After Starlet left, Ophelia rose from her seat.
Today was the day of the council meeting with the elders. Although the frequency of meetings had decreased since Idren left for the mountains, the elders still came to the castle.
When Idren was here, she felt less burdened as she could consult him on any matter, but now without him, she felt tense every time the council convened. It was natural, as she couldn’t afford to make any mistakes.
Idren would never criticize her actions, but precisely because of that, Ophelia wanted to maintain the capital in perfect condition in his absence. She didn’t want to create a situation where he might be disappointed, even if she wouldn’t know about it.
However, as she wasn’t naturally talented, she inevitably grew tired from constantly being on edge to avoid mistakes.
When she felt like she was struggling with tasks that didn’t suit her, Ophelia couldn’t help but question why she was trying so hard. Why did she keep pushing herself to do things that didn’t fit her, even when she felt tired?
But no matter how logically she tried to find an answer to this question, she couldn’t. The only thought that came to mind was simply that she didn’t want to disappoint him.
She didn’t know. Ophelia, who had paused for a moment to rub her face, opened the door to the reception room. She said to Hazel, who was waiting in front of it:
“Go and bring Dahel.”
She needed someone who could remember things she might forget during the council meeting.
Hazel bowed silently and disappeared around the corner of the corridor. Ophelia watched the red-haired knight’s retreating figure for a moment before slowly making her way to where the council meeting was to be held.
It was then that she encountered an unwelcome face.
“Greetings, Your Majesty the Queen.”
The man’s golden hair gleamed as he bowed deeply to her. It was a reddish-gold color, uncommon in Edegrun.
Once, she had received the head of a chief councilor with hair of exactly that color. Recalling the past memory, Ophelia called out the name of the man standing before her.
“Gilrod Nebel.”
And then she hesitated for a moment. She wasn’t sure how to address him.
She had experience in spreading rumors about others’ weaknesses, fabricating gossip, or pressuring people to ruin them, but she wasn’t well-versed in showing hostility without leaving herself vulnerable.
After pondering for a bit, she said:
“I wonder how you’ve been.”
“…I should be the one truly concerned about how Your Majesty has been faring. I committed such a grave discourtesy last time, didn’t I?”
“There’s no need to remind me as I haven’t forgotten, but it seems you’re quite the worrier.”
Then Ophelia realized she hadn’t told him to raise his head.
But fearing that her inexperience would show if they faced each other directly, Ophelia pretended not to notice and moved on. This level of disrespect was hardly enough to be considered an insult anyway.
“I truly regret that matter. Please bestow your generosity upon me.”
“The memory of how the mercy I showed your daughter was repaid is still vivid, so while I’ll try, I can’t promise anything.”
“I’m truly sorry that the wound runs so deep.”
And Gilrod bowed his head even lower.
“I know that no matter what I do, I cannot fathom Your Majesty’s feelings, but I have prepared a gift to atone for my wrongdoing, even if just a little. Please accept it.”
Even a three-year-old child would know that those words held no good intentions.
However, Ophelia didn’t know how to smoothly reject the man’s offer. After a moment of silence, she finally agreed to his words.
“If you insist so strongly.”
“The time is not yet right, but I will show it to you soon.”
And Gilrod added in a very soft voice:
“I’m sure you’ll absolutely love it.”
[This is the timeline separator]The carriage that had taken Starlet to the royal palace dropped him off again on the streets of Galisa.
Originally, he had planned to walk a bit more before heading in, but with his current complicated state of mind, it seemed difficult. As he walked towards the house given to him by the queen, his robe pulled tight, Starlet thought of the blue eyes of the woman who had looked down at him.
“You don’t really want a lover either, do you?”
The woman’s expression showed not a hint of hesitation as she said this.
For a moment, he felt annoyed at her words, which seemed to imply she knew him quite well. Before he knew it, he had sarcastically responded to her words, and then Starlet realized he had made a mistake.
To continue staying in Aglante, especially in Galisa, he shouldn’t antagonize the queen.
