Male Lead's First Wife (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 030
The next day, and the day after that, there was still no sign of Dante.
‘It’s already been a week.’
Yerpi stood in the garden, gazing at the wall where Dante had once been.
She let out a faint scent, just as she had done before, but it summoned only other monsters.
A deep sigh escaped her.
The sky, influenced by the Grand Duchess’s mood, had been covered with a faint layer of dark clouds since yesterday.
Looking up at the sky, Yerpi felt even more unsettled.
‘This won’t do.’
The fact that her emotions were affecting so many others was deeply uncomfortable.
Perhaps it was because her inner worries had no way of subsiding.
She had tried deliberately eating sweets and drinking tea to lift her spirits, but the gray clouds overhead showed no sign of clearing.
It was late evening, a week later, when Meidi finally appeared before Yerpi.
Meidi blocked the Grand Duchess’s path just as she finished her meal and was heading upstairs to her room.
Today’s lady’s maid assisting Yerpi was Lucian, the most senior servant in the manor, well-liked and someone with strong potential to become a personal attendant.
Seeing a mere servant daring to block the Grand Duchess’s way, Lucian’s eyebrows twitched.
“What do you think you’re doing, Meidi? How dare you obstruct Her Grace’s path?”
“I have urgent matters to discuss with Her Grace.”
Meidi didn’t even show a trace of apology. Seeing her insolent junior, Lucian was utterly speechless.
Before Lucian could scold the impudent girl further, Yerpi stepped in to mediate.
“Very well. I suppose I should hear what you wish to discuss.”
“Your Grace.”
Lucian looked as if she wanted to object, but then reluctantly stepped back.
Seeing her senior retreat, a faint, victorious smile flickered across Meidi’s lips. It was clearly visible—not just to Lucian, but to Yerpi as well.
Pushing her luck further, Meidi requested a private conversation. Yerpi agreed and walked with her toward the garden.
The garden at night relied on the light spilling from the castle corridors.
Yerpi turned to face Meidi, looking past the darkened garden.
“Well then. What did you wish to speak to me about?”
Meidi’s normally plain and expressionless face seemed even more unreadable in the darkness.
Meidi glanced around, as if confused why she had been summoned to such a place, but quickly got to the point.
“I heard Your Grace has been searching for Master Dante. If you had asked me, I could have told you right away.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course. All matters concerning Master Dante fall under my responsibility.”
Meidi spoke with confidence in response to the seemingly innocent question.
But that was her mistake.
“You seem to have misunderstood something. Let me correct you—Dante is not under your jurisdiction. He is your master, someone you are to serve and care for. Therefore, saying he is ‘your responsibility’ is incorrect.”
“What?”
Startled, Meidi faltered.
The Grand Duchess standing in the garden looked dark, her usually gentle green eyes now cold and sharp, like frost-covered leaves.
Under that icy gaze, Meidi’s mouth went dry.
She moistened her parched lips with the tip of her tongue just as the next question came.
“And how did you know I was looking for Dante?”
“I happened to overhear things.”
Just as there were those who suspected Meidi, there were also others who, while pretending kindness, would pick up the crumbs she dropped.
And Meidi’s answer was exactly what Yerpi had been waiting for.
“Is that so? I’ve long thought there were servants in the castle who were too loose-lipped. It might be wise to properly weed them out before selecting a personal attendant.”
How the rumors had reached Meidi’s ears was no longer important.
But with that last answer, Yerpi had successfully delivered a warning—she would cut off the informants clinging to Meidi.
I know you have hidden motives.
Just imprinting that message would be enough of a warning to Meidi.
Meidi’s eyes wavered slightly, but she didn’t show major agitation.
“I don’t quite understand what you mean.”
“I see. I’d like to meet Dante. Do I need to go through you for that as well?”
“Master has been unwell all week.”
Her gaze, which had flickered for an instant, steadied again.
Apparently, Meidi still believed she held authority over anything concerning Dante.
“But why would Your Grace wish to meet him?”
Meidi was now probing the Grand Duchess.
This time, her intentions were completely transparent.
‘I wonder how Meidi ever became Yerpi’s lady’s maid.’
The Meidi Yerpi had seen through her dreams was a flamboyantly adorned young noblewoman—far more so than the Grand Duchess herself.
Yerpi had been mentally fragile, and Meidi had exploited that to seize the Grand Duchess’s fortune.
But what truly puzzled Yerpi was how Meidi had managed to become her lady’s maid in the first place.
