I Received The First Time Of My Extraordinary Superior (9 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 10
Water sloshed gently in a wooden bathtub barely large enough for one person. Inside, Sydney Warden sat hunched over, knees drawn tightly to her chest, her head bowed deeply.
“Haa….”
Of all people, it had to be Logan Redford who saw her in this pitiful, tearful state.
Her usually bright green eyes had darkened beneath swollen eyelids from crying, and her face was twisted with distress.
“This is the worst….”
Her hollow gaze settled on the strands of red hair floating across the water’s surface. Just as her sense of shame began to fade slightly, a firm knock came at the door, followed by a deep male voice.
“Sydney Warden, come out before I go in.”
“Captain, just a moment, please.”
Her voice, when she replied, was hoarse and cracked like scraping metal.
Hearing him threaten to enter, Sydney grabbed the edge of the tub and pushed herself upright. A soft groan escaped her involuntarily.
How? Why? What on earth was Logan Redford doing in her home?
She thought briefly of Walter Asner and Betty, then sighed. No one would’ve been able to stop Logan anyway.
Given how insistently he was pressing her, he must have urgent business—but it likely wasn’t work-related. He wouldn’t go out of his way to seek her during her vacation.
That left only two possibilities: either he’d come to confirm whether she was Marien, or Victoria had sent him to her. Either way, facing him now… was the last thing she wanted. Not while traces of that night still clung to her.
Avoiding the mirror, Sydney dried her body with a towel.
Each time her cheeks burned, phantom red blooms flared across her vision against her pale skin.
“Sydney Warden, are you all right?”
Thankfully, Logan’s impatient, curt call jolted her to her senses—his voice, full of irritation rather than concern, sounded just like always.
“Yes, I’d be even better if you’d stop asking.”
She found herself snapping back naturally. A quick glance in the mirror showed her face wasn’t noticeably flushed, despite how hot it felt.
This would do… With somewhat eased nerves, Sydney began tightly wrapping her chest in bandages. It was difficult—her hands lacked strength—but manageable enough.
Putting on clothes, however, proved slightly more challenging.
As a result, muscle aches throughout her body—like she’d been thoroughly beaten—kept drawing involuntary groans and curses from her lips.
“I heard all of it.”
Sydney flinched and bit down hard on her lower lip.
Sharp ears, huh? Whose fault is that, anyway…? For someone dizzy and aching, being sent to bathe should’ve meant peace and quiet. But no—his damn obsessive neatness had to be the issue.
Just as Sydney hurried toward the door, she glanced once more at the mirror.
Checking for anything she might’ve missed, she frowned at the cascade of red hair flowing past her shoulders.
“Oh.”
The moment she lifted the towel to her head, Logan—clearly out of patience—pushed the door open. Startled into stillness, she stood frozen as his sharp eyes swiftly scanned her from head to toe.
His indifferent gaze and expression made her feel icy all over—which, fortunately, helped her face Logan Redford as she normally would.
“Captain, what could possibly be so urgent that you’d stoop to such rudeness…?”
“Rudeness? I was worried you might’ve fainted.”
In that bathtub of hers, fainting wouldn’t cause any trouble. Even when crouched with knees bent, the water barely reached her chest—how could she possibly drown?
Stepping aside from the doorway, Sydney gestured toward the tub itself.
“In that tiny tub?”
“One never knows.”
“…This is a serious invasion of privacy.”
“Come out so we can talk.”
Honestly, his temper was something else. Sydney Warden straightened her expression and firmly asserted her rights.
“Captain, I’m on vacation.”
“Three minutes. No more.”
“Yes.”
At least he had some conscience—Logan personally closed the door for her.
Sydney hastily shook the water from her hair.
After just a few brush strokes, she gathered it into a single ponytail and tied it securely. Naturally, she found herself comparing her reflection to Marien’s in the mirror.
She looked pitiful.
Thanks to Sarah’s makeup skill, Marien’s eyes appeared sharper, her eyelashes fuller and longer, lending her gaze a certain depth.
In contrast, Sydney’s eyes were sunken and shadowed beneath swollen lids from crying.
Marien’s lips looked luscious, as if stained with crimson dye, while hers were split and crusted with dried blood from biting them to endure the pain.
Her already foul mood worsened further. Touching the freckles scattered widely across her narrow, elongated face, Sydney muttered to herself.
“Did she really call it ‘powder’…?”
Just as she recalled how brushstrokes had turned her skin pale and porcelain-white, Logan called out again.
“Sydney Warden.”
[This is the timeline separator]The building Sydney lived in had been constructed 122 years ago.
Originally built to house noble students attending the academy, its structure and finishes were better than those of other buildings on Dustin Street.
Of course, it also had drawbacks—being significantly older and draftier.
Despite these issues, the rent was cheap enough to offset them, but Sydney’s decisive reason for choosing this place was its interior layout.
A combined kitchen and living room, a bathroom, and a bedroom—perfect for living alone. She especially liked the faucet beside the simple cooking counter, providing easy access to fresh water.
“At first I thought it felt empty without furniture… but now I see there’s no room for any.”
Ignoring Logan’s comment, Sydney activated the magical device placed on the counter—a gift from Victoria—that used mana stones to produce a small flame.
Flick. She placed a teapot filled with water over the flame, then took down two teacups and a tea canister from the shelf above the counter.
“You have tea too?”
“Yes.”
She scooped out some tea leaves with a spoon, poured in the boiled water, then turned around holding the teacups—and jumped in surprise.
