In the haze of swirling dust, two blades clashed, sparking like flashes of lightning.
The sharp metallic clang echoed swiftly across the training ground, and the sword in Sir Antonio’s hand cracked, finally shattering into pieces.
Even the honorable title of Imperial Guard Captain was forced to yield before Parnes.
“Ugh, I’ve lost. I can’t see any way to win.”
Sir Antonio, the Guard Captain, stared down at the blade, now shattered beyond recognition, as a chill of cold sweat ran through him.
If this had been a real battle, it would undoubtedly have been his neck, not the sword, torn to shreds.
“If I may be so bold, Your Majesty, your movements today seem unusually rough. It’s as if your mind is elsewhere.”
“…….”
Parnes, as usual, answered with silence, taking the towel offered by Ludwig to wipe his face.
A cool breeze blew through.
His shoulders, heaving from the intense training, gradually settled, like a calm sea after a storm.
Ludwig tilted his head.
In his twenty years of serving the imperial court, he had never found it so hard to gauge His Majesty’s mood.
What could he be pondering so deeply all day since the last ball?
When Parnes’ breathing grew so calm it seemed he might have stopped altogether, Ludwig could no longer hold back and spoke.
“Your Majesty. It seems a heavy concern weighs on your heart.”
The hand holding the towel slowly dropped from Parnes’ face to his waist.
His sweat-dried face wasn’t staring into the nearby void, nor gazing at distant mountains, but seemed fixed on someone far away.
“Ludwig.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Your command?”
“Find out everything you can about Shallen Riche and Rose Riche. As much as possible, connect it to that girl, Kasallin.”
Ludwig skillfully hid his surprise and bowed his head once more.
“Forgive my impertinence, Your Majesty, but may I ask why you issue such a command?”
“……Kasallin.”
“Yes?”
“It wouldn’t hurt to know where the shadow cast over that girl’s face comes from.”
[This is the timeline separator]Unless they were suffering from paranoia, the atmosphere in their room felt strangely altered these past few mornings.
The chemise, neatly folded the night before, was ever so slightly disheveled.
There was a lingering warmth on the sofa.
As if someone had visited while they slept.
Feeling uneasy, they asked the palace guards, but the only response was, “We saw no suspicious person.”
“C-could it be someone with ill intentions toward Miss Kasallin?”
When they confided in their maid, Loren Logia, about the unseen gazes that seemed to watch them, the timid girl immediately began spinning ominous theories.
At first, she couldn’t meet Kasallin’s eyes, her face full of self-reproach, but as Kasallin approached with kindness, she gradually opened up.
They hadn’t become completely at ease in just a few days, but at least they could share tea or talk without hesitation.
“If that were the case, I wouldn’t be unharmed now. The strangest part is that they never touch me while I sleep.”
“I’ll report this to the security office. P-please be careful for now.”
“Thank you for worrying. I’m debating whether to request a guard.”
Kasallin let out a heavy sigh, rubbing her increasingly haggard face.
Sleepless nights had left her looking disheveled, her already sharp nerves now frayed to a razor’s edge.
At this rate, she’d break down before she could even return to the Kan Kingdom.
“H-how about learning some basic self-defense?”
“A woman learning martial arts?”
“What kind of world is it these days? Look for someone who could teach you.”
Countless faces flashed vaguely through Kasallin’s mind, but not one could be called a friend.
All her relationships were bound by pretense and self-interest.
Even after a decade in high society, the realization that she had no one to confide in hit her hard.
In the past, she would’ve run straight to Shallen in times like these…
“Sadly, there’s no one like that.”
“W-why not? His Majesty the Emperor is there, isn’t he?”
“Are you serious?”
When Kasallin asked in disbelief, Loren Logia timidly tilted her head.
“Haven’t you heard the rumors going around the palace? Everyone’s been in a frenzy since the ball…”
“What rumors?”
“They’re saying His Majesty has chosen Miss Kasallin as a potential bride. Is… is that true?”
[This is the timeline separator]After tea time, as Kasallin walked across the garden, she struggled to ignore the whispers burrowing into her ears.
She hadn’t noticed before, too preoccupied, but most nobles were indeed talking about her.
Claiming she was playing the role of a mistress, or that she must have used a love potion—utter nonsense.
‘His Majesty was merely showing me human kindness.’
With so many healthy, accomplished young ladies around, why would he, in his right mind, choose her as a bride?
Kasallin shook her head and naturally turned her steps.
