I Didn't Really Want to Do Farming! (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 35
The next morning, Stella opened her eyes with an uneasy feeling. Something seemed stuck to her face, and an itchy sensation made her lightly touch her cheek with her fingertips.
“What is this!”
She’d always woken up with slightly puffy eyes, but her skin had remained perfectly smooth.
Yet the texture now touching Stella’s fingertips felt as rough as dirt. Startled, Stella shot upright and dashed straight to the mirror.
Upon seeing herself in the mirror, Stella gasped once again.
“What is this?”
It was because the Stella in the mirror had thick mud smeared all over her face.
“Who did this!”
Stella immediately recalled that only the earth sprites in Verdura Castle would pull such an absurd prank. Huffing in frustration, she bent her head sharply under the bed.
But the sprites’ bed was completely empty, and even the bed she’d painstakingly made for them was ruined with mud.
“These little rascals!”
Though hurt by the sprites’ mischievous trick—especially after she’d given them a gift—Stella knew she had to wash her face before Mila entered the room. She felt incredibly fortunate to have a bathroom attached to her chamber.
After thoroughly washing her face, Stella looked in the mirror and was startled again. Her complexion looked vastly different from usual.
“Why is it glowing?”
Her skin shone as white and lustrous as a pearl, smooth like a boiled egg. Moreover, it was perfectly hydrated and soft—so radiant she didn’t even need makeup.
“Could it be… because of the mud?”
The only unusual thing had been the mud the sprites playfully smeared on her face. She wondered if the mud contained some exceptionally beneficial ingredient for skin, but it seemed more likely the sprites’ magic was at work.
Stella, who’d been furious thinking they’d ruined her face, now felt her simmering anger instantly cool as she gazed at her reflection in the mirror.
“I’ll have to ask them about it later.”
In a much better mood, Stella was gently stroking her own face while admiring herself in the mirror when a knock sounded at the door. She quickly put the mirror away and sat up straight.
“Come in.”
Mila entered the room and, just as on any other day, began preparing to explain the day’s schedule—but instead, she simply stared at Stella.
“What? Is something on my face?”
“No, nothing at all. Today is the day you must finish the embroidered handkerchief to present to His Imperial Majesty during the hunting festival.”
“Oh… embroidery.”
Stella initially showed clear reluctance, but then remembered she needed to practice sewing diligently to make quilts for the earth sprites—and suddenly, unprecedented motivation surged within her.
“Understood. I’ll just start today, then.”
Knowing Stella didn’t particularly enjoy embroidery, Mila watched her with surprise as she answered so enthusiastically. Mila set down the basket she’d been carrying.
“Yes, Your Highness. I’ve prepared all the materials.”
Inside the basket were several silk handkerchiefs and an abundance of colorful threads.
“The other princesses must be busy embroidering too.”
Everyone would be doing their best to impress the Emperor. But as soon as Stella saw the neatly square handkerchiefs in the basket, her first thought was how perfectly they’d fit as quilts for the sprites.
Of course, they’d be a bit thin for winter bedding—but if she stitched two layers together and stuffed soft feathers or fluffy fabric scraps between them, it would surely make a quilt warm enough to last all winter.
“What if I mess it up?”
“It’s alright. There are plenty of extra handkerchief cloths left.”
“That’s a relief. Oh, and keep the ones I ruin.”
“Pardon?”
“I’d hate to just throw them away—I plan to practice a few more times on them.”
“I’ll bring you plenty more practice cloths, Your Highness.”
“Thank you. Still, keep the ruined ones.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Though puzzled, Mila assumed Stella was simply trying her best to overcome her shortcomings and left the room.
Stella began embroidering each handkerchief with designs suited to each sprite.
On Ark’s, the spring sprite’s, she stitched yellow chicks and sprouting buds; for Esta, the summer sprite, cool raindrops and deep green leaves; on Oton’s, the autumn sprite’s, acorns and fallen leaves; and finally, on Iver’s, the winter sprite’s, a white snowman.
“What have you embroidered, Your Highness?”
Mila, returning to the room with more handkerchief cloths, asked as she watched Stella diligently working without distraction.
She’d always known Princess Stella had good focus, but today it was exceptionally intense.
Her face looked unusually beautiful, and her determination to embroider was remarkably high.
In response to Mila’s question, Stella proudly showed off her work.
“I’ve expressed the four seasons.”
“Ah… so this is spring.”
Mila quickly spotted the yellow detail and pointed to it with her finger.
“That’s right.”
“The forsythia is lovely.”
“Those are chicks.”
“Oh, then that beside it must be food.”
