When Hugo’s voice was heard, Evelia, who had been twisting her body due to the boring process of getting dressed, jumped up and opened the door.
“Dad! How do I look in this dress?”
His daughter, who seemed to ask how the dress looked by spinning on the spot, was adorable. Hugo quickly picked up his daughter, who was still light as a feather, and replied.
“My daughter looks even prettier.”
“I’m getting heavier now, Dad. If you pick me up like this, your arm will hurt.”
At her whining words while tightly wrapping her arms around his neck, Hugo simply laughed.
Even after ten years, or twenty years, or even after an eternity, his daughter wouldn’t be a burden to him.
No matter how much she grew up or became stronger, to him, she would always be a child he needed to hold in his arms.
“Dad, can I also talk to His Majesty the Emperor?”
“Of course.”
Evelia, thinking that she had done her duty as an envoy in her own way, wanted to boast in front of everyone gathered that she did her job this well.
‘If you don’t want to lose the loyalty of Artina, listen and go.’
Hugo, who had been considering the Emperor’s tight schedule just a moment ago, changed his words easily. It wasn’t his business to know about the Emperor’s busy schedule.
The loyalty that was heavier than anything else in the world had become lighter than his daughter’s weight as soon as his little girl was born.
Caron was also standing in front of Evelia’s door, wearing the armor of the Artina Knights.
“Caron. Caron.”
“Yes, Miss.”
“I’ll also report to His Majesty the Emperor.”
As she dashed down the stairs to the first floor, Evelia bragged to Caron.
“It will be the most meaningful envoy report in the world. What kind of report are you planning to make?”
“All of it!”
She probably just ate, slept, and played.
Without saying anything at the sight of his young lady boasting as if she had accomplished a great feat, Caron simply smiled.
[Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon]From early morning, Ludwig had been slashing his sword in the training grounds, lurking around his office, and eventually wandering around the palace to see if there were any disturbing points.
In other words, he couldn’t stay still for a moment.
This was because he had already heard the fact that the envoy had returned last night.
‘They said they were coming for a report this morning.’
And the land thief he knew was not the one to miss such a place, she probably would have rushed and boasted about it.
‘The sun’s been up for a while now, why hasn’t she come yet?’
It’s natural that time doesn’t pass when you’ve been up from the crack of dawn and pacing around. But Ludwig blamed the slow steps of the poor envoys.
“Weren’t the envoys supposed to report this morning?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“They should have a pile of reports to do, why are they coming so late?”
“I apologize, Your Majesty, but it’s not even nine o’clock yet.”
“……”
Ludwig glared at the second hand of the clock.
‘Wait a minute. Why is this clock in the same position as before?’
It’s definitely broken. Ludwig called the timekeeper with a dignified gesture.
“This clock seems to be broken, bring a new one.”
“I apologize, Your Majesty, but the clock is running very well.”
Ludwig hid his lips with an embarrassed expression and asked.
That’s strange, how can it be?
She was so intently watching the second hand of the clock, it seemed that the usually fastmoving time was now flowing sluggishly.
Looking at the chamberlain who kept bowing his head in apology every time he said something was quite embarrassing.
So, she finally decided to do something and picked up her sword to go back to the training field.
The sword that she always swung to clear her mind, today, unusually, didn’t require her thoughts to be emptied.
‘I’m curious. What you’ve seen, what you’ve heard.’
It was the first journey of my dearest friend. And as the Crown Prince of the Empire, I was obliged to know the results of the work of the envoys.
But, just out of curiosity, I was so.
“……”
The tip of Ludwig’s sword, which always stayed unswerving, skewed off diagonally.
‘In fact, what you’ve seen and heard, it’s not too late to hear about it at the secret base.’
What was the reason for being so anxious from early dawn, despite that?
Why did you frequent the secret base so much, knowing well that you are not on this continent?
…It was not because I was curious about what you saw and experienced.
It was because I was anxious, empty, and thirsty as if something very precious was slipping out of my hand and rolling away to somewhere unseen. So.
“……”
The sword filled with emotion hesitated several times and eventually thrown away with force.
Before meeting the land thief, it was natural that there was no place to lean on, that worries are carried alone, all of that was like a given.
But now, she’s gotten used to it, as if she’s mocking her past self. About being by someone’s side.
The reason for frequenting the secret base was probably because of that.
As always, it seemed like a small friend would say ‘Hello, food thief!’ while rustling something.
So, she filled the small table of the cabin with orange juice, marigolds, cookies, and more.
I wanted her friend, who had been on a long journey, to feel happy seeing the secret base full of her favorite things when she returned.
So, just as the secret base is precious to me, I wanted her to cherish that place in the future as well.
Ludwig, who had been standing blankly, asked the training straw mannequin that had been receiving his sword until now.
“……Am I normal right now?”
The training straw mannequin didn’t answer. The flickering of his eyelashes, seemed to mock him.
“Why are your eyes so wide open?”
Ludwig grabbed the straw mannequin’s shoulder and brushed it off.
“Hey, eyelash! Say something!”
“Um…Your Highness? The envoys have arrived… may I ask what you were doing……?”
A look of perplexity crossed the chamberlain’s face. Why would the wise Crown Prince… with the straw mannequin…
Embarrassment crossed Ludwig’s face as well. My dignity. I need to regain it.
“……The straw mannequin is having a hard time. It was in the middle of bravely taking my sword.”
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
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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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