Creak.
The poorly maintained door made a strange noise as it swung open. An elderly man with wrinkles all over his face appeared inside.
“A few days ago, you mentioned that you wanted to learn about the hedgehog clan, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Come in.”
The old man shuffled inside with his unsteady legs. Idrysh followed him, and I trailed behind.
The interior was filled with dust and a musty odor. It seemed that the place was not properly maintained.
The old man sat down heavily on the sofa. Apart from where he sat, the dust settled like a white layer on every surface, making me contemplate whether I should sit down or not.
“Don’t sit there; it’s dusty.”
I was wearing bright-colored clothing.
At that moment, Idrysh unexpectedly extended a handkerchief in front of me.
Oh, an unexpected display of manners.
I spread Idrysh’s handkerchief and carefully sat on it.
Both of us were seated, and the old man suddenly asked in a hoarse voice, “What brought you here out of curiosity?”
“I heard that this place was where they last stayed before the rebellion.”
“That’s right. At that time, all the lodgings in Central were filled to capacity in preparation for the rebellion. So, they rented lodgings even in the outskirts like this.”
It seemed that they had gathered from all over the country, risking their lives for the rebellion. They appeared vividly in this place. I wondered what they were thinking on their last night here.
“Then what? Most of them never came back.”
Even the air felt heavy.
For whom, for what, had the rebellion been?
They must have fought for a better world. They would have wanted to leave a good place for the next generation, even if it meant risking their lives.
But what remained now?
Countless were injured or lost their lives. The royals were massacred, yet the world showed no improvement. Famine persisted for several more years, and the struggle for power pushed everyone to the brink.
Everyone had fought for their lives, and in the end…
There were no survivors without harm.
I felt uneasy.
“Weren’t they supposed to say something? Like the reasons for participating in the rebellion.”
“Reasons? What reasons could there be? It was probably just to survive. Wait and see. Those hedgehog-folk seem even angrier than the other guests. Why was that? There must have been a reason.”
My mouth went dry.
Grandfather, please remember. You can do it! Come on, brain cells!
“Wasn’t there any connection to the leader’s daughter, Cecilia Eriso?”
“The leader’s daughter?”
Deep wrinkles formed on the old man’s forehead. His fingers twitched. It seemed like he was probing the distant past.
“Oh yes, that’s right. That’s definitely how it was. The leader’s daughter was said to have been killed by the Artigrado prince.”
Idrysh and I were speechless.
The leader’s daughter was me, and the Artigrado prince was Idrysh.
It was just as I had speculated from the contents of the curse a while ago.
But Idrysh claimed not to know Cecilia, so there seemed to be a misunderstanding somewhere. Or maybe…
Did someone intentionally create such a situation? To slander Idrysh and incite rebellion…
If that was the case, there was only one person who came to mind.
“He said he would cast a curse that would never be lifted, even if they died in disgrace for insulting the clan. Because I was scared too. Everyone knew how powerful the hedgehog-folk were.”
“And did he say what the curse was or any reason behind it, or how to lift it?”
“Why would he tell me something like that? All I know is that it’s all I remember. I haven’t remembered much even after all these years. That’s all there is to it. I didn’t mention it in advance. I barely remember anything.”
With that, the old man let out a big yawn. It meant he was tired of talking. The old man slowly got up from the sofa. The worn-out springs of the sofa made creaking and creaking sounds.
I made eye contact with Idrysh. There was no significant gain.
“But did you ask about how to lift the curse?”
“Yes.”
The old man got up from his seat, turned back to look at us.
“There’s no way to lift the curse. The reason the hedgehog-folk’s curse is stronger than anyone else’s is precisely because of that.”
“……. ”
“Oh, and the room at the end of the second floor is where they stayed, and it hasn’t been cleaned since then. You might want to look around.”
With those words, the old man slowly walked into the room.
Idrysh and I didn’t hesitate and quickly climbed the creaky stairs to the second floor. It seemed like no one had been here before, as dust covered everything, starting from the doorknobs.
I covered my nose with my sleeve and entered the room. Idrysh lit a lantern, revealing the old room at a glance. There weren’t many things inside – a bed, some scattered clothes, and a few books.
We examined the items inside the room thoroughly.
“Is it really true that there’s no way to lift the curse?”
“Well, since it said only Cecilia can do it, I guess the answer lies with you.”
I fell silent and thought deeply.
Before getting off the train, I had tested it several more times.
As a result, I could confirm that there was a connection between the curse and my emotions.
But I just couldn’t bring myself to tell Idrysh. How could I confess my love to you! That… it was absurd. Me? To Idrysh? Oh… I might get thrown out of the house immediately. Like some creepy night flower.
I glanced briefly at Idrysh.
By the way, if emotions are related, what do I need to do to completely lift the curse?
Well… Should I give a kiss? In fairy tales, it often works that way. Or do I need to do something more daring?
I swallowed hard.
At that moment, Idrysh also looked at me. He raised an eyebrow, as if feeling suspicious.
“You seem to be thinking something strange right now.”
“Oh, no, not at all! I was just wondering about how to lift the curse.”
The method seemed a bit impure, though.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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