After some time had passed, the woman’s crying finally subsided.
“Thank you.”
The woman, still with tears in her eyes, gave a slight bow and thanked me.
“What are you thanking me for? I haven’t done anything.”
“I’ll find a way to pay for the treatment somehow…”
Treatment with divine energy was very expensive. It was rare to find a cleric who could use such powers.
“Don’t worry about the cost of treatment.”
“…”
A brief silence fell between the two of us.
What should I say?
Even the newly realized wounds on my body were still dripping blood, exposing the raw flesh.
I couldn’t make any promises that things would get better soon or that this event would become a thing of the past.
The only words I had were to grit one’s teeth and endure.
“Endure.”
After some hesitation, a determined voice flowed out from Ermedillin’s lips.
“Your life isn’t over today. Just endure it. Time will pass as you endure day by day.”
These words seemed to be more for myself than for the woman in front of me.
In Ermedillin’s mind, there was no other solution but to endure.
“What good will it do for me to endure? He’s not coming back.”
She was right. No matter how much we endured and waited for time to pass, he wouldn’t return.
“I don’t know what good it will do. I’m sorry, but I don’t have the answer.”
So Ermedillin frankly revealed her thoughts.
“You don’t know?”
“That’s right. I don’t know. I’m also just blindly enduring. I’m sorry for not having the answer.”
It was so absurd that Ermedillin let out a bitter laugh tinged with selfmockery.
The woman, who had been quietly staring at Ermedillin, gently nodded her head.
“I see. You don’t know, but you endure anyway.”
“Exactly. I endure, and so do you. Probably most people endure even if they don’t know what comes next.”
The woman frowned and tied her disheveled hair back.
“May I ask your name? I would like to remember it.”
“Ah… well…”
Suddenly, Ermedillin felt too many eyes and ears focused on her.
‘Ah! I can’t stand the attention…’
As she pondered how to quietly slip out of this situation, an unexpected guest appeared.
“Empress!”
At that moment, Countess Ellion, who had been summoned to the palace, appeared.
‘Ah, damn it. Why here of all places?’
As soon as the dazzling woman who had gotten out of the unmistakably noble carriage shouted “Empress” toward Ermedillin, the expressions on the faces of the onlooking crowd changed instantly.
The sadness was gone, replaced by stiff and rigid faces.
“I see you here.”
Feeling awkward by the sudden change in the crowd’s mood, Ermedillin reluctantly looked up at Countess Ellion.
“What are you doing here? Sitting on the ground. You’re covered in dirt.”
Countess Ellion glanced at the woman as if to say, “Why aren’t you getting up?” but Ermedillin extended her hand to stop her.
“Just pass by. It’s nothing.”
“Hmm?”
Countess Ellion quickly assessed the situation.
“Did this woman show disrespect to the Empress? If so, I will…”
“No, that’s not it! Really, it’s nothing. Please move on.”
All Ermedillin wanted was to leave this place.
Even if her reputation had been slowly improving, she was still known as the empire’s worst villainess and immoral empress.
She hated making people uncomfortable with her presence and also hated feeling uncomfortable from their stares.
“I’ll go now.”
Ermedillin awkwardly greeted the woman, who was looking at her with an entirely different expression than before.
‘Does she find me frightening now that she knows I’m the Empress?’
Just as she was about to leave, hiding her disappointment, a loud voice called out to her.
“Your Majesty, the Empress!!!”
“?”
Suddenly, the woman, who had risen from the floor, rushed over and grabbed both of Ermedillin’s hands.
“Thank you. I would have been more respectful had I known earlier.”
“Ah…”
It seemed that the woman’s stern expression wasn’t due to fear after all.
Ermedillin let out a sigh of relief inwardly while showing a faint smile outwardly.
“No, you were respectful enough.”
“I… and…”
The woman’s voice trailed off, as if she was hesitant to speak.
“Go ahead, speak freely.”
“We will be able to live together with our Lord soon.”
Thud.
Ermedillin felt as if she’d been hit on the head with a hammer.
‘Right, these people don’t know about that scoundrel Park KyungSu.’
Due to the public trial, the fact that the Empress had a hidden child was hardly a secret among the people anymore.
Therefore, this woman seemed to think that when Ermedillin said she was enduring, she was talking about Ferdant’s matter.
Even though the consolation was misguided, Ermedillin didn’t feel bad.
At least people didn’t view her as a witch or demon but as a mother who missed her child.
“Yes, I hope that day comes soon.”
As she was about to leave, a small voice emerged from the crowd.
“Be strong!”
“Your Lord will be doing well!”
“You can endure as well, Your Majesty, since we’re enduring every day!”
Ermedillin didn’t know what had moved the hearts of these people.
When male lead is the homewrecker
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
I’ve read the novel below twice already. Girls, I’m highly recommending it to you!
The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.
Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.
The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.
I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.
There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.
For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.
I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.
Here’s the story synopsis:
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Intro 1:
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.
Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.
In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.
Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…
Intro 2:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
_____
Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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