Candles flickered for the first time in centuries in the chilling mausoleum of the royal family.
Flowers swayed in the wind, and the three sages gathered here exchanged secretive whispers.
“The balance has already been broken. We should not discriminate in means to restore it.”
Ophelia murmured as she walked leisurely. Each step she took made her black dress wrap around her legs and sway beautifully. Melpheus, who was watching her, opened his mouth.
“Never thought I’d hear such words from you, Ophelia.”
“Yes. The day has come for me to speak what I’ve only thought for the last 430 years.”
Ophelia’s eyes gleamed coldly as she walked through the vast mausoleum, where the Pertheta royal family had been massacred by Carlos Arthur Ingram.
“Since he stole the heir to the throne, Your Majesty also paid him back in kind.”
While Melpheus mumbled leisurely, he read each name engraved in the mausoleum.
It had been literally 430 years since a new coffin had been brought here. No emperor had entered in between, nor anyone else. Had it not been for the Dragonlord, it might have been left as an old royal relic.
“You are juggling quite a few things at once.”
Hayden, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.
“This is not a leisurely situation where we can handle one thing at a time.”
“You swiftly subjugate and gradually take control of the center, yet the rebel heir’s treatment is unusually slow.”
Ophelia’s words could have been interpreted as criticism, subtly urging. However, Hayden didn’t blink an eye.
“Rushing would do us all a disservice. I personally brought him in; what if he dies due to the haste? It’s a loss for all of us.”
The Emperor casually laid down the last flower. The mausoleum remained chilly, but it looked much better now that candles were lit and it was filled with flowers.
“Why the rush, Magister? Things are progressing step by step.”
“Things would move more quickly and yield better results if Her Highness gains strength.”
So, you want your own curse lifted quickly too. Hayden looked at Ophelia indifferently. Compared to Ophelia, who was already one-third done, Rue had only progressed from the tips of her toes to halfway up her calves.
“That’s true.”
He nodded and turned his gaze to Melpheus.
“Do you intend to go back to sleep, Lord?”
“After staying awake for 430 years, shouldn’t I get some rest?”
Please let me sleep. Melpheus had been the one who welcomed the new Emperor with open arms. As long as the Emperor did his job, Melpheus could go back to Rea and sleep peacefully.
“I also hope so.”
Ophelia grinned subtly at Hayden’s nuanced conclusion. Everyone wished for the Dragonlord’s deep sleep, but the current situation was hardly conducive to it. Eventually, Melpheus scowled.
“Even if I sleep, you’ll forcibly wake me up again.”
“You didn’t say you’d definitely attend the funeral, Lord?”
Why wake me then? Melpheus sighed as he looked at the smiling Hayden.
“Fine. Keep waking this old dragon up for work. What power do I have?”
“Old? The elders outside would wave their canes at you for saying that. You’re still in your prime.”
The Dragonlord, appearing to be in his late 30s, was actually excessive. He should have looked like he was in his early 30s. That appearance was purely for the sake of complaining to the Emperor.
“Strictly speaking, both Magister and I are senior citizens. We should retire.”
“Retire, you say?”
Ophelia had no particular desire to refute those words. They had lived too long and held their positions for an equally extended period. But the Emperor was ruthlessly adamant.
“Retire after you’re dead. What’s this nonsense about retirement in a lifelong position?”
“You seem keen to work me to death.”
Melpheus grumbled but ceased his complaining. After all, the three gathered here had a common objective, and they clearly wouldn’t rest easy in death unless that objective was fulfilled.
“Sleep. I won’t summon you often. Just don’t rise to the nobles’ whining.”
At this, Melpheus chuckled.
“Those with any gall wouldn’t dare to approach me directly. Unless you’re planning to.”
“That’s exactly why I’ll be tormenting you.”
“Do as you wish. It’s these miscreants, whose discipline I’ve let lapse, who need to get their act together. Their ancestors would have thrashed them.”
Melpheus ranted about the Eastern nobles who served him.
“Busy as you are, Your Majesty, I do wonder what will have changed by the next time I wake.”
“I have so much to do that something might change even before you wake. Keep your expectations low.”
The Emperor curtly ended the conversation and turned to leave. The black cloak following him billowed grandly.
[Star Icon]Where on earth was Rustica Gennes?
No one was more sensitive to this issue than the people at the Kaleta consulate.
She was a former consul of Kaleta and, in their eyes, a traitor to the nation. She had betrayed the gracious Emperor who had foolishly trusted her with great responsibility.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
