“Ahh, it’s warm.”
The fireplace roared with logs Heina had diligently placed.
The bandages that Hile had carefully reapplied with medicine.
And the belly filled with Ralph’s hearty soup.
‘It’s too warm…’
It seemed her body was thawing.
She felt the warm temperature seeping through her melted skin, finally making her mind drowsy.
Between the fading memories of the man and the warmth of the blanket, Louise’s voice floated.
‘Next winter, you’ll be able to sleep comfortably in a warm place.’
Her sister always kept her promises.
…But why does that make me so angry?
As Yu-An’s eyes began to close again, her dry lips pressed together, suppressing her emotions.
Winter in the capital Cielo wasn’t particularly harsh.
Instead of white snow, the well-kept streets were filled with vibrant colors, and people busily cleared snow in plazas and commercial areas, preparing for daily crowds.
Crossing several squares to enter the palace, Duke Compagni scoffed at the long line stretching from the entrance of the First Prince’s palace.
Rumors in Cielo suggested that to meet the Emperor, one had to go through First Prince Bolonico, unless one was influential enough to attend the central council meetings.
Partially, it was true.
The First Prince’s palace was adorned with opulent decorations and gold silks, a collection of the world’s rarest and strangest things, including a pink peacock and black ivory that seemed to have been brought from afar.
‘Is this a palace or a circus?’
Duke Compagni, ignoring the hostile glares of those who disliked line-cutting, made his way to the entrance at the end of the queue.
The foreign servants, with their vacant faces, recognized him and cleared a path.
He enjoyed the envious looks for a moment before quickly adjusting his attire and heading to the audience chamber.
First Prince Bolonico Uphris, with his trademark golden hair and blue eyes reminiscent of the Emperor, looked particularly radiant today.
His brow-length bangs, sharply cut, and a nose that seemed to reach the heavens, his face was full of unexplained pride. His neatly cut golden hair shimmered and swayed annoyingly with every slight turn of his head.
“To the greatest glory of Uphris – Prince Bolonico. I, Harold Compagni, have completed the task you entrusted to me.”
“Ah, the moldy duke.”
Giggle, giggle.
Prince Bolonico, lounging with a dancer and munching on grapes, made a comment that prompted laughter from the servants lined up like wings beside him.
Duke Compagni stiffened; such childish name-calling was a sign of Prince Bolonico’s twisted mood.
“Bolonico, I’m disappointed.”
The prince’s comment triggered an uproarious response from the servants.
“Ooh!”
“How dare someone disturb Prince Bolonico’s mood.”
‘Rootless foreign servant scum…’
Duke Compagni forced a smile, muttering to himself.
And the most annoying of all was Bolonico’s shoulder-perched, ostentatious parrot.
“Death! Death!”
The parrot kept scratching his nerves with its repetitive phrases.
“I’ve confirmed the schemes of Garett Compagni and led the second daughter of the former Duke of Compagni to the Black Mansion.”
“Like I don’t know that.”
Prince Bolonico got up from the dancer’s lap, tucked his gleaming blond hair behind his ear with a sulky gesture, and glared down at Duke Compagni, who was slumped over.
“You know that’s not what Bolonico is curious about.”
Duke Compagni momentarily looked confused before realization dawned on his face. Bolonico must be curious about the new bride’s reaction to the Abandoned Emperor and the happenings at the mansion.
“It’s the same. The mansion remains unchanged, neither diminished nor augmented. Although Duke Lev was in the bedroom, the Abandoned Emperor didn’t even acknowledge him. As always, he seemed to lack any motivation.”
Bolonico yawned exaggeratedly, stretching his fingers and tapping his mouth as if showcasing his well-manicured nails.
He then cleverly masked his wide-open mouth and slowly blinked his long eyelashes, clearly expressing boredom. Duke Compagni’s already gaunt face seemed to grow even more haggard.
“Bolonico, it’s tedious. The same report every time.”
“Moldy, tedious!”
“Tedious, tedious!”
“What can we do? We can’t force a monster who locks himself in his room to come out and be displayed. Right?”
“Monsters, don’t belong in beautiful places!”
“Right! Right!”
The foreign servants and the parrot Lorenzo loudly agreed with Bolonico.
Compagni, who had vowed not to let any of these audience members off easy if they were ever chased away, glanced at Prince Bolonico, who was curling his lips smugly.
“Bolonico, I’ve heard an interesting piece of news.”
“Oh?”
“The ‘bird’ told me first, while the moldy duke was crawling here like a 150-year-old turtle.”
Indeed.
Behind Prince Bolonico, a bird with yellow feathers as shiny as his blonde hair was busily eating seeds in a cage.
“The monster himself took action, admitting the ninth bride that the moldy duke brought into the mansion.”
“Yeeees?”
My Ex-Girlfriend Is The Regent In The Female-dominant World (Male lead transmigrates to the matriarchal world)
Two years ago, Gu Sui picked up a homeless woman in ancient costume from the street.
Apart from occasionally claiming to be a princess from a female-dominant country due to illness, her figure, appearance, intelligence, and martial arts skills were impeccable.
Naturally evolving from roommates to girlfriends, as time went on, Gu Sui found it increasingly difficult to tolerate her queen syndrome.
“Mu Jiulu, can you stop controlling me inside and out? Let’s break up.”
Gu Sui made a breakup call, and since then, he couldn’t find any trace of her.
A year later, Gu Sui, who was planning to move, woke up the next day and found himself in a different place.
“Young Master, today is the day you choose your Wife-master through martial arts competition at Jade Dew Pavilion. Please get up quickly.”
Gu Sui: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?
As the only son of a general’s mansion in a female-dominant dynasty, the young empress personally issued a decree allowing Gu Sui to select his Wife-master through martial arts competition. Whoever could defeat him could marry him.
Gu Sui: “……”
He didn’t inherit the original owner’s martial prowess, so anyone could defeat him! And what the hell is a Wife-master?
Forced to come to Jade Dew Pavilion, the densely packed women below made Gu Sui’s agoraphobia act up, and his face was full of resistance.
Until he saw the Regent sitting on the second floor, with a smile on the corner of her lips, her eyes wicked and nonchalant.
Hmm… she looked a little familiar.
It turned out that the Regent also found him a little familiar.
Mu Jiulu fiddled with her bone clasp, her deep gaze locked on the man who was out of place in this world.
“Finally, I found you.”
Male transmigrates into female-dominant world
One-sentence summary: What goes around comes around, taking turns in the crematorium
