Nathaniel remained silent for a while, leaning his face against my leg.
I reached out and gently patted his head.
“I sensed another magical power, so I thought something had happened.”
In a deeply troubled voice, he murmured, “I was worried that something had happened.”
“Nothing happened. Fortunately, Kilian came with the magical tower.”
“Kilian?”
“Yes, he seems to know quite a bit about dark magic.”
Come to think of it, he had boasted before that he knew more about magical theory than Nathaniel.
“I thought it was just empty boasting at the time, but it seems he’s not bad.”
Still leaning on my knees with his face down, I lightly tapped his cheek while keeping my eyes closed.
“Get up and sit here.”
I patted the seat next to me, and he reluctantly got up and sat down.
His cheeks turned red, perhaps embarrassed.
Seeing him unable to meet my gaze, a subtle smile escaped me.
To protect his fragile pride, I decided to pretend not to notice.
“This is it.”
As he received the thick notebook and glanced through its contents, he grumbled, “What on earth is written here?”
“Ha… hahaha.”
Contrary to his genius reputation, Kilian’s handwriting was truly terrible. If he hadn’t explained it to me, I probably wouldn’t have been able to understand what was written.
“He was talking about the mechanics of dark magic. It’s difficult, so I don’t understand it well, but Nathaniel said he would figure it out.”
“Hmm.”
Upon hearing my explanation, Nathaniel once again examined the notebook.
With a rather serious expression, Nathaniel, who had been reading, spoke up.
“It’s not easy to find information on this subject, but it’s well done.”
“Really? Do you think it will be helpful?”
“If we make a few slight changes. We can call the palace wizards to fix the device.”
“Should I inform the duke?”
“I didn’t develop it, so we should ask the magical tower.”
“Leave that to me.”
There was a hint of distrust in Nathaniel’s eyes as he looked at me. This was probably because he couldn’t see how Kilian treated Anais.
Kilian seemed to have feelings for Anais. This was my intuition, honed over several years of reading romance novels.
“Even so, it’s a bit much to share my sister’s love story, right?”
I decided to keep it as my own secret for now.
But I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Diana sat down and looked out the window.
Restlessly playing with the hem of her dress, she looked out at the blurry scenery beyond the window.
“I thought you were the one who would save me.”
Back when Diana was living in the emperor’s court, she had thought this when she saw a group of wizards who had come looking for her.
“I was stupid.”
The potion, completed by sacrificing her brother, was taken by the sudden arrival of those people.
Moreover, for some reason, they had imprisoned her in a place she couldn’t recognize.
“You’ve just woken up.”
“Ah.”
A hooded man slipped through the wall and appeared.
Sensing a sudden presence, Diana, without hiding her wariness, stepped back.
“You don’t need to be so cautious.”
“Can you say that after imprisoning me?”
“Imprisonment? We’re just protecting you. Without us, you wouldn’t be able to speak so casually.”
Although the man’s words were true, it was inevitable to feel uneasy. Not knowing their purpose made it even more unsettling.
“Considering you were used by the empress not long ago, I understand such a reaction.”
Feeling embarrassed by the man’s words, Diana blushed.
“For now, our goal is the same as yours. Teresa Menisil, to eliminate her.”
“That… woman?”
She was an ordinary person without any special abilities or sitting at the pinnacle of power.
‘Why would a group calling themselves the controllers of the world target such a woman?’
The man chuckled softly and then spoke quietly.
“Don’t try to know too much. Right now, what’s important is that you and we are on the same side.”
“You could betray me.”
“Even if we betray you, you’ll die, with or without our betrayal.”
Though said in a measured tone, it was essentially a threat. Diana nodded silently.
The man seemed satisfied with her dignified attitude and smiled.
“Your chance will come soon. Don’t worry too much; we’re here to help you.”
Having said that, he vanished in an instant.
“I need to increase my utility value.”
Diana bit her lip and mumbled. If killing Teresa was their goal, it was crucial to seize what they wanted first.
“Ah.”
She finally decided on the use of the elixir.
Even though they took the potion from her, it didn’t mean she lost everything.
What was in her mind couldn’t be taken away.
Materials that were once difficult to obtain due to their rarity were now easily handled.
Diana began to sift through her memories.
Naturally, Kilian decided to pass on the method of blocking dark magic to the Winter’s Duchy.
He volunteered to oversee both the mansion in the capital and the ducal castle in the territory.
I was grateful for his kindness that surpassed expectations.
“You don’t have to go this far.”
When male lead is the homewrecker
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
I’ve read the novel below twice already. Girls, I’m highly recommending it to you!
The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.
Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.
The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.
I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.
There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.
For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.
I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.
Here’s the story synopsis:
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Intro 1:
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.
Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.
In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.
Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…
Intro 2:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
_____
Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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