The baby, who had followed his mother like a duckling, had become a boy.
He could not yearn or miss.
Nikolai decided to keep his distance from Franz.
He thought that was what Franz wanted.
‘If I hear about Finch, I’ll want to see him more. Trying clumsily to open his heart will only make things worse.’
The baby, who used to hang around my legs laughing, is gone now.
Nikolai didn’t want to admit it. He couldn’t stop interfering either.
It was only natural for Franz to avoid his fake father.
“Will you send her out of the palace if Elizabeth cannot persuade His Highness?”
“No way.”
“What do you intend to do?”
“I want to see her suffer for once.”
“Excuse me?”
“I wish she would lie at my feet, begging me to look at her, like other subjects.”
Elizabeth had only done that in front of Nikolai once.
On the terrace on the day they first met at the Camellia Party.
When Nikolai did not fall for her, she realized it, turned pale, and fell to her knees.
‘She looked like a trembling hamster. It was so cute.’
A deep wrinkle carved into Nikolai’s brow.
Cute? What am I thinking?
He shook his head vigorously.
As if doing so would erase the word that popped into his head.
‘She’s just arrogant, and a woman who doesn’t know her place. Cute, no way. Moreover, she had a fiancé.’
He glanced at the letter tossed haphazardly on the desk.
His fist tightened every time he thought of that Douglas guy.
“I will marry Elizabeth right here!”
What was even harder to bear was Elizabeth’s hesitation.
“Douglas is not a trifling man. He only tried to keep his promise to protect me with his life.”
Suddenly.
The fountain pen Nikolai was holding snapped in two.
Black ink flowed down the back of his hand, but he was too busy chewing over Elizabeth’s behavior.
‘How dare she defend him in front of me? If you love him so much, why did you break off the engagement? Are you two playing games?’
Nikolai had everything about Elizabeth investigated.
Elizabeth had also ruthlessly abandoned Douglas, and it was confirmed that Douglas had unilaterally chased after her.
But Nikolai’s mind was filled with the image of lovers clinging to each other and whispering sweet words of love.
In his imagination, Douglas was not a ragged novelist but had the face of a beast dreaming of revenge.
‘He must feel wronged to be excluded from the five major noble families. He might be using Elizabeth with a naive and innocent face!’
How else could a wild idea about marrying a woman chosen by the Emperor be possible?
The more he thought about it, the more despicable the guy seemed.
Elizabeth demanded that a clause be added that she would not involve others.
There was no law that said Nikolai couldn’t amend the contract.
‘You did it? I will do it too.’
As soon as Casus cleaned up the broken pieces of the fountain pen, Nikolai opened the ink box.
Inside, an old monocle made of copper was gleaming with a strange light.
“Summon Duke Nettleton. If he does not respond, he may be arrested.”
[Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon]Tomorrow marked the end of the week Nikolai had given.
Franz was still avoiding me.
I vowed to survive by any means necessary.
I would not shy away from dirtying my hands or living as a villainess.
But using magic on Franz was impossible.
‘Wink and blow a handkiss to a 10yearold child? How can I see Franz begging for my attention?! I can’t ruin a child’s life!’
I clenched my head with both hands.
Even if it was just a facade, I was trying to become Franz’s educational supervisor.
How could I play the role of a teacher while using wicked tricks?
It was hard to break down the last conscience of the Confucian girl.
When I was unable to do anything, the palace maid came to me.
“The Crown Prince has collapsed.”
“Collapsed? Is he very sick?”
“Fortunately, he regained consciousness quickly. But he refuses treatment.”
“Can’t we force him?”
“He might smash medical instruments again. He could also threaten the healers.”
“Simon would have recommended it. I guess His Majesty ignored it again!”
How can a child be left like this when he’s sick?
And yet, can he be called a father, or even a human?
If only I knew what the illness was, I wouldn’t feel this frustrated.
I bit my thumbnail and ran to the palace.
[Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon]“Steal Duke Nettleton’s ink?”
Caeron furrowed his brows as if it was ridiculous.
