But how to prevent it?
Even if we monitor the entire outer castle, it’s hard to determine who will be bribed to use poison and in what way.
There are over a thousand servants in the Southern Duke’s main castle alone, and more than half of them know how to use a sword or their bodies.
This place is a vast trap set to engulf the North.
The Southern Duke Rahel must have invited the North for a reason difficult to refuse. Likely, he stirred the Emperor’s influence, making it impossible for the Northern Duke to decline.
Requesting a victory celebration was a different move from my previous life, but it was the North’s minimal dignity they couldn’t concede.
I cannot blame the Northern Duke for coming here. It was a dangerous decision for him but gave me the only hope of reaching him.
There’s only one way to save Arcadia.
I loosened my clenched fist and relaxed my body.
Since I can’t know everything, they must defend themselves.
‘I need to meet the Northern Duke and tell him what I know.’
It might be a gamble, indeed, a gamble, but let’s try.
But how to meet him?
Will he believe me?
I felt conflicted. But I hope he does.
It’s a baseless wish.
Our only interaction in this life was five years ago when our swords briefly crossed. I was fourteen, and he was seventeen.
After the death of the previous Northern Duke, he lived in the capital as a hostage and returned to the North at fifteen. He was driven to various battlefields and briefly returned to the capital by the Emperor’s order when he was seventeen.
Would he remember the half-masked monster he briefly crossed swords with for the Duke’s amusement?
‘Why do you hide your beautiful face with a mask?’
After my defeat, as I lay there, he looked into my eyes and asked that. His warm voice still vivid in my memory.
I hope he remembers me.
The place where the Northern Knights were staying was the southernmost part of the main castle, the Blue Villa, used for external guests.
Excluding the stronghold of the Southern Duke’s direct family, it’s the tallest and most beautiful castle in the main castle, overlooking the Asséo Lake, famous for its blue salt.
The area is open, making it difficult for outsiders to approach.
‘I can’t just visit openly.’
I’m not someone who can reach him now.
But this is also a place built by Rahel, so there are secret passages in this villa.
In my previous life, I used one of these to reach Arcadia Nugent’s room.
The secret passage used by assassins of the Southern Duke’s family for generations is an underground waterway starting from the well in Rahel Forest.
Crawling through the waterway under the well, after a while, one reaches the Blue Villa. The waterway in the basement of the castle connects to the smoke vents of all the rooms in the villa.
These smoke vents, like ant tunnels, are just wide enough for one person. Inside are tiny handholds to prevent assassins from slipping.
But these handholds are insufficient to prevent a fall.
I remember encountering the skeleton of someone who got lost and died in these vents.
But there’s no time to hesitate. Once the poison reaches Medeia’s hands, it’s a matter of time before it’s used.
I secretly entered the well in Rahel Forest. The long-unused waterway was sticky with rotten leaves and insects.
For a long while, hunched over in the narrow waterway, I moved forward, focusing only ahead, in the unseen darkness.
The air, stagnant for years, smelled pungent. It became harder to breathe as I moved away from the well.
Finally, I reached a place where I could feel the relatively fresh air from outside. The lower part of the Blue Villa, where the waterway connects to the smoke outlet.
I recalled the ‘Secret Passage Map’ given by the Black Beetle in my previous life and shifted to the smoke vent.
‘Arcadia Nugent’s room is the third on the left on the fifth floor. Then, the Northern Duke, Zion Bellfast’s room would be…’
Likely next to the aide Nugent’s room.
Would it be the left, right, or front room next to Nugent’s? My head was spinning. There are three rooms inside the Blue Villa where an Imperial Duke might stay.
Among them, the simplest yet offering a direct view of Lake Asseo is next to Nugent’s room on the right. It’s the only room on the same floor as Nugent’s among the three.
A bitter sorrow filled me.
In my last life, I memorized the location of Arcadia Nugent’s room to kill him.
‘Do I still remember his room’s location?’
I gathered strength and climbed straight up.
Every guest room in the Blue Villa has a high ceiling, meaning the smoke vents are as high. Not overcoming this height with one’s strength results in a fall.
Death.
Climbing inside a vent with minimal handholds is like scaling a slippery cliff.
To focus on climbing, I pushed away all distractions. Finally, I reached what I presumed to be Arcadia Nugent’s room.
The room right next to it, on the right. Crawling flat inside the vent, I bypassed two openings, leading to a wider vent.
Male lead is a clingy little husband
One-line summary: The male lead is initially an arrogant, noble, love-deprived brat, later a cute, clingy, scheming little jealous one.
Introduction:
One day, Lu Yuner’s soul transmigrates into a female-dominant world. She enters the Imperial Academy and takes up the position of a doctoral instructor, teaching classes and grading schoolwork.
One day, she encounters the young prince Su Qingwan secretly skipping class from the male academy.
As a result, Su Qingwan is punished.
From then on, Su Qingwan sees Lu Yuner as a “thorn in his side”.
But before long, this “thorn” becomes the person he cherishes most, and he goes to great lengths to win Lu Yuner’s affection.
Mini scene 1:
One day, the sun is high in the sky but Su Qingwan still hasn’t gotten up for class.
Servant Xiaoyuan: “Young prince, it’s time for class. You’ll be late otherwise.”
Su Qingwan says arrogantly: “I’m not going. I am the esteemed prince, my status is so noble, why should I suffer this hardship? Besides, isn’t learning all this just to please women? Hmph, they’re not worthy!”
Mini scene 2:
After Su Qingwan falls for someone, he completely changes. He no longer skips class and diligently learns how to be a good husband and father. But he discovers that Sister Yuner is always surrounded by admirers.
Drunk and overcome with jealousy one day, he clings to Lu Yuner, crying beautifully like a pear blossom in the rain.
Su Qingwan: “Qingwan likes Sister Yuner.”
Lu Yuner: “Young prince, you’re drunk.”
Su Qingwan: “Qingwan isn’t drunk. Qingwan likes Sister Yuner, likes you so much, likes you to bits…” Before he can finish, Lu Yuner’s eyes flash with emotion and she leans in closer.
[Reading Guide]
1. The female lead is gentle, gracious, humble and polite but not weak. The male lead is initially an arrogant, noble, love-deprived brat, later a cute, clingy, scheming little jealous one.
2. 1v1, a bit torturous in the beginning but definitely sweet later on.
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