The Villainess' Joyful Married Life (59 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 8
His shadow stretched out as long as his tall stature.
The wind coming through the open window made Resban’s hair flutter.
His face was as handsome as a sculpture, and his golden eyes within cool, sharp eyes sparkled coldly like a beast lurking in the shade, even under the bright sunlight.
Resban slowly released the maid’s waist, his brows furrowed.
Without showing any surprise, the maid lowered her head and spoke stiffly.
“…I’m sorry.”
Resban remembered the split-second movement the maid had made when they collided.
Even someone with good reflexes would have fallen backward, but the maid twisted her waist like knights who had trained for years—
as if about to execute a fall.
“…Lift your head.”
Resban’s low voice resonated.
The maid’s neck, her hair tightly tied back, was suspiciously delicate, and her fingers were just as refined.
After a moment, the maid slowly raised her face.
With finely arched brows, a straight nose, beautiful blue eyes like still lakes, and lips neither too thin nor too full, she was undeniably a beauty.
“…”
She stared directly at him, her eyes revealing not even a trace of fear.
Her attitude—cautious yet unafraid—felt slightly incongruous.
Her slender, frail, and light frame was utterly ordinary.
If she’d trained enough to instinctively execute a fall, her hands wouldn’t be so exquisitely soft.
A flurry of thoughts passed through his mind as naturally as the wind.
“…What’s your name?”
True to his childhood nickname “Warmonger,” Resban possessed a large, sturdy frame, and though his face was famously handsome, the killing intent that clung to him like clothing made women instinctively fear him.
“I’m a maid.”
Yet she answered without trembling, giving him this blunt reply.
He’d asked for her name, and she responded with “I’m a maid.”
“So you have no intention of answering me.”
The corner of Resban’s mouth lifted slightly.
Boldly, the maid offered no reply to those words.
Even under his subtly oppressive aura, she remained unmoved.
Such a response could only stir greater interest.
“…”
He… never forgot a face he’d seen once.
No matter how long ago he’d met them.
Amid his thoughts was an uncanny sense of déjà vu.
After a brief pause, Resban spoke to her.
“…You may go.”
**
Near the training grounds of the ducal manor, Resban and Kalian stood watching the soldiers drill.
Even without sniffing directly, one could sense a distinct scent emanating from a person upon meeting their face.
Some called it atmosphere, but Kalian thought it stronger than that—
the Crown Prince’s gaze carried the thick stench of blood.
His tall, broad-shouldered frame clad in dark formal wear, his chiseled nose and jawline, his black hair fluttering in the breeze—
and the cold, emotionless golden eyes reflecting a blade that had swallowed countless enemies needed no explanation.
Nor did the innumerable lives extinguished with their final screams.
“I’ll support the Agripe conquest campaign.”
Agripe was fertile land located in the empire’s southwest—
the destination the Crown Prince’s army would soon march toward.
And now, the cooperation of the dukes was needed for yet another war.
“Furthermore, I will send five thousand cavalry from my duchy and three Aura Knight squads to the Imperial Army. Though not as elite as Your Royal Highness’s personal guards, they will greatly assist in troop command.”
Once a vassal territory of the empire, Agripe had been among the first to betray Truesian twenty years prior, when frontier lords and kingdoms united to strike the empire from behind.
In that war, which decimated over half the imperial forces, the Empress, two princesses, and three princes lost their lives—the only survivor being the then-nine-year-old Crown Prince Resban.
It was the empire’s most tragic chapter—and the legend that birthed the “Warmonger” Crown Prince.
“Indeed, Duke, it’s always pleasant to converse with you.”
As Resban’s lips curled faintly upward, Kalian felt a deep chill run through him.
He knew refusal was futile—next time, the prince would simply arrive with an imperial decree.
Besides, Agripe offered ample rewards for military support, rich not only in grain but also in valuable minerals.
“May I ask Your Highness one question?”
