He turned his head, then, as if enchanted, approached the bookshelf.
There, his favorite books were nicely aligned, and the dust had vanished.
The corner of his mouth slightly lifted.
It was indeed pleasing cleaning. So satisfying that he wondered if there had ever been a servant who cleaned so much to his liking.
The mopped floor shone enough to reflect a clear face, and the sun and fresh air gently came through the ribbontied curtains, making him feel good.
Meanwhile, Asha, who had gone to the bedroom, was vigorously dusting the window with a pillow and blanket tucked under her arm.
The rustling sound was unusually loud, reaching Karaf’s ears in the study.
He then came to his senses and walked to the window to look at his bedroom.
Asha was seen holding her blanket with both hands, energetically flapping and dusting it.
“……”
Even without anyone watching, she was truly diligent.
Her face, with narrowed brows, dusting the blanket forcefully, looked somewhat funny, causing the corner of his mouth to twitch.
It was as if he was seeing a ‘cleaning fairy’ that might appear in fairy tales or folktales.
“……Is cleaning a hobby for this butterfly?”
“Eh?”
Karaf had muttered to himself, but the Chief Steward, startled, thought it was a question to him and answered, straightening up.
“I will go and find out immediately.”
Karaf hadn’t asked him to find out, but he was about to leave the room with a determined face.
Karaf quickly turned his head and told him.
“I’ll find out myself. Tell the butterfly to finish cleaning and head straight to the outdoor bath.”
[This is the time separator]Having perfectly finished tidying the bedroom, Asha lifted her arms to wipe the sweat trickling down her forehead and satisfyingly looked around the cleaned scenery.
Seeing the cleanly organized room always felt good.
‘……This should satisfy him, right?’
Asha sighed.
She had been in and out of Karaf’s bedroom several times in the past, and it was one of the places she really didn’t want to step into.
The days when she had to spend the night with him, she could hardly sleep the night before.
Asha thought of Jackal’s cozy home, which was now reduced to ashes by the fire.
The home filled with warmth was missed.
The solid bed, the warm fireplace, the unique dust smell, and the faint musk scent that filled the house were missed.
Thinking of home, Asha’s expression became lonely as Jackal’s face came to mind.
He looked sharp and cold, but in reality, he was warmer and more considerate than anyone.
His appearance of smiling at her, his serious and thoughtful eyes, and that desperate expression he showed, reaching out to her at the last moment…
She missed him.
She missed Sosa and Geb, Najia and Yuris, the kitchen uncle, and all the other members of the organization.
But since she had returned here, she knew she might never see them again for the rest of her life.
The sacred butterflies that bloomed the emperor’s flower were all called ‘Vanessa.’
From the moment they became butterflies, they lost their original name and were bound to the royal family for all their lives.
‘…This is right. It was supposed to be this way from the beginning.’
As her nose tingled and she shook her head to forcibly erase the thoughts, the chamberlain approached.
“Vanessa, His Majesty has commanded you to come to the outdoor bathhouse right now.”
An outdoor bathhouse?
Asha tensed up suddenly when he called her to such a place.
Since he had many previous offenses of acting beyond common sense, she was reflexively tense.
She didn’t know what his intention was, but she thought she had to obey the emperor’s command for now.
Asha sighed quietly and followed the chamberlain.
[This is the time separator]In the quiet forestlocated outdoor bath, Karaf was leisurely walking the grass barefoot, wearing a loose dark red bathrobe.
At noon when the sunlight was most direct, he always sunbathed and bathed together.
Being the manifestation of a flower, he needed to absorb sunlight and water into his body regularly, so bathing was a significant part of his daily routine.
“…I greet Your Majesty the Emperor.”
Coming to the outdoor bath, Asha greeted him politely and quickly averted her eyes in embarrassment.
As he moved, the red bathrobe fluttered, revealing his firm and snowy chest and thighs.
Karaf glanced at her and said, smirking,
“While I left my seat, a butterfly flew in and cleaned up, and left.”
Asha tensed up slightly at those words.
Perhaps the reason he called her here was to question her about cleaning his office.
But Karaf spoke with a very satisfied face.
“I liked it. I want to entrust you with my office cleaning to that extent.”
Only then did Asha relax a little, but Karaf spoke teasingly right away.
“So I became curious all of a sudden. How satisfyingly well you do other things. I’ll tell you what you’ll do from now on.”
The moment Asha looked up at him, his robe ‘fell’ above her head.
Asha quickly picked up the robe in humiliation and absurdity, but her eyes widened at the sight spread out before her eyes.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
