“No one was seen leaving the mansion at the time. I regret to say, Your Majesty, discussing the likelihood seems futile.”
“Right, there couldn’t have been any survivors.”
The Emperor turned away, no longer interested in hearing more from Simoren. All evidence pointed to one clear fact: Lowell was dead.
‘Even if she survived the fire that day… Lowell was so frail.’
Peter recalled the last time he saw Lowell. Her frail body seemed unlikely to survive even a year, let alone a fire. If she did survive the fire, she couldn’t have lived long with such a weak constitution.
He knew that all too well, understanding that hoping for her survival was futile.
“Why do I still cling to hope?”
As Peter muttered in self-ridicule, worry clouded Simoren’s face.
“Your Majesty, the ‘doll’ you brought in yesterday is still alive.”
“Yes, she claims she’s necessary. That I’m on the brink of madness. That no one else could be more suitable.”
“How dare she speak to Your Majesty in such a manner? The audacity…”
“Isn’t she right, though? About me being on the brink of madness, and Annette Martineck being the only suitable person?”
Peter chuckled lightly as he flexed and unflexed his bandaged hand.
“She really did resemble her.”
“That much?”
“I thought Lowell had come back to life.”
Indeed, if Lowell had been alive, she would have looked just like that.
A face a bit more mature and thinner than his memory of her. Of course, Annette’s expression was more irritable than Lowell’s, but then again, Lowell wasn’t exactly a pleasant child, typical of those with prolonged illnesses.
So when Annette’s lips uttered, “Peter?” he almost lost his sanity.
Her appearance was too similar to the girl he loved, now buried beneath the earth.
Even though Peter knew that Annette wasn’t Lowell, he felt the madness climbing his spine directed towards her. If Peter had been slightly less patient and lost his sanity, he would have definitely mistaken her for Lowell.
“But that couldn’t be her real face, right? It must be some kind of magic or trickery…”
“Probably. But it worked. It made enduring a little easier.”
“And that hand…”
Simoren’s voice trailed off, his eyes fixed on the blood-stained handkerchief tied around Peter’s hand. Sensing the gaze, Peter lifted his hand and lightly waved it with a chuckle.
It was already half-healed, as if never wounded.
“It’s nothing. Just wondering if I’ve gone mad.”
Peter couldn’t erase Annette’s face from his mind even until the morning. It’s impossible not to go mad otherwise. So if he was dreaming or hallucinating, he wouldn’t feel pain.
Sadly, Peter’s senses were perfectly intact. The blood was red and hot; he was standing firmly in reality. Regrettably, reality also clearly indicated:
Annette Martineck was not Lowell Hessen.
This meant only one thing: whoever pushed Annette in front of him knew about Lowell.
Peter pondered this fact.
‘But everyone involved should have died back then.’
Furthermore, all records related to the Hessen family were obliterated according to imperial law.
So how could Martineck, after 10 years, push forward a woman identical to Lowell?
Was this merely a coincidence?
“Simoren, the records about Annette Martineck…”
Just as he was about to order to bring records related to Annette, there was a knock on the door.
At Peter’s command to open the door, a maid prostrated herself before him.
“Your Majesty, Lady Annette’s life is in grave danger.”
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.]