Resban gave a slight nod, prompting Kalian to continue.
“Do you intend to reclaim all of Truesian’s former territories?”
The Crown Prince, bearing the nickname “Warmonger,” always led the front lines of every conquest.
He crushed enemies without mercy, spreading blood as he expanded the empire.
Though few territories remained to reclaim, doing so would require spilling even more blood.
“Brayton was curious about that as well. That boy has always feared me.”
Mentioning his half-brother—the Second Prince aligned with Klaus—Kalian’s hand twitched slightly.
Second Prince Brayton, son of the current Empress, had only just come of age at nineteen.
“He’s still young.”
Resban slowly drew the sword at his waist.
The chillingly sharp blade slid from its scabbard with a ringing sound, drawing every eye to the Crown Prince.
“At first, I only wished to avenge my slain brothers.”
His voice flowed softly.
At the tip of the Crown Prince’s blade, a vivid blue Sword Aura shimmered.
“But at some point, I realized—I was born to take.”
With a single elegant flourish of his sword, he split the air slightly.
Dozens of meters away, a wooden training dummy shattered instantly into pieces.
The drilling soldiers froze, staring blankly at the Crown Prince.
Was this truly the peak of human ability—or, as rumors claimed, had he made a pact with a demon?
Even without wind, the scent of blood hung thick around him.
“…I will reclaim every inch of Truesian territory. And…”
His golden eyes glinted coldly as they moved with grace.
“I will burn to ashes every kingdom and land that raised swords against Truesian twenty years ago. I’ll reduce even their collaborators to dust, and the empire shall feast upon the fruits left by traitors.”
“…”
“I’d like to grant you, my lord, the honor of sharing in the glory of final victory. The nobles of Torres are all cowards who tremble at the sight of a blade.”
Kalian concealed his weary expression.
“Our House Klaus will support Your Royal Highness with both material and moral backing.”
“A pleasing answer.”
Resban slowly sheathed his sword.
Every word and action of Resban carried weight.
He was also exceptionally intelligent, strategic, and undeniably royal material.
‘This is his blunt way of threatening to conscript me personally if I resist.’
It was also why he never summoned him to the palace but always came directly to the ducal manor—
a reminder that all soldiers in the empire, even those stationed at ducal estates, ultimately belonged to the Emperor.
“Then I shall have my servants prepare tea.”
As Kalian, with a somewhat sour expression, prepared to call a servant, Resban’s voice came again.
“Tea…”
Resban’s lips twitched.
His sun-like eyes flickered subtly—but no one noticed the faint ripple, like a small stone dropped on water.
“Prepare it by the lakeside. The view is rather pleasant.”
**
An ordinary person would have sensed his presence long before approaching.
But Resban was a supreme master who habitually suppressed his aura.
Eshika, who failed to notice him and ended up colliding with him, sighed inwardly in relief.
Then she scowled, frustration simmering within.
‘Why does this Crown Prince keep visiting the ducal manor instead of attending to state affairs?’
It hadn’t actually been “every day”—only five days had passed since his last visit—but for her, the encounter was nothing short of irritating.
She’d worn a maid’s uniform, revealed her face, and even lied about being a maid—so as Duchess Klaus, she shouldn’t have to meet him again.
Though she had indeed planned to uproot the entire Klaus family, this felt like an unexpected obstacle to her freedom of movement.
But what’s done is done. With a small sigh, she headed toward the manor’s kitchen.
“This can’t be called a vitality elixir.”
“Vi… vitality elixir?”
She’d bribed the head chef and asked Cella to request he follow the recipe to prepare the elixir—but what he’d made was merely an unpleasant sauce.
She’d have to explain the cooking method herself to show how a true vitality elixir was made.
“How dare a rat sneak into my kitchen… Who are you!”
As she entered the kitchen storeroom, a rough, deep voice boomed from behind.
Turning around, she saw Hemos—the short, bald, stout head chef—gripping a large cleaver and eyeing Eshika warily.
