Marriage with the Younger Brother of the Man Who Betrayed Me (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 1
The emperor I had served with my whole heart was an exceptionally merciful man.
The poisoned wine he gave me in an attempt to kill me was, mercifully, rich in flavor.
Thanks to that, I was allowed the luxury of savoring its taste thoroughly before my death.
Yet at the same time, he was also a cruel man—terribly so.
Had he been even slightly less cruel, he would have poured enough poison into the wine to kill me instantly.
But because he didn’t, I was left gasping on the floor, writhing in agony for nearly three minutes as my esophagus burned away.
“Hah… hah…”
My emperor, Ernant, silently looked down at me as I lay gasping on the banquet hall floor.
His golden hair, bright as sunlight, and his fresh green eyes flickered faintly in my fading vision.
For a while, we simply stared at each other.
Then, suddenly, he knelt beside me and met my gaze.
“I’m sorry. I truly intended for you to die peacefully. I never meant for you to suffer like this for so long.”
I wanted to ask him why he hadn’t just used more poison, but sadly my tongue had stiffened and refused to move.
This agonizing poison was killing me slowly but surely.
Because of that, I couldn’t speak at length—I barely managed to squeeze out a single word.
“Why…?”
My desperate question, wrung from the last of my strength, somehow reached Ernant’s ears.
He frowned slightly at the corners of his eyes before speaking.
“You’re asking why I poisoned you?”
I weakly nodded, and a faint smile appeared on Ernant’s lips.
“You really are slow, Yulia. You still can’t guess the reason?”
It frustrated me, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t figure it out.
Why would my emperor poison me?
I had served him faithfully my entire life as a knight, and my abilities weren’t bad either.
If anything, I’d been helpful to him—I’d never done anything deserving death by poison.
Thus, even as I lay dying, I waited desperately for his answer.
Thankfully, I heard it soon enough.
“The Empire no longer needs heroes now that peace has returned. One sun for the Empire is more than enough—and that sun is me.”
Ah, so that was it.
Now I finally understood.
It seemed my valor had offended him.
Among the Awakened—those who possess the powerful ability known as ‘Gift’—I belonged to the highest tier.
I had spent years using my Gift to exterminate monsters for our Heldenberk Empire.
As a knight, I had eradicated every monster within the Empire’s borders and earned great merit.
Because of this, the people hailed both Martin, my superior, and me as heroes… and Ernant, apparently, found that deeply displeasing.
He must have been irritated that he, the Emperor himself, was being overshadowed by his own younger brother, Martin, and me.
Yes, I could understand his feelings intellectually.
But then a sudden doubt crossed my mind.
Did he really have to wear such a pleased expression at this very moment?
I disliked Ernant’s expression.
I had sworn my genuine loyalty to him—had he ordered me to die, I would have willingly given my life without hesitation.
My wishes weren’t grand.
If only, before killing me, he’d shown a trace of guilt, I wouldn’t have resented him.
But Ernant was smiling.
He was smiling as the knight who had not only served him faithfully but had secretly adored him beyond mere loyalty, lay dying.
So perhaps it wasn’t so strange that I, crushed by despair, shed tears.
“Are you crying? Is it really that painful?”
Ernant asked in a voice as fresh as his smile.
I answered only with labored, gasping breaths.
He nodded as if understanding, then called over a nearby guard who stood blankly in shock.
“Lend me your sword.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The guard handed Ernant his sword.
Mercifully, he positioned it vertically above my chest, preparing to thrust it through me.
At last, this wretched agony would end.
I wished he’d just finish it quickly—but my considerate emperor insisted on uttering another unnecessary remark.
“Any last words?”
I briefly considered begging him to end my life swiftly, but decided against it.
Instead, I wanted to convey at least one more line of resentment lingering in my heart.
“If… if another life exists…”
I struggled to continue as my throat tightened.
“I’ll never… become your knight… again…”
Ernant burst into sudden laughter upon hearing my dying words.
Was my final utterance, wrung from my very last strength, merely a joke to him?
With amusement still in his voice, he replied,
“That’s fine. You don’t have to be my knight in your next life. Why not become my wife instead? If you’re reborn as a noblewoman—just dull and foolish enough not to annoy me—I might accept you.”
Hearing those final words, I felt no anger.
Only despair.
