Captured by the Desert Tyrant (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 6
-Clack, clack.
Countless desert warriors were passing through the vast coniferous forest. At the very front of the long military column rode a massive black horse, upon which sat Hades and Latifa.
Hours had passed since the silent procession began. Latifa was drenched in cold sweat from constant tension caused by Hades, who sat directly behind her.
“Hey.”
“……!”
Startled by Hades calling out from behind, Latifa gripped the saddle tightly. She still hadn’t grown accustomed to the man’s breath brushing against her back—no, it felt as though she never would, even if she lived a lifetime.
“No matter how I think about it, it’s strange.”
“……What is?”
“That hunting hound back then.”
‘Why does he keep fixating on that?’
Latifa held her breath anxiously, terrified that her ability to speak with animals might be discovered.
“It was quite well-trained. I’ve trained hunting hounds myself before.”
“……So?”
“Just saying.”
Hades ended the conversation abruptly. Relieved by the dull, uneventful conclusion, Latifa quietly let out a sigh.
“So there really is something going on.”
“Yes?”
“Never mind. But do you know where we’re headed?”
“You said we’re going to a neutral country, right? Near the desert, it must be the Sort Frontier…”
In Latifa’s view, if the desert people were stopping by a neutral country on their way back to the desert, the only place fitting that description—where many small kingdoms gathered and bordered the desert—was the Sort Frontier.
“Yes. We’re heading to the Sort Frontier. I’ve made a deal with the nations there.”
“……In exchange for taking us in?”
“I thought most Imperials were foolish, but apparently not.”
‘Maybe the only fool in the Empire was the Emperor himself?’
Latifa moistened her dry lips with bitter resignation.
“We’ve agreed to purchase all the food and supplies needed to cross the desert from them. It’s quite costly. In return, they’ll accept our prisoners.”
“……Why go through all this trouble?”
They’d already trampled her homeland—why pretend to be kind now?
Latifa bristled, finding their actions hypocritical.
“We desert people don’t covet what isn’t ours. Remember this: it was the Empire that attacked us first.”
Hades spoke calmly. There was nothing wrong with his words, yet Latifa found herself at a loss for a reply, growing only more confused about how to deal with him.
“In any case, I don’t want to waste much time in the Sort Frontier.”
“……”
“That’s why I need you.”
“……Me? You need me?”
Latifa was startled by words she’d never heard before. Needed? Perhaps this truly was the first time in her life she’d been told such a thing—she could only stare blankly ahead.
Her heart, which had just calmed moments ago, began racing again.
‘He needs me? Why?’
“Let’s make a deal. I’ll buy your ability.”
“My ability?”
“You speak Desert Tongue fluently, don’t you? Do you also know how to read and write it?”
“I-I can’t write.”
“Good. Writing isn’t necessary. You just need to speak well enough to read ledgers and hand over the prisoners.”
‘Ah, he wants me as an interpreter.’
Latifa finally understood the situation. Her pounding heart eased slightly, and her frozen hands and feet began to thaw.
The Empire and the desert had rarely engaged in official exchanges due to the great distance between them.
Moreover, numerous small states lay between them, and the Empire itself tended to dismiss desert people as uncivilized, so Desert Tongue was never considered worth learning.
No wonder she’d struggled so much when learning it herself.
‘It was incredibly difficult. If not for that book, I wouldn’t have even considered learning it. I spent hours in the vast imperial library, completely absorbed in reading.’
“Translating Desert Tongue into local dialects, then those dialects into the languages of small states, and finally those into Imperial speech—it’s causing major delays.”
‘So interpreting is far more troublesome than I thought.’
“Aren’t there any desert people who speak Imperial?”
“Very few. And learning a language takes considerable time.”
Latifa nodded readily. There was no real reason to refuse—and besides, this would help safely resettle Imperial citizens in a third country. What was there to hesitate about?
“Alright.”
“……Hah.”
Yet Hades sighed as if dissatisfied with Latifa’s agreeable attitude.
“Hmph. With a personality like yours, you’d be perfect prey for scammers at the Grand Bazaar.”
