Having sufficiently warmed her body temperature, Celia Brillion stepped outside the lodging with Dietrich Calypso.
The rain that had been pouring down, oblivious to the world, had by now completely stopped.
Stars were densely scattered across the darkened sky.
After hailing a passing carriage and getting off near the palace, the two sensed a markedly different atmosphere from when they had exited the palace earlier.
Despite the dark night, many people were out on the streets.
People stood with wide eyes, each holding a torch in their hand.
Men and women, young and old alike—dozens of eyes filled with distrust were fixed upon Celia Brillion and Dietrich Calypso.
Dietrich Calypso looked at the crowd amid the chaotic, bustling murmur.
“What’s going on?”
At Dietrich Calypso’s words, an old man standing ahead flinched and trembled.
But only for a moment—then the old man glared at Dietrich Calypso with fierce eyes and shouted.
“Is it truly true what’s written in the newspaper? How can the newly appointed Captain of the Imperial Knights imprison His Majesty the Emperor! Ileon Gredrick Basileus is the true ruler of Abelon!”
Though imprisoned, Ileon Gredrick’s influence was difficult to ignore.
‘We even blocked leaks from outside the palace. Yet people already know through the newspaper—within less than half a day.’
Dietrich Calypso narrowed his eyes.
“Isn’t this all because of that witch? Is it true that the Captain of the Imperial Knights is doing things he never did before, all because he’s fallen under that woman’s spell?”
This time, it was a young woman.
“Stop defaming my beloved with such baseless lies.”
Dietrich Calypso said this while gently holding Celia Brillion’s hand.
But in truth, Celia Brillion didn’t mind what people called her.
People could verbally elevate her as a saint or tear her apart as someone unworthy of life.
The first love of all, the angel of Brillion.
They arbitrarily gave her nicknames, and now just as arbitrarily called her a witch.
“We, as citizens of Abelon, have the right to protect Abelon. I’ve heard that the witch feels no pain even when pierced with sharp needles.”
An old woman leaning on a cane stepped forward and spoke.
“Here, in this place, we must confirm whether the Duke Calypso’s lover truly feels pain.”
“Hand over that witch.”
The people shouted with faces twisted by madness.
“Really now, they’re certainly full of tricks.”
Dietrich Calypso placed his hand on the sword at his waist.
At that brief gesture, the agitated crowd collectively hesitated.
Celia Brillion found the people utterly ridiculous.
Indeed, Abelon deserved to be destroyed.
The women’s eyes toward her brimmed with jealousy and envy; the men’s eyes burned with lust and desire.
They simply needed a scapegoat.
A sacrifice to suppress their discontent, to satisfy their desires.
Celia Brillion’s gaze, sweeping across the crowd, suddenly stopped at one spot.
Among the torch-bearing people, a young man with a face dripping with lust stared at her intently, hiding his body.
Celia Brillion knew that face all too well.
Vincent Brillion, the eldest son of Viscount Brillion, not a drop of shared blood between them.
Celia Brillion, who had remained silent, slowly parted her lips.
“Who is the mastermind behind this?”
At Celia Brillion’s words, people began speaking all at once.
“The, the witch speaks!”
“The witch!”
“What benefit do you gain by branding me a witch? Praising me when convenient and degrading me when not—how am I supposed to know which tune to follow?”
Celia Brillion’s words were picked up by Vincent.
“Celia, don’t deny it. We’ve seen enough of you—sucking the vitality from my elder brother every night. Is your underwear still that red with rose patterns?”
At Vincent’s words, the crowd’s murmuring grew even louder.
Dietrich Calypso nearly lunged to tear Vincent limb from limb, but sensing Dietrich Calypso’s murderous aura, Vincent swiftly slipped through the angry mob and fled the scene.
Dietrich Calypso was about to dash forward to chase after him.
But Celia Brillion held him back.
“Dietrich. They’re fabricating lies about me to put us at a disadvantage. They’re using this easily swayed crowd to try to seize me.”
At Celia Brillion’s words, Dietrich Calypso regained his composure.
“I’m fine.”
Celia Brillion gave Dietrich Calypso a gentle smile.
That smile, so familiar with such events, made Dietrich Calypso’s chest ache.
He could clearly envision how much Celia Brillion had suffered while living in the viscount’s mansion.
Dietrich Calypso couldn’t even begin to empathize with her pain.
Unless one had personally endured it, any claim of full empathy would be nothing but false comfort.
Celia Brillion had used her powers to protect her body from worthless scum.
Her organs were damaged, and she had become terminally ill with only a short time left to live.
How must Celia Brillion have felt, summoned to the Emperor’s bedchamber in that dying state, truly believing him to be her mortal enemy, and killing him?
“These vermin, not even worthy of insects…”
A growling, beast-like sound erupted from Dietrich Calypso’s throat.
The people, overpowered by his presence, shrank back like startled frogs, as if they had never raised their voices.
