Strategic Marriage with the Mad Villain (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 3
“Roel.”
I thought it was truly over after he left without a word yesterday. Yet here Cassien was again today—not only seeking out the Count’s residence once more, but refusing to leave my side all day.
And he had even insisted on staying at the mansion until dinner, prompting Peria to arrange a formal meal.
“Roel. Are you feeling unwell?”
“Hmm…? No… I’m fine.”
But I couldn’t just outright drive Cassien away like I had yesterday.
If word ever reached Peria that *I* had been the one to propose breaking off the engagement—when I was already in a precarious position even if *he* were to jilt me…
‘I might really end up dead.’
If I didn’t want to die before escaping the family, the best course was to stay as agreeable as possible with Cassien for now. I quietly nibbled at my food.
Just then, Peria spoke with an unusually gentle smile.
“It wouldn’t be bad to have dinners like this together from time to time.”
Her tone was kind—so generous, in fact—that it surprised me, especially since she was addressing my fiancé.
No doubt she was pleased that Cassien was the sole heir of House Ershian—and, more decisively…
‘She probably adores that he’s famously known throughout the Empire as a playboy.’
After all, even if I fled House Yveler, marrying Cassien would surely doom me to unhappiness.
Just as it had once doomed her.
“Yes. How have the Marquis and Marchioness been lately?”
“As always, quite well.”
“I’m glad. Ah, by the way… I heard they went on a trip?”
“Yes. It’s not far—they’ll probably return earlier than expected.”
Peria nodded and, while cutting her meat, soon continued.
“But isn’t it about time you two got married?”
“……”
Today, Cassien had been unusually sweet, acting as if he’d do anything I asked.
Yet even he had an absolute boundary he’d never cross—and that was marriage.
‘Right. He’s destined to be with the heroine anyway.’
It was a fact I’d already accepted, so I hadn’t given it much thought.
But then Cassien said,
“We *are* due to marry soon, aren’t we?”
I choked in shock at his sudden bombshell. Cassien gently patted my back.
“Roel, what’s wrong? Did something go down the wrong pipe?”
“Cough! Hack, hack—!”
Peria ignored my coughing fit entirely and continued the conversation with elegant composure.
“I’m glad our thoughts align.”
“In fact, I was planning to discuss marriage with my parents as soon as they return.”
“Oh my! That’s wonderful. When do you expect the Marquis and Marchioness back?”
Even as he answered Peria, Cassien kept rubbing my back.
His claim about marriage—and his current behavior—were both so unfamiliar that my coughing wouldn’t subside.
[This is the timeline separator]After dinner, due to Peria’s veiled insistence, I ended up strolling through the garden with Cassien. A quiet walk with an ex-lover who’d already declared our end—nothing could be more torturous.
As soon as we reached a spot out of the servants’ sight, I yanked my hand from his.
“Why are you doing this…!”
“Roel. Why are you angry again?”
“Do you really not know…?”
Frowning deeply, I watched as Cassien reached out and firmly clasped my hand once more. Then, in an impossibly soft voice, he said,
“Is it because I asked to postpone the wedding back then? I’m sorry. But I truly have no intention of delaying it anymore.”
He must have assumed my anger stemmed from our engagement—since I’d reacted indifferently to his affair with Verodika.
“I’m sorry. So now….”
“I already told you—I want to break off the engagement, Cassien.”
Cassien’s hand, which had been gently caressing mine, froze completely. Then he gripped my wrist and pulled me sharply toward him.
“You… Were you serious about that?”
His expression was the same as always—smiling as usual.
But I could tell whether he was genuinely smiling or merely masking his true feelings with an even more convincing smile.
This smile was clearly the latter.
As if confirming my suspicion, a chilling coldness suddenly filled Cassien’s eyes.
“Roel. I asked if you were serious.”
Startled by that unfamiliar gaze, I tried to step back—but Cassien yanked me closer, pressing me against him even tighter than before.
So… was Cassien actually angry with me now…?
‘Why?’
While I was still confused, Cassien interlaced his fingers with both of my hands, trapping me so I couldn’t flee.
“Roel, why on earth are you doing this…? Huh? How could we possibly part ways?”
Then he pulled me into a full embrace. Pressing his cheek against my head, he nuzzled me almost affectionately.
“I won’t do it anymore… So please, just stop being mad at me, okay?”
“……”
“Huh? Roel….”
Never before had he shown such tender physical affection. My body stiffened in shock—yet I quickly gathered my wits and shoved him away.
“Don’t… Don’t touch me, Cassien….”
Cassien remained frozen in the exact position I’d pushed him into. Strangely, just seeing him like that made my heart waver—and as it kept growing weaker, I turned my head slightly and continued.
“Since you seem not to have understood, I’ll say it again. I have no intention of ever seeing you again.”
“What…?”
“I’m tired of worrying you’ll be with other women, and I’m exhausted from fearing you’ll leave me. So I just… I just want to end it all.”