“What did you say?”
Frowning at Hades’ mocking tone, Latifa couldn’t understand why he was picking a fight when she’d willingly agreed to interpret.
“You said you wanted to make a deal.”
“There’s no need for a ‘deal.’ Handing over Imperial citizens benefits me too.”
Besides, as a prisoner, she wasn’t in a position to negotiate. She was simply supposed to obey Hades—why use such a grand word as “deal”?
“Listen. Saying ‘let’s make a deal’ means you possess something of value.”
“I said I’d interpret!”
‘Is he not understanding me?’
Wondering if Hades truly didn’t get it, Latifa turned to look at him.
His dark eyes, fixed ahead, flicked toward her briefly before returning forward. He looked distinctly displeased.
“……You’ve just devalued yourself for pennies. Well done.”
‘Devalued myself?’
His words struck Latifa as if she’d been slapped. She’d never once considered herself valuable, so the idea of her worth dropping felt strangely disorienting.
“If you don’t raise your own value, who will?”
“……”
“You’re still preparing for business, I see. I’ll propose a deal again later.”
Hades murmured cryptically into Latifa’s ear.
**
The procession halted only after the sun had fully set. Though not as comfortable as the tent where Latifa had awakened earlier, the desert people erected a few makeshift tents using poles and lit fires throughout the area to ward off the coniferous forest’s chilly dew.
Soldiers and prisoners huddled around the campfires, curling up to sleep, while those on watch kept sharp, alert eyes on their surroundings—clearly a disciplined army.
Hades helped Latifa down into his own tent, then moved back and forth along the long column, overseeing everything.
“We’ll join the main force in a week. Ensure there’s no shortage of supplies—the soldiers must be exhausted.”
“Yes! Understood, General!”
“Good work.”
As Hades turned his horse, he frowned upon seeing Manut blocking his path.
“General.”
“If it’s nagging, don’t even open your mouth.”
Manut quickly urged his horse forward to walk beside Hades and spoke carefully.
“It’s not nagging.”
“If I hear even one of the words ‘woman,’ ‘Imperial,’ or ‘dignity’ from your mouth, I’ll draw my sword immediately.”
Having guessed Manut would complain about Latifa, Hades cut him off preemptively.
“……I’m not joking. All the soldiers are gossiping about her.”
“I’m keeping her for a purpose.”
“What purpose?”
“She speaks Desert Tongue. She’s useful.”
“I know. But sharing your tent and constantly traveling together—that’s excessive. It’s damaging your reputation.”
“Do I still have a reputation left to lose, you mad dog?”
Hades chuckled dryly. Manut could only fall silent, unable to retort. Seeing this, Hades added reassuringly,
“Fine. I can’t keep her with me forever.”
“What do you plan to do?”
“In the Sort Frontier, I’ll use her as an interpreter. Find someone among the refugee group she’s with to look after her.”
“You truly are wise, General.”
Manut’s face brightened considerably as he bowed respectfully from his saddle.
**
Inside General Hades’ makeshift tent—though called “makeshift,” it wasn’t overly plain, likely because it belonged to the general.
An aged carpet covered the floor, and simple bedding had been arranged using chests and crates.
Sitting alone atop it, Latifa slowly mulled over Hades’ earlier words.
—If you don’t raise your own value, who will?
‘Do I even have any value worth raising?’
Thinking about herself only brought a sigh. Her status as an imperial princess was now utterly useless.
She wasn’t naturally clever like other royal bloodlines, nor did she possess exceptional eloquence. She wasn’t particularly strong or stunningly beautiful either.
Even her ability to speak with animals was negligible, with too many limitations to be of real use.
‘Just because I can talk to them doesn’t mean chickens will lay more eggs or cows will give more milk.’
Last time, she’d only escaped the hound by sheer luck—there was no guarantee such fortune would strike again.
“At least I know Desert Tongue—that’s something to be grateful for.”
Latifa’s reason for learning Desert Tongue had been simple: she’d had nothing else to do.
