‘Me, get out! Hurry!’
The director shoved Ivy away as if she were a vicious stray dog. Her heart crumbled completely.
‘How can you look at me with that expression? I’m not a monster!’
Ivy’s rage, boiling up to the tips of her hair, was directed entirely at Latieana Merigold.
‘It’s all because of you being here! Just die already! Latieana Merigold! You will never be happy! Do you think I’ll just stand by and watch?’
Everyone’s attention turned toward the elegantly dressed noble who had just arrived. While Latieana Merigold’s adoption was being announced and everyone offered their congratulations, Ivy seized the moment when the coachman stepped away, sneaked into the storage shed to fetch tools, and headed toward the carriage.
[This is the timeline separator]‘She was such a pretty child, wasn’t she?’
‘Yes. She looked clever too.’
The husband nodded in agreement with his wife’s words.
‘Her room should be pink. It would suit her well. Let’s put a white lace canopy over the bed. Also…’
‘Darling, take it slow. We still have a whole week.’
‘What are you talking about? We only have one week left! Girls need so many things—dresses, jewelry, there’s so much to prepare.’
‘Alright, alright.’
‘But what if my taste doesn’t appeal to her?’
‘Your sense of style is admired even in high society. She’ll definitely love it.’
‘Really? That would be wonderful.’
The noble couple laughed and chatted about Latieana Merigold during their carriage ride toward the capital. All the way out of the village, their conversation revolved solely around her.
They promised to return in a week after finishing preparations to pick up Latieana Merigold. Having struggled for years without conceiving a child, adopting Latieana Merigold brought them incomparable joy.
‘We’ll love her so much. Let’s raise her beautifully.’
At that moment, near the cliff along the mountain road leading to the city with the portal, the carriage suddenly lost its balance.
‘Kyaaak!’
‘Darling!’
Clang! As the carriage swayed violently and the couple clutched each other, the wheel’s bolt came completely loose. The carriage lost control and plummeted instantly down the cliff.
Though it was Ivy who had loosened the bolt, no one ever discovered the reason.
With the couple’s deaths, Latieana Merigold’s adoption was canceled.
Latieana Merigold cried sorrowfully again, while Ivy smiled secretly beneath her blankets.
Time passed, and one day, just before turning twenty—
While returning from running an errand for the director to buy groceries, Ivy perked up her ears upon overhearing a nearby conversation.
‘Did you see her? Her hair is incredibly pretty, right?’
‘Dude, who doesn’t know that? It’s not just her hair. Latieana Merigold’s face is stunning too.’
‘I’ve already claimed her, so don’t even think about making a move.’
‘That’s cheating. Isn’t it first-come, first-served? Do you really like her that much?’
‘Anyway, I’ll be the one to confess first.’
Over the years, the village had grown considerably, and the number of boys her age had increased.
The problem was—the boy expressing interest in Latieana Merigold was the very same boy Ivy secretly adored.
‘He likes Latieana Merigold? Not me?’
Completely unaware of how others perceived her, another wave of hatred bloomed within Ivy.
Not long after, while returning from another errand for the director—
This time, she was with Latieana Merigold.
As they approached the path leading back to the orphanage, a tall young man appeared before them, holding a single red rose. It was the boy Ivy had a crush on.
‘Take it, Latieana Merigold.’
‘Shouldn’t you give that to your girlfriend?’
‘Then… will you be my girlfriend?’
‘What? That joke isn’t funny. Are you kidding?’
‘Yeah. Just kidding. A joke.’
It wasn’t a joke at all. He only pretended to let it go because Latieana Merigold seemed uninterested.
Ivy knew that behind that playful confession lay genuine feelings.
Everyone else was so stupidly clueless. I’m the only one sharp enough to see through it!
Hunched over, glancing sideways, Ivy stared at the scene through the curtain of hair half-covering her face, biting her lip hard enough to draw blood.
By now nearly an adult, Ivy’s heart remained twisted and frozen, unchanged since childhood.
No one ever compared Latieana Merigold and Ivy—but Ivy compared herself relentlessly, sinking into deep inferiority.
The stronger her jealousy toward Latieana Merigold grew, the more distorted her mind became.
Her uncontrolled anger made her breathing ragged, and only then did the boy who had confessed to Latieana Merigold finally notice Ivy. He frowned in disgust and stepped back.
‘Latieana Merigold, I’ll see you next time.’
‘Okay, take care.’
The boy Ivy secretly loved smiled and waved only at Latieana Merigold before turning away. He ignored me completely, even though I was right beside him!
Ivy stared intently at the red rose held in Latieana Merigold’s delicate hand.
‘L, Latieana Merigold. Th, that flower is, is pretty.’
‘Huh? Really? Do you want it, Ivy?’
‘C, can I really have it?’
‘Yes. That rose suits you too.’
Ivy snatched the red rose from Latieana Merigold’s outstretched hand.
‘Kk, kkh, kkh.’
A strange, stifled laugh escaped through her teeth.
Right. Maybe he actually meant to give it to me? It suits me so perfectly. He must know that. Maybe he pretended to give it to Latieana Merigold because he’s too shy to give it directly to me? Because I’m too beautiful?
Exactly! It was originally mine—Latieana Merigold stole it. This rose was meant for me all along!
Outwardly, Ivy was a stuttering, quiet girl—but behind her bowed head and coarse, broom-like brown hair, her gaze was sinister. Her thoughts spiraled wildly, endless jealousy turned to resentment, and eventually became an unstoppable curse.
‘Latieana Merigold, just die already. Die quickly. Someone like you…!’
