I Decline the Ex-Boyfriend of the Regretful Male Lead (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 7
I went to the guard station located in the capital.
As soon as I stepped inside, I saw guards switching their shifts.
I immediately grabbed one of the guards and asked,
“I have something I’d like to ask.”
He looked at my attire, stopped what he was doing, and replied,
“Are you here to file a report?”
“No. I’m looking for the guard who took me home early this morning.”
I had come to find that man yesterday. Since there was only one guard station in the capital, he must be here.
“May I have your name?”
“Anette Leangberia.”
“Hmm. Ah, here it is. Please wait a moment.”
The guard, who had been flipping through records, went inside the headquarters.
‘He won’t say he doesn’t remember, will he?’
Actually, the man’s face in my memory was blurry. He was handsome, but the gilded interior and dazzling lights left only a hazy impression. I’d also been out of it at the time.
Recalling yesterday, I waited anxiously for the guard. Soon, a tall man walked in behind him.
“I’m the guard who took Young-ae back to the mansion yesterday.”
“Thank you.”
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
I’ve finally met him.
Could this man be the one who will become my husband?
I lifted my slightly bowed head abruptly. But then—
“What is it?”
This wasn’t him.
He wasn’t the handsome guard I’d seen yesterday. No matter how fuzzy my memory was, this man gave a completely different impression.
“You’re the one who took me back to the mansion?”
“Yes, but…?”
Moreover, his voice was entirely different.
“But you’re not the one who took me to the casino yesterday…”
“Casino? I merely escorted you from your carriage to the count’s residence.”
There had been a report.
He’d simply responded to the report and found me in the carriage.
“Then who made the report?”
“He vanished instantly after delivering the message, so I couldn’t confirm his identity.”
“Not even a description?”
“It was deep in the night, so I couldn’t see his face beneath his robe… Are you in a hurry?”
I shook my head at the guard’s words.
“No, but he seemed like one of your guards—tall, handsome, and oh! A green cloak! He wore it draped over his shoulders.”
“Hmm. Regardless of anything else, we guards don’t wear green cloaks. Since last month, we’ve worn yellow ones because green was too dark at night.”
Looking around the station, everyone indeed wore yellow cloaks.
“Were there any other distinguishing features?”
Nothing specific came to mind.
I didn’t know his name or which house he belonged to.
Now, I was even starting to doubt whether my memory of going to the casino last night was real.
In the end, I left the place with nothing to show for it.
‘He didn’t run away, did he?’
I should’ve written down a contract or something back then. If only I hadn’t collapsed so suddenly, I could’ve gotten something from him.
Still, since he was the one who first said he needed a wife, he shouldn’t have any reason to run away, right?
He probably just hasn’t prepared the proposal letter yet.
That’s what I thought, at least until then.
[This is the timeline separator]
As soon as I arrived home, my parents immediately called me in.
It seemed it wouldn’t end unless I explained, so I gave them a rough account of yesterday’s events.
Of course, I didn’t mention meeting Serdis. They’d be hurt more than anyone else.
“You swapped dresses with Princess Violet?”
“Yes. She looked unwell, yet kept dragging around that heavy dress, so I offered to switch with her.”
I also had to explain the mysterious yellow dress—in a way that wouldn’t harm Violet.
“You don’t usually have any contact with the princess.”
Under their suspicious stares, a lie immediately slipped out.
“Women understand each other, you know—about those days. Even if we’re not close, I had to help her.”
Mother promptly nodded in understanding. Then Father, who had been listening, asked,
“So you knew it was Saint Dalia’s memorial day and left the banquet without attending?”
“…Yes. But I couldn’t find my carriage, so I wandered around to get some air and ended up lost. I must’ve dozed off on the street.”
“You do realize that sounds absurd, right?”
Father replied gruffly.
“…But it’s the truth.”
I couldn’t properly tell my parents anything.
‘Please forgive your useless child, Mother, Father.’
Wandering the streets, then entering a casino and making a marriage promise with some stranger?
Even if I told them, would they believe me? They’d probably scold me: “You reckless girl, going out and causing trouble!”
They already thought I was saying strange things about marriage lately. I couldn’t pour oil on that fire.
“I just can’t handle this.”
Mother let out a deep sigh, then opened her arms toward me, who stood quietly hunched over.
“Come here.”
I shuffled over and nestled into Mother’s embrace. Her warm hands enveloped me.
“You know Mother can’t live without our daughter, right?”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for what? It’s because our daughter is kind-hearted.”
She kissed my forehead with a soft “mwah.” I smiled happily.
“How was the banquet? I heard the temple even sent a Kelbeves branch as a token of gratitude.”
I’d read that in a newspaper article in the carriage before coming in—the temple had specially gifted a branch imbued with blessing power as thanks.