“It’s a sprout.”
“I see. You’ve done wonderfully.”
Mila, unsure what else to say, offered praise for now. She began to wonder if this princess might be better suited wielding rough farming tools than delicate needles.
“Might this be a snowman?”
Mila asked hesitantly, looking at a handkerchief with two white circles stitched onto a white background.
At first glance, it might not be noticeable—but Mila’s sharp eyes caught the faintly raised embroidery.
“Yes, it’s a snowman.”
Stella replied with a proud expression. Seeing this, Mila nearly let out an amused chuckle but quickly steeled her lips, thinking to herself just how strange this princess truly was.
[This is the timeline separator]Two steel swords clashed, sending sparks flying. The knights watching the duel between the Empire of Credion’s two greatest longsword masters had eyes shining like eager students.
The sharp, ringing sound of finely honed blades striking each other sent chills down the spines of all who watched.
The two combatants quickly clashed, then leapt apart, intently studying each other’s stances, searching relentlessly for the slightest opening.
Yet neither dared strike first—each knew the other had no weak points, and the slightest lapse in focus would send a razor-sharp blade straight toward their throat or chest.
“At your age, you should be showing some openings by now.”
Kai’s taunt drew a sly grin from Will as he shot back,
“Your Majesty isn’t so spry yourself—you’ve already failed to block my blade five times.”
“Five? I’d block it fifty times if you asked.”
“If you insist.”
No sooner had Will spoken than he spotted an opening and thrust his longsword forward. Spectators around them gasped in unison. Time itself seemed to slow, each bead of sweat rolling off their opponents appearing to fall in slow motion.
In that instant, Kai swiftly spun his body clockwise, fluidly evading the incoming blade. Simultaneously, his sword whirled around and instantly aimed for Will’s throat.
Kai thought he’d won—until a single kick from Will struck his chest, sending him crashing to the ground.
“Ugh!”
As the Emperor tumbled onto the training ground, the watching knights leapt to their feet.
Unfazed, Will swung his longsword down toward the fallen Emperor’s chest, but the Emperor quickly rolled across the ground to evade the strike.
Will’s longsword plunged into the training ground, leaving him momentarily unarmed. By the time Will retrieved his sword, the Emperor’s blade was already resting against his throat.
Everything happened in a flash, leaving the spectators struggling to keep up.
“I win, old man.”
“But you’re wounded.”
At Kai’s smug remark, Will grinned knowingly and pointed to Kai’s hand—tiny beads of blood dotted his knuckles.
“When on earth…?”
Kai had no memory of cutting his hand. Had this been real combat, Will might have severed his right hand entirely.
“I’ll leave that as your homework.”
Will replied calmly, flicking away the blade at his throat with a finger.
Though his beard was frosted white with age, Will remained a legendary figure among the Imperial Knights thanks to his still-formidable swordsmanship, stamina, and martial prowess.
“A reward would make doing homework worthwhile, wouldn’t it?”
“You ask for something I don’t have—though whether this old man has anything worth giving, I couldn’t say.”
“You know what I want.”
Meeting Kai’s serious gaze, Will smiled gently and patted his beloved, proud disciple’s shoulder.
“This old body has no use left. Just wander like the wind from place to place—and when you hear someday that I’ve passed, simply say, ‘Ah, so he’s finally gone.’”
“…Is that truly a joyful way to live?”
Kai’s expression held a tangle of conflicting emotions.
The desire to hold onto his master, the wish to let him roam freely as he pleased, and even a longing to follow him and wander away himself.
Kai couldn’t clearly tell which desire was truly his own.
“It’s quite fun.”
“I envy you.”
Kai gave a faint smile and raised his hand. A nearby attendant immediately scurried over and respectfully took the swords from both him and Will.
Swords forged from Arenis steel were among the rarest in the Empire—and today, two such blades had clashed in this duel.
For the knights, it was an unparalleled lesson; for the two combatants, it was a long-awaited, fiery reunion between master and disciple, filled with warm understanding.
“How long do you plan to stay?”
Since retiring, Will had wandered far and wide, calling himself a wandering knight—a humble yet free old age for a man who’d devoted his life to the Empire.
Though he could live luxuriously if he stayed in the capital, Will had firmly refused and instead roamed the continent.
Kai often felt vicarious satisfaction hearing news of Will’s travels. Someday, if given the chance, he hoped to wander freely himself—not for war or politics, but simply wherever his feet might lead.
“I have something to verify. Once that’s settled, I’ll leave soon.”
A crescent-moon smile curved gently at the corners of Will’s mouth.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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