The person I’d devoted my entire life to serving turned out to be this kind of man.
In the moment before killing me, he’d removed his mask of pretense—and what lay beneath was utterly grotesque.
There was no honor, nothing noble to be found.
All that lurked in his heart was nothing but petty jealousy.
“Now, I’ll truly end it for you.”
Hearing those words from Ernant, I closed my eyes.
At last, relief was coming.
Never before had death felt so welcome.
Yet, frustratingly, my life seemed tougher than I’d thought.
Footsteps echoed from the hallway, then the banquet hall doors burst open.
“Yulia!”
The one who shouted my name so loudly was a tall man with black hair.
I knew him well.
Martin von Havicht—the miracle born of the Heldenberk Empire.
My superior, the Captain of our knight order, and the man who, alongside me, had slain monsters and earned the title of hero.
Also, Ernant’s younger brother—the very target of his jealousy…
Seeing him, countless thoughts flooded my mind.
Why had he come here?
Could he have somehow learned I’d be poisoned?
Had he come to save me?
For a fleeting moment, I wondered if that was the case—but I quickly dismissed the idea.
Our Captain, known for his icy rationality, would never storm the imperial palace so suddenly just to save a single knight like me.
In any case, the Captain’s abrupt arrival prevented Ernant from ending my life.
“Why are you here…?! What did you do to the guards outside?!”
Ernant shouted in panic—but the Captain merely tossed something toward him.
It was the severed head of the guard captain.
It seemed the Captain, along with our knights behind him, had fought their way through the palace guards to reach this place.
Afterward, the Captain and his knights swiftly eliminated the remaining guards inside the banquet hall.
Finally, Ernant—now captured and forced to his knees—shouted in desperation.
“Release me at once! I am the Emperor of this Empire! Do you really think you’ll walk away unscathed after this?!”
Ignoring his desperate cry, the Captain simply walked toward me.
As I took in his handsome face for what I thought would be the last time, he knelt down on one knee, lowering himself closer to me.
Our eyes drew slightly nearer—and I clutched the hem of his trousers, pleading.
“I beg you… please… just end it… now…”
I truly wanted to die.
Trapped between life and death, I’d already endured minutes of unbearable agony.
Fortunately, my superior was known as a cold-hearted man whose veins ran with ice instead of blood—he seemed capable of granting my wish.
I expected him to swing his sword and cleanly sever my head in one stroke.
I believed it without a doubt.
But inexplicably, what emerged from the lips of my ice-blooded superior was warm, hopeful words I’d never anticipated.
“You won’t die today. My men are bringing the antidote soon.”
What on earth was he saying? I seriously wondered if my ears had failed me.
Martin—my ever-composed superior—was never one to speak empty words of hope.
Even with a favored subordinate, if he judged there was no chance of survival, he’d end their life without hesitation.
Yet here he was, uttering strange reassurances over me, who clearly had no hope left.
“Don’t give up. Just hold on a little longer. I’ll stay by your side.”
He took my cold, lifeless hand in his large one.
Through my dimming eyes, I barely made out his handsome face—twisted now with worry and sorrow for me.
Even his golden eyes, always radiating coldness, now glowed with warmth.
Ah, so that was it.
In that moment, I finally understood the Captain’s feelings I’d failed to notice all this time.
He was a man so reserved in expressing emotion that I hadn’t realized—he’d secretly cared for me all along.
Even as despair washed over me at the thought that this agony wouldn’t end soon, I also felt a sense of relief.
If my death was merely entertainment for Ernant, it clearly wasn’t for the Captain.
He’d surely miss me and grieve for me after I was gone.
Thinking this, a sudden wish arose in my heart.
I wanted to live a little longer.
Now that I knew the Captain cherished me, a flicker of will to live returned.
Ten years… no, even five would be enough—I just wanted a bit more time.
But fate can be cruelly ironic at times.
When I’d wanted to die, my life clung stubbornly on—but the moment I wished to live, it threatened to snap at once.
“Hah—cough…!”
“Yulia!!”
As blood suddenly spilled from my lips, the Captain urgently called out my name.
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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Yulia is exceptionally intelligent and always finds creative solutions to difficult problems.
Took you so long!! I suspected him when he sneek up on you at the river and finally confirmed my suspicion of him since the Ball!!