“……”
“I don’t want to stay by your side anymore, Cassien….”
In that instant, all expression vanished completely from Cassien’s face.
He didn’t grimace or raise his voice—but he looked angrier than I’d ever seen him.
Was he furious precisely because he never expected me to propose a breakup?
“If you can’t believe it… then go ahead and tell everyone I was the one who ended it. I don’t care….”
“Roel.”
“You…! That you don’t truly love me… I already knew.”
“……”
“I kept hoping that maybe, just once, you’d look back at me…”
But I’d never even received a single glance—let alone genuine care.
“Cassien. I really want to stop this….”
“……”
I’d known it would come to this, yet I couldn’t help feeling dejected.
Leaving Cassien standing frozen in place, I slowly walked back toward the mansion. But then Cassien strode forward with long steps and wrapped his arms around me from behind.
“Cassien…!”
“Roel, I was wrong.”
“……”
“It was all my fault, Roel.”
The familiar scent of Cassien washed over me, and I involuntarily froze. He placed his hands over mine and slowly slid them up to rest on my stomach.
Cassien rarely initiated physical contact with me.
So why was he acting like this now? I was flustered and confused.
Honestly, my heart wavered slightly—because this tender gesture resembled the loving affection I’d always imagined during our four years of engagement.
But behind that fleeting waver came only shame and sorrow.
Because deep down, I knew this tenderness was just another empty display he could offer to anyone—and I felt pathetic for having tried so hard to ignore that truth.
Sensing my stiffness, Cassien spoke in a deliberately sorrowful tone.
“Forgive me, Roel… There won’t be any more incidents like this.”
“…Don’t do this, Cassien.”
“I’ll do anything. Please, just forgive me….”
In that moment, I recalled the novel’s scene where Cassien clung desperately to Iris.
Those scenes where he sincerely repented, begged for forgiveness, and confessed his love endlessly… Had he ever felt even a fraction of that for me? Or was it just out of duty?
Either way, it was a pointless question.
‘Because in the end, you love Iris….’
“…I love you.”
“……”
“So… please don’t leave like this.”
It was ironic.
I was hearing those words—words I’d never once heard from him—only now, when I was thinking of Iris.
It felt like a declaration that no matter what, he would always love Iris.
My heart turned cold, as if doused with icy water.
“Cassien.”
At my voice, a brief flicker of light passed through Cassien’s red eyes.
I met his gaze for just a moment before speaking flatly.
“Never appear before me again.”
[This is the timeline separator]Today was the night of the ball at the Imperial Palace.
This ball was held to formally recognize the Emperor’s daughter—Iris, who had grown up outside the palace—as the Imperial Princess. It was also the day the male lead, Cassien, and the female lead, Iris, would meet for the first time.
‘He’ll fall for Iris at first sight during this ball.’
As I stood lost in thought, gazing blankly into the ballroom, my friend Emily tapped my shoulder.
“Roel. Where’s Cassien?”
“…Huh?”
“Hasn’t Cassien arrived yet?”
Then Roshan, standing beside me, spoke up.
“Are you really going to marry that guy? What’s so good about someone who only gives you grief…?”
“I broke up with him.”
“Yeah, broke up—wait, what?”
Roshan’s narrowed, disapproving eyes instantly widened in shock.
“I broke up with Cassien.”
“Who did?”
Roshan looked so genuinely stunned she repeated the question like a fool.
“…Who else? Me and Cassien.”
“You… You! That bastard dumped you? Ha! What did he even do right to dump *you*? If anything, *you* should’ve broken up with *him*! What an arrogant jerk!”
Roshan clearly assumed I’d been the one dumped.
After all, until now, I’d shown nothing but weakness. No one would believe I’d be the one to end things first.
To Roshan, who was ranting furiously about Cassien, I said plainly,
“I was the one who broke up with him.”
“……You were?”
“……Yeah. Me.”
We stared at each other, both wearing expressions of disbelief—when suddenly the guards silently stationed at the ballroom entrance loudly announced a name.
“His Grace, Grand Duke Rocheter!”
The novel’s villain—and the man responsible for my death—Reus Rocheter had arrived.
Male lead says he’s pregnant — and it’s female lead’s child
Something seems a bit off about this world.
Wang Zhao thought as she watched a pregnant man walking towards her…
Intro
Female lead finds herself in a world where the men who possess the ability to bear children.
As she navigates this unfamiliar reality, she is caught off guard by the sudden appearance of her boyfriend, who reveals that he is pregnant.
Is this truly her boyfriend?
Why can’t she recall any details about their time together?
She begins to doubt whether the child her boyfriend is carrying is even hers.
Is there a hidden reason behind her amnesia, or could it be a side effect of her sudden arrival in this strange new world?
Just when it seems the protagonist’s life couldn’t become any more entangled, her ex-boyfriend makes an unexpected appearance, raising questions about the protagonist’s past.
__________
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