However, the woman, who was likely unused to anyone defying her, having lived in a position where such things were rare, didn’t seem displeased by his words.
“It’s not that I’ve seen through you, I just truly know what it means to not fear death.”
When the queen said this, still with a calm expression, Starlet couldn’t understand what she was getting at. Did she mean that she herself didn’t fear death?
No, that couldn’t be it.
Starlet had seen the queen holding her husband’s hand during inspections. Their hands, secretly clasped in positions hidden from view, were actions that only considered each other.
After that, even when he met them again, the queen was clearly mindful of her husband. Although it was overshadowed by the king’s obvious jealousy, Starlet had clearly seen it.
And people who are in love inevitably fear death.
To begin with, wasn’t she young, beautiful, and noble? She had plenty of reasons to find meaning in life.
How could such a woman want to die?
Or was she just saying something that sounded plausible to dominate him in the conversation?
But the queen didn’t seem like someone who would passionately try to put others down.
Moreover, above all else, what was at the center of this confusion was not those two sentences.
“You don’t enjoy danger.”
That assertive statement.
In fact, it would have been entirely possible to refute her words right there. Perhaps he could have smiled playfully, as he often did, and responded to the queen’s words.
No, Your Majesty. If you heard about my heroic exploits, you’d completely change your mind. Do you know how many tales of bravery I have?
Throwing himself into danger was as thrilling as feeling a chill run down his spine. Getting involved in all sorts of incidents and accidents was the same.
And stimulation is pleasure.
Even while thinking this, Starlet couldn’t refute the queen.
His numerous tales of bravery were proof that he had survived that many times. They were evidence of how hard he had tried to keep his neck attached each time.
While he might be able to deceive others into thinking it was just a risky game, he himself knew how desperately he had struggled to survive. When escaping from the guillotine, when he fell into the middle of the ocean, when trapped on an island with nothing but a wooden plank…
Could he really package even those desperate moments as mere joke material?
Unable to be certain of this fact, Starlet couldn’t refute the queen. It seemed like she would immediately notice the confusion within him.
A liar who’s easily caught isn’t very good, is he?
“Instead of trying to be lovers, why not try being friends first?”
“…But Your Majesty, even a decade-long friendship is just kindling in the face of passionate love.”
A belated rebuttal came out of his mouth, as if annoyed at being persuaded. After muttering this in the empty alley where no one could hear, Starlet laughed hollowly. What was he doing, speaking behind her back when he couldn’t say it to her face?
He thought as he patted the inside of his robe where he had put the necklace. He should sell this and buy another ship. He had been wanting to get a new ship lately anyway.
He might not be able to buy a very large one, but if it’s of a decent size…
As he was thinking, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. The footsteps that had been following him also ceased.
Realizing that his path behind was completely blocked, Starlet slowly turned around. Four or five men wearing robes were positioned behind him.
“…Who are you?”
Instead of answering, they took off their robes and drew their swords. As the emblem he had seen for the second time today came into view, Starlet remembered which family it belonged to.
The emblem of Chesa.
“Pirate Starlet. We are arresting you for disturbing the peace of Galisa.”
And soon, a loud noise was heard not far away. Along with people’s screams, flames rose up.
Realizing the situation he was in, Starlet let out a hollow laugh.
“Well now, just because I’ve done some bad things, is it right to frame me like this?”
The conversation didn’t continue further. As the man pointing the sword lunged at him, Starlet grabbed the wall and jumped over it. Suddenly, he remembered the queen’s last words.
“Be careful not to cause any disturbances.”
Was that warning not out of concern, but a forewarning?
Chesa is the family closest to the royal family. Starlet bitterly muttered as the situation clearly revealed who had orchestrated this.
“…She said let’s be friends.”
Yes, she was wrong. As he desperately climbed over the wall, Starlet realized that his belief had been correct. Even a decade-long friendship is just kindling in the face of passionate love. So the kiss he had left on her hand today would be worth even less than ashes.
He should feel good about being proven right, but somehow, he didn’t feel happy at all.
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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