At dawn, as always, Ivy woke up and glared at Latieana Merigold.
Then, she saw a soft pink light, breathtakingly beautiful, rising from Latieana Merigold’s body.
‘Wh, what is that?’
Her bewilderment lasted only a moment—her lips, previously spewing curses, froze completely.
‘……!’
The sharp slant of her eyes lost all tension. Despair washed over her face.
No one could mistake that light. It was the healing power possessed only by Holy Maidens.
Unable to bear watching that increasingly radiant glow, Ivy bolted straight out of the orphanage.
‘Why? Why? Why? Why in the world? How? Tell me why!’
Barefoot and in her nightgown, Ivy ran frantically until she reached the spot where, long ago, she had shredded and discarded Latieana Merigold’s hair ribbon.
Her feet had carried her unconsciously back to the very place where she’d first stolen and destroyed something belonging to Latieana Merigold—the place where she’d hidden the evidence.
The tree, half-charred and half-rotten, still stood dead as ever.
Ivy panted heavily, completely out of her mind.
Plop, plop. Rain began to pour, and Ivy started digging madly into the muddy earth.
Her fingertips were instantly covered in cuts, tears mixed with rainwater streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks.
‘Latieana Merigold—a Holy Maiden candidate? Impossible!’
Glitter. The cubic crystal she dug out from the muddy hole still sparkled as if brand new.
Clutching the crystal tightly in her bloodied hand, Ivy sobbed uncontrollably.
‘Why can’t it be me? Why?!’
She gnashed her teeth so hard her jaw felt like it would shatter. Before her stood a dry, sharp branch like prison bars.
‘Should I snap it off and stab her?’
The thought had barely crossed her mind when black smoke began seeping from Ivy’s toes.
Her sclera slowly turned pitch black.
‘Kuhh!’
Her body arched backward like a drawn bow.
Rainwater poured mercilessly into her eyes, nose, and mouth. A twisting, unbearable pain surged through her body.
‘I, I’m going to die…!’
The moment that thought struck, Ivy collapsed face-first onto the mud she had just dug up, as if fainting.
When she opened her eyes again, Ivy felt eerily calm—as if she had become a different person.
New knowledge filled her mind completely—as if she had known these truths since birth.
‘I can become the real one.’
The spell to steal Latieana Merigold’s power circled vividly in her thoughts.
[This is the timeline separator]Recalling the past, Ivy’s eyes snapped open fiercely. Her sclera were bloodshot, veins threatening to burst.
Veins bulged even on her forehead and jaw from the sheer force of her rage.
“Damn you, Latieana Merigold.”
That girl—I truly want to kill her.
Ivy remembered Edan Dietrich, who had come to rescue Latieana Merigold.
He was a man famed for his strength and dazzling looks, but she hadn’t cared much until she saw him with her own eyes.
After all, Killian Dietrich and Hillstain Mathias were more than enough.
They were splendid men, second to none in the Empire.
But the moment she saw Edan Dietrich at the ball, Ivy became consumed by the desire to possess him. She wanted that beautiful man admired by every noble. Yet for some inexplicable reason, he already knew Latieana Merigold.
Worse, he arrived precisely at the crucial moment to rescue her.
Once again, the man she most desired was gazing at Latieana Merigold.
The corners of her tightly closed lips trembled as if seized by convulsions.
I don’t care what relationship Duke Edan Dietrich has with Latieana Merigold.
I’ll burn every strand of that damn hair to ashes! That’s how it will end.
Latieana Merigold. Your beautiful skin too—I’ll make sure no one ever praises you again.
Because it’s mine. I deserve to have it.
The admiring gazes, the endless compliments calling me beautiful, even the Empire’s finest men—all of it belongs to me.
Unlike in the past, Ivy now gently swept back her glossy, smooth hair.
It was at that very moment—
“Ah, no…!”
She gasped as if choking, then suddenly began trembling violently all over.
From her jewel-adorned fingertips, her skin blackened and charred as the decay crawled up her arm.
“Huhh, hhh.”
In mere moments, cold sweat poured down like rain.
Ivy unleashed a torrent of red healing energy.
A Holy Maiden’s healing power cannot heal herself—it exists solely for others with special abilities.
Yet Ivy desperately tried to mask and suppress the backlash of her dark magic using the healing power she had stolen from Latieana Merigold.
Crouched on the floor, drenching herself in red healing energy, she waited until the rotting skin finally faded from view.
Only then did Ivy slump to the ground in relief, staring blankly upward. Her dark-red, bloodshot pupils trembled aimlessly.
‘I must seize Latieana Merigold’s power completely—as soon as possible. Make it entirely mine.’
The next day, Ivy calmly adorned herself as usual.
“Did Crown Prince Killian Dietrich depart for the duchy?”
“Yes. Your Holiness.”
“How long will it take?”
“I’m not certain, but since the Empress accompanies him and it concerns state affairs, it will likely take considerable time…”
Ivy spun around sharply and bit down hard on her fingernails.
“And Lord Hillstain Mathias?”
“I believe the Captain of the Knights accompanied him as well.”
“Understood. You may go.”
“Yes.”
No. This can’t be happening.
Hillstain Mathias leaving too, at this critical, time-sensitive moment?
Though Latieana Merigold’s healing power currently saturated her body, separately, the side effects of dark magic continued rotting her flesh.
Ivy’s eyes narrowed.
I should never have let the last opportunity slip away.
As Ivy walked down the corridor for her weekly audience with the priest, her expression was heavy and grim.
‘Come to think of it… has Hillstain Mathias even visited me recently…?’
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
