“To you who desire perfect salvation, in an imperfect world.”
.
.
.
“You certainly don’t lack a thick skull.”
A girl’s insolent remark had thrown cold water over the congenial ballroom.
“But I must finish my greetings. It is truly an honor to meet you, Count Zion Laurel.”
The ensuing insult cut off the remaining laughter, and the nobles froze in place, struck by the sudden lightning bolt.
The nobles who had been enjoying the party stared at the girl with blank faces.
The girl in the watercolored dress was named Evie Ariate.
A candidate for the next Saintess, she was the culprit who had just shattered the atmosphere of the ballroom with two sentences.
A cold silence enveloped the ballroom, centering around her. And at that moment when everyone was taken aback, Evie, the source of the trouble, was aghast, more intensely than anyone.
‘What did I just say?’
Evie looked around the silenced ballroom with startled rabbit eyes and then looked back up at the glamorous man standing in front of her.
His name was Zion Laurel, the brother of the Duke of Laurel who hosted this ball, and the person who had just been accused of lacking a thick skull by Evie.
As Evie stood frozen, blinking her eyes, the Count opened his mouth.
“What did you just say?”
At the Count’s monotonous question, Evie suddenly came to her senses and tried to explain.
No, she tried to excuse herself.
“I said that although you don’t have a thick skull, it’s an honor to meet you, Count.”
But what actually burst from Evie’s mouth was a playful retort, and Evie gulped down a gasp in surprise.
‘What, what’s happening?’
Something had gone wrong. Otherwise, the polite Evie wouldn’t have spewed such rash words to a person she met for the first time today.
Evie was so startled that she quickly bowed her head.
“I, I apologize, Count. What I meant to say was not that…”
“Or else?”
The Count leaned toward Evie, cutting off her excuse.
As the distance narrowed, the Count’s face came closer, and Evie looked at the face placed a foot away from her with a perplexed feeling.
The Count was an extraordinary beauty.
His delicately carved features were flawless, and his purposely lowered shoulders made her realize how tall he was. Moreover, the golden hair sparkling under the chandelier was dazzling like a halo.
The only thing different from the rumors was that his skyblue eyes, which were said to be utterly devoid of life, now had a strangely persistent hue.
“Or else what were you going to say?”
The Count asked Evie, watching her. It was a voice that could not be judged whether he was giving her a chance to explain or holding back his anger.
But the desperate Evie answered without any judgment.
“Walk around and greet properly, you mannerless child.”
And she wished she could die.
‘This must be a dream…’
Once again, her mouth moved on its own and put Evie in trouble.
Evie stared at the Count in disbelief, like a rabbit caught in a trap.
On the other hand, the Count’s eyes, as he faced Evie, were still mysterious.
He looked angry, curious, and seemed to be pondering how to punish the rudeness.
His ambiguous gaze and the silence of the ballroom choked Evie’s breath.
The nobles were silently watching Evie. They all had faces curious as to why the kind and gentle candidate for Saintess suddenly behaved like that.
Evie wanted to explain or excuse herself to them, but she dared not open her mouth for fear of saying something strange again.
Frightened, Evie hesitated and hesitated and then bit her lip tightly.
And, leaving behind the countless eyes that were fixated on her, she eventually fled from that ballroom.
.
.
.
‘What on earth happened?’
Evie, who had climbed into the carriage, took deep breaths as she recalled the events earlier.
Earlier, Evie had insulted the great nobleman Zion Laurel in front of hundreds of nobles. And she had even mentioned having a thick skull.
It was an unimaginable event.
In the place called Tienda, only four noble families are called great nobles, and the first among them is the Grand Duke of Laurel.
Laurel is the noble among nobles, and the actual master of this continent without a king.
And yet, to insult Count Laurel at a banquet hosted by that Grand Duke Laurel.
Evie imagined with a tearful heart what the nobles in that place would mutter.
“Good heavens, was that her character all along?”
“It’s fortunate to know her nature before the selection of the saint.”
“Speaking of cultivation, perhaps she’s not a commoner from Bise?”
Evie tightly closed her eyes to the criticism that automatically formed.
She is now being mentioned as a powerful next saint, but in fact, Evie is a lowerclass citizen from the continent of Bise.
Having lived in an orphanage in Bise, Evie received divine favor at the age of fifteen. Therefore, she came up to the upper continent, Tienda.
When male lead is the homewrecker
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
I’ve read the novel below twice already. Girls, I’m highly recommending it to you!
The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.
Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.
The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.
I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.
There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.
For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.
I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.
Here’s the story synopsis:
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Intro 1:
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.
Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.
In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.
Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…
Intro 2:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
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Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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