The Princess Wants to Live (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 37
After the tournament ended far too quickly, the rumors about Cryer did not cease.
They had merely taken on an entirely different tone.
“Good heavens! Just who was it that claimed someone like him was brought in as a concubine?”
Thus, the rumor that had swept through both the Empire and foreign lands after the tournament—the one about “the Princess’s concubine”—was swept away helplessly.
“To be capable of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Knight Captains…”
“Now, now, that’s going a bit too far, isn’t it?”
“How many Knight Captains do you think could have torn that gate open alone like that?”
“That’s a matter of strength—if we tested it…”
Those who tried to gauge Cryer’s power from every angle soon praised Olivia’s discernment for having placed such a knight at her side.
“Indeed, Your Highness the Princess. I always knew you wouldn’t act so recklessly.”
“Oh my, yet weren’t you spreading rather different tales before?”
One person, called out for bringing up the previous rumor, quickly hid her face behind a fan and changed the subject.
“Come to think of it, I heard the foreign knights are returning home.”
“Yes. Well, officially it was to foster peace, but we all know the truth.”
Now that it had been revealed as a falsehood that the Princess had taken him merely because she was captivated by his looks,
the guest chambers near the Princess’s palace, prepared for foreign knights, were being emptied one by one.
“You’re leaving too, then.”
“Yes. I’ve received orders from my homeland to return…”
The one who had been sent to the Empire precisely because he resembled Cryer departed without exchanging a single word with Olivia, and most of those who had posed as ‘knights’ from foreign lands also vacated their posts.
And among them, one who shared Isaac’s predicament packed his belongings with a deathly grimace.
“Hmph… I wonder where Isaac is off to at a time like this.”
He sought out Isaac, hoping to lament his own helplessness, but as usual, Isaac had vanished—into the sky or into the earth—as if he’d never existed.
Far removed from those hastily preparing to depart,
this truly was a predicament.
Isaac narrowed his fox-like eyes further as he gazed down at the Princess’s palace.
-Whooooosh.
The wind howled fiercely where he stood, high above the ground, buffeting his ears and shaking his body, yet only one thing mattered to him now.
“Damn it! If you smash everything to pieces like that, how am I supposed to prove my worth?”
Uncharacteristically agitated, Isaac stamped his foot.
‘Prove your usefulness.’
Cryer had clearly said those words.
And Isaac, determined to become his man, had intended to faithfully carry out the first command Cryer had given him.
Thus, at the tournament, he had planned to reveal at least a portion of his abilities—not against those pitiful knights who had flocked together, but against those whom the Empire regarded as the next generation of leaders.
Defeating mere greenhorns wouldn’t have been perfect proof, but it would have at least demonstrated his superior skill compared to the others.
Yet the tournament had ended in such a manner…
“I knew he wasn’t an ordinary man.”
But I never imagined he’d be such a monster.
Isaac rubbed his arms, prickling with goosebumps.
That merciless, crushing, tearing, overwhelming killing intent.
After the tournament, everyone—without exception—had fallen utterly silent about that killing intent, as if bound by a silent pact.
As though merely recalling it filled them with such terror they couldn’t bring themselves to speak.
When they returned to their homelands, the nameless knight from Norden would be forever etched into the continent’s memory as Cryer.
Isaac sank down carelessly right at the edge of the precipice and buried his face in his hands.
“I can’t possibly go back like this.”
But if he stayed and settled in the Empire without returning, he’d have to live his whole life as a fugitive.
His homeland, which had dispatched him specifically to the Empire, would never let him go unpunished.
Thus, he needed someone who could vouch for him—or better yet, take him in entirely.
“Ah, I must find some nobleman with enough power…”
He couldn’t even finish his sentence before his fox-like eyes flew wide open.
Cryer had appeared before him like a ghost in broad daylight, without a sound or even the faintest trace of his presence.
Cryer walked across the perilously high, dizzying ledge as though it were flat ground.
Stopping right before Isaac, he spoke.
“What did you say your name was again?”
Flustered or not, Isaac reflexively answered his question.
“Isaac.”
Noticing Cryer’s eyebrows twitch ever so slightly, Isaac quickly added,
“Isaac Akendel.”
“Akendel.”
Cryer slowly appraised Isaac.
Just minutes earlier,
Olivia, summoned urgently to the Central Palace by His Majesty the Emperor, tapped her pen irritably against the desk before finally speaking.
‘They’ve decided who’ll attend the funeral in Norden.’
‘Judging by your expression, I can guess.’
At Cryer’s reply, Olivia clenched her teeth even more irritably.
‘Since it happened at the tournament I hosted, I must take responsibility and go.’
Given the impeccable logic, Cryer naturally agreed.
Besides, if you want to catch a tiger, you must enter its den.
Had she not been chosen to go to Norden herself, she would have found a way to persuade His Majesty the Emperor.
