As members of Tentinella led by Eustar and Laila appeared, a low murmur rippled like a wave among the people gathered in the banquet hall.
Laila felt like a thin leaf floating on that wave.
Feeling the whispers and gazes of people subtly pushing her back, Laila slightly raised her chin. She could feel Eustar gently holding her hand beside her.
Seats for the two were prepared on the right side of the throne.
Eustar sat closest to the throne, with Laila next to him. The director and deputies stood below Laila, with nobles lined up behind them.
The music softened. People’s gazes moved towards the back of the throne. Soon, Baso appeared wearing a formal dress with a ruffled collar and black ribbon.
“His Majesty the King enters!”
As Eustar and Laila rose from their seats, Ord soon appeared.
Wearing tailored formal attire to fit his body thinned by long illness, he looked much more energetic than usual. Even the long trailing cape on the floor did not seem burdensome.
As Ord ascended to the throne, everyone in the banquet hall gave a formal court bow.
The chamberlain Baso arranged Ord’s cape as he sat down, then stepped back, and Eustar and Laila sat down in order.
Ord slowly looked around the banquet hall and said,
“Welcome.”
His voice was low but dignified. There was no precarious metallic sound nor coughing, truly a voice befitting one sitting on the throne.
Wearing the crown and holding the scepter, he suited the role of king better than any other appearance Laila had seen so far.
“I am truly grateful that you have gathered from near and far to celebrate my birthday. I hope everyone will thoroughly enjoy the banquet given in the name of Hyanmorik today.”
The music grew louder again, and the subtle tension among the guests eased.
Nobles who did not stay in the capital expressed surprise and relief that the king’s health looked better than the rumors they had heard, while those who frequently visited the palace and knew Ord’s condition well were amazed at what could have happened.
High-ranking nobles began to gather in the center of the hall with their partners. The first dance was about to begin.
If Ord had a queen, the royal couple would have danced first, but since he was not yet married, Eustar and Laila were to take their place for the first royal dance.
“Let’s go down, Laila.”
Eustar stood up, extending his hand. For a moment, Laila thought of making the excuse that her bottom was stuck to the chair, but that was clearly unreasonable.
While inwardly wishing her ankle would break just a little right now, she managed not to show it and took Eustar’s hand.
It was quite a graceful gesture even to the nobles who did not particularly like Laila. However, it wasn’t enough to fool Eustar’s eyes, as he whispered with a smile,
“You can’t help making such a displeased expression.”
Laila made a slightly pouty face, visible only to Eustar.
“You could pretend not to notice at times like this, Eustar.”
“It seems teasing you has become my hobby. What should I do?”
Before Laila could retort, the music began.
Perhaps thanks to the practice earlier in the morning, she was able to keep time more easily than she had worried. Of course, Laila was unaware that Eustar was doing his utmost to lead in a way that made it easy for her to dance.
“You’re doing well.”
Eustar whispered with a subtle smile. As the sound of string instruments rose cheerfully, Laila, who had just made a half turn in his arms, lightly tapped palms with Eustar and moved the corners of her mouth.
“It’s thanks to someone who taught me well.”
“You have quite a talent. Someday I’ll teach you all the dances that can be performed at royal banquets. We’ll make the haughty capital nobles’ jaws drop with your dancing skills…! How about it, Laila?”
A smile appeared on Laila’s lips. However, as she was facing away from Eustar at that moment, he didn’t see her smile.
Eustar, holding her shoulder, tilted his head slightly. For an instant, his hot lips lightly touched and left the side of her white, straight neck.
Just as the startled Laila was about to shrink back, Eustar led her into the next step with a completely natural expression.
Laila whispered with her eyes slightly widened,
“Usually it’s just a light touch of cheeks, isn’t it?”
“Our cheeks touched too, didn’t they?”
“If you keep doing this, I’ll step on your foot, Eustar. With this hard, high, and pointed heel.”
A mischievous smile appeared on Eustar’s face.
“You’ve already stepped on me two or three times.”
A lie. Just as Laila was about to refute, the music slowly faded and ended. Still holding Laila’s hand, Eustar stepped back slightly and bowed politely, staring into her eyes.
“You’re infuriating.”
Laila muttered as Eustar kissed the back of her hand.
Eustar’s smile deepened.
“I like that you find me infuriating. Because ‘infuriating’ is such an intriguing emotion.”
He sometimes says such inscrutable things. Laila pretended to touch her slightly flushed cheeks with the back of her hand as she returned to her seat.
The Tentinella members who had been watching the two dance all had their eyes wide open.
They had seen Eustar dance several times before, but they never expected Laila to show such dancing skills. Moreover…
“Did you see elder brother Eustar kiss lady Kristrad earlier?”
As Felix muttered blankly, Marnak, who was behind him, nodded.
“I saw it. It was overflowing with love…”
“The great elder brother Eustar.”
While they exchanged a few words in disbelief, it wasn’t just the Tentinella members who were surprised.
The nobles, who were paying more attention to Eustar and Laila than anyone else while pretending not to, were also astonished by Eustar’s bold courtship.
“Lady Himierd, my goodness. Did you see? His Royal Highness the Prince seems to have fallen head over heels for Her Majesty.”
A chatty countess chirped to Himierd. Himierd brushed off her words indifferently with an inscrutable expression.
“It’s fortunate that Their Highnesses are getting along well.”
The countess’s lips twitched with a prim expression. She had openly tried to provoke Himierd, but was dissatisfied with not getting the desired response.
After the first dance ended, the atmosphere became even more mellow and relaxed.
Young people approached partners they had been eyeing and invited them to the next dance, while older individuals exchanged greetings and began gossiping about family matters.
Along the windows, long tables were laden with overflowing food, and glasses filled with fragrant wine were constantly being placed.
Laila sat in her seat, gazing blankly at the bustling banquet hall with a slightly flushed expression.
This was the first time she had seen such a lively scene since coming to the royal palace. It seemed like the fairy tale castle scenes she had vaguely imagined as a child were finally—now—being recreated.
At that moment, Ord said,
“The next dance will be with me.”
At those words, Eustar and Laila turned their heads simultaneously to look at Ord. Both wore expressions of disbelief.
A somewhat sarcastic smile appeared on Ord’s lips.
“Do you dislike it?”
Eustar turned to look at Laila. It was obvious that she would not be pleased with Ord’s proposal… Just as Eustar was about to answer on behalf of Laila, who remained silent as if her lips were sealed with glue, Ord spoke.
“Anyway, it’s proper etiquette not to dance consecutively with the same partner. Is that alright, Eustar?”
Eustar stared at his brother, whose words and actions were incomprehensible, then asked Laila,
“Will you be alright, Laila? If you want to catch your breath, we can dance next time.”
Then Ord’s laughter was heard from behind.
“You cherish her so dearly.”
To Laila, it sounded like nothing but mockery, but Eustar maintained a calm smile without even raising an eyebrow.
“She is my wife, elder brother. It’s only natural to cherish and respect her.”
“From what I see, she doesn’t look particularly out of breath. She’s not that frail either. Isn’t that right?”
This time it was clearly a question directed at Laila. She knew that Ord had deliberately done so to prevent Eustar from intervening.
“Very well, Your Majesty.”
Laila answered concisely, then belatedly added,
“…It is my honor.”
Ord chuckled.
“I see you’ve learned to say things you don’t mean. It seems you’ve more or less adapted to life here. That’s fortunate. Well then.”
As he rose from the throne, the nobles nearby all stepped back at once. People’s eyes widened in disbelief as they saw Ord escorting Laila down.
Those who had gathered in the center of the hall to dance slipped away, unable to bear the pressure.
As a result, only Ord and Laila remained in the middle of the spacious hall. Laila briefly looked at Eustar over Ord’s shoulder, then blinked as if to reassure him. Whether he understood or not…
The music began. Originally, the second piece is lighter and more cheerful than the first, but perhaps conscious of it being the king’s dance, the orchestra started a slow and elegant, even solemn performance.
When Laila, not knowing the steps, became flustered, Ord said,
“Relax your body.”
At the same time, Ord’s hand lightly pulled Laila’s body. Sliding unknowingly, Laila frowned in confusion. However, before she could make eye contact with Ord for long, her body moved again.
Ord was handling Laila almost like a paper doll. Whether she knew the steps or not didn’t matter from the beginning.
What moved her was an unbelievable pressure and strength. Where had the man gone who had struggled to even rise from his seat until yesterday? Was she dreaming?
Ord, with one foot back, elegantly stepped on the floor with a tap, then half-pulled Laila’s body and tilted her back. Their faces moved in an intersecting motion. Their gazes meeting were as intense as if engaging in battle.
Ord whispered,
“Did you keep the secret?”
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
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