To Those For Whom Even Regret Is A Luxury (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 6
“Miss, good morning! May I bring in your meal?”
“Yes, come in.”
I swept aside the sheet music scattered across my desk as I spoke.
Sophie entered with her usual cheerful step, but her eyes widened the moment she saw me.
“Oh heavens, Miss! You didn’t sleep at all?”
“Sophie.”
I rubbed my tired eyes as I spoke.
“Your mother’s birthday is coming up soon, isn’t it?”
“Huh? Wait—how do you know that, Miss?”
I smiled at the wide-eyed Sophie and opened my jewelry box.
Though Elena had sneakily helped herself to its contents whenever she got the chance—leaving it rather sparse—there were still a few decent pieces inside.
When I handed her a small ring set with a peridot, Sophie’s face filled with confusion.
“It’s your holiday bonus. Take a full week off to rest. You should visit your hometown.”
“Wha—wha—what?”
Sophie gasped and waved her hands frantically.
“How could I possibly accept something so precious! No, Miss, I can’t!”
“You’ve been working for our household for nearly five years now.”
Sophie’s eyes grew as round as walnuts.
“We’ve spent so long together, yet I’ve never shown you proper appreciation. Take this and buy your mother a nice dress or something.”
“Well… um… then…”
At the mention of “mother,” Sophie’s eyes shimmered briefly before she bowed deeply at the waist.
“Thank you so much, Miss! I’ll go ask the butler for leave right away!”
“You don’t need to ask. You’re my personal maid, aren’t you?”
At my firm words, tears welled up in Sophie’s eyes.
“Thank you, thank you so much, Miss!”
Watching Sophie’s bright smile, I quietly sank into thought.
Knowing the future is a valuable asset in many ways.
“Around this time, Sophie’s mother died of tuberculosis.”
She could’ve survived with treatment, but apparently hid her illness to avoid burdening her daughter.
I remembered it so vividly because just two years later, Sophie herself died abruptly.
She’d been pulling nightly watch shifts every day to earn money for her younger siblings after her mother passed. And then one day…
“She was struck on the head by a sudden intruder and died—miserably.”
The investigation had wrapped up quickly, so the thief’s identity was never uncovered.
The only clue was a single strand of red hair found on Sophie’s clothing.
…And, coincidentally, Lucas also had red hair.
“Thinking back on it now, the truth is obvious as day.”
A hollow smile tugged at my lips.
Sophie had died right outside Elena’s bedroom.
Most likely, Lucas had snuck into Elena’s room in the dead of night, been discovered by Sophie, and silenced her to destroy the evidence.
It was a scenario I’d never even imagined before.
Back then, I hadn’t known those people were capable of killing someone so easily out of sheer greed.
Not until I’d died myself.
“I’m sorry, Sophie.”
I’d pretended to be a kind-hearted mistress, but in truth, this was just a calculated move.
Once Sophie returned, I intended to ask her to do work worth exactly the value of that peridot ring.
But before that, there was a crucial task I absolutely had to succeed at.
I touched my weary eyes again and pulled back the sheet music I’d set aside.
Covering the pages were dense clusters of notes I’d poured out throughout the entire night.
My eyes slowly scanned over them.
“……”
The moment my gaze fell upon them, the notes trapped on the staff seemed to come alive, singing softly.
It was a melody so beautiful it melted away all traces of last night’s exhaustion like snow.
I smiled faintly.
This was bait—crafted from sound.
To catch the great fish: Dante Hagenberg.
* * *
I walked down the dim corridor, my cloak’s hood pulled low over my face.
The air was hazy with cigar smoke.
Lights so gaudy they bordered on vulgar.
The sharp, heady scent of strong liquor.
The seductive, haunting melody of a cello.
Everything about this place was overwhelmingly brazen and unsettlingly alluring.
I took a deep breath.
This was my first time stepping foot here, in either my past life or this one.
“So this is it…”
The sanctuary of the fallen—the Pleasure Garden.
Unlike the sprawling empire it would become five years from now, right now the Garden was cramped and narrow—like an ant colony.
As I walked, I bumped into a man stumbling in the hallway.
“Whoa! …Huh? What’s this? A mysterious lady in a hood?”
The man reeked of alcohol as he leaned his face close to mine.
“What face could possibly be so extraordinary that you hide it so carefully? I’m quite the notable fellow myself, you know—how about showing me that face instead of acting so haughty!”
“A notable fellow, are you?”
Holding my cloak tightly, I looked him straight in the eye. He flinched slightly at our locked gazes.
“Then perhaps you know where His Grace the Duke is at the moment?”
“…What?”
His eyes bulged open, his drunken expression instantly sobering.
“You—you know the Duke? Oh, um… my apologies…”
“So you’re just a nobody, then.”
“What did you say?! Are you seriously insulting me?!”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d hear that. I expected more from someone who claims to be ‘notable,’ but I was disappointed—so it just slipped out.”
My calm reply made his eyes bulge with fury.
“Do you even know who I am?!”
“All I know is that you’re someone with no connection to His Grace.”
“Ha! Unbelievable! I was just humoring you because your hooded look was kinda cute, but—hey?!”
Suddenly, two guards appeared and seized the man’s arms.
They began dragging away the flailing, protesting man.
“Hey! Wait—I wasn’t trying to cause trouble! Please, just listen to me for a sec!”
“My lady.”
As I watched the man being hauled off like luggage, someone quietly addressed me.
I turned—and blinked once.
The one who’d called out was a kind-faced young man with brown hair.
‘…This person.’
If my memory served me right, this young man was Dante’s aide—
always trailing him like a shadow wherever he went.
I subtly swallowed my smile.
‘I thought causing a scene might increase the chances of meeting him…’
But I never expected to get a direct lead this quickly.
