It was a very cozy and peaceful morning.
Aria had a good night’s sleep for the first time in a long while.
This was unusual, as she typically had trouble sleeping in unfamiliar places.
“Shall I bring your meal first?”
Aria nodded at the servant’s gentle inquiry.
The servant carefully exited, saying she would bring it right away.
Aria thought as she watched the servant leave.
Just yesterday, she could not have expected such kindness.
Aria had thought herself to be stronger than anyone else.
‘But I wasn’t.’
Faced with reality, she had been hypnotizing herself.
She pretended to be strong, trying desperately to endure the worst circumstances.
She looked at the sunlight pouring through the window.
Finally, the day she had longed for had dawned. Others could not know how long she had waited for this day.
Aria smiled at the thought that her life would be turned 180 degrees today.
“I’ll give you more pain than I ever felt.”
Aria recalled the misery she had experienced over the past few days.
Then she inwardly vowed.
She would make Clea live miserably, feeling humiliated for the rest of her life.
She would keep her under strict surveillance so she couldn’t die even if she wanted to.
‘Admund.’
By now, wouldn’t he be desperately searching for her?
Aria never once doubted the effects of the love potion.
While she had faith in the records left by her ancestors, in reality, it was her only remaining means to turn the tables.
That Admund would desperately love her.
Aria was certain that if only that happened, this situation would be completely reversed.
Some might say that it’s just the Crown Prince, not the Emperor, whose love has changed, so how could that change everything? But there was the precedent of the current Emperor Odin.
Elaina too had become the Crown Princess, beating out other strong candidates at the time.
It was all because of Odin’s love that it was possible.
‘He’ll surely come to me, somehow canceling his marriage to you.’
If the sole heir to the imperial family insisted, others would have no choice but to take her side.
Lost in such delusions, before she knew it, the food had arrived.
Seeing the food, Aria slightly furrowed her brow.
It was a rather large amount of food for her, who usually ate little for breakfast.
But her mood softened somewhat upon hearing the following words.
“The master said you should eat well, as you have an important day ahead.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
It was important, so she had to eat and gain strength as Barwin said.
She picked up her spoon, looking at the appetizing food laid out.
Meanwhile, the servant recalled what Barwin had said.
‘He said to put all our effort into it, as it’s her last meal.’
The real reason Barwin had sent such a lavish meal was that.
It was meant to be Aria’s last supper, so she should eat as much as she wanted before leaving.
Unaware of this, Aria fixed her gaze on the dress placed in one corner of the room while eating her soup.
Wanting to look beautiful for Admund, she took out the jewels from her bag and handed them to the servant.
“This is…”
“Could you please make me look pretty?”
The servant hesitated for a moment upon receiving the jewels and Aria’s request to make her beautiful.
Aria placed the jewels directly into the hesitating servant’s hand.
Aria smiled at the bewildered servant.
“Don’t feel too burdened. It’s a reward for treating me so kindly.”
“My lady.”
“Later, when I go to the imperial palace, I’ll tell Barwin to call you as my maid, so wait until then.”
At Aria’s continued urging, the servant finally couldn’t reply and headed towards Barwin.
Explaining everything that had just happened and revealing the received jewels, Barwin said with a bitter smile.
“She gave it to you, so you keep it.”
“Is that really alright?”
“Yes, it’s of no use to me anyway.”
He now felt sorry for her, still immersed in fantasy until the very end.
He quietly spoke again.
“Just don’t speak of what happened today anywhere.”
“Yes, I understand.”
With those final words, the servant went out.
She was likely going to adorn Aria, who must have finished her meal by now.
Meanwhile, he looked out the window for a while.
With little time left until the trial, a carriage waiting to take her away could be seen outside.
“Have a safe journey.”
It would be right to see her off since it was the last time, but he too had things to do and had to move quickly.
So after leaving a final greeting, he tidied himself up and left the mansion first.
* * *
Aria dressed up gorgeously as she wished.
It was a striking beauty that could draw everyone’s attention.
The moment she stepped out of the carriage, gazes poured on her as she had intended.
“How shameless to show up here.”
“If it were me, I would have fled the capital long ago.”
“I heard she was kicked out of the Hersher family, so where has she been staying to look so neat?”
However, the gazes directed at her were not at all kind.
Seeing her boldly appear without running away, people thought her brazen.
