Strategic Marriage with the Mad Villain - Chapter 8
“Shall I tell you? No. It would be enough if you told him that you saved him…”
“Please tell him that you found him in the forest and treated him.”
“Yes, I saved… Huh?”
“Just in case… I was… Yes, an assistant! Please also say I was like an assistant.”
Uncle Haven’s face contorted as if he was hearing some strange nonsense.
“Why are you making such a request, hm? Even the duke, known for his cold demeanor, would obviously want to repay the favor! Why not take this opportunity to ask for money as repayment…!”
‘You don’t understand, uncle…’
That it could be the price of my life.
“Are you worried that the count’s family might find out about your outing today?”
“Yes, well…”
“If that’s the reason, I’ll explain it well to the duke. So, let’s reveal that you saved him-”
“No! Absolutely not! Please don’t say anything at all.”
I couldn’t explain about the original story, how getting involved would mess up the plot, and how that would ruin my escape plan, so I just mumbled vaguely.
“I didn’t save him expecting anything in return anyway… It’s just… Apart from all that, I’m not happy about getting involved with someone like him. I know it’s not easy to understand, but please. Okay? Uncle…”
“Huh, well… Or I could receive money on your behalf…”
“Ah- No! Please don’t receive anything from the duke. Please.”
Even that small gesture could lead to another unfortunate entanglement. If there was even the slightest possibility, it was right to nip it in the bud.
To ensure that after today, Reus wouldn’t be able to come anywhere near Anas.
“Then… I’ll come back when I save up more money. Okay, uncle…?”
“Sigh… Alright, I understand. Good grief…”
If the person I saved hadn’t been Reus, I might have revealed my identity. As uncle said, in my current situation where money is desperately needed, it would have been a golden opportunity to earn a share, pay for my status, and gather funds to settle in Belliata.
But the person in question was Reus.
The crazy villain from the original story! The cause of my death!
So, the best choice was to prevent any sign of entanglement beforehand.
‘I can’t get involved with the villain so easily.’
How much have I struggled to not disrupt the original story until now! I had no intention of letting all my lifelong efforts go to waste because of today’s incident.
‘Of course, recently things have gotten a bit… just a little off track. But it’s only a tiny bit, right?’
After going to such lengths, what could possibly happen?
But as always, things in life never go exactly as planned.
It took only a week to realize this age-old truth anew.
* * *
Fortunately, on the way back, I arrived home safely without any problems. However, perhaps because I had used muscles I don’t normally use to move Reus near Anas, I spent almost four days mostly in bed after returning.
Still, given that there had been no news from Reus’s side during that time, it seemed that Uncle Haven had handled my request well.
Nevertheless, there was still a problem that needed to be solved.
‘Money… What should I do?’
The reason I went to Anas that day was to pay the final installment for my new identity.
But I had spent all that money on medicine for Reus!
When I thought someone might die, I made a momentary misjudgment. Not that I regretted saving a person’s life, but…
The problem was that the person I saved was Reus, the cause of my death.
Creating a point of contact when I should be distancing myself as much as possible. Even though there had been no news so far, I couldn’t completely relax, so my mind was still in turmoil.
Just because of my words about breaking off the engagement, things had gotten tangled to the point of this happening. Who knows when yesterday’s incident might be discovered!
‘So I need to prepare funds for my escape even faster…’
Since it’s a secret that I saved him, Reus won’t return the money.
‘It would be nice if I could get help from Uncle Haven, but…’
Uncle was an employee managing one of the many branches in Anas, so he wasn’t in a position to give money or free goods out of pity.
I racked my brains, but no good ideas came to mind.
“What should I do now?”
It took several months of saving to gather that money, so there’s no way I can raise it again in just a few days…
Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.
“Ah…! My birthday!”
There was my birthday!
My birthday at the end of next month was one of the few days when my usually busy father paid attention to me.
Will he give me jewelry like last time? Even though it would be a necklace with a much cheaper stone compared to the necklaces Verodica usually wears, even that would be a large sum for me.
‘If I sell that, it should cover the money somewhat.’
Then I could gather money faster than I expected.
So, the most urgent problem now is…
The letter breaking off the engagement that I angrily scrawled and sent directly to Marquis Ercian.
