I Just Raised Men for Revenge (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 12
His black hair swayed in the wind. But the golden eyes within remained unwavering.
He stood much taller than Sesenia. His beauty, unnoticed while confined in the slave market, now shimmered dazzlingly under the sunlight. He finally opened his mouth as if ready to ask a question.
“And… earlier too. Why didn’t you wear the ring? When I tried to kill that merchant… you could have easily subdued me with it.”
“You’re not a beast. Besides, even if you were, that’s not what such a ring is for.”
“……”
“I’d rather throw it away, but I can’t—because I’m afraid you’d run off. So stay here nicely and don’t run away, alright? Rohan will come by occasionally with food. If there’s anything you need or want to do, tell him then. I’ll provide support.”
He lowered his head deeply. For some reason, seeing him look like a drenched puppy made Sesenia reach out and stroke his hair.
“You have to be obedient, okay? Only then will I let you go.”
“Please tell me clearly. Please be completely honest with me.”
His gaze was truly desperate.
“What is it that you’re so curious about?”
“Why… why did you buy me, Master?”
“To beat cotton?”
At those words, he slowly lifted his head.
“The real reason.”
‘How could I possibly tell you the real reason? That you’re the Emperor’s hidden child—something only I know.’
A royal whose existence no one else knew.
Especially since imperial blood was already so rare, his appearance was truly remarkable.
No one openly supported him, and he had received no education, yet he possessed strength surpassing any prince.
Thus, he had instantly become a threat to the throne. He was an object of awe—a man born with the royal blood’s power stronger than anyone else.
‘That’s why I chose you.’
Until that moment arrived—until his true heritage was revealed—Sesenia wanted to grant him a full life instead of letting him suffer an unbearably tragic future as a royal with no backing.
‘I’m not even sure if this is right. In the end, the choice will be yours. It doesn’t matter if you don’t become Emperor. Your very existence will threaten them. But… you’ll probably choose to become Emperor anyway.’
Sesenia’s expression shifted subtly.
In truth, Sesenia didn’t fully understand him either. From the moment he entered the palace, he had no idea who he truly was or why he, an imperial citizen, had become a slave.
He had appeared just a week before Sesenia’s own ordeal, so little was known about him.
All that was said was that certain people, fearful of his birth, had kidnapped him from his mother—and that his ill-natured mother herself had stolen away the precious imperial bloodline.
Even about his mother, almost nothing had been revealed.
‘I don’t know what might come to light after I’m gone.’
In the end, Sesenia had brought him here to raise him as a candidate for Emperor. There was no kindness in her motives. Though she had quickly rescued him from the slave traders, it wasn’t out of genuine goodness or warmth.
‘I’m not a kind or good person. I’m only acting for my own benefit.’
Thus, Sesenia hardened her expression further.
“Just think of it as the hypocrisy of a wealthy person.”
“……”
“I intend to support you no matter what path you take. That’s the only reason I kept you alive.”
“……”
“Hmm… if even that isn’t enough of an answer, then just think I bought your future.”
His eyes were golden, yet deep and profound like the cosmos itself. With a wash and a little grooming, his face would radiate such nobility that he’d rival even the Emperor or any prince.
“A name….”
“Hmm?”
“I won’t run away. I’ll gratefully accept even that hypocrisy, since you’ve set me free. So… please give me a name.”
“Oh.”
He didn’t have one? But surely he’d been called something before.
“Didn’t you have any name you were called by?”
“Emas.”
“Hmm?”
“It means ‘one who must travel a very long road.’ My mother… gave it to me before she sold me.”
Emas. It wasn’t a name anyone would normally give a child. Yet through that name, Sesenia became certain—this boy was indeed the prince.
Royals were exceedingly precious. Thus, even Emperors never killed their own siblings.
Therefore, even the late Emperor’s children—the current Emperor’s siblings—moved freely in and out of the palace. This law had been enacted after past royals were massacred.
All royals were entitled to protection from the imperial house.
Unless committing high treason like rebellion, royals retained their dignity.
Not even the Emperor could treat his own siblings—or those who carried imperial blood—lightly.
That’s precisely why Sesenia had been so easily sentenced to death merely for attempting to kill the child Elzer had borne. Royals were that profoundly precious.
‘That’s why all information about new princes was always reported directly to the Emperor and Empress.’
Sesenia knew the general story of the new prince discovered just a week before that incident. He had the name Emas, but disliked being called by it.
He’d lived among slave traders until a patron helped him escape. Though the identity and motives of that patron remained unclear, Sesenia knew one thing for certain.
‘It really is him.’
