Wandering in the alley, Etienne absentmindedly twirled her hair out of frustration.
“It seemed like it was Hae-na, but…”
Unlike when she encountered the Second Prince, she couldn’t be sure. She had followed him impulsively just to confirm if it was Hae-na.
However, even after turning down the alley following the direction where Hae-na disappeared, her figure was nowhere to be seen.
“How on earth did she disappear?”
Someone kept catching her eye, yet there was no person she actually caught. Moreover, considering the incident at the fountain, there was nothing getting resolved properly.
Etienne paced around, looking at her surroundings. Perhaps due to entering the narrow alley, her chest felt tight.
“Let’s think.”
Etienne scanned the front and back of the alley where someone might appear. Perhaps due to the incident at the fountain, there was no one passing by.
Leaning against the wall, Etienne raised the small piece of paper that she had been holding. Given by Lehart, it was the paper she was planning to use her restoration ability on when she became an adult. There were only a few days left, so she could wait a bit longer, but…
“During that time, who knows what might happen.”
Feeling as if something was tightening around her neck, she became increasingly anxious. The complacency she had pushed back due to the burden on her body was returning as guilt.
If she didn’t try to restore this now, she felt she might go crazy soon from the suffocation.
Etienne wrapped the hand holding the paper with the other hand and brought it to her chest before closing her eyes.
Restoration is carried out with the power flowing from the heart. With the hope that even a little force would reach the paper faster, Etienne gathered her hands.
Around the closed-eyed Etienne, a small wind began to blow. At first, it was a very gentle breeze.
The wind, whose origin could not be determined, gradually grew in size, shaking the edges of her skirt and scattering her hair to the extent that it fluttered.
The wind that used to blow only by Etienne’s side lost its strength again, shrinking and eventually disappearing completely. As it happened, Etienne opened her closed eyes.
Even without looking at the paper in her hand, she could clearly feel the difference. When she clenched her fist, it might be hard to tell if she was holding anything, but now the paper, folded several times, was full in her hand.
“Ugh.”
However, she couldn’t unfold it. Because of using too much force, her body had weakened, and it became difficult even to stand.
Finally, sitting down on the ground, Etienne breathed heavily while tapping her sore chest.
Unlike when she restored Lani’s note in the past, using even more force this time seemed to make her dizziness persist. Her head was heavy, and there was a ringing in her ears.
“Like this… can’t see…”
Nothing.
Etienne couldn’t spit out the words properly and eventually let the words trail off.
Her vision was blurry. It seemed like she could lose consciousness any moment. If she had gone home and restored it, the butler would have laid her down in her room after she collapsed.
‘I’m really foolish.’
Unable to endure the short time it took to go home…
Now, the thought of unfolding the paper was inconceivable. The best she could do at the moment was to keep herself focused until she regained some strength.
Of course, she couldn’t guarantee that she would be able to maintain her consciousness.
‘What if someone takes what’s in my hand while I’m unconscious?’
That would render the restoration meaningless. It was at that moment when she pondered over such concerns.
As the sound of approaching footsteps pierced through the ringing in her ears, Etienne tightly closed her eyes.
It would be better if the owner of the footsteps I heard was just passing by the alley, not entering it. Ignoring Etienne’s wish, the sound of footsteps gradually grew louder.
Fearing that someone might snatch the paper from her, Etienne exerted strength in her hand. However, as she forced strength into her lifeless body, her hand trembled.
‘Please, just go away.’
If they ignored her and walked past, everything would be fine.
“Here you are.”
Due to the ringing in her ears, the voice didn’t sound clear. It seemed like a voice she had heard somewhere, but she couldn’t be sure. Etienne struggled to open one eye.
First, she saw the legs. Etienne slowly raised her gaze. From the legs, her eyes traveled up to the waist and then reached the chest. Eventually, her gaze met the face, and Etienne’s breath caught.
Retin was waiting for Etienne to come back. Since it was mentioned that Fernand Gongja would come along, Retin stood at the entrance, continuously watching for the carriage.
“If you wait inside, I will inform you.”
Seeing the pitiful scene, the butler, who was sweeping the entrance, spoke. However, Retin raised his hand, indicating that he would continue to wait here.
“There seems to be an incident in the city, so it might not be comfortable to wait inside.”
“But…”
“I’m fine.”
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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