“Hoo…”
Eshika loosened her grip with a sigh.
At the sound of scattered items clattering, Hemos’s eyebrows twitched.
Head Chef Hemos—the very man who’d once proven his loyalty to the Dowager by deliberately serving Eshika food kept for days.
Once arrogant under the Dowager’s influence, his standing had soured ever since Yuri began offering jewels, drawing the Duchess’s attention away.
Now he and Yuri, newly appointed as chief maid, kept each other in check—a classic petty man, strong against the weak and weak against the strong.
And “classic” meant easy to deal with.
Soon, a wicked gleam entered Eshika’s blue eyes.
Male lead Asks for a Divorce Every Day
It’s not often you come across a plot like this in the female-dominant genre — make sure to check it out!
This is a novel I’m planning to reread as well.
The male lead is strong, skilled in martial arts, and not the usual fragile type you often see in matriarchal novels.
Meanwhile, the female lead is a scientist—rational and logical. Even when she falls for the male lead, she doesn’t let her emotions cloud her decisions.
If you push through the first few chapters, you’ll gradually find the story really intriguing.
It has a mix of mystery, detective elements, and romance.
The author’s writing style is like crafting a puzzle—except they deliberately leave out a few pieces, making it hard to predict what happens next, yet keeping you hooked.
In the end, everything will come together and be explained.
One-sentence summary: Wife, stop playing with beakers and look at me!
In a laboratory accident, research scientist Zhu Wansheng accidentally travels to a matriarchal world. The original owner of the body is an eighteen-year-old only daughter of a wealthy rouge merchant, already married with a handsome young man.
Zhu Wansheng grins: Nice! She always said she was heaven’s favorite granddaughter. After a life of toil in her previous life, she can enjoy blessings in this one.
However, her joy lasts no more than three seconds as bad news arrives: the original owner’s family is about to go bankrupt, and her husband wants a divorce.
Even worse, she’s stuck with a research system full of restrictions.
Zhu Wansheng: ? Is this the destiny of a research dog?
——
Faced with this mess, Zhu Wansheng pours herself a bowl of wine to drown her sorrows. In her drunken haze, her husband arrives.
His figure is imposing, holding a long sword, with a dignified air that captivates Zhu Wansheng.
Gu Yingqing, however, looks at the alcohol-reeking Zhu Wansheng with undisguised disgust and coldly asks, “Divorce or not?” The intoxicated Zhu Wansheng mumbles vaguely, “I think… it’s not… it’s not… impossible!”
——
The next day, after sobering up, Zhu Wansheng is full of energy, rolling up her sleeves ready to make a big move. As for yesterday? She has no memory of it.
Zhu Wansheng is ambitious; a research dog fears nothing!
Upgrading rouge, extracting fragrances, producing perfumes, researching lipsticks… all shall bow to the power of modern technology!
The original owner’s dying rouge shop is revitalized. Her mother is pleased and with a wave of her hand, passes on the family business to her. As she takes control and her experimental results gain popularity, it’s the pinnacle of her life…
——
But there are always those who can’t stand to see her doing well. Jealousy, scheming, assassination attempts – they want nothing less than her life.
The person who has always kept his distance from her suddenly holds her tightly in his arms, eyes full of concern.
She is unharmed, but he falls into a pool of blood…
Zhu Wansheng feels guilty, “I can grant you one wish.”
Gu Yingqing tentatively circles his arms around her, carefully resting his head in the crook of her neck, pleading softly, “I regret it. Can we not divorce?”
Zhu Wansheng: ? When did I agree to a divorce?
[Small Theater]
The newly developed rouge is beautifully packaged, and Zhu Wansheng is eager to try it.
Gu Yingqing suddenly appears: “My lady, may I apply it for you?”
Cool fingertips lightly brush her lips. His Adam’s apple bobs as he leans in for a light bite.