The things she had done so far had already spread widely among the nobles.
Because of this, families who had accompanied Aria or joined in tormenting Clea paid huge sums of money to the imperial family as an apology in addition to congratulatory money.
Some even went to the imperial palace and knelt down to beg for forgiveness.
Public opinion towards Aria was that bad.
‘This will be the last time you can look at me like that.’
Her temper, which had softened at the Rokin Viscount’s residence, turned harsh again.
Aria deliberately ignored the gazes directed at her and moved forward.
There was no point in staying, as she wouldn’t hear anything good anyway.
Finally arriving at the courtroom, Aria opened the door with a dignified appearance.
The first person her eyes fell on was, of course, Clea.
“It’s been a while.”
“You.”
Clea, she looked at Aria with a smile.
Aria’s expression hardened for a moment at the sight of the person who should be most anxious now wearing a welcoming expression, but soon she snorted.
How long could her poker face possibly last?
Aria spoke the words she had wanted to say when meeting Clea.
“I really hate you.”
Countless gazes poured on the two of them.
However, neither of them paid attention to their surroundings. They only looked at each other.
“I lost everything because of you.”
Clea quietly listened to Aria’s words.
“Today I’ll get it all back.”
The words Aria was spouting were exactly as Clea had imagined.
As Barwin had said, she still mistakenly thought she held the upper hand.
Clea inwardly clicked her tongue and thought.
‘Do you really think that’s possible?’
In a way, Aria was pitifully single-minded.
But considering it was all brought about by her own actions, she wasn’t that pitiful.
Clea opened her mouth to Aria.
“I’ll return those words right back to you.”
“Ha!”
Aria frowned as if enraged. Her eyes were filled with anger, as if asking what she had to reclaim.
Clea had just one thing left to take back from her.
In fact, it was for this very reason that she had dragged her to this place.
Meanwhile, as the trial time approached, more people began to enter.
“Aria.”
The Duchess Hersher, seeing Aria, tried to approach her.
“My lady.”
But Duke Hersher blocked her way.
Grit entered after them.
As soon as he entered, Grit glared at Clea with bloodshot eyes.
His appearance was a mess.
He reeked as if he had been drinking until the night before, and his clothes were disheveled. He looked just like the rogue Lloyd.
Perhaps because of this, no one approached him to speak.
“His Majesty the Emperor has arrived.”
After Odin, who would be responsible for today’s trial, finished entering, the courtroom doors closed completely.
Everyone present bowed their heads towards Odin.
Then the moderator’s words followed.
“Will the two of you please come forward.”
The two people the moderator referred to were Clea and Aria, the protagonists of today’s trial.
The two stepped forward simultaneously.
As she went out, Aria was looking for something.
Knowing what she was searching for, Clea barely held back her laughter.
Unable to find the presence she was looking for no matter how much she looked around, Aria hastily raised an objection.
“I object!”
Odin, sighing at Aria’s objection, gave her permission to speak, saying let’s hear what she had to say.
“Where is His Highness the Crown Prince?”
The person she was looking for was none other than Admund.
Not seeing the only person who could save her, Aria felt anxious.
But from the beginning, whether he came or not was entirely up to him.
There was no obligation for him to be here.
The reason this place was created was solely because of the issue between Clea and Aria, and had nothing to do with him.
Though he could have pointed this out sufficiently, Odin, the judge, merely smiled.
“Ah yes, come to think of it, I don’t see the Crown Prince. Where is he?”
“He has just arrived.”
No sooner had Odin finished speaking than news came that Admund had arrived.
Aria’s expression brightened, and Clea sneered at her.
She probably thought things were going according to her plan so far.
“His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived.”
“Admund!”
As the door opened, Admund in full uniform strode in with large steps.
Aria rejoiced at the sight, mistakenly thinking he was walking towards her.
“Admund?”
Of course, her misunderstanding did not last long.
“Did you wait long?”
“We’ve only just begun.”
He went straight to Clea, embraced her, and whispered softly.
Seeing this, Aria’s eyes widened.
“A-Admund.”
“Didn’t I warn you before?”
Aria felt bewildered by Admund’s cold gaze directed at her.
“You and I are no longer anything to each other, so don’t call me that.”
It was exactly the same as when he had come to the Hersher Duke’s residence before and told her they were no longer in any relationship.
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
_____
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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