The capital had been raining for several days.
Celia Brillion sat perched by the window, gazing blankly at the pouring raindrops.
A shadow fell silently over Celia’s shoulders.
It was Dietrich Calypso.
Dietrich draped his outer coat over Celia’s upper body.
Tailored to his own frame, the garment was far too large for Celia, dragging all the way to the floor.
“What are you thinking about?”
Dietrich’s low voice blended into the sound of rain tapping against the window.
Celia smiled faintly, thinking how pleasant his voice always sounded.
Without turning her gaze from the rain, she replied in a soft tone.
“……It’s too quiet.”
“Is quietness such a strange thing?”
Celia nodded slowly.
“Are you afraid? Worried something might happen?”
“When you’re here, there’s nothing to fear.”
Hearing her answer, Dietrich smiled in satisfaction and gently brushed her hair behind her ear.
“Then, what’s troubling you?”
Celia thought Dietrich could read her mind almost uncannily.
These past few days, Celia and Dietrich had intimately entwined their bodies countless times.
Perhaps that was why.
Dietrich could instantly discern her thoughts just by reading her expression or the look in her eyes.
Even lying depended on who the listener was.
But unlike before, Celia had no intention of lying to Dietrich.
There was neither reason nor need to anymore.
“……I’ve just been having these thoughts lately.”
Dietrich quietly gazed at Celia’s profile, patiently waiting for her to continue.
“What if, after killing Ileon Gredrick and destroying Abelon, everything still doesn’t get better?”
Celia’s quiet words scattered through the room.
“Will the pain that’s crushed me my entire life, this tangled knot inside me, truly vanish like dust in an instant? Will my family who passed on first welcome me with smiles, saying I did well?”
Celia let out a self-mocking laugh as she continued.
“Thanks to you, my body’s grown healthier, so now I have too many pointless thoughts. I’ve never once doubted my own will before.”
Dietrich listened silently to Celia’s words.
“What do you think? Do you think I’m foolish for having these thoughts now?”
Celia still kept her eyes fixed outside the window as she asked.
“No, not at all.”
Dietrich replied simply, then lifted one of Celia’s hands.
He pressed his lips firmly against the back of her hand, as if branding a mark.
The tingling sensation drew Celia’s eyes from the window to Dietrich.
“You’re not foolish. And your thoughts aren’t pointless.”
“Do you truly believe that?”
“Yes.”
His crimson eyes, honest and utterly sincere, gazed directly into hers.
When their eyes met, Dietrich gently cupped her cheek with his large hand and spoke.
“The fact that you even have such thoughts means you’re a truly kind person.”
Celia had never once considered herself kind, so Dietrich’s words felt deeply unfamiliar.
“You think I’m kind?”
Dietrich, who had already taken hold of Celia’s hand, nodded.
“If I were truly kind like you say, I wouldn’t have survived this long in Abelon.”
Muttering softly, Celia smiled faintly, her clear eyes sparkling.
“The mere fact that you question this is proof you’re good-hearted. As for me……”
Dietrich trailed off, slowly closing and reopening his eyes.
“I don’t have any doubts at all. It feels only natural that someone who must die does die, and a nation that should have vanished long ago finally collapses. I don’t feel anything beyond that.”
No emotion could be sensed from Dietrich as he spoke.
He seemed like someone who had completely severed a part of their emotions.
The gap was so vast it made her wonder if the man who had held her so fiercely the previous night was truly the same person.
His eyes overflowed with affection when looking at her, yet when speaking of Abelon, he turned colder than anyone else.
‘Then again, he must have lost his country at the same moment I did, walked into the palace himself, and endured every kind of suffering. Perhaps, even more than I did.’
Even when she was at the viscount’s estate, Celia had heard countless rumors about Dietrich.
They said he was a man who nearly fell into the wretched status of a slave, saved only by sheer luck when he caught the Emperor’s eye.
Yet it was Dietrich who, with unmatched swordsmanship and no connections whatsoever, rose solely by his own strength to become Captain of the Imperial Guard.
Nicknamed the “Mad Dog,” who even threatened the Crown Prince’s position—it was impossible to fathom how much hardship Dietrich had endured.
Celia had once believed she would never cross paths with Dietrich in her entire life.
Life truly was ironic.
The man who had once looked at her with the cold eyes of a ruthless executioner now gazed at her with infinite gentleness.
“Dietrich. If I had been a Sword Master like you, I would’ve wiped everyone out long ago. Between you and me—between this version of me and you—who do you think is kinder?”
As Celia tightened her grip on their clasped hands, Dietrich smiled warmly.
His cool eyes softened into gentle curves, and his firmly pressed lips formed a gentle arc.
Seeing Dietrich’s smile, Celia spoke again.
“And besides, kindness is utterly useless. If anything, it only gets in the way of plans.”
Dietrich nodded in agreement at Celia’s pessimistic words.
Just then, a knock came at the door.
Knock, knock.