Her hurried pace slowed and stopped at the swordsmanship training ground on the palace’s outskirts.
“His Majesty practices swordsmanship at the training ground every morning. Why don’t you go see?”
Recalling Loren Logia’s offhand remark, Kasallin was stunned that she’d actually come here.
What was she even doing here, when she couldn’t possibly meet him?
Deciding to leave before anyone noticed, she turned to go.
“The late Emperor was said to be just as handsome in his youth. He must take after him.”
“Look at that sleek, elegant bearing. Isn’t it like the incarnation of beauty reborn?”
At a corner of the training ground, young ladies, freshly debuted, were secretly watching Parnes in small groups.
Seeing the shy blushes on their faces, Kasallin hesitated and approached the railing.
Clang!
In the swirling dust, two sharply honed swords clashed, producing a piercing sound.
Parnes, his majestic upper body gleaming under the sun, was sparring with the Guard Captain.
As the ladies said, his beauty was beyond words.
But what caught Kasallin’s attention more were the beads of sweat on Parnes’ brow, the fruits of his effort.
Already at the pinnacle of power, yet he diligently trained his body and mind every day.
That sight strangely stirred Kasallin’s heart.
“Sorry, but you can’t be here.”
At that moment, a guard rushed over and cautioned the young ladies.
“We’ll just watch quietly. Is that not allowed?”
“No. This is His Majesty’s private training space. Please leave.”
“Ugh.”
The ladies couldn’t hide their disappointment.
Somehow, Kasallin found herself lumped in with them, being ushered away.
Feeling caught sneaking a peek, she belatedly flushed with embarrassment.
Just as she turned to leave before Parnes noticed, she heard—
“…Kasallin?”
The familiar voice pierced her from behind, and Kasallin shut her eyes tightly.
A shiver of shame, like a creeping insect, enveloped her from head to toe.
In the brief moment of turning to face him, she agonized over what excuse to make.
Rendering her turmoil meaningless, Parnes spoke.
“…What’s this? You look like you haven’t eaten properly in days.”
“What?”
“Is something wrong?”
Parnes gently cupped Kasallin’s chin with his large hand, turning her face this way and that, examining her closely.
Then, as if demanding a quick answer, he furrowed his brow.
“I asked what’s wrong.”
No one else had noticed.
Not even Rose or Shallen, whom she saw daily, had paid attention, so how had he noticed at a glance?
It wasn’t just the sharp insight of an emperor—his eyes held an unidentifiable concern and worry.
“How did you know?”
When Kasallin asked, dumbfounded, Parnes, as if exasperated, flicked her forehead.
It was a dramatic gesture, but it didn’t hurt at all.
“Ow!”
“Here’s a scrawny girl who already walks around looking frail, and now she shows up looking like a sickly patient. How could I not notice?”
“Why are you suddenly getting mad? And when have I ever looked frail? Do you think I’m some kind of squid?”
“Are you talking back to the Emperor right now?”
When Kasallin didn’t back down, her eyes wide, Parnes let out a bemused chuckle.
The onlookers—Duke Ludwig and the guards—were nearly pale with shock, watching the two bicker.
Not because Kasallin was arguing with the Emperor.
But because Parnes, dealing with her, seemed to be holding back a smile, as if thoroughly enjoying himself.
“With that sulky acorn face of yours.”
“You keep comparing me to small, insignificant things lately. For your information, I’m tall for a woman.”
“I never said you were short, but you’re getting all prickly on your own.”
“…!”
As Kasallin’s already large eyes widened further, her face flushing red, Parnes burst into laughter, unable to hold back.
It was the first time he’d laughed so heartily, leaving the surrounding vassals in stunned disbelief.
Especially Ludwig and the Guard Captain, who had served him for years, looked as if they’d seen a ghost.
‘Why are they reacting like that…?’
Kasallin, her face still tinged with lingering shame, gazed up at him.
When their eyes met, he ruffled her hair vigorously.
At that moment, sunlight, previously hidden by clouds, poured dazzlingly overhead, illuminating his striking smile even more brightly.
For some reason, she couldn’t tear her eyes away.
“How did someone like this end up stumbling into my palace?”
“What?”
“Just talking to myself. Ignore it.”
Something about it felt off, like it definitely wasn’t a compliment.
Kasallin fidgeted with the spot on her head where his large hand had lingered.
It wouldn’t have hurt if he’d patted her a bit longer.
That unconscious thought drifted into the air, carried away by the fresh yet sultry spring breeze.
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
