Interest Compounds on Revenge - Chapter 12
Terran wore a self-deprecating expression.
He couldn’t shake off the confusion about Grace who had changed in an instant.
So he finally had to confirm with Aiden if Grace’s words about learning fluent foreign language skills and first aid abilities in her childhood were true.
Aiden said there was no such thing and added one more thing.
[Everyone changes, don’t they? Grace must be in the process of growing from a naive girl to a mature lady.]‘It was an unfounded assumption.’
Terran shook off the remnants of the complicated imagination piled up inside him at once.
‘There are so many people in the world, and things happen that can’t be explained by scientific logic.’
It was a suspicion stemming from the possibility that Grace’s soul might have changed.
But he had forgotten the most important point.
The personal perspective that even the same picture can be interpreted differently by different people, and that likes and dislikes can differ.
Aiden was right. Humans change, and so does Grace.
The problem was that he hadn’t acknowledged that fact.
‘How pathetic, Terran Courtois.’
Terran rather reflected on whether he had been trapped in prejudice about Grace.
Moreover, he had asked Aiden an unnecessary question and only managed to upset him.
‘Change in humans is natural.’
Terran let Aiden into the villa first, then took some time alone. Aiden’s words were still clear in his ears.
[Can’t you just cherish Grace as she is, Terran?] [I just…] [I know she’s infinitely lacking for you. I also know you got engaged to Grace out of guilt towards me.]The moment he saw the anxiety in Aiden’s eyes, he realized his mistake.
[When I die, you can do as you please then, Terran.]In other words, it meant he didn’t have to forcibly spend his life with Grace. The moment he heard those words, Terran realized how big a mistake he had made.
[How can you say such a thing? Why would you die? You won’t die just because you’re missing a leg. And…]Due to his brusque personality, it was difficult to readily express his inner thoughts. But he should do it for Aiden’s sake.
[I don’t dislike Grace.] [!?] [I’m serious.]Only then did a smile bloom on Terran’s lips.
[That’s a relief. Is it because Grace has matured?]Aiden joked and ended the conversation.
Terran decided not to conflict anymore.
Although his head was complicated with mixed feelings of suspicion and contradictory emotions towards Grace, he now decided to accept her as she was, as Aiden had said.
‘Aiden, Grace is not lacking at all.’
He regretted not being able to say those words. They could just live together like the ever-changing world. For a moment, there were words lingering in his mouth.
‘Yes, I don’t dislike Grace. Rather…’
Terran tried to erase his thoughts by rubbing his face dry.
How did he become a person who doubts, analyzes, and tries to find results in everything?
‘Well, whatever.’
* * *
The meal time for the four people was enjoyable. Lea helped Aiden’s wife Reina prepare the meal.
Sister-in-law Reina was a kind, cheerful, and good woman. Above all, she truly loved Aiden.
“I’m not sure if the country food will suit your taste.”
Reina said, glancing at Terran’s reaction.
“It’s excellent, Reina.”
Compared to the ducal dining table, it was infinitely modest, but the food made with vegetables they had grown themselves was deeply meaningful.
Grace ate the steamed cabbage, peas, and lemon and anchovy sauce mixture first. Aiden was startled and said,
“Grace, your taste has changed? To think you’d eat all the cabbage!”
“What…? It’s delicious, Brother.”
Cabbage was originally a vegetable she liked. It’s easy to digest and has a good texture. But it seems Grace used to dislike it.
Lea thought she might have made a mistake, but it was impossible for her to act exactly like Grace anyway.
“People’s tastes change until they die. I couldn’t even touch meat until I was fifteen. But now I have to eat meat at least twice a week.”
Everyone nodded at Reina’s words.
Terran also agreed with Reina’s words. Before going to war, he used to eat beans well, but now he doesn’t even touch them.
Because on the battlefield, the only food available was thin soup with beans and rough bread.
“By the way, is it alright for you two to sleep together in the guest room on the second floor? Since you’re engaged.”
‘Sleep in the same bed with the Duke?’
Reina said that because the villa was small, there weren’t many rooms available, so Terran and Grace should share a room.
Lea instinctively knew.
That before, even when Terran and Grace came to visit them, they had never stayed overnight.
Anyway, how should she answer?
‘I have some bad sleeping habits.’
Grace was worried about her habit of roaming all over the bed while sleeping. At times like this, it would be nice if Terran just said he would sleep on the living room sofa.
“It’s better than a stable, isn’t it? Don’t worry about us, Reina.”
Terran readily accepted. Surprised by his answer, Aiden responded loudly.
“Terran, you’ve become much more easygoing.”
“What?”
As Terran looked puzzled, Aiden pointed at him with his chin.
“You used to be the king of pickiness, remember?”