“Were there flowers on the branch?”
I burrowed into Mother like a clueless child and asked.
“Uh… uh. Yes, right? The flowers bloomed beautifully. Isn’t that so, dear?”
Mother stammered and turned to Father.
“Y-yes, indeed. It’s a shame you couldn’t see it yourself.”
A lie.
At a glance, both of them had been too busy blocking Cassian—worried I might seek him out and bring up marriage.
‘Only Mother and Father went according to my plan.’
I suddenly felt sadder and hugged Mother’s waist tighter.
But when would the proposal letter arrive?
He’ll send it soon, right?
[This is the timeline separator]My ominous premonition never fails to come true.
“No contact for two whole days?”
For nearly two days, not only had no proposal letter arrived, but not a single visitor had come to our house.
“I won’t stand for this.”
Again, it was my fault for being bewitched by a handsome man.
Fooled once, fooled twice?
I’d considered searching for him, but feared Serdis might interfere again, so I held back.
“At the very least, he could’ve brought up marriage first! Or just told me outright that we couldn’t marry!”
Next time I see him, even if just passing by, I’ll kick him in the shin.
Just as I’d resolved to let it go, Betty walked in—and my heart started pounding with foolish hope.
I must’ve expected her to say the proposal letter had arrived. But seeing Betty’s indifferent expression, it clearly wasn’t about that.
“Young lady…”
Betty closed the door firmly behind her, as if she had something important to say.
“Is something wrong at home?”
“No, but I heard something strange.”
Betty stepped closer and, glancing at the empty room, continued,
“The maids were gossiping, and apparently His Highness Serdis ordered an expensive ring from the Tierre Jewelers.”
“Tierre?”
Tierre—the famous jeweler where sons of wealthy families customarily ordered engagement rings.
If Serdis ordered a ring there…
I didn’t need it spelled out.
“Just when I thought he’d been quiet for a few days—what’s he up to now!”
I shot up from my seat.
I couldn’t just sit still while Serdis diligently advanced his own plot alone.
I’d thought marriage was the safest way to exit the original story. But if that wouldn’t work…
‘Plan B it is.’
Not perfect, but a way to avoid Serdis.
And if even that failed, I still had the convent plan—cut my hair and enter a convent.
“I have to go out right now.”
I opened the wardrobe and pulled out a neat dress.
“Where are you going?”
“I can’t just sit in my room waiting for Serdis to show up with a ring.”
“Why do you dislike His Highness so much?”
“I’ve always hated obsessive men.”
Betty glanced at her towering stack of romance novels and nodded.
“I should look for novels with gentle male leads too.”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
Leaving Betty, who was getting worked up, I hurried out of the mansion.
“Coachman, I need to go out—please ready the carriage quickly.”
I headed toward the count’s carriage, which had been nowhere to be found yesterday despite my desperate search.
“Oh dear, what shall we do? The carriage is so old that Master ordered all carriages repaired today. They’ve all been sent to the repairman and won’t be back until sunset, Young lady.”
Of all days, it had to be today?
“All the carriages are being repaired?”
The coachman frowned, looking troubled.
“Yes. Right now, we only have horses.”
With no choice, I turned to leave.
If there was no carriage at the mansion, I could borrow one. I just hoped I wouldn’t accidentally run into Serdis. Just as I was about to step out, covering my face with a wide-brimmed floppy hat—
“Young-ae Leangberia!”
Someone called out to me firmly. A woman with violet hair hurriedly stepped down from a carriage.
“Princess Violet?”
She came running toward me, completely unexpected.
“Where are you off to without a carriage?”
Violet asked in a much more relaxed tone than at the banquet.
“I have somewhere else to go. And you, Your Highness?”
“I was coming to see you—to thank you for what you did that day.”
She grabbed my hand eagerly.
“You went through the trouble of coming all this way, but I’m short on time right now.”
I couldn’t afford to leisurely enjoy tea with Violet. To quickly execute Plan B, I needed to get to the imperial palace promptly. She started to let go but changed direction and pulled my hand.
“Then I’ll take you to your destination.”
“Huh?”
“Just for the travel time—that’s all I ask. Please spare me that much.”
With no choice, I followed her into the Sharpenan carriage. At my request to go to the palace, Violet silently complied. As soon as she sat across from me, she smiled gently and expressed her gratitude.
“Thanks to you, I managed to get through the banquet without disgracing Father and my older brother.”
“I’m glad.”
I’d been curious how the banquet ended since I hadn’t stayed till the end. The fact that Violet came to me herself meant my choice hadn’t been wrong.
Even if my other plans failed, at least the banquet hadn’t turned into a nightmare for Violet.
