As they nodded, Shalac swiftly picked up Papiere and started running in the opposite direction.
Then someone shouted loudly, “It’s that way!”
The crowd tried to follow the direction pointed by the voice. But soon, it descended into chaos. Iertes used an illusion to disperse the attention.
“I’ll take Papiere back first, so please handle the situation behind,” they nodded, and Shalac swiftly embraced Papiere, starting to run in the opposite direction.
Then someone shouted loudly, “Over there!” The crowd tried to follow the direction pointed by the voice. But soon, chaos ensued.
Iertes used an illusion to disperse the attention, and in the meantime, everyone scattered in different directions.
On the other hand, in the midst of the crowd, Prodia, who had been observing everything, was speechless. ‘As I expected.’ In this vast festival, if she couldn’t find them, it would have been a problem, but it turned out to be unnecessary worry. Her contracted individuals stood out too much just by existing.
Anyway, due to this commotion, it seemed like all four of them had returned to the viscount’s mansion. Since they roughly secured the necessary points, it shouldn’t be a significant issue. Therefore, Prodia had no reason to stay here any longer. She quietly slipped away through the crowd. However, due to the overwhelming number of onlookers, she lost her way and became disoriented.
“Ugh.”
At that moment, someone firmly grabbed her arm.
Meanwhile, Shalac and Papiere, who had been running for a while, finally arrived at a secluded place.
“It looks like there’s no one following us anymore. You don’t have to worry now, Papiere.”
Shalac carefully put Papiere down. Papiere, not knowing what to do, apologized to him.
“I-I’m sorry, Lord Shalac. Because of me, you couldn’t properly enjoy the festival…”
“I had a lot of fun. It’s been a while since I had a chase. Haha.”
Saying that, Shalac laughed heartily. Seeing his laughter, Papiere somehow felt relieved.
Then Shalac tried to summon a carriage to return to the viscount’s mansion. However, he soon realized that Papiere’s gaze was still directed towards the festival grounds.
Although a carriage was approaching, Shalac turned away without hesitation. Then, looking tenderly at Papiere, he said, “It seems like I’m not the one who didn’t enjoy the festival properly.”
At this, Papiere was taken aback and waved her hands in denial.
“N-No! It’s my first festival, so I was just fascinated…”
But Shalac had already made up his mind. Leaving a message to wait for a moment, he ran somewhere. And after a while, Shalac returned holding two white masks in his hands.
Offering one of the masks to Papiere, he said affectionately, “Here, take this. With this, you can enjoy the festival without revealing your identity.”
Papiere hesitated for a moment but ultimately nodded shyly, accepting the mask. With the mask on, Shalac let out a hearty laugh.
“Well then, shall we go and enjoy the festival to the fullest?”
“……Yes!”
The two of them returned along the same path and entered the crowd once again.
He left a message asking me to wait for a moment and rushed somewhere. And after a while, Sharack returned holding two white masks in his hands. He extended one of the masks to Papiere.
“Here, take it. If you wear this, you can enjoy the festival without revealing your identity.”
Papiere hesitated for a moment but eventually shyly nodded and accepted the mask. With the mask on, Sharack let out a cheerful laugh.
“Well then, shall we go and enjoy the festival to the fullest?”
“…Yes!”
The two of them followed the same path back into the crowd.
For Papiere, who had spent a lifetime confined to the temple, it was the first moment when a whole new world opened up.
On the other hand, Ed, who had escaped from the crowd, also succeeded in avoiding everyone. Finding an unfamiliar alleyway was an easy task for him.
The remaining three probably went home as planned. However, he had thoughts of staying here longer. There was no place better than the festival grounds to gather information. So, Ed bought a fancy mask and cloak from a back alley store.
Although he would wear it only once, any accessory that didn’t suit his aesthetics was not an option. Completely covering his face, Ed leisurely headed towards the festival grounds.
At that moment, he heard a man’s voice nearby. It was a very familiar voice.
‘Who in the world…?’ Curious, Ed quietly approached the source of the sound.
Beyond the wall was, indeed, one of the participants in the Buma Contest. He couldn’t forget his voice; he was one of the ten who sang together at the opening ceremony.
His name was Kakyaa Lu, if he remembered correctly. Blackish-purple hair that reached down to his waist, beneath blood-red eyes were faint dark circles, giving off a decadent charm. Although his body was composed of sturdy muscles, his skin was so pale that it seemed as if blood did not flow beneath it.
Whenever Ed faced Kakyaa, he felt strangely on edge.
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
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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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