Dietrich Calypso was truly enraged.
People were weak before the strong, yet acted endlessly strong toward the weak.
Dietrich Calypso had crawled into the abhorrent Abelon imperial court and become Captain of the Imperial Knights solely because he needed power no one could dare ignore.
He had flattered the Emperor who once looked down on him, made the Emperor dependent on him, and relentlessly honed his swordsmanship until he finally earned the title of Duke.
The late Emperor was a puppet, yet certainly not a good man.
Dietrich Calypso had wanted to twist out his entrails and tear him apart when he became useless, but Celia Brillion had mercifully sent him off with a simple dagger.
Such a kind Celia Brillion—people would not leave her in peace.
They had shamelessly exploited her, and even now, despite her being known as his lover, they sought to brand her a witch and seize her by any means.
Filthy. Despicable.
“Hand over the witch!”
“The lewd witch!”
Dietrich Calypso would tolerate no more.
“In the name of the Captain of the Imperial Knights, I hereby declare that every criminal present at this location shall be imprisoned.”
The people’s faces turned deathly pale.
“Now you’re defending that obscene witch?”
“Regain your senses!”
Despite their continued shouts, Dietrich Calypso did not retract his words.
Dietrich Calypso had the enraged crowd locked entirely into the capital’s prison.
[This is the timeline separator]“Your Grace, Duke Calypso!”
“To imprison His Majesty and now us, the citizens as well! You are being deceived by that witch!”
Dietrich Calypso gave a low-voiced order to the prison guard.
“If anyone speaks nonsense again, kill them without mercy. Understood?”
“Yes.”
At Dietrich Calypso’s words, the people fell silent as if they had never spoken at all.
“And, as soon as you locate any members of the Brillion Viscount’s household, bring them directly before me.”
“Understood.”
Dietrich Calypso left the prison with Celia Brillion.
Not long after, the two arrived at the palace.
One knight guarding the grand golden palace entrance spotted Dietrich Calypso and hurriedly ran over.
“What is it?”
“…Please, look at this!”
The knight pulled something from his coat and handed it to Dietrich Calypso.
It was today’s newspaper.
Dietrich Calypso quickly unfolded the paper.
「The Omen of Abelon’s Destruction: Who Exactly Is the Demon That Burned the Sacred Grand Temple?」
In large letters, that was written on the newspaper’s front page.
Below the text were two portraits of suspected individuals—side by side, the portraits of Dietrich Calypso and Celia Brillion.
“They say the demon comes to you in the most beautiful form. Could all the tragedies occurring within the Imperial Palace be connected to these two?”
Accompanied by a clearly malicious commentary.
Dietrich Calypso narrowed his eyes.
He turned to the next page of the newspaper.
「The Rebellion of the Captain of the Imperial Knights: His Majesty the Emperor Imprisoned」
“Where was this newspaper published?”
“The newspaper belongs to Duke Gredrick… no, His Majesty the Emperor.”
Ileon Gredrick was still imprisoned.
Yet such a newspaper had been openly published, causing confusion among the people.
This meant there were still Ileon’s spies remaining within the palace.
“Are you certain no one left the palace today?”
At Dietrich Calypso’s words, the knight nodded vigorously.
“Yes. One person attempted to escape the palace during the heavy rain, but as per your orders, we prevented them from leaving.”
“….”
“And yet this newspaper was still published…”
Dietrich Calypso cut the knight off.
“Who was the one trying to leave?”
“One of the palace maids. However, she was congenitally blind.”
One person surfaced in Dietrich Calypso’s mind.
“What was the maid’s name?”
Male lead is reincarnated to save his wife
I’ve also read this one twice already. The female lead is kinda soft and gets embarrassed easily—not really my type, but the plot is definitely worth reading. Hurry up and read it, y’all!
Intro
When Shen Yuan encountered Su Jin again in his previous life, she had already become the Prime Minister of the current dynasty. As for him, the former top young master of the capital, he had long since fallen into the abyss, becoming a singer on a pleasure boat.
After a song ended, he was redeemed and sent to the Su Residence.
Su Jin respected and cherished him, gave him a roof over his head, and bestowed him with warmth. Shen Yuan fell deeper and deeper, but before he could express his feelings, Su Jin passed away.
Shen Yuan died to follow her in death, but instead, he returned to when he was fifteen years old.
At that time, he was not yet engaged, and Su Jin was just a poor scholar.
Shen Yuan gritted his teeth, casting aside all his pride, and thought of ways to coax and entice her every day.
The colder and more indifferent Su Jin was towards him, the more proactive Shen Yuan became.
He was not afraid of being mocked by the world, only wanting to marry his Wife-master early, to hold her hand and never let go for a lifetime.
[Note: This story will not specifically point out the male lead’s reincarnation time point; it’s all in the details. Whenever you feel that the male lead is acting strangely, he has most likely been reincarnated.]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
