Bluegale, located in the northern part of Sword Greenhill, was a picturesque estate surrounded by a vast forest of oak trees, making it a popular choice for powerful figures’ villas.
Oswald’s villa was also on a hill overlooking the river through the dense oak forest.
Once beautiful like a painting, the villa had burned down in a fire long ago, leaving half of it charred and the other half eerily untouched. Left abandoned over time, the villagers claimed that ghosts would come out, but nobody paid any attention.
When Kristin and Zimmer arrived, the sky was overcast, and the wind was blowing fiercely. The weather seemed like it could pour rain or something at any moment.
“The villa itself looks like a ghost.”
Zimmer muttered with his tongue between his teeth.
As the wind blew, the tattered curtains swayed, and the creaking sound of the doors made it seem like the place was alive.
“I’ll check inside; you keep an eye outside.”
“Separate… you mean?”
Kristin looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
“Are you scared?”
“No, not at all! I’ve had rice in the battlefield for years!”
As Zimmer pulled out his sword and disappeared, Kristin entered the villa.
Perhaps due to the dark day, the place was incredibly dim even in the midday, and not a single ray of light came in. Every time the wind blew, the squeaking sound added to the eerie atmosphere.
For a moment, Kristin felt a presence mixed with the sound of the wind.
“Huuk!”
The man who was taking steps let out a surprised scream.
Someone suddenly appeared in this abandoned villa where there had been no one. No, he wasn’t even sure if it was a person. Could a person be this beautiful? The silver hair fluttering in the wind was so mysterious that he couldn’t take his eyes off it.
“What were you doing here?”
The man finally realized that a knife was pointed at his throat.
“Please spare me! I was just taking a… a walk…”
The blade dug deeper into his throat.
“A walk in a place like this?”
“People can’t go to crowded places.”
The man raised his head and pointed to his left cheek. In his mid-40s, he had a terribly disfigured left cheek due to a burn.
Kristin stared through the man’s face with the knife.
“Did this happen during the fire here?”
The man’s face stiffened.
“Fine, I got the answer from your expression. Now, tell me everything about that fire. Also, how Stone’s wife died.”
“…!”
The man’s scared face took a step back. But by then, Zimmer had blocked his way.
The two young men, who blocked him both front and back, had sturdy builds and carried swords. The man, judging that he couldn’t be the opponent, easily gave in.
“Who the hell are you? Why now, bringing up that old story…”
“Answer my question first. Did Stone’s wife really die in an accident?”
Whenever Stone’s wife’s story came up, the man’s eyes shook.
“Then I’ll ask you one thing. If I tell you what you want to know, what are you going to do to Stone?”
The man’s words meant that he knew more than expected.
And he was a figure with animosity towards Stone.
Kristin’s eyes lit up with interest.
“Whether you tell me or not, I plan to kill him.”
A tremor passed through the man’s face. Then he spoke with determination.
“My name is Joseph. Stone’s wife was my younger sister. And… he killed her.”
Unexpectedly, Zimmer was greatly surprised.
But Kristin had already guessed.
“Because you knew his secret?”
“How did you…?”
Kristin’s red lips lifted thinly.
It was worth coming all the way here.
Returning home late in the evening, Kristin handed a small gift box to Adel.
“What’s this?”
“Red tea produced in Bluegale. It’s famous.”
Adel, who was opening the box, smiled quietly.
“This is a top-grade red tea that’s hard to come by.”
“Really? That’s great.”
Nonchalantly replying, Zimmer laughed silently from behind.
Despite the tight schedule, it was Kristin who, during a brief break, had chosen a gift for Adel. Even though she claimed not to know how to enjoy red tea, she engaged in a serious conversation with the shopkeeper.
“More importantly, Chris, let’s talk for a moment.”
Zimmer, who was laughing, suddenly stood with his hair on end. Having lived on the battlefield for a long time, he was sensitive to signs of danger.
Now that he looked, Adel had a mild face as usual, but there was a cold chill in her eyes.
“What happened today?”
As Kristin and Adel went upstairs, he asked Tanya.
Tanya sighed with an expression of helplessness.
“I don’t know. It’s your business, so I thought you two would handle it.”
Entering the reception room with Adel, Kristin was tense.
It wasn’t just Zimmer who felt alive the moment she heard what she was going to say.
His senses, more developed than necessary, made him feel like he was trapped in the middle of enemy territory the moment he entered the reception room.
“Did you buy Mia’s gift?”
“I was going to buy it later.”
“Good. Let’s go together later and choose.”
He tried to ease Adel’s mind with a soft and kind voice. He didn’t forget to use his greatest weapon, a charming smile.
However, the response he received was cold.
“Enough. It’s better for Tanya and you to choose the gift together. It must be a burden for you, who doesn’t even want a child.”
Although Adel thought she should trust Kristin, she couldn’t overlook this issue, not knowing it.
“Adel, I don’t not want a child; I just want some private time for us for a while.”
“For how long? A month? A year?”
“Well…”
While Kristin was searching for words, Adel, not waiting, added the next words.
“How long did you think you could deceive me? Did you know that the housekeeper has been managing the laundry separately to keep the rumor from spreading? I knew nothing like a fool.”
Only then did Kristin understand why Adel was so angry.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
