Shallen and Rose walked side by side towards them. Shallen, with a slight frown, alternately looked at Kasalyn and Parnesse, then suddenly took Rose’s hand as if to show off. Rose seemed momentarily perplexed but then smiled brightly at Kasalyn.

“Wow, meeting here? It’s surely a divine sign for us to walk together. Right, sister? What do you all think?”

Rose asked excitedly, but the other three didn’t respond, as if they had silently agreed not to.

“Kasalyn. Who is the man standing behind you?” Shallen inquired, glancing at the man behind her.

Kasalyn belatedly realized they hadn’t recognized the Emperor’s face.

“Oh. Please meet, His Majesty, the Emperor.”

She formally introduced Parnesse, gesturing towards him. Shallen and Rose’s eyes widened in unison, but with slightly different emotions. Shallen looked wary as if encountering a natural predator, while Rose seemed entranced, unable to take her eyes off Parnesse.

“Ah… I didn’t recognize you, Your Majesty.”

Shallen quickly scanned Parnesse, then extended his hand for a handshake with a brighter, more sociable smile than usual. Surprisingly, Parnesse readily accepted the handshake.

“We meet in such a place.”

“Yes, indeed. It’s even more pleasant to meet outside. And you ‘accidentally’ bumped into Kasalyn?”

Shallen emphasized ‘accidentally’ with a hint of suspicion.

Parnesse’s face momentarily flickered with amusement.

“No. We were walking together.”

“Together?”

Shallen glanced at Kasalyn, seemingly surprised.

“Why so shocked? It’s not like it’s impossible for me to walk alongside this woman.”

“Well, yes, but it’s unexpected.”

Shallen’s hand clenched and then relaxed, an old habit when things didn’t go his way or he was frustrated.

Kasalyn thought she was the cause of his irritation.

“Then, continue your walk. We’ll excuse ourselves if there’s nothing more.”

Saying this, Parnesse quickened his pace.

‘Does ‘we’ include me?’ Kasalyn hesitated, then Shallen’s slightly anxious voice stopped her.

“May we join you? There’s much I’d like to discuss, as leaders of our respective nations.”

He smoothly moved Kasalyn next to Rose and positioned himself near Parnesse.

As the Lobervon sisters followed behind, the conversation between Parnesse and Shallen was too far away to overhear.

‘Act as you were. That way, I can think about how to punish you later.’

If only she had more time to talk, she might have understood his words’ meaning.

Feeling a sense of regret, she was distracted until Rose spoke.

“Sister, what are you thinking?”

“Nothing.”

“Hmm.”

Rose peered closely at Kasalyn’s face.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Just thinking how pretty you are.”

“Suddenly?”

“Not suddenly. I’ve always thought so. Your fair skin, big cat-like eyes, luscious black hair, and slender figure. So different from me.”

Rose touched her own face, murmuring to herself.
“Look at this. My hair is frizzy and dark brown, I have freckles on my face, and my lips are too small, making me look petty. My face is thin like a child from the slums. That’s why I’m so envious of you. You were born pretty, easily making friends with people. You even casually strolled with the Emperor, who is said to be fearsome.”

“It wasn’t for that reason that I was with His Majesty…”

“It must be nice for you. If I had been a bit prettier, I could have had an easy life like you.”

Kasalyn stopped near the stream and silently observed Rose.

While the two men were engaged in conversation and gradually distancing themselves, Rose seemed puzzled.

“Why are you looking at me like that, sister?”

“Are you under the impression that all my successes have been solely due to my looks?”

“No, I didn’t mean it in a bad way. But to some extent, I believe it’s true. You received a lot of pocket money from relatives, monopolized Dad’s attention, attended an expensive royal school, and even received numerous gifts and proposals from noble gentlemen. It’s also true that I grew up overshadowed by you.”

“Rose.”

“I’m not resenting you, I respect you as family and as a maid.”

Kasalyn was at a loss for words, folding her arms slowly.

Rose paused for a moment and then kicked stones by the stream’s edge.

“Life seems to go well but can crash at any moment, right?”

“What?”

“Everything depends on luck. Look, I became happy because of my late luck. Recently, Lord Shallen has been caring for me a lot.”

“Rose, stop it. I don’t want to hear this anymore.”

Kasalyn struggled to contain her surging sorrow and anger.

But Rose stubbornly followed, splashing water with her polished shoes.

“Why do you always avoid my happy stories?”

“Rose. I’m just tired right now. Let’s talk later.”

“You still seem to be clinging to the past and now even seem jealous of me. Don’t you think so?”

Kasalyn’s patience snapped.

“Enough! There’s a limit to my patience!”

Rarely losing her composure, Kasalyn’s anger startled Rose.

Unfortunately, Rose slipped on a moss-covered pebble and fell into the water.

“Ah!”

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