“Why are you standing right behind me?”
“No place to sit?”
Logan Redford deliberately stepped aside to reveal the living room.
A single armchair sat before a window with dull green curtains, flanked by a small bookshelf and a modest fireplace radiating warmth.
Sydney took two steps forward and set the teacups on the dining table.
“Here—please sit in the dining chair.”
“There’s only one chair?”
“Yes.”
She made no effort to hide her annoyance as she went into her bedroom and brought out another chair, then plunked herself down in front of him.
“No tea table either, I see.”
“I don’t like having guests over.”
“….”
Logan wordlessly brought his teacup to his lips. Apparently dissatisfied with the taste, he set it down again.
He really was particular. Sydney pursed her lips and demonstratively took a sip of her own tea, then asked him point-blank.
“What’s your business here?”
“You’re even more… insolent than usual.”
Logan tapped his teacup with his index finger and fixed her with a sharp glare. Only then did Sydney realize she’d been far too rude to her superior.
And that she was, after all, merely his subordinate.
“If it came across that way, I apologize. But this isn’t work hours, and this is my personal space… I hope you understand, Captain.”
“You’re right. But you still shouldn’t be so hostile toward a superior who came to visit you while you’re ill.”
“Visit me while I’m ill?”
“Yes. Did you know you hadn’t contacted anyone for two whole days?”
She’d slept that long? Sydney tried to gauge the time, then sighed.
“…I didn’t know.”
“Walter said he nearly broke down the door—if he hadn’t, it could’ve turned into a serious situation.”
“Where did Walter go?”
“I sent him away.”
“Oh.”
Sydney, who had been defensively bristling like a mother cat protecting her kittens, now meekly subsided.
Seemingly pleased by this, Logan let out a small chuckle. Then he slid the bowl he’d placed earlier on the corner of the table toward her.
“Eat.”
The bowl contained a pale broth with finely shredded meat floating inside. Sydney frowned as she peered into it.
“What is this?”
“You need to eat something.”
“Thank you.”
She had no appetite, and certainly didn’t feel like eating in front of someone. Sydney nudged the bowl slightly to the side.
“Sydney Warden, eat it now.”
“Is that an order?”
She looked directly at her superior and asked politely, her voice calm. Logan crossed his legs, leaned back in his chair, and retorted sarcastically.
“Of course it is. Did you think I’d be asking nicely?”
Now this was the Logan Redford she knew. Sydney offered a faint smile and stood up.
“Then you must have found it terribly inconvenient.”
She walked over to the counter, picked up a spoon, and returned. Stirring the soup, a savory aroma tickled her nose. The taste spreading in her mouth wasn’t bad either.
Only the crackling of logs in the small fireplace and the sound of Sydney swallowing the soup broke the silence.
She liked this quiet.
Because she didn’t have to deal with Logan Redford.
Sydney forced down each reluctant spoonful. Soon, the bowl was empty, and Logan spoke again.
“Sydney Warden, do you happen to know a woman named Marien?”
Sydney’s hand jerked slightly as she set down her spoon after the final sip. Logan, watching her like a hawk, leaned forward.
His eyes gleamed like a predator spotting prey.
Should she ask why he was asking? No—that would imply she knew Marien already. She needed a safer question.
Pushing the empty soup bowl aside, Sydney began.
“A commoner without a surname?”
“Hmm… so you’re saying you don’t know?”
A spark flared in his blue eyes—like a fisherman seeing his float dip beneath the water.
Sydney tilted her head slightly and fixed her gaze on an innocent teacup.
“Well… the name Marien isn’t particularly unusual.”
“There are 279 commoners named Marien registered in Marcelle. Among them, 54 are young women in their twenties. Not exactly a common name, wouldn’t you say?”
He’d gathered all that in just two days? Was he truly this determined to find Marien?
Why? Of all people? Sydney mulled over how to respond, instinctively repeating the numbers he’d just recited.
“279 commoners… 54 young women….”
Fewer than she’d expected. Meeting all 54 wouldn’t be impossible.
Especially if ‘Logan Redford’ truly set his mind to it—he could manage it within a week.
Even so.
There was nothing for Logan to discover. That ‘Marien’ simply didn’t exist in this world.
“You’re wondering if I know any of those 54 Mariens?”
Emphasizing the number, Sydney tested him. Logan, who’d been staring intently at her, crossed his arms and leaned back. That small increase in physical distance alone made Sydney feel as if she could finally breathe again.
“She wouldn’t be on the list. Commoners often don’t register births with city hall, and I suspect she used an alias.”
Sydney inwardly flinched at the word ‘alias.’ Had she let her guard down because she didn’t know Logan well enough, her expression would’ve given everything away.
Instead, she feigned appropriate surprise and asked,
“What?”
Apparently convinced by her act, Logan frowned in genuine confusion. After staring fixedly at his teacup for a moment, he lifted his eyes and spoke.
“…Marien.”
That day, with that same sly look in his eyes as he’d gazed intently at Marien, in that lazy voice… he called out her name.
Had he figured it out? Impossible. Leaning back in her chair, arms crossed, Sydney met his gaze with a look that demanded explanation.
“…That’s how it was. Whenever she was called ‘Marien’—just like you just now—her reaction was always slightly delayed. And in her expression, in her eyes… there was a subtle trace of disdain and mockery….”
He paused, then quietly added, “It’s exactly the same.”
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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Ahhhh the “I have a friend” line. How did she keep her gender hidden this long smh lol
Could it be he was the one who designed the dresses Victoria gifted her?