“Medea, let’s cut short these appetizer-like greetings. It’s been a while since the North and South gathered for the Empire. Isn’t that right, Belphegor?”
A subtle belittlement.
But Zion Belphegor maintained his calm demeanor.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Ha! Seeing you up close, you’re remarkably stoic. Reminds me of your father. The late Duke Belphegor was quite unpretentious too.”
“Was he?”
Rahert broached the topic of the late Duke, but Belphegor remained composed, despite the provocation.
I knew it was the Emperor and the Southern Duke who had driven the late Duke to his death.
Rahert’s audacity made my heart race.
‘The snake who killed my mother. Someday, I’ll make sure you pay…’
The meal began.
Yet, Arcadia seemed hesitant to eat. Had the Northern Duke warned him about poison?
“Is there something wrong with the food?” Kahen Rahert asked with concern.
“Kahen, are you belittling the Rahert family’s chefs?”
Medea replied sweetly to her brother, but her words were sharp. Arcadia responded.
“No, the food is delicious. It’s just unfamiliar to me.”
“Belphegor, Arcadia prefers rough, hearty foods. Maybe he’s just nervous. Is that it, Sir Arcadia?”
Belphegor’s words prompted Arcadia’s response.
“Sorry, Your Highness. Perhaps the fatigue from battle hasn’t worn off. I apologize for any rudeness in front of these lovingly prepared dishes.”
“Indeed, I heard it was a tough battle.”
Rahert reluctantly brought up the battle, maintaining a serene facade.
“What can we do? With great power comes tiring responsibilities, like your recent campaign in the North. You’ve built a fine knighthood, Duke Belphegor.”
“Your words are too kind.”
Suddenly, I sensed something amiss.
‘Duke?’
Belphegor’s voice quivered slightly, and his hand trembled.
‘Why, Your Grace?’
At that moment, the Duke suddenly lurched forward.
“Cough!” Zion Belphegor spat out blood. His hand, turned pale blue, clutched the tablecloth, but it wasn’t enough to stabilize his shaking body.
“Duke!” Arcadia caught the collapsing Duke.
I stifled the scream trying to escape my lips.
What’s happening? Why the Duke and not Arcadia?
In my previous life, the Duke was unharmed. Only Arcadia was lost, but the Duke left the South unscathed. So why now?
The Raherts froze instantly. Especially Medea, whose face turned ashen.
“The knights! The Duke has collapsed!”
At Arcadia’s shout, the Northern knights guarding outside rushed in.
Medea exclaimed, “What’s happening, Duke?”
“He seems to have been poisoned! How could this have happened?”
Arcadia’s anger was directed at Medea.
The banquet hall turned into chaos. The Northern knights drew their swords to protect the Duke.
“It’s impossible! I haven’t used the poison yet!”
Medea protested, almost roaring. She pulled out a transparent liquid from the drawer of her desk in the study.
“Look! The poison I prepared is still here! And Father, you know better than anyone that I wasn’t targeting the Duke!”
“That’s why! How could this have happened?” Cramnel Rahert, unable to contain his anger, hurled an expensive porcelain vase from Medea’s room. It shattered against the wall near her.
“We’re going to be framed as the poisoners!”
Rahert exclaimed in frustration.
Medea looked down at the broken porcelain.
Rage and humiliation scattered with the fragments, bringing back her cold rationality.
‘Calm down, Medea. Especially now, keep your wits about you.’
She gazed at her father.
“Things are becoming clearer now.”
“What are you talking about?!” her father demanded.
“The Duke of the North isn’t as simple as you think. He’s neither modest nor straightforward.”
“So what? If word gets out that Belphegor is struggling for his life after a poisoning attempt, people will suspect us.”
“No, we’ve always been the victims. This time is no different.”
Medea’s composure brought a glint to the Southern Duke’s eyes.
“I didn’t use the poison. Yet Belphegor vomited blood. Symptoms of poisoning, clear to anyone. How is that possible? There’s only one answer.”
The Duke, who had been thinking with his eyes closed, opened them.
“Did he poison himself?”
“Yes, a clear act of self-poisoning to put us in danger.”
“Ha! Sly as ever. Just like his father.”
Cramnel Rahert’s fists trembled with rage. Medea smiled coldly.
“We must respond to this farce with our own. How dare a Northern wanderer from the battlefield try to catch a snake.”
“He’s after me.”
“He won’t succeed. He’s not catching a snake, but provoking a dragon.”
Medea laughed icily.
Cramnel Rahert was reassured by his daughter’s smile. Since she was young, whenever Medea faced a tough battle or fierce competition, she always smiled like that. And the result was always ‘victory.’
‘Duke, are you alright?’
The Blue Star Castle was sealed off by the Northern knights.
No Southerner could approach the castle, and the knights maintained strict vigilance. The doctors were also brought from the North.
I was worried about the Duke’s condition but could only watch from a distance, unable to get close.
Despite my worry, I couldn’t help but question why, unlike my previous life, the poison was used on the Northern Duke instead of Arcadia. It would surely complicate things for the South.
Suddenly, a thought struck me, and I shook my head in disbelief.
‘No, it can’t be a self-staged act by the Duke.’
He definitely vomited blood. There’s no Grand Duke who would risk his life for such a deception.
I started walking aimlessly to clear my thoughts. Following a familiar path, I found myself at a familiar place – the entrance to the Rahel Forest, overlooking Medea’s room.
Suddenly, someone silently landed beside me. Startled, I looked over to find the boy who always ranks second to me, the Red Caterpillar.
His hair glowed crimson under the moonlight, and even his eyes were a deep red.
“I thought you might be here. Surely you didn’t think you could be of any help to the lady, did you?”
He showed me raw hostility.
“What business is it of yours where I am?”
“None, but the teacher has called us together.”
He swallowed his bitterness, glancing up at Medea’s room, then continued without taking his eyes off it.
“Don’t fool yourself into thinking you’re a favored confidant just because the lord seems to care for you.”
“I have no such delusions.”
“Good. Follow me.”
I reluctantly followed him, knowing it wasn’t wise to reveal my changed stance at such a time.
He led me to the front of the Blue Star Castle. But before I could brace myself, something was already unfolding there.
I stood behind the disguised Black Caterpillar and the trainee assassins. They were all looking towards the entrance of the castle.
Medea?
Medea was there in front of the castle, and beside her, the Yellow Caterpillar, bound and kneeling.
Yellow Caterpillar?
Even from a distance, I could see he was trembling violently, whether from fear or pain.
Medea shouted,
“I have found the poisoner who attempted to assassinate the Northern Duke! Come out and witness our Southern hospitality! Please don’t ignore us any longer! We must face each other to resolve this!”
Her voice was desperate.
Then, the Yellow Caterpillar started to scream strangely, “Eeeh—Eeeh—”
“His tongue was cut in half, by the lady’s order.”
Whispered the Black Caterpillar.
‘!’
“Born in the North, he couldn’t forget his roots and defended the North. The lady found out. You all must remember this scene in your hearts.”
I felt sick to my stomach.
Yellow Caterpillar, you were trembling from pain.
Medea continued,
“This boy, born in the North and wandering as an orphan, was taken in by us. How a stable boy managed to poison the Duke’s food is beyond us. When we found him, his tongue was already cut! Could there be any connection between you Northerners and this boy?!”
I felt as if I had been struck on the head.
Medea, what seed of deceit are you planting now?
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
