I was trying to pass it off nonchalantly when I suddenly hesitated.
“What… Am I different too?”
Like Hwang Do-joo, did he also sense something? My mind became dizzy. Did he also notice?
‘No, don’t be scared. Anyway, they spent time with me, not Isabella, so… It should be fine… It should be…’
He won’t despise me. He won’t kill me to revive the original Isabella.
I should believe that, but the uneasiness kept engulfing me.
‘Why do some people know my true identity?’
I liked being in this body. This time with Shasha. I wanted to live in this time.
‘I have to be satisfied with the present. Everyone… Everyone… wants to live in the present when they’re satisfied with it. I didn’t come into the novel because I wanted to, and now, suddenly wanting to live here… I don’t need to let people around me know that.’
It felt a bit unfair.
I wanted to go back to the time with Noah, whom I loved, not in the novel. But I couldn’t. If I could, if I had lived so hard… I should at least be left alone.
Then.
Saelus’s hand touched my cheek.
“What are you so afraid of?”
“Uh…!”
“Why are you shaking like a baby? Are you cold?”
He hugged me tightly. My body stiffened in this unexpected situation.
“Sael…us…”
“Did I make a mistake? That word ‘different’… Did I touch your wound?”
“Ah…”
“Sorry.”
Why do you…? Just because we resemble each other, you’re being kind to me? Why do your eyes have the same look as mine?
We haven’t known each other for long, and there’s nothing special between us.
“Why are you apologizing…?”
“Your eyes look so scared.”
“Ah…”
“Did I make a mistake?”
I quickly pulled away from his embrace. In Saelus’s heartbeat, I heard a steady thumping. Such a pleasant sound to hear, and such a warm embrace.
When I was in his arms, I unintentionally felt like leaning on him.
“No, it’s not that. Just… When you said ‘different,’ I got worried if I am really that different. So…”
“Why are you apologizing?”
“Your eyes seemed so scared.”
“Ah…”
“It’s okay. I don’t care how you are. And the word ‘different’ didn’t mean anything special. It meant that, although you share the same family lineage, your power is the strongest. If the people of the Maravtil twisted like withered trees, Isabella is a blossoming tree. A tree with fluttering green leaves.”
“So, that’s what it meant…”
Fortunately, the heart that had pounded with the fear of whether he would also discover the secret calmed down calmly.
“It’s probably better not to say anything else. Isabella, you… seem a little tired.”
“Me?”
“Yes. But if you still want to trust me and talk, it must be tough. So, I’ll wait. If you need a friend to listen to your story, tell me.”
It might have been burdensome to tell everything to him. However, at the words ‘a friend to listen,’ I found myself nodding without realizing it.
“Yes.”
“I’ll find out what you told me. Because it’s your request.”
“Yes.”
“As soon as the investigation is over, I’ll report.”
With those words, Saelus disappeared.
“Don’t think too much and rest. I’ll always be on your side.”
I don’t know how comforting those words were. Even if those words weren’t true, the fact that one part of my heart became comfortable was true.
After he disappeared, darkness covered the sky. I stared blankly at the sky. The unusually round moon illuminated the world.
I closed my eyes quietly.
“If there is a god…”
Please let me continue to live as Isabella. Let me live happily as I am now. Let me spend my days with the people I love.
Five percent of the people in the Empire don’t believe in gods. Most of them are magicians, and I also had a small share in that group. In fact, I don’t believe in gods.
I grew up in an orphanage run by nuns with Noah, but even then, I didn’t believe in gods. My god left with Noah the day he left the world. That’s why I, who haven’t believed in gods for a long time, prayed.
Several days passed since that day.
As expected, Shasha didn’t come out of her room at all.
She gave various reasons, such as wanting to rest, feeling sleepy, and not wanting to do anything. She even prevented me from entering the room.
Rudel’s situation wasn’t good either.
Rudel, who hadn’t had nightmares for a while, suffered even more from nightmares after that day. He seemed to be weakened. Therefore, he couldn’t come to the palace, and he was in his room for treatment without being able to move.
Since the children were like that, I and Riantra were busy taking care of the children without meeting each other.
“Is there still no news?”
I wanted to heal Shasha quickly. Then, I wanted to go to Rudel and check on him.
It was difficult to go and come back after leaving Shasha, who was not coming out of her room due to severe trauma.
“Should I touch her… or not.”
So, I pondered while fiddling with the ring. But I was just playing with the ring, worrying that summoning him itself might be a burden to Saelus.
At that moment.
“Isabella.”
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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