You, have you ever heard of the Princess of Dark Flame?
A humanoid monster that emerges from the deep darkness beyond the gate.
Fast like a cat and paleskinned like a vampire.
Once seen, it’s said to possess an eerie charm that you can’t forget. A hunter, mesmerized by her appearance, foolishly stood staring and ended up getting his eye gouged out by the tip of her parasol.
If you encounter her, you’d better run away.
─If you can fend off her black flames, that is.
[This is the time separator]It was late summer when the miserably long rainy season had finally ended.
While walking down the street, Eun Ha couldn’t resist looking at the paper in her hand once again.
Exam Number: 9782136
Name: Cha Eun Ha
Remarks: Admitted to Pet Grooming Department
She had checked the acceptance notice and put it back in her bag twentysix times already. Twentysix times she had repeated the process, but it was undoubtedly an acceptance notice.
She would finally be able to study pet grooming, her dream, at a prestigious American university.
Across the road, still smelling of rain, she saw a deserted bus stop. She was halfway there. She looked up at the sky. Though the rain had stopped and the sky was still heavy with clouds, Eun Ha’s heart was light.
Eun Ha quickened her pace as she glanced at the acceptance notice once more. It was a 20minute walk from school to home. The distance she walked every day felt incredibly long that day.
She spotted a public phone booth not far away. She wanted to tell her mother the news as soon as possible. Her mother would surely be pleased.
Ring─
Her heart thumped wildly as the call connected.
Finally, the connection was made, and a familiar, affectionate voice came from the other end.
「Hello?」
“Mom, it’s me, Eun Ha.”
Eun Ha opened her mouth, trying to be as calm as possible. Gulping down her saliva, she didn’t forget.
“I only have a 100 won coin, so I’ll talk quickly. You know, Mom──.”
But Eun Ha couldn’t finish her sentence.
Thump. The public phone receiver fell limply down.
Grumble.
Suddenly the sky roared, and dozens of red lightning bolts fell all over Seoul.
The asphalt cracked, and the atmosphere vibrated. Buildings fell like dominos, and people started running all at once like ants fleeing a collapsing nest.
「Hello? Eun… Ha…….」
The rain that had begun to fall again mercilessly beat the phone booth, leaving black tear marks.
‘What on earth is this?’
What was happening? It was too vivid to be a dream, yet too dreadful to believe as reality.
A car plunged into a crack in the asphalt, and intertwined street lamps shook madly.
A person crushed by a flying shop sign was smashed to pieces like a boiled potato.
Staring blankly at the scene, there was a loud bang! Something heavy seemed to have fallen on top of the phone booth.
「Aaagh……!」
Her mother’s scream came through the receiver. Suddenly alert, Eun Ha reached out for the receiver.
“Mom? Mom!”
No matter how much she called, there was no response.
A bad feeling crept over her.
And bad feelings always turned out to be true.
Eun Ha started running home immediately, still clutching the acceptance notice.
She couldn’t remember exactly how she got home at that time. She just ran and ran in the opposite direction of the fleeing crowd.
When she finally rounded the corner and arrived at the familiar gate, Eun Ha inadvertently dropped the acceptance notice.
Among the collapsed concrete, a familiar white piano lay shattered. Under the piano keys, a twisted left arm jutted out.
It can’t be, it won’t be. Eun Ha slowly approached.
The wish bracelet that Eun Ha had made and given as a gift years ago was there.
Eun Ha grabbed the piano as if possessed. No matter how much she struggled, the piano didn’t budge.
Finally, letting go of the piano, Eun Ha used all her might to pull her mother’s arm.
Thump.
The hand, which seemed like it wouldn’t move, was pulled out like a sweet potato stem. Her mother’s cold, chilled hand.
“……Mom.”
Eun Ha collapsed on the spot like a puppet with cut strings.
The hand that used to stroke Eun Ha’s hair, the arm that used to be a pillow for her during sleepless nights, had lost its owner and shed bright red tears.
A distant scream mixed with the wind, finally carried away the notice of admission that had been rolling on the floor.
[This is the time separator]September 1997.
The world changed.
A red lightning bolt that fell from the sky left a huge mark all over the country. The colorful cracks on the ground emitted a strange and gloomy aura, but didn’t trigger any special reactions.
The red lightning bolts that fell all over the world, and the cracks left behind as traces, would later be called ‘Gates.’
Then one day. A horrifying event occurred in which researchers investigating the cracks in the metropolitan area were wiped out.
Of the dozens, only one came back alive.
“A locust, larger than a car, even a bus, was there! I lost my arm to that creature!”
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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