Jackal, having honed his body through strict diet and strength exercises to infiltrate the imperial palace, had become an even more magnificent and dignified steed than before.
Thanks to that, he approached a group of people who appeared to be nobles from a distance, looking around.
Among them was the Duke of Iris, one of the five great families, having a conversation with other nobles with a face full of concern.
“Now that such an incident has occurred in the palace, His Majesty must be very sensitive… I’m worried that the modest tribute we prepared this time might offend him…”
Guessing that the Emperor’s mood would be very poor, the nobles spent the remaining time preparing the tribute even more frantically.
The fact that real butterflies had flown in at this flower festival also contributed to this.
“I’m worried that I might already be outdone by the two dukes…”
The Duke of Iris, who had come from Byeonkyeong, sighed deeply.
The attendant boldly walked with Jackal towards them.
The nobles stopped their conversation and stared with wide eyes at the sudden appearance of the magnificent horse.
Jackal looked around them once with charismatic eyes, dignity and grace overflowing from his appearance.
The Duke of Iris coughed and asked,
“There, is that magnificent horse one of the items for this auction?”
“Yes! To recognize it as a magnificent horse at a glance, you indeed have high discernment! It is an item to be presented to His Majesty the Emperor. They say His Majesty loves hunting and is very interested in horses…”
The attendant spoke, glancing at him sideways.
A powerful noble was needed who wouldn’t deal carelessly while offering Jackal unconditionally to the Emperor.
Jackal sent the nobles a charismatic look. It was a silent threat, ‘Buy me.’
“Wow, what tremendous eyes! I’ve never seen such a horse before!”
The Duke of Iris seemed fascinated by Jackal, his eyes shining as he asked,
“Will you sell that horse to me?”
The attendant inwardly thought ‘exactly,’ but hiding a smile of victory, said,
“Can I trust and entrust it to you, Duke? This horse has been trained and meticulously managed from birth to become His Majesty the Emperor’s horse. It must be presented to His Majesty at this blossoming ceremony where the butterflies have come out.”
“Of course! I will decorate it as beautifully as possible and present it!”
The attendant repeatedly received his assurance before selling Jackal to him.
Although shocked by the enormous sum he paid, the attendant concealed the surprise.
That much value had to be received to take pride in obtaining a magnificent horse.
Although it felt awkward to have sold the leader with his own hands, the attendant looked at Jackal with a face that now trusted him.
Jackal followed the Duke obediently, walking with a trot.
But as soon as the Duke bought him, he had the servants groom him.
Cutting his mane at will with scissors, and touching his bare body, Jackal’s eyes widened as he struggled.
“Woah woah, be good.”
The servants calmed him down, even smearing fragrant flowerscented oil all over his muscular body.
His grayblue fur now gave off a sensual, glossy feel.
Jackal only thought of Asha, closing his eyes and bearing the humiliation.
If he could just reach Asha safely, this was nothing.
He just hoped that Asha would be safe until he arrived.
(This is a time separator.)
Since Karaf left the room last night, Asha couldn’t fall asleep and spent the whole night awake.
But from morning, someone came and politely greeted her at the door.
“Knight Commander, it’s Duran Dandelion. I formally greet Lady Vanessa.”
Duran bent one knee at the door and raised one hand to his chest, greeting her formally.
“Oh, yes. I look forward to working with you.”
At Asha’s response, Duran was slightly startled and looked up to ask,
“Aren’t you angry with me?”
“What for?”
“I failed to keep Lady Vanessa safe in the banquet hall. Please do not restrain yourself, vent your anger. I have nothing to say even if you throw a glass and question if I am worthy to be the captain of the knights.”
“……”
Asha closed her mouth, about to ask, ‘Did His Majesty do this often……?’
Karaf would become so violent when angry that no one could stop him.
Throwing objects was just the beginning; if there were even a slight issue in the work, he had to seize and punish the noble who advanced it to calm himself.
Perhaps he had suffered a lot due to the assassination attempt; Duran’s face looked particularly pale.
There were sporadic white hairs on his head, like dandelion seeds.
It seemed like his hair turned white due to stress.
Asha looked at him with sympathetic eyes.
“You must have had a hard time by His Majesty’s side all this while.”
At that answer, Duran’s eyes widened as he looked up at her.
This morning, Karaf had approached him as he guarded the bedroom and instructed him to seek Vanessa’s forgiveness directly.
Having gone through such an event, he thought that she surely wouldn’t trust him anymore.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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