Nikolai was brimming with leisure.
His appearance only fueled the anger even more.
He couldn’t let things flow the way Nikolai intended.
He spoke with the most composed voice he could muster.
“How can you, an emperor, bring a lady who is like a million miles away for a marriage you do not wish for? Aren’t you even ashamed? Moreover, you already have a child, do you not?”
“Elizabeth Emster, a lady? Even the passing dog is laughing.”
“Hmm.”
“If only one night’s lovers are counted, there are over a hundred? Compared to you, my harem is so modest it’s almost pathetic.”
“We’re just like close siblings. Just a few times meeting and eating is all.”
“How about putting more effort into your excuses?”
“I still haven’t married!”
“You will soon.”
Nikolai smiled refreshingly.
It was a beautiful and lovely smile that made his tightly clenched heart jump with annoyance.
But he was not so starved as to be captivated by the beauty of a villain who came to ruin his life.
“Is kidnapping your hobby?”
“No way.”
“It’s not a skill you tried once or twice?”
“You shouldn’t hesitate when necessary. You need persistence too.”
It was a stern warning that running away would be useless.
A man standing like a statue next to the imperial throne advised.
“Your Majesty, please release Lady Elizabeth. If you want to welcome her as Empress, you must treat her properly.”
“What if she escapes? Caeres, will you take responsibility?”
“She will stay calm. Will she not?”
Caeres looked at me with quiet eyes.
Emperor’s closest aide, Caeres, seemed to be a reasonable person as I heard.
Though kneeling on the marble floor, I lifted my chin haughtily.
“I won’t be calm, but I won’t run either. I’ll leave on my own feet.”
Nikolai shrugged, as if to show me off.
Caeres calmly retorted.
“Watch your words. This is a place where disaster can happen with a single word.”
“Indeed. There are people who have a hobby of grabbing the tail of a word to punish, right? That person’s specialty is kidnapping, isn’t it?”
“His Majesty is not always reckless.”
“In this state, it’s hard to agree.”
I squirmed, tied to the rope.
Did I look like a wriggling worm on the shoulders?
Caeres sighed.
Nikolai, the root cause of all this trouble, was observing me, his mouth tightly closed.
From head to toe, it was a persistent gaze that wouldn’t miss a single hair.
Not even an astronomer discovering a new planet could have a look as serious and passionate as his.
Though chattering about being a husband and wife, his eyes were as cold as an ice chamber.
‘Why is he so obsessed with me? What on earth is his hidden agenda?’
Nikolai, deep in thought, gestured.
“Release her now.”
Supported by the maids, I stretched my knees.
Deep red bruises remained on my pale wrists.
More troubling than the numb pain was Nikolai, an utterly incomprehensible man.
“Everyone, come in.”
The emperor’s order was given.
The doors to the royal hall, made of ebony and gold, opened.
Thirty nobles in silk garments lined up to enter.
“Greetings to His Majesty the Emperor.”
The nobles offered respectful greetings to the emperor.
They were all familiar faces from portraits.
‘The heads of the 4 Great Houses. There are also senior members of the noble council, including the Prime Minister. They have all gathered.’
I was not solely dependent on Douglas’s help.
Using the inexhaustible wealth, I had collected all the information about Nikolai and the political scene.
Indeed, money was good.
The information overflowed with things that even a devoted reader who had memorized the original work did not know.
But Nikolai’s private life had been guarded like a fortress.
Even the industry’s top experts could not go near.
“I expected a kidnapping to some extent. It’s nothing a person who made a crazy contract can’t do. But why call the nobles?”
Nikolai was not just a reckless playboy as known to the world.
He was hiding something.
It did not seem to be just a trivial problem.
The mysterious Emperor suddenly rose from the throne.
He approached me step by step, treading on the flawless, bright red carpet.
“Your Majesty?”
In the grand hall adorned with stained glass, chandeliers, and golden statues, a tension that seemed about to explode settled.
The nobles, with their eyes wide open, watched the Emperor’s every move.
I momentarily forgot to breathe.
Even if my opponent was a kidnapper, if the world’s most handsome man came close.
If he even kissed the back of my hand, it couldn’t be helped.
“!”
Soft and warm lips touched my skin.
The slight pressure pressing down on my hand throbbed my heart.
In front of my eyes, a rainbow of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet flames burst.
I bit my lip.
In case a heightened moan flowed out in a string.
“Elizabeth. How about accepting the Emperor’s heart?”
Nikolai’s voice was sweet as if honeyed.
The way he looked at me was also deeply alluring.
He seemed like a man genuinely craving a lover’s affection.
It was enough to shake my heart, knowing that everything was exaggerated and false.
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