She’d harbored slight doubt because of his black hair, but the man she’d brought with her was indeed that prince—imprisoned by slave traders since early childhood.
“I always thought the gods had abandoned me, but now it feels as if they’ve shown me a final mercy. So I’ll obediently beat cotton as you commanded, Master. Please… give me a name.”
“Even though your mother already gave you one?”
His expression stiffened.
“It won’t be hard. Tedel. How about Tedel?”
“……”
“The nickname can be Teddy.”
Was it that bad? She’d blurted out the first name that came to mind, but his expression grew even darker than before.
“Did I pick a bad name…?”
“No. I love it. Tedel… Teddy… thank you. Thank you for the name you’ve given me, Master.”
She couldn’t claim to fully understand his life. How could anyone know better than the one who lived it? But she knew well enough that it hadn’t been easy.
Tedel, who’d spent his whole life in the lightless prison of a slave compound—Sesenia worried he might run away now that he’d tasted freedom for the first time.
But even if he did, it wouldn’t matter. In the end, he’d appear again just as he had in the original timeline.
‘If that happens… then I’ll have done nothing more than enact the empty hypocrisy of a wealthy person…’
Whatever the case, the future would change—because Sesenia was placing her bet on the piece named Tedel.
“There’s no need to thank me.”
What could she possibly say when she couldn’t speak the truth?
Just then, Tedel murmured his new name several times, knelt onto the floor, and kissed the back of Sesenia’s hand.
“If Master doesn’t wish it… I won’t do it.”
“No, you must show your loyalty. I bought you, after all.”
“Yes.”
“Live comfortably here.”
“I shall follow Master’s will.”
There had likely never been salvation in his life before. At best, his only reprieve was reaching the palace through a patron’s help and being acknowledged as a prince.
His life, as she’d heard it just before her death, had been truly horrific. As a very young child, he’d suffered abuse at the hands of strangers whose faces he never knew; later, he’d been sent to the slave market and lived like a beast.
Whether it was because he carried the Emperor’s blood and was thus targeted, or because of his mother’s actions—or perhaps due to another faction—she couldn’t say. Yet Sesenia still wanted to become his savior.
She felt especially sorry for him—he was her age, yet unusually thin.
Gently, she stroked his head. Whether he liked it or not, Tedel quietly closed his eyes.
After stroking his hair for a long while, Sesenia stepped back.
“Well, I should go now, Teddy. Take good care of the cotton.”
“Yes.”
That was all. Having said everything she needed to, Sesenia headed toward the carriage she’d arrived in with Lizbet and Rohan.
“Oh, Miss—can you really leave him like this? Shouldn’t we assign someone to watch him, in case he runs off or…?”
“It’s fine if he runs away. No—he won’t. Not Teddy.”
“Why do you trust him so much?”
“Just because.”
Rohan still looked puzzled, but Sesenia climbed into the carriage and gazed out the window at him.
“If he really does run away, it’ll mean I’ve wasted my money.”
“Didn’t you hear me? If that happens, just consider it the empty gesture of a wealthy person’s hypocrisy. So please, let it go for now.”
Only after hearing this did Rohan sigh deeply and nod.
“Sigh… since you say so, Miss… I have nothing more to add. Understood. Let’s head back then. As for him… I’ll keep checking in.”
“Okay.”
Like a puppy watching its master leave, Teddy kept his eyes fixed on the departing carriage. It was hard to tell what emotions stirred within him—whether he felt happy now, wounded in pride at being sold to such a young noblewoman, or even plotting escape. Not a single thing was clear.
But Sesenia’s heart felt slightly lighter. At least he now had a chance to live like a human being.
Feeling that she was gradually altering the future brought her peace.
**
Ten more days passed since that day.
It had been a little over two weeks since Sesenia’s return through time. The winter cold was expected to arrive in about two weeks, and her business faced no issues whatsoever.
Through Rohan, she’d kept checking on Teddy, who reportedly was diligently beating cotton.
He’d handled it so carefully that the cotton’s condition had improved beyond its original state. Rohan still didn’t particularly like Teddy, yet he relayed that the boy’s physique was extraordinary.
‘His muscles are all well-developed, as if he’d been born to wield a sword from the very beginning. It’s just that he was so thin, it wasn’t obvious at first.’
Though Rohan hadn’t grown fond of Teddy, he’d developed a desire to teach him swordsmanship. Meanwhile, Teddy had gained a bit of weight and, thanks to his quick learning, had already read all the few books kept at the warehouse keeper’s quarters.
‘Quite satisfactory, indeed.’
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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