“But I felt awful thinking my dress made it hard to see your face all night. I was thoughtless—I should’ve asked for another dress from the mansion.”
“Not at all. I didn’t come to the banquet to enjoy myself anyway.”
“Thank you for saying that. I misunderstood you, Young-ae Leangberia. Just because I liked His Highness didn’t mean I should hate you too…”
Violet fiddled with her hands and let out a deflated sigh.
“Do you not hate me anymore?”
At my question, she lifted her downcast eyes and met my gaze.
“Of course not. In fact, I hate myself for blaming you.”
“That’s enough. More than enough.”
She now knew I wanted distance from Serdis, and I’d proven it—she wouldn’t easily suspect me anymore. That was all that mattered.
“But… why are you going to the imperial palace?”
She asked cautiously.
“It’s not to see His Highness.”
“I believe you, even without you adding that.”
“I can’t share the details, but I’m going to see His Imperial Majesty.”
It wasn’t something I could explain to Violet. Even if I did, she wouldn’t understand why I’d go so far. My rigid, distant attitude made her shoulders slump.
“I wish I could be of more help to you. I’m sorry I can only offer a ride in my carriage.”
I was about to end the conversation with a faint smile when a sudden thought made my eyes widen.
“Then, Your Highness… may I ask you a favor?”
My Arch-enemy Sealed My Memory and Said That He is My Husband
This is an incredibly captivating story that you absolutely shouldn’t miss! I’ll give a brief introduction here, and below you’ll find a detailed synopsis of the plot.
The female lead is a fierce and powerful demon king. The male lead is a once-in-a-millennium celestial lord, admired by the entire cultivation world.
They are equally matched, legendary rivals who have battled for centuries.
In the final duel, the female lead is gravely injured. The male lead saves her, seals her memories, and hides her true identity. He tells her that he is her fiancé. His entire life has been flawless—except for the one thing he never expected, never controlled, and never wanted to control: falling for his greatest enemy. She is his inner demon, his obsession.
When the female lead regains her memories, she is furious at his deception.
She makes his life a living hell.
And somehow, the male lead—possibly a total masochist—doesn’t mind at all. In fact, he’s happy she’s paying attention to him.
Yep, we’re back to my favorite trope: male lead suffering. If you love this kind of story, jump into the pit with me now!!!
Intro
Dong Xia lost her memory.
Her handsome and extremely powerful fiancé Li Qing comforted her: “It’s okay if you can’t remember. I’ll always be with you.”
Everyone thought Dong Xia’s ancestors must have burned incense to get such a perfect fiancé. He was the number one person in the immortal realm, yet he remained chaste and only loved her.
…
The day before marrying her fiancé, Dong Xia finally remembered everything.
She wasn’t suffering from memory loss at all.
Her arch-enemy had made her fake her death, destroyed her cultivation, replaced her memories, and pretended to be her deeply in love fiancé.
No wonder he said, “It’s okay if you can’t remember”!
Dong Xia laughed coldly as she pulled out her long knife: Li Qing, prepare to die 🙂
*
Li Qing, as the supreme being of the immortal realm, was the people’s shining beacon.
The only unknown stain in his life was his affection for Dong Xia, the ruler of the demon realm.
In the final battle of the war between immortals and demons, the sky collapsed and the earth shattered. The ruler of the demon realm was finally slain under the sword of the supreme being of the immortal realm, and everyone in the immortal realm applauded.
The cultivation world lost a ruler of the demon realm.
And in the back mountain of Li Qing’s cave dwelling, he secretly hid away a fiancée.
Notes:
1. The female lead is white on the outside, black on the inside, and the queen of flattery; the male lead repeatedly tests the edge of darkness, a VIP guest at the crematorium.
2. Fantasy cultivation world setting.
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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (8)
ML is grand Duke?? Anette would be so surprise hahahah
It was the moment the Duke, who had repeatedly delivered triumphant news from the battlefield, showcased his prowess in our home as well.
Mwahahahaha
The Duke’s retainers urged him to take a Duchess to at least expand his influence, but he had no interest in power—or women. He simply disliked their nagging.
What kind of misunderstanding there 😂
Inline Comments (6)
Perhaps because I’m certain he’ll never love me.
Lol girl. You don’t know anything about him. He is obsessive 😂
“As I said before, I can only cast a forbidden ritual to remove divine abilities
Casting a ‘forbidden ritual’ to remove divine abilities sounds like practicing black magic. So Violet practices black magic? What is her true goal?
He collapsed to the floor, unconscious. Only the ring on his finger glimmered fa
I have quite a few things to say about the function of this enchantment. Right now though the main thing is that if the enchantment functions in this way…what happens if Anette dies while he has the ring turned on?
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Blairwoods
That’s kinda weird. Every time she wants to use the carriage suddenly so busy?