Zhu Wansheng: ?
Gu Yingqing: It smells so good, I wanted to taste it…
On a warm spring day, Zhu Wansheng tries a new perfume: “Spring Night.” Gu Yingqing corners her against a wall.
Warm breath lingers on her neck.
“My lady, from now on, may I test the fragrances for you?”
[Humorous female scientist vs scheming live-in son-in-law male lead]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
MANGA DISCUSSION
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Chapter Comments (312)
(THEN RESBAN…)
Okay, THIS is the part I’m most interested in bc Chapter 8 established that Resban immediately noticed something strange about the maid.
Chapter 9 ends with “I’ve completed the inquiry regarding Duchess Eshika Klaus.”
SIR. 😭
You cannot tell me this man didn’t immediately go “That maid is suspicious. Investigate every single thing about the Duchess.” Unless he saw her beautiful fluttering hair and noticed it was her already bc ML plot verdict 😭& considering his reaction to her physical movement, I suspect his investigation is going to uncover something that makes the situation much more interesting.Especially because Resban already has that strange sense of familiarity with her.
The butterfly/dream imagery at the end is also a pretty blatant signal that Eshika isn’t merely a random woman he’s encountered. There’s something connecting them that predates this life—or at least connects to Young Ryung’s past.So I really like that the story is contrasting Kalian and Resban here.
Kalian sees Eshika and thinks, “Why is my wife acting strangely?”
Resban sees Eshika and thinks “Why does this woman feel familiar, and why does she move like that?” (Probably thinks she’s gorgeous too lol)
Kalian is emotionally anchored in his assumptions about the old Eshika.
Resban is actually observing the new Eshika.
That difference is going to matter enormously.
The fact that Eshika is walking around in a maid uniform thinking she’s finally gained some freedom, while the most dangerous man in the empire has already started investigating her identity…🤣🤣🤣
Girl, you have approximately five minutes of freedom left.(Eshika vs Hemos)
The knife scene was so satisfying 😭
Hemos comes in thinking “filthy little rat”and within seconds she’s casually holding his knife between two fingers and then snaps the blade.That is such a good way of revealing her martial ability because Eshika doesn’t need to announce, “I am actually an incredibly powerful martial artist”. She just does something completely impossible for an ordinary maid and lets Hemos figure it out himself.
Then she immediately pivots from physical intimidation to financial leverage.
That’s what I really like about her characterization so far. She’s not relying solely on strength. She’s basically thinking “What does this person want? What are they afraid of? What can I use?”
Hemos = money + gambling + fear of punishment.
Cella = greed + self-preservation + desire for security.
Yuri = ambition + jealousy + obsession with Kalian.
The three can be handled completely differently.(Meanwhile, Leona being and feeling suspicious)
Leona has noticed Eshika’s complexion improving despite supposedly receiving nothing but stale bread.
Which means Eshika’s plan isn’t completely invisible anymore.
So now she’s specifically ordering someone to watch Eshika’s meals.
That’s exactly the sort of consequence I was expecting after Eshika started manipulating the kitchen because Eshika is becoming stronger and more independent, but she’s also becoming more noticeable.
She’s basically accumulating resources:
1. Cella’s loyalty
2. the kitchen
3. better food
4. her hidden pearls
5. her martial knowledge
6. her internal cultivation
7. knowledge of the household
8. information about everyone’s weaknessesSo meanwhile, Leona is beginning to realize“Something is wrong with that woman”.
That tension is going to be delicious 😂
Inline Comments (39)
“You betrayed your friend, stole her jewels, and now you fawn over the Grand Lad
Why did they become friends to begin with? It’s not like yuri knew eshika would marry him
Cella spat out bloody saliva and glared at Yuri.
Does cella know martial arts at this point or no? I remember she asked
“This mother… can’t bear living under such injustice… uuhuhu….”
