I Possessed the Wicked Empress (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 1
‘Why, of all roles, did I have to possess this one?’
It was a worthless life anyway, with not even the tiniest escape in sight.
Every single day dragged on, sustained only by the inability to die—a pitiful existence.
At first, Hye-young was bewildered by her situation, but soon realized she had transmigrated into a dreamlike romance fantasy novel and was overjoyed.
However, that joy lasted barely a few seconds.
Because the trembling maids’ fearful summons revealed she had possessed the role of the immoral villainess empress.
The very root of all evil—a truly irredeemable, worst-of-the-worst villainess.
A classic antagonist destined to meet a miserable end at the hands of the heroine.
‘No way!! I finally transmigrated into a romance fantasy novel only to be vilified and die miserably? Absolutely not!!’
Hye-young made up her mind.
She would save Ermedilin—the immoral empress and wicked witch she now inhabited—from that tragic fate and ensure herself a comfortable rest of her life!
It was a beauty one could never tire of, no matter how many times one looked.
Long, flowing hair like a spread-out pitch-black night sky, and mysterious violet eyes as if embedded with clear amethysts.
Add to that porcelain skin, a tall slender frame, and a voluptuous figure—the very embodiment of beauty one could only see on screens in the real world.
‘Even if it’s a political marriage, could anyone truly refuse to love a woman like this?’
Though she said that, she couldn’t entirely fault Henri, the male lead of the original story, for his feelings.
In the original, Ermedilin had been so obsessed with becoming empress that she forced a political marriage upon Henri, and even went so far as to torment and slander Valière, his first love.
Moreover, she’d committed unspeakable, horrifying crimes using her curse magic—crimes so vile they eventually earned her a death sentence.
Just within the novel’s descriptions alone: she unleashed plagues upon the capital, murdered people with curses, and cast rotting curses that made flesh decay on anyone who displeased her. Her atrocities were beyond words.
No matter how stunningly beautiful she was—even enough to make one’s eyes pop—Ermedilin’s actions in the novel clearly crossed the line.
‘Well, even I wouldn’t want to cross paths with a woman like that—no, a person like that.’
Even before becoming empress, she’d used her status as a princess and her witch’s powers to commit all sorts of suspicious deeds.
The crimes revealed after her death ranged from embezzling the national treasury—considered mild by comparison—to having affairs with every handsome man in the capital, and even sacrificing human infants to perfect her curses.
She’d been so fixated on becoming empress that she eventually succeeded—so why did she go to such extremes?
Her malice went far beyond mere jealousy toward Valière, who now occupied Henri’s side.
At a glance, it even felt as though she wanted to sink the entire imperial family.
Hye-young looked down bitterly at her own long, pale, delicate hands—still unfamiliar to her.
Though Ermedilin’s white fingers were adorned with pure, beautiful rubies and sapphires, they seemed already stained with dried, indelible blood.
‘These hands committed countless crimes. Because she couldn’t control herself, she left behind so much evidence that she was eventually sentenced to death. With these lovely hands, she practically lit the pyre herself.’
But Hye-young had no intention of dying for crimes she never committed.
‘No. There’s still time to turn things around! I’ll compensate the victims as much as possible and restore my reputation as the immoral empress. Once I’ve avoided execution, I’ll cleanly divorce and wish the male and female leads happiness. Then I’ll spend the rest of my life quietly and peacefully in some faraway foreign land!’
Fortunately, Hye-young had transmigrated into the very beginning of the novel.
This was just the point where Ermedilin and the heroine Valière had started opposing each other.
In other words, the major atrocities that would leave undeniable evidence and trap Ermedilin hadn’t even begun yet.
‘I can do this!! Let those two lovebirds live happily ever after in the palace! I, Hye-young, will divorce cleanly and escape from here!!’
* *
“Y-you said you intend to donate?”
Henri, Ermedilin’s husband and the emperor, along with his consort Valière, visibly stiffened.
“Yes. I plan to use the remainder of this year’s allocated budget to aid relief efforts for the current plague outbreak.”
At Ermedilin’s declaration, Valière’s lovely pink cheeks instantly turned pale.
“What’s the reason for this sudden change?”
Judging by Henri and Valière’s expressions, this situation was clearly unfamiliar to them.
After all, Ermedilin—who was secretly suspected of causing the plague—had suddenly appeared, claiming she would use her own funds to help the people.
But regardless of their reactions, Ermedilin was in a hurry.
She simply wanted to restore her reputation immediately and escape the burning-at-the-stake scene from the original novel that kept haunting her since her transmigration.
According to the original novel, this was the infamous “Empress’s Curse” incident—where rumors spread that Ermedilin had unleashed the plague using curses to pressure Henri, tarnishing the empress’s reputation.
Though Ermedilin truly had committed the act, it occurred so early in the story that she hadn’t left a trail.
It had merely served as the catalyst for Henri and Valière—who until then had only been wary of her—to openly treat her as an enemy.
With no conclusive evidence, this incident hadn’t even been included among the charges in her eventual death sentence.
Therefore, Ermedilin decided to take advantage of the situation.
She couldn’t eradicate the already-spread plague all at once, but by aiding the suffering citizens, she could both clear suspicion and restore her fallen reputation.
“Reason? Isn’t it the obvious duty of an empress when the capital’s people are suffering from plague?”
For a moment, bewilderment flickered across Henri’s stern face.
‘Right. You’d be baffled—who you know as Ermedilin isn’t this kind of character.’
Henri, the male lead whom the villainous Ermedilin in the novel had obsessively desired, was a man of dignified yet delicate beauty—like something out of a classical masterpiece.
Beneath dazzlingly bright golden hair, far more radiant than any illustration in the novel, lay piercingly vivid blue eyes.