In an imperial family with over twenty princes and princesses, Latifa’s existence was insignificant—her mother’s humble origins made sure of that.
The Emperor’s trust in her waned daily, and amid the ongoing struggle for succession, Latifa wanted nothing more than to stay out of everyone’s way.
She and her mother only wished to live quietly and peacefully.
Thus, Latifa avoided horseback riding, dance parties, and tea gatherings, burying herself in books at the secondary palace.
Even then, fearing rumors of political involvement, she never touched texts on statecraft or governance—only children’s fairy tales and novels.
—“I have a book the Princess might enjoy. How about this one?”
It was then that a librarian from the imperial library offered her an exotic book from the desert. Though filled with incomprehensible script, Latifa couldn’t tear her eyes away from its beautiful illustrations.
A beautiful woman with deep skin, a handsome man, lavish costumes, unusual architecture, animals and scenery she’d never seen before—and even a faint, foreign fragrance seemed to emanate from the pages.
All of it captivated Latifa, and from that moment, she began learning Desert Tongue. Was the administrative clerk who taught her still alive?
Lost in such idle thoughts, she heard a low male voice behind her.
“How’s your body holding up?”
She nodded quietly in reply. In truth, her whole body ached from riding all day in a stiff posture, and the wound on her leg still throbbed.
“Imperial fruit is truly tasteless. I hope you won’t complain about being given trash like this.”
Hades entered the tent, pulled out two or three apples, and placed them beside her. Without hesitation, he turned and plopped down onto a pile of blankets stacked nearby.
Latifa picked up one of the shiny red apples beside her. It was surprisingly fresh—she wondered how he’d managed to find such good fruit even during wartime.
“These are top-grade. It’s impressive you still have these during war.”
“Top-grade? Ridiculous. Even horses at the Grand Bazaar wouldn’t eat such tasteless apples.”
Yet the apple beside her was genuinely good enough to be served in the imperial palace.
Latifa carefully took a bite. It was crisp, the flesh perfectly ripe and sweet.
‘It’s delicious?!’
Calling this “trash”—was he mocking the Empire, or did he truly find it tasteless?
Crunch, crunch, crunch. Hades watched her devour the apple absentmindedly, looking utterly exasperated.
“The fruit at the Grand Bazaar is incredibly sweet—you’re overwhelmed by its fragrance even before taking a bite.”
“They grow fruit in the desert?”
“Lychee, mango, pomegranate, date palms, pomelo—every fruit there is fresh and sweet.”
“That sounds delicious.”
“When you come to the desert, you must try them. Apples like this won’t even register in your eyes.”
“If I ever go…”
As Latifa hesitated over her reply, a voice called from outside the tent.
“General Hades.”
“Yes, come in.”
The tent flap parted, and a woman entered alongside Manut. Latifa’s blue eyes widened at the sight of her.
“Brenda!”
When yandere male lead believes she loves him — but she never did
“How dare you!”
“How dare you make me love you, only to cast me aside as nothing more than a friend?!?
“I will never accept that.”
“I will never let you return to him.”
“Even if I have to burn myself to ashes.”
“Even if I must shatter my purity, my dignity, my very soul.”
“I will never let you escape me!”
This was the first novel that introduced me to the matriarchal genre. I’ve read it three times already!
At first, the male lead despised the female lead. Later, he misunderstood that she liked him, so he condescendingly and reluctantly reciprocated her feelings.
Then, he suddenly discovered that she was kind to everyone in the same way, and there was already someone she cherished in her heart, and that person was not him.
The male lead couldn’t believe it, he became angry and crazy. He was determined to capture her body and heart by any means necessary.
Synopsis:
Want to see how a green tea bitch male lead falls in love with the female lead?
Want to see how he flirtatiously pursues the female lead?
Want to see how he gets slapped in the face repeatedly?
The male lead is a green tea bitch, a poisonous lotus, jealous, ruthless, unscrupulous, with a venomous heart, and he’s also a delusional maniac.
The female lead is righteous, positive energy-filled, kind, a holy mother.
Let’s see how two people with extreme personalities come together~
_____
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