“My lord, someone has come to the palace. You should probably come out and see.”
At Sir Anderson’s voice, Dietrich’s eyes narrowed.
“Go ahead.”
At Celia’s words, Dietrich stood up.
Opening the door, he found Sir Anderson standing there, his expression far from pleasant.
“What is it? Has Ileon finally come crawling to the palace on his own?”
“It’s not Ileon. Gabriel Brillion has arrived.”
One of Dietrich’s eyebrows rose sharply.
“……On her own?”
“Yes. But she brought a letter sealed with Ileon’s insignia. It seems, as we suspected, that Ileon helped the Brillion family members escape.”
Anderson pulled the letter from his coat and handed it over.
Dietrich unfolded it right there.
The letter, written in neat handwriting with only a few lines, read as follows:
If you promise to hand over the princess to me immediately, I will overlook every crime you’ve committed so far. I will allow you to retain your position as Captain of the Imperial Guard, and even restore the dukedom you lost.
However, if you reject this offer, consider it my permission to execute you.
A mocking smirk lingered on Dietrich’s lips after reading the letter.
“……He’s insane. Does he actually believe I’d accept such an offer?”
The letter crumpled mercilessly in Dietrich’s grasp.
“I wouldn’t agree even if he offered me his own head.”
“Indeed. That bastard Ileon—I suspected he harbored vile intentions toward the lady. I should’ve torn his limbs apart when he was in prison…….”
Sir Anderson glared with genuine regret in his eyes.
“Where is Gabriel who brought this letter? What is she doing now?”
“I’ve locked her in the tower where the Viscount is.”
“Good. Did you extract any other information?”
“She didn’t seem to know anything at all. But she was cowering in fear, as if terrified out of her wits. Even when I locked her in the tower, she didn’t resist—just stayed obediently quiet.”
Hearing Anderson’s report, Dietrich turned to look at Celia, still sitting by the window.
Their eyes met, and Celia gave a small, bright smile.
Seeing her, Dietrich’s expression softened instinctively.
“What about the rest of her family?”
“They’re likely still with Ileon’s side.”
“So he’s using them as hostages. Pointless effort.”
Ileon must have known well that Celia and the Brillion family members were regarded as less than ordinary people.
Yet Dietrich believed there must be a reason Ileon went to such lengths to rescue the Brillion family.
Just as Celia wished, gaining the people’s support was essential to destroying Abelon and establishing a new nation.
That was why they had deliberately published newspapers, widely spreading the truth about the current Emperor, Ileon Gredrick, to undermine his reputation.
People already on edge now felt intense betrayal toward the man they once trusted.
“I thought things were going smoother than expected, but looking at this letter Ileon sent—it’s as if……”
He seems to have some confidence, some trump card.
A sigh-like sound escaped Dietrich’s lips.
They soon found out what that “trump card” was.
No sooner had Dietrich signaled his refusal than Ileon launched an assault on the palace—
as if he had been waiting for it all along,
leading a massive army unlike anything ever seen or heard before.
Top Celebrity Younger Brother Bears Her Child (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: Forced to live stream romance with a top celebrity in a female-dominant world.
Yan Jin transmigrated into a brothel, with a fellow transmigrated junior beside her.
Hearing the obscene words coming from outside, the unfortunate junior covered his ears tightly, his cheeks flushed red, and whispered to comfort her, “Don’t worry, I will definitely help you escape.”
“Don’t worry, I will definitely defend your chastity.” Yan Jin looked at the flawless and delicate features of the unfortunate junior and gently comforted, “Because we have transmigrated into a female-dominant world.”
※※※
Top celebrity Yu Shu suddenly fell into a coma during a concert.
Research scientist Yan Jin fainted in the lab after working overtime.
Two people with no connection were rushed to the same hospital.
Three days later, neither of them had woken up.
Suddenly, the entire nation discovered that a live streaming app had been forcibly installed on their phones.
Upon opening it, they heard the two discussing how to escape from the brothel.
The entire internet was in an uproar.
After the two successfully escaped from the brothel, Yu Shu’s fan group rushed to make a banner and sent it to the hospital overnight.
“Big sister bravely took action to defend the chastity of our idol!”
※※※
When Yu Shu was diagnosed with pregnancy, Yan Jin stared at his belly for a long time.
Covering his stomach, he muttered gloomily, “If you don’t like it, I’ll go get an abortion.”
“It’s not that I don’t like it.” Yan Jin hugged Yu Shu and said softly, “I just feel like I’m not human.”
Yu Shu comforted Yan Jin, “I was already an adult when we got together.”
Yan Jin hesitated, “But you won’t be of legal marriageable age even after giving birth to the child.”
At the same time, a flood of bullet comments appeared in the live streaming room that the two couldn’t see.
[Although it’s inappropriate, I also want a young and handsome boyfriend to have my child.]
①Male pregnancy (highlighted)
The female lead is five years older than the male lead, and the male lead is already an adult when he appears.
