He hesitated for a moment but decided not to answer the summons. It wasn’t official, so ignoring it would not be illegal.
However, a month later, as the spring atmosphere fully enveloped the territory, two letters arrived.
One was a permit from the Edmont temple, and the other stated that the empress would be visiting Edmont Temple for prayers.
The letter from the empress ended with the words:
“I heard there is a maid with a very interesting story in Edmont.”
Clutching the letter in his hand, Carson let out a soft groan.
Going to the temple would expose his weakness, but he had no choice. A weakness was exactly that.
Exactly four months after the new year, Carson set out for Edmont again.
“It’s been a while.”
“Indeed, Count Raymond. Two years is a long time.”
The empress and Carson were both kneeling side by side in the grand prayer room where a huge statue of Goddess Heklecia stood. The temple’s occupants held their breath and vacated the area around the prayer room.
The room was so quiet that even the sound of ants could be heard, yet the voices of the two didn’t blend well.
“Why did you call me here when I could send anything you might need?”
The goddess with kind eyes looked down at the two proud royals kneeling before her.
“That is the problem, Count. I assume you’re not asking because you don’t know.”
Another pair of eyes were secretly watching them inside the prayer room at that time. Ines had heard about Carson’s visit earlier that day while cleaning the high priest’s room.
If word had gotten out that he was coming, the maids would have received additional cleaning assignments throughout the temple. The high-ranking priests wouldn’t have their secret conversations otherwise.
And she soon found out why. It was the arrival of the empress.
Even at first glance, the dazzling carriage could not hide its brightness in any remote corner of the temple. There was no marking on the carriage, but Ines was sure it came from the imperial city.
Edmont was difficult to reach by carriage due to its mountainous terrain.
Only one road, a mountain path coming from the imperial city, was the sole route accessible by carriage. And only the imperial family was allowed on that road.
The empress was one who wielded Count Graham as a shadow. And when things went awry, she ruthlessly severed that shadow.
What she would do upon meeting Carson was unpredictable. A sense of fear filled him, but nothing was more important than his own safety. Ines fearlessly set out to find the place where the two would meet.
There was no need for a long search. The waiting room was always bustling with people. However, by the time dinner ended, the area became a forbidden zone, inaccessible to anyone. She moved without hesitation, and fortunately, was able to hide in the waiting room before the two arrived.
“I had no idea fulfilling your needs would be an issue.”
Carson, speaking in a familiar voice, had changed slightly in appearance. Now twenty-three, his shoulders had broadened, and his jawline had become more chiseled. However, his eyes shone as beautifully as they always had.
While longing for the person she missed, Ines did not forget to scan her surroundings.
“Count fulfilling my needs means you’ve amassed quite a bit yourself.”
“So it’s not like I want anything more.”
The empress did not hide her disdain for Carson, who made an oddly naïve comment.
“It’s not that right now… but you’ve grown too big. Excessively so.”
“I’ve always been the tallest in the royal family.”
The empress rose from her knee, which had been bent in prayer before a goddess, and gazed at him with a benevolent expression, much like Heclesia.
“Carson, my son. Do you know what your greatest sin is?”
Carson neither looked up at her nor answered.
“It’s that you didn’t come from my womb.”
“…….”
“If you’re going to be so exceptional, you shouldn’t have come from that base lineage. Or else, like your mother, you should have just lived as a pretty but empty-headed doll.”
Faced with such blatant insult, Carson remained impassive. In contrast, Ines clenched her eyes shut. At that moment, even the empress, deemed the most noble in the empire, was nothing more than a mere enemy desecrating her one and only sanctuary.
The empress slowly removed her gloves. Each movement of pulling her fingers out was so graceful that it gave her chills.
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.]
