In a voice full of deceit, Latifa, as if she had become Cahawk, shouted at Luhan.
“Your passionate proclamation has nowhere to go. Suriya is already my woman, and there’s no room for your interference!”
Luhan, with tightly sealed lips, only resented Latifa with his gaze.
“Is that your answer?”
As if asking that, Luhan’s eyes prompted Latifa, who, due to cold sweat, struggled to get a good grip on the sword in her hands.
When Latifa adjusted her grip on the sword, Takhan began his commentary, flapping his wings.
“To Harsept, who has lost everything, only a scimitar descends from the sky. O guardian deity of the sword, Kalypsos, give him courage.”
Following his commentary, Latifa shouted lines similar to what Cahawk had said in the book.
“Suriya is in my hands, and there’s nothing you, who have lost everything, can do now.”
‘Oh, gods.’
Please, Luhan Basilii, regain your composure and salvage this situation.
Latifa continued to sweat profusely, praying to the gods for Luhan to respond.
‘Please…!’
For what felt like an eternity, several seconds of gusty sandstorms swept through Latifa’s mind. The cruel sunlight from Ignis, mercilessly pouring down, made her eyes sting.
‘Luhan Basilii! Speak!’
Unable to wipe away the sweat streaming down her face due to the heavy sword in her hands, Latifa, with wide-open eyes, urged him with a desperate tone.
“Are you frightened, Harsept!”
“…You.”
‘He spoke!’
At Latifa’s earnest cry, Luhan twisted his lips and finally parted them.
Would he be willing to cooperate in this play?
With a trembling heart, Latifa swallowed her dry saliva.
“…You. Although I may have lost everything, there’s still one thing you haven’t taken from me.”
Luhan’s night-colored eyes, as he spoke, sparkled sharply under the bright sunlight, exuding an aura of gold that would befit an emperor.
“If there’s something blocking, the flames of the desert burn even brighter. The small ember within me will burn again someday… ‘Cahawk.'”
Luhan withdrew his extended right hand, tapped his shoulders twice with a short bow, and sighed.
‘Good…’
Suppressing the relief that came with being called Cahawk, Latifa barely held onto her strength leaving her legs and requested Takhan’s spirit for closure.
“The destined confrontation between Harsept and Cahawk unfolds after Suriya’s kidnapping! A magnificent play will unfold in Merkatus under Prince Luhan’s noble name!”
It might look awkward if she hurriedly concluded it herself.
By telling Takhan, Asti’s official, that this was a play, Latifa arranged everything as if it were a pre-planned promotion.
Yes, this should work.
People would now believe that Luhan’s earlier words were part of a scene in the Merkatus play.
‘I’m glad I talked to Hades in advance about Merkatus.’
Grand bazaars, lively and fiery with lively vendors, who couldn’t care less about scandals, began to enjoy themselves, talking about gambling, food, or rare sights.
“A play! And it’s the backstory of the Heroic Tale of Harsept! Earlier, it wasn’t a novel, but a play script!”
“We knew Prince Luhan was preparing something grand for Merkatus this year, but this is incredible! The royalties will be amazing. The prince must not have predetermined investors and actors for this, right?”
“No one knew the backstory, but it seems the royal palace had it! May the protection of the desert gods be with Prince Luhan!”
Infinite glory to the Basilii Dynasty!
As expected, the seasoned traders at the Grand Bazaar, who were desert people to their bones, cheered and rushed to Luhan, asking about investors and the designated theater troupe and actors for the play. Thanks to this, Luhan slipped through the crowd, out of Latifa’s sight.
“Ugh…”
When many eyes suddenly turned away, Latifa had no choice but to finally release the heavy sword and kneel down.
“Commander Hades! When did you plan such an amazing scheme with Prince Luhan?! The later part of the Heroic Tale of Harsept?! Incredible! My heart pounded, thinking I fell for Prince Tarek’s plan without knowing!”
“I knew that story from the beginning! I knew it first! A play?! Yay! How exciting!”
Manut’s face, which was gloomy just a while ago, had suddenly brightened as he praised Hades next to him, and Takhan, returning to Princess Asti, was cheerfully flapping his wings against her beak.
However, Hades ignored them all, approached Latifa, and blocked the sun directly above her head with the towering shadow of the sun, casting a long and dark shadow over her.
What couldn’t be heard a little while ago due to the crowd’s noise—the refreshing sound of a stream, the collision of palm leaves—suddenly became audible. Embracing the relief provided by the cool shade, Latifa looked up at him.
The silhouette of Hades, veiled in the backlight of the sun, made it impossible to discern what expression he had, as it was too dazzling.
But if a person experiences something absurd and shocking, laughter comes out, right?
“Ahaha…”
“…”
Latifa chuckled slightly, her shoulders shaking, but there was no response from him.
“Hades, the day feels endless. Hehe.”
“…”
Even though she tried to stifle the laughter that kept bursting out, the warm and choking sensation in her throat couldn’t be suppressed at all.
“Coming-of-age ceremony, I can’t do it twice. Puhuhu. Euhuhu.”
“…”
Latifa continued to tremble her shoulders with an unreliable laughter, relying on the sword.
“Do you know? Absolutely… Uhuhu. Absolutely, I won’t do it again. Euhuhung. Euhuhuk.”
Finally, Latifa let go of the sword, sat hesitantly on the dirt floor, covered her face with both hands, and made a strange sound that could be laughter or crying.
Hades and Luhan. And all the emotions mixed together in her small chest, creating so much confusion.
Her once white and elegant clothes had long been a mess with sweat and the wet mud from the riverside.
Only then did Hades’ voice echo from above.
“…You really dirtied your clothes. Thank you for enduring all those hardships.”
His large hand covered my bowed head, gently tousling the silvery hair.
“Kkuhyuk. Kkueung.”
Was it laughter she wanted, or tears?
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t find an answer.
Becoming an adult who knows how to restrain all emotions and thoughts, even at an older age, was more challenging than she thought.
Soon, Hades’ lips descended gently onto her silvery hair.
“The day is long. Now, let’s go home, Latifa. My goddess.”
Behind the soft protection that came off with a touch, a very gentle voice was also present.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead