Until now, she had a thought in the back of her mind that she might forgive him if he clung to her, apologizing and admitting his mistake. Her love for him hadn’t been completely negated in a single moment.
However, the humiliation she suffered while nestled in his arms, dancing, completely burnt up even the slenderest remnants of her attachment.
From then on, she became more attached to Elleon.
Elicia told me that I have two men, two chances.
I’ve been lucky. For others, even grasping such an opportunity once in a lifetime is hard. But I have two chances. I can’t be stupid enough to miss both.
“I will never back down.”
Carina’s eyes were filled with determination.
Now Elleon was her last remaining chance.
(This is the time separator.)
As soon as she entered the room, Madam Oje was in a fuss.
“Oh my, ma’am. It’s a disaster. A disaster!”
“What’s the disaster?”
“We nearly had a suitor snatched away from us in the front yard.”
“What are you talking about?”
Madam Oje, panting as though she was out of breath, hastily spilled what she had heard.
“Today, the Duke of Clevante came by, and well, Miss Elicia introduced Carina, the daughter of the Harrington family, to His Grace. She stepped aside for them to talk!”
“That’s good.”
“Ma’am!”
Genuinely thinking it was good, Mariella responded calmly, and Madam Oje stomped her feet.
“I should have been there earlier. Since the two young ladies were having tea, I didn’t think His Grace would join. I apologize, ma’am.”
“The salon is Elicia’s domain, not the Harrington family’s daughter’s. Unless she brought him, you have no duty to oversee him. As long as nothing unpleasant happens to Elicia, that’s fortunate.”
“But it’s clear that His Grace has feelings for Miss Elicia.”
Madam Oje bragged as if she had stamped Duke Clevante’s approval herself.
“When I went to look later, His Grace’s attitude changed when he was alone with Miss Carina.”
“How so?”
“He was expressing outright disinterest. He was responding perfunctorily.”
Mariella asked, and Madam Oje answered with enthusiasm.
“He’s the best groom in the empire now, isn’t he? A much better position than the Crown Princess, with all the duties and constraints.”
“Madam Oje.”
When she did not humor her and called her sternly, Madam Oje lost her steam.
“Yes, yes. I know, I know. That you wish fervently for Miss Elicia’s lost memory and trust to return.”
Madam Oje, deciding that she couldn’t back down this time, clenched her fists and continued.
“But such a strict life may not necessarily lead to your child’s happiness. It’s uncertain whether the memory will return or not. Please think about it again, ma’am.”
Lady Oje left Mariella’s room today with a regretful expression.
Mariella looked in the mirror after a long sigh.
A beauty that didn’t seem to be on the brink of forty appeared.
Her fair and wrinklefree skin was clear and transparent like a fairy’s. Her large, violet eyes and rich golden hair were exactly like Elysia’s. But her face was full of sorrow and trouble.
“I can’t stay like this. There must be another way.”
Mariella clenched her hands as if she’d made a great resolution.
That night, Mariella sneaked out of the Duke’s mansion through a small door used by the servants late at night. The waiting carriage took her to the outskirts of the capital.
Mariella quietly entered a small house perched on the outskirts of the capital and changed her clothes there. It was a simple and unadorned outfit that couldn’t even compare to the Duchess’s nightgown. It was something that commoners would wear when selling goods in the market.
Dressed in that, Mariella neatly braided her hair and put on a brown wig. The Duchess disappeared, and she looked like a commoner woman.
Coming out of the house again, she tightly closed her hood and caught a carriage again, heading towards Hadyunsha.
“My lady.”
“Shh.”
Inside the vast forest surrounding Hadyunsha, connected to the North Gate of the palace, a woman in priestess attire who had been anxiously waiting deep inside recognized Mariella. It was Iris of Hadyunsha, her red hair dyed white at the tips.
“You’re late. There’s not much time.”
“Sorry.”
Iris handed her a spare priestess gown.
Mariella, as if the fact that they were in the forest meant nothing rough, took off the clothes she was wearing and put on the priestess gown, pulling the hood down deep. As she adjusted the brown wig, the whitedyed ends, which had been hidden and unseen during the journey, fell out, making her look like a priestess from the temple.
“Go to the main gate. Roben and Esho are waiting.”
“Thank you.”
“Hurry up.”
Mariella took a deep breath and slowly headed towards Hadyunsha’s main gate, acting casual.
“May the blessings of the five gods and Oder be with you.”
It was when Mariella bowed her head in greeting.
The gatekeepers holding spears blocked her way.
“You return late. Where are you coming from?”
“I have been to a funeral. I was late comforting the family of the deceased.”
“Hmm.”
Mariella showed them a money pouch made by sewing black cloth. It was a pouch containing the donation she received for praying at the funeral. Looking down at the fairly heavy pouch, the gatekeepers moved their spears and opened the way.
“May honor be filled to those who serve as the eyes of the gods late at night.”
After finishing her greeting and entering, Roben and Esho’s brothers looked at her, gave a glance, and turned their bodies right away.
“You are late.”
“I’m sorry.”
A barely audible voice went back and forth as they walked forward.
“Alejandro is at an allnight prayer meeting, so he won’t be out for about three hours.”
“Understood.”
Mariella firmly pressed the pocket watch she had worn like a necklace.
Hadyunsha’s interior was like a maze, twisting and turning. Beyond the area where the external believers roamed, there was a space that made even seasoned priestesses get lost and go around in circles for a while.
Most believers who weren’t trying to invade Hadyunsha didn’t even know about this area. Deep inside were the priestesses’ residences, and beneath them was a secret underground space.
Mariella followed Roben and Esho into the depths of the underground. It was a place she didn’t get used to, even though she’d been here several times.
“You must come out within an hour.”
They had to consider the time to return. Mariella nodded and entered.
Even in the underground, the room was bright and clear.
In the round room carved out of stone, a giant altar was placed, and on it lay a thick, large book.
To approach the altar, one had to recite a passphrase that only the priestesses of Hadyunsha knew.
Mariella took a short breath and held those words in her mouth.
“I know that this place is the world within the book .”
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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