He was the very definition of a golden-haired, blue-eyed handsome man—truly like a prince from a dream.
Though Hye-young—now Ermedilin—had already been in this novel for three days, she still jumped in surprise every time she met his gaze.
‘He really is absurdly handsome. But that doesn’t excuse all of Ermedilin’s obsession with him.’
“Since when have you ever cared about duties befitting your position? Weren’t you only ever interested in the privileges that came with it?”
Henri’s voice dripped with unmistakable sarcasm.
Hye-young felt momentarily offended and wanted to retort, but remembering she was now the infamous villainess Ermedilin, she obediently nodded.
“Yes, that’s right. I do truly love the wealth and honor that come with being empress. But that doesn’t mean I’m forbidden from fulfilling my duties, does it?”
She answered as brazenly and calmly as possible, yet Henri’s expression made his thoughts painfully clear.
‘Only now?’
It had been two years since Ermedilin became empress.
The emperor, who’d had a beloved sweetheart since childhood, never once visited the empress’s chambers.
The empress, who’d forced marriage upon him through threats, was indeed obsessed with him—but never once tried to please him.
Ermedilin was far too proud of herself to alter her nature just for the sake of the empress title she coveted.
Thus, for two full years, she committed every vile act an evil empress could imagine.
She wielded her granted authority in the worst possible ways and freely used her witch’s powers whenever needed, dragging down her own reputation and making enemies left and right.
No matter how much the emperor tried to stop her—or even glared at her with hatred—Ermedilin never cared.
So much so that everyone around her eventually turned against her, exposing all her misdeeds and even sealing her witch’s powers.
In the end, even her own family—the venerable House of François—abandoned her without hesitation.
‘If I change my personality too suddenly, they’ll be suspicious. I’ll just repair my reputation enough to avoid revealing my past misdeeds.’
Ermedilin deliberately lifted her chin and put on a slightly haughty expression.
‘Am I doing this right? I’ve never had reason in my life to wear a haughty look before.’
“I am the supreme being of the Trivian Empire, am I not? I can certainly bestow a small kindness upon insignificant commoners.”
Supreme being.
Despite the emperor’s clear existence as the highest authority, this was Ermedilin’s usual self-proclaimed title.
In the novel, it was one of the devices highlighting her arrogance.
‘Does this look natural enough?’
Unsure of her own acting, Ermedilin cautiously glanced at Henri.
Fortunately, her performance seemed to have worked—only displeasure showed on his face.
“If that is truly your inten—”
“No.”
‘Huh?’
The sudden voice belonged to Valière, his consort, who stood behind Henri like a shadow.
“No?”
No matter how long they’d been lovers since childhood, for a consort to declare “no” to a decision made by the empress and emperor was shocking—Ermedilin couldn’t help but frown.
Henri didn’t frown as openly as Ermedilin, but he looked back at Valière with a surprised, questioning gaze.
Sensing both their stares, Valière’s face lit up with an extremely submissive, gentle, and seemingly kind smile.
Valière had light brown hair and equally ordinary light brown eyes—plain features that, at first glance, couldn’t possibly rival Ermedilin’s brilliance.
Her dull face was even covered in freckles.
Yet upon closer inspection, anyone would have to admit she was undeniably beautiful.
Her delicate features fit perfectly on her small face, arranged in a pleasing harmony.
Even the freckles covering her face only enhanced her loveliness.
And as a bonus, she had dreamy, hazy eyes and a voice as sweet as honey.
If Ermedilin’s beauty resembled a rose blooming magnificently in a well-tended garden—captivating all eyes at once—
Valière’s beauty was like a wildflower blooming carelessly by the roadside—so pitifully and sweetly swaying in the wind that one couldn’t help but look.
This was precisely the type Hye-young—now Ermedilin—had envied even in her past life.
‘Right. Men have always preferred women who make them feel protective.’
“The budget allocated to Your Majesty should be used to uphold your dignity. Isn’t it especially important for Your Majesty to maintain imperial dignity during such turbulent times?”
Seeing Valière humbly deflect the conversation, Henri’s eyes practically dripped with honey.
‘He must be utterly delighted.’
No matter how villainous Ermedilin was or how destined Henri was to end up with Valière, a man kissing his consort’s forehead right in front of his wife hardly seemed normal.
Henri looked at Ermedilin’s stiffened face and smiled contentedly, as if thoroughly pleased.
He seemed ready and eager to rejoice even at his wife’s slightest misfortune.
‘Wow, what a truly toxic couple. Living with someone you hate this much must come with its own set of hardships.’
“My dignity is already sufficiently maintained by my personal wealth alone. Since the budget was assigned to me, I’ll use it as I please.”
Ermedilin fixed Valière with a deliberately stern gaze.
“Oh… but, what shall we do?”
Valière tilted her head with an air of regret, her shoulders shaking as if suppressing laughter.
“Wasn’t the entire budget assigned to Your Majesty spent on the very first day of this year’s disbursement? Don’t you remember?”
‘Oops, I should’ve checked the ledger first.’
Of course Ermedilin would do something like that.
She’d even manufactured illegal magic potions and secretly distributed them because the empress’s budget wasn’t enough.
Henri smiled pleasantly again at Ermedilin’s flustered reaction.
Naturally, his blue eyes were brimming with mockery.
“Then I shall use my private funds.”
Henri and Valière said nothing in response, but identical expressions appeared on both their faces.
‘You?’
It was unbelievable—and naturally, they didn’t believe it.
Ermedilin calmly nodded.
“Yes. I intend to become a more moral empress, starting now.”
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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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (2)
another ass family to tolerate,dont tell me the king us the ML?
Wait what the hell. I lowkey hate henri but i feel bad for her to have to suffer with a loser like him omgn
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debban23
i dont like this,being a third party is not good for the ego