‘The letter must have already arrived at the Marquis’s residence by now.’
It’s only a matter of time before Feria finds out.
What worries me most is what if Feria, enraged by this fact, decides to lock me up somewhere.
Now that my body had recovered, the sense of crisis finally hit me.
‘For now, there might be a chance the letter hasn’t arrived at the Marquis’s residence… I should ask Eni if there’s any way…’
But at that moment, suddenly the door of the old room burst open with such force it seemed it might break.
-Bang!
“Roel!”
Feria, who never even came near the annex, especially not near my room, had come in person. This meant that some kind of reply had arrived from the Marquis.
‘Damn it.’
As I awkwardly stood up, Feria strode towards me and struck my cheek with tremendous force. Slap-! With a sharp sound, my head turned so much that my neck felt stiff.
“Explain! Did you really send such a letter to Marquis Ercian?”
“……”
“Why can’t you speak! I’m asking if it’s true that you sent it!”
As I avoided her eyes and couldn’t answer easily, Feria’s hand struck my cheek once again. I staggered, covering my cheek, but Feria, as if unable to tolerate even that, roughly grabbed my wrist.
“You…, how dare you! Who gave you permission to mention breaking off the engagement!”
“Mother, that…”
“Shut your mouth! I’ve been too lenient with you, and now you’ve truly gone mad. Lock this wench in the basement right away…!”
“My lady-!”
Just as Feria was about to grab my hair, a maid rushed into the room in great urgency.
“What is it!”
“Well, that… Young Master Ercian has come and…”
The maid’s eyes briefly darted towards me.
“He says he wants to see the young miss now…”
The maid, seeing my disheveled hair and swollen red cheeks, quickly lowered her head as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have.
At that reaction, Feria, seeming to come to her senses, turned to me and roughly grabbed my chin. Her gaze, colder than the edge of a knife, lingered on my cheeks for a long time.
Soon, a strange voice suppressed with anger echoed through the room.
“This. Make her look as presentable as possible and send her up quickly.”
* * *
As I entered the reception room, I saw Casien comfortably leaning back in the chair he always sat in.
I no longer wanted to be involved with him, nor did I have any intention of getting involved, but should I thank him for momentarily helping me escape a crisis…
But thinking about how he would thoroughly upset me, I felt more tired than grateful.
“Casien. Why are you here?”
“Ro…”
Casien’s eyes widened for a moment, then he suddenly stood up and approached me.
“What happened to your face?”
Although the maids had tried to cover it with makeup, they couldn’t completely hide the swelling. I turned my head so the side I was hit on wouldn’t be visible.
“Roel.”
“Let go of this.”
I brushed off Casien’s hand as he carefully touched my face and headed towards the chair as if nothing had happened. Casien, who had been standing still for a moment, belatedly came and sat down beside me.
“Let me see your face, Roel.”
“Why? Want to take a good look?”
At my cold response, Casien’s hand, which had reached out to turn my face, stopped awkwardly.
“Isn’t this what you wanted? Isn’t it?”
“…Sigh, Roel, why would I…”
“If you’re done looking, can you leave now? We’re really broken up now, so there’s no reason for us to face each other anymore.”
Before I finished speaking, a displeased look appeared on Casien’s face.
“We haven’t finished talking, so where would I go?”
“…I’m not in the mood for wordplay. So please, just leave.”
I spoke in quite a firm voice, but Casien, as if to provoke me, leaned back in his chair instead.
Irritated by his action, I grabbed Casien’s hand. Then I pulled with all my might to make him stand up.
“I said leave, Casien! Quickly… Ugh-!”
But far from pulling him out, I ended up sitting on Casien’s thigh due to the force.
Casien took advantage of my momentary lapse and wrapped his arm around my waist, preventing me from getting up.
Then he uttered unbelievable words.
“Marry me.”
“…Are you crazy? How can you say that now?”
“You feel it too, don’t you? That you can’t separate from me.”
“……”
“Let’s admit it now. Stop exhausting yourself, okay?”
“…No.”
“Why do you keep making things difficult…”
“I will never marry you, Casien.”
An eerie silence descended upon the reception room. Casien stared at me without even blinking.
