On the outskirts of the capital, by a remote beach, Adelin, unmistakably a member of the Credion family with her low-saturation wheat-colored hair, dyed it brown. Though distant from the capital and expecting delayed rumors, it was a precaution.
Having completed her disguise, Adelin set out to find the Duke’s mansion in the remote village.
‘How do I find it?’
She had assumed it would be easy to find the Duke’s mansion but faced difficulties. Nowhere in Horn could she spot a building resembling a noble’s estate.
Surely, this was the only place in the Solitarius Empire known as the remote village.
‘Surely, it must be here…’
Trusting a comment, Adelin’s anxiety grew as she wandered aimlessly.
“Miss, it’s dangerous to go further at night,” a gentle voice from behind cautioned her. She had not realized it had gotten dark while she was lost in thought.
“Granny, how can this well-lit path be dangerous?”
Adelin was puzzled. Even though it was getting dark, the path she walked on was well-laid.
“Go any further, and it’s all forest with not a single house! In the night, you’ll only become prey to wild beasts.”
“Is there a house beyond here?”
“It’s been over ten years since any noble has visited. Better go back before it gets darker, child.”
The old woman’s words sparked a realization in Adelin.
She had not seen the Duke’s mansion in the remote village, which now seemed closer than ever.
The next day, Adelin set out early, determined.
‘This is it!’
Returning to the path from yesterday, she began walking through the forest trail.
After a long walk, she finally came upon a tranquil mansion, its age evident in its design, seemingly forgotten by time.
‘No wonder it was hard to find.’
It was definitely the Duke’s mansion.
Adelin walked through the loudly creaking door into the lobby, shrouded in pitch-black darkness. The closing door let in slivers of light, illuminating dust that had settled over time.
“Cough. Ah, I should start with cleaning.”
Adelin decided to make the mansion livable.
If the Duke indeed arrives as mentioned in the novel’s comments, she would become his lifesaver. If not, she planned to hide in this forgotten mansion.
Late at night in the study.
Days had passed since Adelin had tidied up the mansion.
She began to doubt whether it was truly the Duke’s villa, as no crest or symbol of the Duke’s family was found.
‘Have I relied too much on a single comment?’
Exhausted, Adelin half-lay on the sofa. Then, something caught her eye.
Behind an old piece of furniture, slightly visible, was a door hinge.
‘Oh? Could there be something interesting?’
Curious, Adelin gently pushed the furniture.
Easily moved, the large piece revealed a door leading to a basement.
Surprised by the basement’s existence, she took a candle from the desk and approached the newly discovered door.
‘What could it be?’
The door creaked open loudly, as if unused for a long time.
Adelin descended the dusty stairs, candle in hand.
Reaching the basement, she found only a large framed picture, protectively covered by a white cloth, as if to shield it from layers of dust.
Between the slightly slipped cloth, Adelin caught a glimpse of the corner of a frame.
The antique frame, as if carved by an artisan, sparked her curiosity about the painting inside.
‘What could be so important that it’s hidden here?’
Filled with anticipation, Adelin grabbed the edge of the cloth covering the frame, larger than herself.
As she pulled, dust whirled into the air, and the cloth slid down smoothly.
‘Black hair, red eyes.’
The first thing Adelin noticed in the revealed painting was a woman with black hair, holding a child with black hair and red eyes in her arms.
In this empire, only two people possessed red eyes and black hair – the prince destined to lead her to death and possibly the Duke who could save her.
Considering the comments she read before dying, this mansion must be the Duke of Torpheo’s.
‘Cassis Mile Torpheo.’
Deep down, Adelin hoped this place wasn’t part of the novel she never finished reading.
She fled to this remote village clinging to a slender hope based on a comment, but wished it was all a misunderstanding.
However, the painting before her confirmed this was the world of that unread novel.
This mansion really belonged to the Duke’s family. Otherwise, a childhood portrait of Duke Torpheo wouldn’t be here.
It meant the Duke would come to this mansion, injured enough to be near death.
Adelin swallowed hard.
Returning from shopping, Adelin hurried home, relieved to see the unchanged mansion from afar.
Despite the distance from the city, darkness had already settled around.
She briefly worried if the Duke might appear today but calmed down seeing the unchanged house.
Adelin turned the key, opening the mansion’s door.
With a rusty screech, the door swung open, and a chill breeze brushed her skin.
In the dim interior, Adelin fumbled for a candle.
‘Where did I put it? Why can’t I see it today?’
Her fingers soon found a long candle. Just as she searched for matches,
A cold breeze brushed her skin again.
Click. The sound of the door locking echoed in the room.
“……?”
Adelin mulled over the sound just heard – the unmistakable sound of a door lock turning. Instinctively, she clenched the candle.
“Is anyone there?”
Despite knowing no one should be in this remote mansion, she asked.
Her hands, gripping the candle, were damp with sweat, but she had no time to notice.
An inexplicable sense of unease crept up her spine.
Just as Adelin turned, holding up the candle,
“What do you plan to do with that?”
A voice, devoid of inflection, flowed into her ears, accompanied by a heavy breath tickling her ear.
A large hand from the darkness seized Adelin’s candle-holding hand.
Her hands were easily grasped in one of the man’s.
The man’s firm chest pressed against her back, palpable through her thin dress.
A man. And a very robust, solidly built one.
“Who are you?”
Her voice, as shaky as her raised hand, betrayed her fear.
In this secluded mansion, no one would come to her aid, no matter how loudly she screamed.
“What would you do even if you knew who I am?”
The man effortlessly snatched the candle from Adelin’s hand and tossed it aside.
With a crash, the candle shattered against the window.
“A woman about to die.”
A cold metal pressed against Adelin’s neck.
The deep darkness enveloped the surroundings, with only a sliver of moonlight streaming diagonally through the window, faintly illuminating the mansion.
As Adelin shrank back, the metal dug deeper into her throat, the thinly sharpened blade threatening to slice her neck at any moment.
‘No, this can’t be.’
She hadn’t fled here just to die a miserable death.
Her mind blared red alerts, urging her to escape immediately.
As she slowly turned her head, Adelin locked eyes with the blood-red irises shining alone in the quiet darkness.
“Duke Torpheo?”
The man threatening her life with a knife was the very Duke Torpheo she had been waiting for.
She had run to this mansion to escape a doomed fate, only to face death even sooner.
And instead of dying from excessive blood loss in this mansion, this overpowering man seemed far too robust.
Adelin couldn’t make sense of this bewildering situation.
“You know me. How did you find this place?”
In response to the Duke’s chilling voice, Adelin desperately blurted out an excuse.
“Duke! I just…….”
Adelin found herself at a loss for a way out.
Someone who had been waiting for her arrival at this hidden mansion – if she had been Duke Torpheo, she too would have held a blade to Adelin’s throat.
The Duke pushed her more forcefully against the wall, his grip tightening.
The light reflected off the sharp blade highlighted his blood-red eyes even more vividly.
While they sparkled beautifully like stars in the night sky, Adelin was paralyzed with fear, unable to move under the murderous intent lurking in those red eyes.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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