and regretting having spoken at all.
Ivenel, too, had no desire to exchange words and was heading her own way when, unexpectedly, he spoke.
“Where are you going?”
He was simply asking because it was so late and she wasn’t heading back to her room.
“Oh, to the library. I couldn’t find the materials I needed in the palace library, so I’m going to check again if they’re in the private collection.”
“The palace library should have just about everything.”
Suhel said this with evident puzzlement—after all, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that every book and document in the world was gathered there.
“It’s about the Pertti territory. I wanted to learn how past monster hunts were conducted there.”
“That’s not in the library either. It’s classified information—never meant for public disclosure.”
It contained highly confidential details like monster defense strategies and the territory’s troop deployments, so it was only natural she hadn’t found it.
“Oh, I see.”
Ivenel couldn’t hide her disappointment. But since he’d said it wasn’t meant for outsiders like her, she had no choice but to give up.
“Well, then there’s nothing I can do.”
Just as she turned to head back to her room, Suhel paused for a few seconds before speaking.
“Follow me.”
“Huh?”
When she just stood there, he turned back to look at her.
“You said you needed those documents, didn’t you?”
Realizing belatedly that he meant to show them to her, she hurried after Suhel—and for the first time, stepped onto the topmost floor where his private quarters were located.
Indeed, there wasn’t a soul in sight, and the very air felt strangely heavy.
They soon arrived at another office within the imperial palace.
“Sit there and wait.”
Ivenel carefully sat down on a sofa to one side. It was noticeably more cluttered than the formal office used for official state affairs.
“Will this do?”
When Suhel handed her the documents he’d retrieved, Ivenel hesitated before checking their contents.
“Are you sure it’s really alright for me to see this? You just said it’s classified and not for public disclosure.”
“Seems unlikely you’d go around blabbing to anyone anyway.”
His pointed remark left Ivenel momentarily speechless, so she deliberately replied in an even sharper tone.
“Oh, then it’s absolutely no problem. The only person I even talk to is Lia.”
Without further hesitation, she opened the documents and quickly scanned their contents. Inside were all the details she’d been desperately seeking.
Soon, Ivenel became so absorbed in the documents that she forgot Suhel was even there.
Watching her, he absentmindedly picked up one of the books she’d been carrying. As he flipped through its pages, a hint of surprise flickered across his face.
The book was filled with evidence of her diligent study—she’d even added supplementary notes wherever the original explanations were lacking. It was immediately clear she hadn’t just skimmed the surface.
‘So this is what it means to do what one claims one can do.’
He naturally recalled what Emil and Demil had recently told him about her—how she shuttled daily between the library and the training grounds.
“Can I… take this with me to read?”
When Suhel nodded readily, Ivenel couldn’t help but voice the question that had been on her mind.
“Why did you really show this to me? There’s another reason besides what you just said, isn’t there?”
In her view, he was absolutely not the type to act without personal gain.
But that was precisely what Suhel wanted to ask her.
“Then why go to such lengths, my lady? All you need to do is tell us where the monster’s core is—that’s your role.”
“I don’t want to hide in the back. It doesn’t suit my nature. And as I told you before—I’ll do everything I possibly can. In the end, it’s for my own sake.”
Ivenel had no grander motive. She was simply walking her own path, as she always had.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (37)
hohoho,you will regret touching lia now,everyone!!
she does not care about what you feel,she will gain power and leave
disapointing that the ML is like this,treating FL like sh…t
Inline Comments (1)
Then, in the distance, she spotted a familiar figure—Lia.
Nah bro get out. You gonna get the pieci of my mind
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debban23
they are sceptical about each others plans and just being careful