This guy is hopefully just gonna be an endgame final boss or something
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Onigirimamireads
(Resban is already suspicious of her)
This is probably my favourite part of the chapter.
Resban doesn’t just see a pretty maid and move on. He immediately notices that her body reacted like someone trained in combat.
That little detail about her instinctively twisting her waist to prepare for a fall is important because Eshika doesn’t even realize how revealing her martial instincts are, & then:
Him: “What’s your name?”
Eshika: “I’m a maid.” 😭
That answer is PERFECT for her personality right now.
She knows exactly what he’s asking and simply refuses to give him anything useful. Resban actually seems amused rather than angry.
The fact that he experiences that strange déjà vu afterward makes me even more suspicious about the reincarnation connection. We obviously don’t know yet whether there’s anything supernatural tying them together, but narratively the author is very deliberately putting those similarities there.
Especially because Eshika herself already noticed the resemblance between Resban and the man from Young Ryung’s past.
So now it’s:
Eshika: *Don’t attract the Crown Prince’s attention*
Also Eshika: *immediately crashes into him.*
Girl😭
Onigirimamireads
(NOW WE HAVE HEAD CHEF HEMOS)
Oh, this man is about to have a terrible afternoon.
The description of him is basically: arrogant when protected by the powerful, cowardly when confronted by someone stronger—-& Eshika immediately recognizes exactly what kind of person he is.
That’s becoming one of the most satisfying aspects of this story. Young Ryung has decades of experience dealing with schemers, bullies, traitors, martial sects, assassins, poisonous food, political factions, etc.
The Klaus household thinks they’re dealing with an emotionally unstable spoiled noblewoman.
They’re actually dealing with someone who spent an entire lifetime surviving the Demonic Sect and imperial harem politics.
That’s like sending a high school bully after someone who’s survived organized crime. 😭
Onigirimamireads
(My favourite overall thing so far)
Everyone keeps interpreting Eshika’s changes through the lens of the old Eshika.
Kalian thinks she’s trying to manipulate him.
Yuri thinks she’s trying to provoke her.
Leona thinks she’s a foolish daughter in law who needs discipline.
The maids think she’s suddenly become frightening.
Cella is beginning to realize she’s completely different & Resban is the first person we’ve seen who seems to think:
“Wait… this woman doesn’t move like an ordinary person. How CUUURIOUSS” 🤣
That’s a REALLY good setup. Cliché but HEY *shrugs*
Eventually somebody is going to have to realize that the woman they knew died emotionally the moment Eshika regained her memories and the person walking around in her body now is Chun Young Ryung.
Onigirimamireads
(I luv that she’s building her own infrastructure)
This is something I think is going to make her revenge arc much stronger. She’s not simply feeling “I’m going to destroy Kalian”
She’s gradually establishing:
1. Cella → her eyes and ears within the household.
2. Food access → no longer dependent on people who want her weak.
3. Her hidden jewels → financial leverage.
4. Cultivation → personal power.
5. Knowledge of the novel → strategic information.
6. Her identity as a maid → freedom of movement.
7. Knowledge of household corruption → future leverage.
8. Understanding of Yuri and Leona’s schemes → ammunition.
She’s essentially rebuilding her power base from scratch.
That’s why the revenge feels earned rather than just magically handed to her.
Onigirimamireads
(Resban spookydookie?)
That whole conversation with Kalian really establishes why everyone calls him the Warmonger.
I particularly liked the distinction between:
“At first, I only wished to avenge my slain brothers” & “I was born to take”
That’s a pretty huge characterization moment.
He’s not conquering purely because he’s bloodthirsty. His original motivation was revenge, but somewhere along the way, conquest became part of his identity.
The way he casually demonstrates Sword Aura by destroying the training dummy while discussing genocide like it’s an afternoon conversation is… 😭
Kalian’s internal reaction is also hilarious because he’s basically thinking:
*Ah. This isn’t a request. This is a very politely worded threat*
Exactly. 😂