The young man studied me with a curious look and asked,
“Do you have a prior appointment with His Grace?”
I lifted my hood just enough for him to see—revealing my platinum hair and blue eyes.
His eyes widened slightly in surprise.
“I am Ariana Lopez, eldest daughter of the Lopez family. I have no prior appointment, but may I see His Grace?”
“…Lady Lopez, I’m sorry, but His Grace does not accept unscheduled meetings.”
“Please just tell him I’m begging for five minutes.”
At the word “begging,” the young man’s eyes widened further.
“And also tell him that if I fail to spark his interest within those five minutes, I’ll personally compensate him for his time.”
* * *
After a moment of hesitation, the young man disappeared—only to return shortly and begin leading me away.
He took me deep into the building.
At the end of a narrow corridor—like the deepest chamber of an ant colony—he finally stopped before a door.
“Please go in, my lady.”
He drew back the veil.
I stepped inside—and held my breath for a moment.
Seated within was a man whose presence was strikingly intense, almost unnaturally so.
‘Dante Hagenberg.’
The source of that presence wasn’t his sharp, handsome features, broad shoulders, or strong chest.
It had nothing to do with physical traits—it was as if he’d been born wrapped in an aura of sheer dominance like a blanket.
‘But… surprisingly…’
I’d assumed the master of the “Pleasure Garden” would have a dancing girl or two at his side.
Unexpectedly, Dante was alone.
Though he was indeed drinking what looked like a dangerously strong liquor.
Yet his gaze, fixed directly on me, was unnervingly clear—sending chills down my spine.
His blood-red eyes slowly traced over my face. Suppressing my nerves, I spoke.
“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Your Grace.”
His first words caught me completely off guard.
Still staring straight at me, he arched one eyebrow.
“Make your acquaintance?”
A faint, mocking smile seemed to flicker at the corner of his lips—then vanished instantly, like a mirage.
Dante clicked his tongue faintly and leaned back slowly.
As his slightly hunched posture straightened, his already tall frame seemed to grow even more imposing.
‘…He’s huge.’
There might be men physically larger than him, but I’d never encountered anyone with presence like this.
I discreetly moistened my dry mouth.
Though I kept my expression steady, I was inwardly flustered—I hadn’t expected to hit a snag right at the first greeting.
‘Isn’t this our first meeting?’
Of course, I’d seen Dante once before—during his grand victory parade a year ago.
But back then, though he was the hero of the parade to me, I was just one among tens of thousands to him.
“So.”
His lazy voice cut through my thoughts.
“You begged for five minutes of my time?”
I exhaled subtly.
Despite his relaxed attire and lack of guards—behaving like just another Viscount—he was anything but ordinary.
His eyes, gleaming like a predator’s through the haze of tobacco smoke, instantly assessed my value and intent.
‘Don’t tense up, Ariana.’
I reminded myself.
If I showed weakness, he’d look down on me—and that would be the end.
This man clearly wasn’t the type to offer second chances.
Keeping my expression as calm as possible, I spoke.
“I came to offer something to Your Grace. May I have just five minutes of your time?”
Dante lazily rested his chin on his hand.
“Sorry, but my sense of time is rather fickle.”
His elegant lips twisted into a cold smirk.
“If I get bored, those five minutes might end in mere seconds.”
It was the relaxed confidence of someone who’d only ever stood in judgment, never needing to plead for anything.
Facing that directly, I slowly nodded.
“Then let’s make it ten seconds.”
Dante’s eyes widened slightly as he rested his chin in his hand.
“If I can spark your interest within ten seconds, please grant me your time until that interest runs out.”
“……”
After a brief silence, Dante lifted the corner of his mouth.
“Reckless.”
I quietly held my breath.
The smile on Dante’s lips deepened slightly.
“I like it. Go ahead—ten seconds.”
“Thank you.”
I gave a slight bow and opened the clutch I’d brought with me.
Dante watched me with a tilted head as I took out a small instrument and took a quiet breath.
‘Honestly, I didn’t expect to start so abruptly like this.’
But it didn’t matter—this was the main point anyway.
I wasn’t nervous, even as I pulled out the instrument without any explanation.
After building the Pleasure Garden, Dante had hired only the finest singers and the most talented composers.
Mobilizing every ounce of his wealth and connections without hesitation.
That was precisely why his Pleasure Garden thrived as it did.
And if his ear was as refined as I knew it to be, then even the simple melody of a kalimba would tell him—
what I had truly brought him.
When yandere male lead believes she loves him — but she never did
“How dare you!”
“How dare you make me love you, only to cast me aside as nothing more than a friend?!?
“I will never accept that.”
“I will never let you return to him.”
“Even if I have to burn myself to ashes.”
“Even if I must shatter my purity, my dignity, my very soul.”
“I will never let you escape me!”
This was the first novel that introduced me to the matriarchal genre. I’ve read it three times already!
At first, the male lead despised the female lead. Later, he misunderstood that she liked him, so he condescendingly and reluctantly reciprocated her feelings.
Then, he suddenly discovered that she was kind to everyone in the same way, and there was already someone she cherished in her heart, and that person was not him.
The male lead couldn’t believe it, he became angry and crazy. He was determined to capture her body and heart by any means necessary.
Synopsis:
Want to see how a green tea bitch male lead falls in love with the female lead?
Want to see how he flirtatiously pursues the female lead?
Want to see how he gets slapped in the face repeatedly?
The male lead is a green tea bitch, a poisonous lotus, jealous, ruthless, unscrupulous, with a venomous heart, and he’s also a delusional maniac.
The female lead is righteous, positive energy-filled, kind, a holy mother.
Let’s see how two people with extreme personalities come together~
_____
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