The first face that came to mind was Philip’s. Then Mild Kyeong, followed by Laila, Domingo, Blanc, and the employees of the boutique. The mansion’s servants.
Next, I worried about the employees of the boutique.
They were people trying to settle down after various hardships. If I died, I didn’t know what would happen to them.
‘If I were the protagonist, the timely appearance of the male protagonist would save me… But deviating from the original and being a supporting character, it doesn’t seem like such a thing would happen…’
Crash!
A loud noise echoed in the room. When I turned around, Philip was standing at the wide-open door.
I don’t know how the situation unfolded afterward.
From the villain who held me, I heard a loud and something-breaking sound. My body, suspended in the air, suddenly dropped. When I thought I was making eye contact with purple eyes, I was already in Philip’s arms.
“It must be frustrating, but please bear with it for a moment, madam. I’ll untie you soon.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a fierce purple light emanated from Philip.
I watched in surprise as he started suppressing the five villains rushing at him with his bare hands.
It happened in an instant. The five villains lay sprawled as if dead.
Next, Philip began to release me from the restraint. As my body, which had been completely helpless, regained freedom, a sense of relief washed over me—I was alive.
“Madam, are you injured anywhere?”
In his eyes as he looked at me, there was only genuine concern.
Tears welled up. My hands, now completely free, involuntarily pulled Philip towards me. I had no choice but to embrace him tightly.
‘Ah, I don’t know! From now on, you be the male lead of this novel!’
I will be the supporting character who receives the protagonist’s help, finds peace, and wishes for his eternal happiness.
Philip also embraced me tightly.
“Madam, I will protect you. Please rest assured. You’re safe.”
His soft lips repeatedly touched my ear. Whispering words of reassurance, Philip gently stroked my shoulders with his comforting touch.
“No, what’s going on here?”
Soon, a palace knight who happened to be nearby rushed in.
“Assassins are caught. Detain them all and put them in the underground prison. No one is allowed to visit anyone until the king’s orders say otherwise.”
The knights followed his instructions with puzzled expressions. Upon inspecting the villain who had intended to throw me out the window, they suppressed a groan.
“Count, the interest is dead.”
“Since they’re dead.”
Philip stared coldly at the deceased villain and instructed the knight.
“Identify their identities.”
After handling Mild Kyeong’s situation, Philip stood up with me still in his arms.
“Resting here seems uncomfortable, so let’s move you to a safer place, madam.”
Philip walked purposefully as he exited the room. While he traversed the corridor, some doors opened slightly and then closed.
Passing through the garden, Philip headed towards the far end of the south wing of the palace, third floor.
Waiting in front of the door of the last room were Domingo and a servant from the mansion. They quickly opened the door upon seeing us.
“Until tomorrow noon, no one will be allowed to visit.”
Domingo and the servants nodded obediently at Philip’s firm command.
“Understood, my lord.”
Philip’s room was twice as spacious and looked more luxurious than the room I had been assigned. Moreover, there was even a lounge where the servants could rest.
Philip seated me on an emerald-green velvet sofa and re-evaluated the condition of my wrists and ankles that had been tied up. However, due to the thick cloth, there were no marks from the ropes on my wrists and ankles.
“Madam, is there any place that hurts or feels uncomfortable? What did those scoundrels do to you?”
Philip examined me anxiously and gritted his teeth.
“Madam, please tell me everything. I will take measures to ensure that no one threatens you.”
“I think it’s the Marquis Ondella’s doing.”
Entering the room and recounting everything that happened, I told Philip.
“They tried to disguise my death as a suicide.”
As I finished speaking, my shoulders involuntarily shrank in fear.
His purple eyes were lively, flickering like flames.
“It seems small measures won’t be enough.”
Philip stood up from his seat.
“I will make sure no further tricks can be played. Please take a rest for a moment, madam.”
Then, Philip turned to me. It was because I had grabbed the hem of his garment.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Philip, I have three things to say.”
“Please go ahead.”
“I thought I was really going to die. Thank you so much for helping me.”
“I was just in time to prevent it. I’m really relieved.”
“You looked like the male lead in a romance novel.”
At my words, Philip smirked and seemed somewhat embarrassed.
“But we… we’re divorced.”
Calling me ‘madam,’ and then the second statement caused Philip’s face to turn as red as a tomato.
“Ahem! I, I apologize. The situation was, uh, unusual.”
“It’s okay. You just seemed to have forgotten.”
Philip wiped away the flowing sweat as he redirected the conversation.
“So, what’s the third thing?”
“Is it okay if I defeat Lord Ondella in a duel?”
“What do you mean?”
“I am the former wife who is divorced, a person expelled from the king’s sight.”
“…”
“Lord Ondella would originally be a noble who maintained a necessary relationship with you. Even if it goes wrong like this, it should be fine, right?”
Although I phrased it as a question, it was more of a query about whether it would be acceptable to maintain a supportive relationship for the sake of Marboro’s throne succession.
In response to my question, Philip put his hand to his chin and fell into thought.
“Ellen.”
Then, he called my name this time.
“Yes?”
“As you said, the situation seems to be getting complicated in various ways, but could you confirm two things for me?”
“Two things?”
“It seems that confirming those will help me answer your questions.”
I briefly pondered what two questions he might ask.
Perhaps the first would be whether it’s okay for him to retract his statement. Since he had declared that he would completely get rid of one high-ranking noble supporting the king.
Then the second question that might come up could be a demand for an explanation of why this situation occurred. That way, he could find a basis for retracting the statement.
“Yes, go ahead and ask.”
“You won’t need to think deeply about my questions. Just answer them as they come to you.”
“Okay.”
In response to my answer, Philip’s eyes twinkled.
“Do you dislike me?”
“What?”
It was a question completely different from what I expected.
“From your feelings, it doesn’t seem like you dislike me.”
“Of course not. But is that really your first question?”
“Yes. Now, the second question.”
Philip knelt down in front of me, holding my hands and looking up at me with gentle eyes.
Perhaps it was because he was such a charming man, my heart started to race.
“Ellen, do you like me?”
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.
Link to read