How, exactly, had she convinced Yerpi, who was utterly obsessed with Raymond?
‘Back then, Yerpi wanted Dante eliminated.’
Yerpi had only learned that Dante was Raymond’s nephew after accepting Meidi as her maid.
Which meant…
As the tangled thread in her mind snapped into place, the full picture resembled an unpleasant ravine.
‘She intended to sell Dante to Yerpi.’
No matter how thoroughly Yerpi searched the castle, finding Dante would have been impossible.
But a nursemaid whom Dante trusted and followed completely could bring him anywhere, at any time.
Most likely, Meidi had planned to hand Dante over, gain money from Yerpi, and then flee to live a wealthy life.
However, after becoming a lady’s maid, Meidi no longer needed to eliminate Dante—and as a result, she secured both the roles of nursemaid and attendant, gaining even greater power.
The reason Meidi was now testing her was exactly this.
It was a kind of leverage—implying only she could deliver Dante.
“Oh my, I’m quite worried. I should visit him right away.”
“He would probably dislike that.”
“Why?”
“I know Master Dante better than anyone.”
Her attitude was brimming with arrogance.
She went even further, revealing her true intentions.
“You wish to grow closer to Master Dante? Then take me as your personal attendant. In life, unexpected situations arise. One can never know what might happen to a child not of one’s own blood.”
It was ridiculous advice.
Meidi acted as if she perfectly understood why Yerpi wanted to get close to the young master, and her suggestion was precisely the kind of thing that could sway a woman deeply in love with Raymond.
Meidi’s brown eyes, drowned in the night’s darkness, appeared black—a clear color of desire. Yerpi, having seen through that desire, shifted the topic.
“Why didn’t you report to His Grace that Dante is able to speak?”
“That’s… because Master’s use of language is still inadequate. I wanted to observe him more closely before giving an accurate report.”
Meidi stood confidently, offering an excuse that wasn’t really an excuse.
“But isn’t this actually a fortunate turn of events for Your Grace?”
She confidently asserted that the Grand Duchess surely wanted Dante removed.
“I see. Now I understand what you mean.”
“…! Of course, Your Grace is wise.”
Seeing agreement for the first time, Meidi’s expression brightened.
But upon seeing that genuinely pleased smile, Yerpi calmly delivered her dismissal.
“I’ll take your suggestion into consideration. You may leave now.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Judging it best not to provoke the Grand Duchess further, Meidi quickly turned and left. Her footsteps, fading into the darkness, even seemed cheerful.
Under the bright glow of a sharply defined crescent moon illuminating the garden,
Yerpi, too, began to walk.
Now that her suspicion was confirmed, she didn’t feel good.
‘I had hoped, even just a little, that there might have been some affection.’
Now it was certain—Meidi had intended to sell Dante to Yerpi.
What kind of love had Dante yearned for from someone who felt not even a trace of affection?
Her heart felt desolate.
Wandering aimlessly, Yerpi soon found herself in the castle’s lobby.
Looking up late beneath the bright chandeliers, a large painting beside the central staircase caught her eye.
‘That’s…’
A forest thick with tender green foliage.
Beyond the faint mist lay a lake hidden among the bushes.
It was a painting that exuded a distant, dreamlike fragrance.
And she had seen this very place in her dreams.
‘This is where the ruler of the Spring Territory once resided.’
Having dreamed of it twice already, she was now even more certain.
Yerpi silently became absorbed in the painting,
unaware of someone approaching behind her.
“This is a painting of the Forest of Discovery, located in the Spring Territory.”
“…!”
Startled, Yerpi turned around—and there stood Raymond.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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Chapter Comments (12)
Inline Comments (41)
But the flushed cheeks, the lips drawing a soft curve, and above all, the eyes g
He likess her I am happy but dude treat her kindly atleast maybe like a friend if not wife
Someone who knew the place she'd only seen in dreams.
Who is this person ? Had she known them in her dreams??
And the other was someone who had extended a hand, offering new warmth and kindn
How cute he is such a lovely boy, Idk why would the maid even consider him a monster
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Hah finally my poor heart has found peace and tranquility this poor lil baby needs loads of 💕
Guys, i feel soo mean still not liking the ml😭 i mean, he hasn’t done anything good so far, just the bare minimum
Pepe, noooooo😭😭😭😭😭 i think maybeee the duchess needs to go?? I still dont quite get what is happening there