“What are you talking about? Aren’t you exaggerating too much, Aiden?”
Aiden was shocked to see Terran’s face after a long time. His complexion had never been this bright since the war.
Terran’s face had always been imbued with deep loneliness, depression, and the scars of war.
Grace’s face was always clouded too.
His younger sister, perhaps struggling with a lack of affection and attention, didn’t hesitate to act excessively.
However, the Grace he met today seemed like a completely different person from before.
‘Whatever the reason, it’s good if they both change for the better.’
Aiden was glad that he might not have to worry about the two of them anymore.
* * *
After cleaning up the dining table and taking a bath with Reina, Lea went up to the guest room on the second floor first.
It was a bit small for two people to sleep in, but it seemed manageable for one night.
When she opened the slanted window, stars twinkled in the black sky as if jewels had been sprinkled.
‘It’s beautiful.’
Is this what peace feels like? Lea lost herself in the night sky for a moment, as if nothing had happened to her.
In fact, she didn’t have the nerve to properly face Aiden’s couple. How shocked would they be if they knew that a strange woman was occupying their precious younger sister’s body.
‘Everything has a beginning and an end.’
There will come a day when things will be restored to their original state. For now, that was the only way she could rationalize it. Just then, she heard the sound of someone climbing the wooden stairs.
The person who opened the door and came in was, as expected, Terran.
Terran, who was already tall and well-built, standing in the small room left no space unfilled.
It felt strange to be alone with him in such a confined space.
But Terran, dressed simply in a shirt and pants without his fancy uniform, with his hair unkempt, looked different.
Lea unintentionally voiced her impression of him.
“You look good.”
“Huh?”
Terran looked slightly bewildered at the sudden comment “You look good,” and Lea was at a loss for how to smooth it over.
“No, I mean… I meant to say you look free, but why did I…”
“Were you talking about me?”
“Yes.”
“Grace looks healthier too, which is good to see.”
“Is… that so?”
The awkward conversation seemed to be settling down somehow.
Both of them stared at the bed simultaneously. Besides the bed, there was only this small wooden chair, so really, the bed was the only place to sleep.
“Are you worried by any chance?”
Suddenly, Terran’s gaze changed. He took a step towards Grace with a slightly mischievous look on his face.
“Ah… no! Duke Courtois is a gentleman, why would I be worried?”
‘I’m not worried. It’s me who’s wicked for feeling relieved at your misfortune.’
“Even gentlemen are men, aren’t they?”
“That’s true. Anyway, I trust you, Duke Courtois.”
‘I’m only sorry that you can’t embrace a woman even if you want to.’
Lea deliberately smiled brightly and lay down on the bed first.
“I can sleep on that chair.”
Lea looked at the crude wooden chair that Terran pointed to with a nod.
He’s going to sit on a chair and sleep all night? Whose conscience needs to be pricked to be satisfied?
“On the battlefield, I used to take short naps standing up.”
“This isn’t a battlefield.”
Tap tap, Lea said, patting the space beside her. But Terran’s eyes looked very complicated.
Finally, Terran moved. He slowly walked towards the bed and sat down next to Lea. Soon, he took off his shoes and lay down beside her.
Somehow, the two ended up lying on the same bed, looking up at the low ceiling together.
“Um, I have some bad sleeping habits.”
Lea realized that she had made a huge misunderstanding.
Whether Terran could function as a man or not, lying in the same bed with him itself was a huge event. Her heart was pounding and her body stiffened.
So she unknowingly babbled about having bad sleeping habits, possibly grinding her teeth, maybe even falling to the floor and wandering around, saying whatever came to mind.
‘Why isn’t he answering?’
Lea glanced to the side, moving only her eyeballs.
‘What? He’s already asleep?’
Despite her efforts to relax, Terran had fallen asleep, and Lea couldn’t take her eyes off him.
Lea found herself lying on her side, admiring his sleeping face.
‘He’s like a sleeping beauty in a cabin.’
Thick eyebrows and long eyelashes, a high nose bridge and smooth jawline. A forehead that looked as if it had been carved, with messy black hair.
Moreover, he just slept so that a woman wouldn’t have any worries.
Well… ‘that’ was indeed a great flaw for such a perfect man.
Lea fell asleep in that position while admiring the sleeping Terran.
Terran gently opened his eyes at the sound of soft breathing. He was so surprised to find Grace’s face practically on his pillow. If he turned his head wrong, their lips would collide, that’s how close they were.
‘Grace, do you know how seductive it is to breathe into a man’s ear?’
She probably doesn’t know. If she did, she wouldn’t just sleep breathing like the spring breeze blowing across the fields.
She was a woman who didn’t know that seduction was seduction.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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