“We have to hurry now!”
“Why should the Minister of Internal Affairs steal?”
“I’m just borrowing it!”
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear the conspiracy to commit a crime.”
“Caeron. Are you refusing my request?”
“It’s awkward. I remember asking you to call me by my name.”
His response was not just blunt, but chilly.
He was not like this when we met last time.
He used to gladly take care of trivial things without being asked.
Now Caeron was too logical and cold.
‘Is there an expiration date for the magic effect?!’
Goosebumps sprouted on my forearm.
I had only thought about seducing, not what would happen after.
There was no detailed information about Elizabeth’s ability in the original work.
I wasn’t very curious either.
It was just the setting for a villainess’s side character, so I accepted it.
Looking back, there were some strange parts.
‘The original Elizabeth would have used magic on men, women, old and young. How could bad rumors spread if everyone was seduced? There would only be followers around her.’
What if the magic wore off over time?
They would have felt strange and uncomfortable, just like Caeron.
Without his will, he would have wagged his tail to Elizabeth.
‘So you went to the parties every night? To seduce again before the charm’s effects wore off!’
The original Elizabeth easily won the love of others.
She didn’t need to worry about complex interpersonal issues.
People who truly cared for her, like Douglas or Susan, were rare.
On the other hand, those who avoided her or spoke ill of her behind her back would have increased.
The more she used the charm, the emptier Elizabeth would have felt, and she would have wanted more attention.
She grasped her fading mind.
What was important now was not the original setting.
“Just tell me where the filth is, Cares. I’ll take care of the rest!”
My Arch-enemy Sealed My Memory and Said That He is My Husband
This is an incredibly captivating story that you absolutely shouldn’t miss! I’ll give a brief introduction here, and below you’ll find a detailed synopsis of the plot.
The female lead is a fierce and powerful demon king. The male lead is a once-in-a-millennium celestial lord, admired by the entire cultivation world.
They are equally matched, legendary rivals who have battled for centuries.
In the final duel, the female lead is gravely injured. The male lead saves her, seals her memories, and hides her true identity. He tells her that he is her fiancé. His entire life has been flawless—except for the one thing he never expected, never controlled, and never wanted to control: falling for his greatest enemy. She is his inner demon, his obsession.
When the female lead regains her memories, she is furious at his deception.
She makes his life a living hell.
And somehow, the male lead—possibly a total masochist—doesn’t mind at all. In fact, he’s happy she’s paying attention to him.
Yep, we’re back to my favorite trope: male lead suffering. If you love this kind of story, jump into the pit with me now!!!
Intro
Dong Xia lost her memory.
Her handsome and extremely powerful fiancé Li Qing comforted her: “It’s okay if you can’t remember. I’ll always be with you.”
Everyone thought Dong Xia’s ancestors must have burned incense to get such a perfect fiancé. He was the number one person in the immortal realm, yet he remained chaste and only loved her.
…
The day before marrying her fiancé, Dong Xia finally remembered everything.
She wasn’t suffering from memory loss at all.
Her arch-enemy had made her fake her death, destroyed her cultivation, replaced her memories, and pretended to be her deeply in love fiancé.
No wonder he said, “It’s okay if you can’t remember”!
Dong Xia laughed coldly as she pulled out her long knife: Li Qing, prepare to die 🙂
*
Li Qing, as the supreme being of the immortal realm, was the people’s shining beacon.
The only unknown stain in his life was his affection for Dong Xia, the ruler of the demon realm.
In the final battle of the war between immortals and demons, the sky collapsed and the earth shattered. The ruler of the demon realm was finally slain under the sword of the supreme being of the immortal realm, and everyone in the immortal realm applauded.
The cultivation world lost a ruler of the demon realm.
And in the back mountain of Li Qing’s cave dwelling, he secretly hid away a fiancée.
Notes:
1. The female lead is white on the outside, black on the inside, and the queen of flattery; the male lead repeatedly tests the edge of darkness, a VIP guest at the crematorium.
2. Fantasy cultivation world setting.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