He stayed like that for a while, and I thought he might have been quite shocked this time. But soon, the eyes looking at me curved prettily.
“Alright, Roel. If that’s what you want, then let’s do that.”
His response was so unexpected that I found myself asking back like a fool.
“…What?”
“If you want to throw a tantrum, go ahead. If you want to push me away, push as much as you want. I’ll take it all.”
“……”
“Just know one thing.”
Casien tightened his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him, and whispered in a low voice.
“The only place you can return to is by my side.”
*
Save yourself from story hunger — the novel below will blow your mind!
[su_service title=”My Husband Asks for a Divorce Every Day (Female-dominant)” icon=”icon: star-o” size=”16″][/su_service]
It’s not often you come across a plot like this in the female-dominant genre — make sure to check it out!
This is a novel I’m planning to reread as well.
The male lead is strong, skilled in martial arts, and not the usual fragile type you often see in matriarchal novels.
Meanwhile, the female lead is a scientist—rational and logical. Even when she falls for the male lead, she doesn’t let her emotions cloud her decisions.
If you push through the first few chapters, you’ll gradually find the story really intriguing.
It has a mix of mystery, detective elements, and romance.
The author’s writing style is like crafting a puzzle—except they deliberately leave out a few pieces, making it hard to predict what happens next, yet keeping you hooked.
In the end, everything will come together and be explained.
One-sentence summary: Wife, stop playing with beakers and look at me!
In a laboratory accident, research scientist Zhu Wansheng accidentally travels to a matriarchal world. The original owner of the body is an eighteen-year-old only daughter of a wealthy rouge merchant, already married with a handsome young man.
Zhu Wansheng grins: Nice! She always said she was heaven’s favorite granddaughter. After a life of toil in her previous life, she can enjoy blessings in this one.
However, her joy lasts no more than three seconds as bad news arrives: the original owner’s family is about to go bankrupt, and her husband wants a divorce.
Even worse, she’s stuck with a research system full of restrictions.
Zhu Wansheng: ? Is this the destiny of a research dog?
——
Faced with this mess, Zhu Wansheng pours herself a bowl of wine to drown her sorrows. In her drunken haze, her husband arrives.
His figure is imposing, holding a long sword, with a dignified air that captivates Zhu Wansheng.
Gu Yingqing, however, looks at the alcohol-reeking Zhu Wansheng with undisguised disgust and coldly asks, “Divorce or not?” The intoxicated Zhu Wansheng mumbles vaguely, “I think… it’s not… it’s not… impossible!”
——
The next day, after sobering up, Zhu Wansheng is full of energy, rolling up her sleeves ready to make a big move. As for yesterday? She has no memory of it.
Zhu Wansheng is ambitious; a research dog fears nothing!
Upgrading rouge, extracting fragrances, producing perfumes, researching lipsticks… all shall bow to the power of modern technology!
The original owner’s dying rouge shop is revitalized. Her mother is pleased and with a wave of her hand, passes on the family business to her. As she takes control and her experimental results gain popularity, it’s the pinnacle of her life…
——
But there are always those who can’t stand to see her doing well. Jealousy, scheming, assassination attempts – they want nothing less than her life.
The person who has always kept his distance from her suddenly holds her tightly in his arms, eyes full of concern.
She is unharmed, but he falls into a pool of blood…
Zhu Wansheng feels guilty, “I can grant you one wish.”
Gu Yingqing tentatively circles his arms around her, carefully resting his head in the crook of her neck, pleading softly, “I regret it. Can we not divorce?”
Zhu Wansheng: ? When did I agree to a divorce?
[Small Theater]
The newly developed rouge is beautifully packaged, and Zhu Wansheng is eager to try it.
Gu Yingqing suddenly appears: “My lady, may I apply it for you?”
Cool fingertips lightly brush her lips. His Adam’s apple bobs as he leans in for a light bite.
Zhu Wansheng: ?
Gu Yingqing: It smells so good, I wanted to taste it…
On a warm spring day, Zhu Wansheng tries a new perfume: “Spring Night.” Gu Yingqing corners her against a wall.
Warm breath lingers on her neck.
“My lady, from now on, may I test the fragrances for you?”
[Humorous female scientist vs scheming live-in son-in-law male lead]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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