Cryer, sensing her thoughts, asked,
‘You’ll get to see the mage’s face in Norden as you wished—so what’s the problem?’
‘People.’
Her answer came instantly, leaving no room to breathe, and Cryer’s brow furrowed as deeply as Olivia’s.
‘It’s fine to go all the way to Norden, but once there, we’ll need to investigate, won’t we?’
Olivia sighed deeply and shook her head.
‘You won’t be able to move freely—you’ll need to keep the mage’s attention fixed on you.’
Well, more accurately, the mage wouldn’t be able to tear his gaze away from Cryer, but she swallowed that thought.
‘And as the Princess, I can’t just go poking around wherever I please. Of course, I know all the secret passages and mechanisms within Norden’s castle, but those are only for when we absolutely need genuine information.’
In her past four lives, the King of Norden—who had already died ignominiously in this life—had been the one to first declare the continental war.
Since she hadn’t yet learned about the Ancient God, slavery, or magic, she’d naturally gathered every scrap of information on Norden before the war began.
Seeing the deepening crease between Olivia’s brows, Cryer reached out.
Gently massaging her furrowed brow, he spoke.
‘There is one person who comes to mind.’
Olivia jumped so violently she nearly convulsed—literally trembling in shock.
‘What?’
‘Why are you so surprised?’
‘Well… you said you had someone in mind. You? You yourself?’
Seeing her look at him with utter disbelief, Cryer covered her eyes.
‘Don’t press it. I told you not to press it.’
Olivia, tapping his hand over her eyes, hesitated briefly before adding softly,
‘I just never thought you’d let anyone stay by your side.’
To her quiet words, Cryer replied instantly.
‘I haven’t let anyone stay.’
‘What? But you just said there was someone!’
When Olivia pushed his hand away and tilted her head, Cryer shrugged with a faint sigh.
‘Someone came sneaking around at night, and someone else dealt with him before I could. He seemed keen on staying in the Empire.’
He leaned down and whispered into Olivia’s ear.
‘And the only one I keep by my side is you.’
At the low, earnest voice flowing into her ear, Olivia’s eyelashes fluttered wildly like a butterfly’s wings caught in a storm.
‘Hmm… perhaps it would be better to… expand your circle a bit…’
‘It’s enough.’
Ever since becoming that damned slave, Cryer had despised human warmth and never enjoyed mingling with people.
The Princess before him—small enough to fit in his pocket—was the sole exception.
As his crimson eyes settled like twilight, Olivia fell silent.
Instead, she steered the conversation back to the beginning.
‘So he wants to stay in the Empire—meaning he must be a foreign knight, then.’
‘He said Akendel.’
Though it was a non sequitur, Olivia immediately repeated,
‘Akendel? Did you say Akendel?’
When Olivia’s eyes widened like a startled rabbit, Cryer nodded.
‘That was the name. A familiar one, isn’t it?’
Then, with a soft chuckle, he tapped an old book filled with Bolshayk’s history, and Olivia’s eyes lit up.
‘If it’s the Akendel family, then yes—I know them.’
‘Isn’t he exactly who we need right now?’
Olivia nodded firmly.
‘Exactly. This is precisely when we need an Akendel. For stealth, infiltration, extracting vital information—or even spreading disinformation if necessary—who could be more trustworthy?’
Tasks ill-suited for blue-blooded nobles.
Hence, very few knew that the Akendel family specialized precisely in such matters.
Perhaps only Bolshayk, who had forged ties with them long before they became nobles, was aware.
‘I didn’t even know any Akendels remained.’
‘Then you can ask him directly.’
With that thought, Cryer spoke.
“The Princess wishes to see you.”
“Y-yes?”
Isaac, once again answering reflexively, asked for confirmation, but Cryer merely turned away and tossed over his shoulder,
“She mentioned that Bolshayk needs an Akendel.”
Watching Cryer plummet recklessly downward as though falling from the sky, Isaac swallowed hard.
Bolshayk and Akendel.
An ancient bond—so ancient it surpassed even the notion of “old.”
In the Akendel household, their connection to Bolshayk was merely a tale passed down through generations.
Before meeting Cryer, he’d even joked to himself about using that old story to cling to the Imperial Palace.
Now, it was actually happening.
“Well, I suppose all that past suffering—endured to uphold the Akendel legacy—wasn’t entirely useless after all.”
Why bother with some powerful noble in the Empire?
Bolshayk itself was calling for him.
Though it hadn’t turned out exactly as he’d planned—joining that monster directly—it didn’t matter; since Cryer himself stood beside Bolshayk, opportunities would surely come.
Isaac’s dazed stupor lasted only a moment.
Curving his fox-like eyes into a wide grin, he stepped boldly off the edge, just as Cryer had done.
As he plummeted downward, a smile lingered unshaken on his lips.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
[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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