Putting my hand into my clothes and scratching vigorously, I eventually got up from my seat. I looked disdainfully at the blanket covering the bed and shook my body, getting rid of any remaining discomfort.
The itching finally subsided.
Even in the sigh of relief, a sense of remorse overwhelmed me, wondering why I was in this situation.
‘I’d rather deal with rats.’
Although it had been only a day since I was dragged into prison, no one came looking for me.
Is it to kill my spirits?
‘Surely they haven’t forgotten, have they?’
It was frustrating not to receive any information when I needed to assess the situation.
So, when the door finally opened after a day, I could greet the grim and unpleasant-looking guard who came to find me with a smile.
“Do you know a guy named Jacques? They say you have a relationship through that guy and Joung.”
Chuk.
Flipping through a paper, the guard briefly glanced at me with his lone eye.
While locked up, I was curious about what Aris had plotted.
Is he just trying to pin his own deeds on me?
I raised my head to the guard who was watching over me.
“He is not me but a friend of Miss Aris.”
“Hmm, Miss Aris said you would say that.”
“If you check the recent noble trial, you’ll find out who Jacques really is, someone involved with a man from the empire.”
“…”
“Did Aris claim it was me, not herself? Is that why I’m locked up like this?”
Strange.
Aris has already been tried, and her guilt has been confirmed.
Even if she made any arguments, they wouldn’t hold as the words of a sinner. So why did soldiers armed to the teeth come to capture me?
Something is off.
The guard tossed a bunch of letters in front of me.
“Read them. Those are evidence.”
Reading each one, I couldn’t help but smirk in disbelief.
Each letter whispered secret love to someone. Similar to common love letters, but the problem was that my seal was stamped on them.
“The handwriting is different.”
“That’s your opinion. To me, they look similar. And the seal is boldly stamped.”
“Who writes secret letters and boldly uses their seal?”
Without answering my question, the guard said something else.
“Do you know a guy named Shinu?”
“He’s the one who tried to kidnap Princess Lelatu.”
“Yeah. He also mentioned you. He said the woman who helped him kidnap the princess looks like you. The resemblance is striking.”
“Ha, is that a reasonable thing to say? If it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t have succeeded. And now you’re saying I collaborated with him?”
“It’s an unknown matter.”
What’s unknown?
“Stop making forced claims.”
“…”
“Tell me the real reason.”
The guard, who had been pretending to look through documents for a while, rolled his eyes. His lone eye stared at me.
“Did you bear a grudge against the princess?”
My whole body stiffened. The guard, after seeing my expression, licked his lips.
“Didn’t work, huh.”
“…”
“The princess thinks Miss Aris Dolensia’s claim has some credibility. Official investigators will come to conduct an inquiry. It may not mean much.”
His voice sounded distant. Barely holding onto my senses, I blinked.
Anyway, when I thought about it, it was a slightly better situation than the previous life.
“Do the king and the princess know that I’m locked up here?”
Would the princess’s position protect me? It was a faint hope.
“If you have committed a crime, you must show exemplary behavior as a member of the royal family, the king said.”
I remained silent. It was nothing more than a confirmation that my usefulness had run out.
In the royal family, my existence was a tool to tempt Giovanni.
If they didn’t need me anymore, it meant two things.
Either they judged that I wouldn’t help persuade Giovanni even if I were present, or Giovanni himself was no longer needed.
‘If it’s the latter, he’s dangerous too.’
Thinking about that, I felt a bit uneasy.
“I know your story too. When divine punishment was issued, the noble families all locked themselves tightly behind closed doors, but you, instead, went to the commoner’s quarter and helped people at the water gate? I heard the story and thought it was impressive. Many people pity you like me.”
“…….”
“You won’t go as far as execution. Princess is a generous person, so you’ll probably get an expulsion sentence.”
It was a natural thing to say, but it wasn’t comforting.
The day after the guard came, I was still in prison.
In the afternoon, a guest finally came.
Approaching cautiously as if there were poison on the dark prison floor, she had a beautiful yet melancholic face.
It was Cartsatuna.
“Princess Lelatu is taking the side of Aris Dolensia. Dolensia keeps claiming that Igraine is acting strangely.”
“Does the princess really think that I collaborated with the empire as a spy?”
Twitch.
Seeing her firm expression made me feel uneasy.
“I knew you didn’t like me, but I didn’t expect you to hate me this much.”
“You need to know, Igraine. The princess has never had anything not go her way.”
Cartsatuna muttered weakly.
“What she’s doing now isn’t just because of the relationship between the prince and Igraine.”
“You probably think I betrayed her.”
She widened her eyes.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
