Soon, a relieved voice could be heard.
“Thank God….”
It was the voice of the woman who had asked the man who had trapped him what was inside.
He thought she had panicked and run off, so it was surprising that she had come this far.
Thanks to the woman, he had bypassed the experience of drowning.
The woman, who he thought would release him here, held the sack he was in and walked quite a bit.
His body swayed back and forth with the woman’s steps.
Whether she had gotten onto a carriage or not, the swaying of the sack stopped along with the sound of horse hooves.
“…….”
“…….”
He was curious about what she might be thinking right now.
She had secretly followed the man, saved him from the water, and was now taking him somewhere.
The farther away he got from the city, the more troublesome it became.
The body that had turned into a curse would revert back to human form after a certain period of time.
So being taken this far away would only make it harder to return to his mansion.
Of course, all this was due to his own actions.
‘Besides…… Does this woman know what I am?’
The duke had not seen the woman’s face. So, she would not have seen him either.
It was strange that she was carrying him here and there without even knowing what was inside the sack.
He had thought she might be the type to have a soft spot for animals, but he knew that such sympathy usually goes to furry, cute animals.
He was far from that kind of animal.
If she knew what kind of animal she was helping, she would probably be screaming like the princess earlier.
Despite his cynical mindset, the duke was starting to become curious about the woman.
Why she had saved him, where she was taking him, what she might be doing right now.
He wasn’t sure if it was his mood, but he felt as if the woman was looking at him from the other side of the sack.
“Just wait a bit, I’ll untie you soon. You absolutely mustn’t die.”
The mumbling voice sounded somewhat desperate.
‘Strange woman.’
The duke, too, looked at the woman who could be anywhere inside the sack.
He had been like this for a while.
The sound of horse hooves stopped, and the woman, carrying the sack he was in, descended from the carriage.
The surroundings were silent. A considerable amount of time had passed while riding in the carriage, so they must be around the outskirts of the capital now.
The woman placed the sack she was holding onto the ground.
And as if doing something, the sack jostled, soon after, the opening of the sack opened.
The cold night wind swept into the sack.
“This may not be where you originally lived, but you’ll adapt well.”
The woman’s voice from outside the sack was warm, enough to momentarily forget the chilly temperature.
“Never come down to the city now.”
With these words, the sound of footsteps leaving could be heard. The duke slowly emerged from the sack and watched the woman disappearing.
Under the moonlight, the sight of her brown hair fluttering about could be seen.
The duke, for some reason, could not take his eyes off her.
[Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon]The duke who barely made it home that day could not ignore the feeling of being gently stirred, as if brushed by a spring breeze.
He thought this unfamiliar sensation would disappear with time.
However, as each day passed, the symptoms worsened.
‘This might not be your original home, but you’ll adapt well.’
At first, it felt as if the woman’s voice was replaying in his head.
It popped into his mind vividly while bathing, causing him to freeze momentarily like a fool.
Secondly, he began to contemplate the woman alone.
What her name was, what her face looked like, why she was there that day.
But no matter how much he thought, no answers came.
The third symptom was a feeling of suffocation in his chest.
His curiosity about the woman grew over time, yet conversely, he knew nothing about her.
All he knew was her voice and the back of her head.
Even that was just common brown hair, so it was difficult to find her with that as a clue.
With a furrowed brow, the duke thinking, realized this train of thought was extremely dangerous.
‘What will you do if you find the woman?’
Would he say, I was actually the wild animal you saved?
The duke stopped his speculations about the woman with that thought.
He was very curious about the woman to the point of jumping up from sleep, but he would rather not see her face twist upon discovering his true identity.
So the duke gave up on the woman.
No, he tried to give up.
He attended a party after a long time.
Duke Hart nonchalantly swept his gaze around the party venue.
Because it was a party hosted by the palace after a long time, the venue was crowded.
This, of course, only served to annoy him.
“Oh my, Duke Hart! Hello!”
“It’s been a long time. His Majesty the Emperor is making a major announcement today, so you’ve specially attended the party!”
The duke was surrounded as if he was being besieged by people.
Thus, he spent some time forcing a smile and greeting the people.
At that moment, someone far away caught his eye.
The woman with common brown hair caught his attention instantly, despite her unremarkable appearance.
The woman looked around the party venue, turning her head this way and that.
Her behavior, looking around as if searching for something, seemed……
‘……like a squirrel.’
Her small stature and curly brown hair made her seem even more so.
But what drew his attention to her was not simply her squirrellike appearance.
The duke felt a strange sense of familiarity from the unfamiliar woman.
‘Did I meet such a person before……?’
But no matter how much he racked his brain, he couldn’t remember the woman.
Then why did she seem so familiar?
The duke stared at the woman intently. Their eyes met.
Whoosh!
The duke felt strange at the woman’s attitude as she blatantly turned her face away.
The Duke tried to ignore this feeling, straining to divert his gaze elsewhere.
Yet, his gaze, free from rational control, kept gravitating towards the woman.
How many times had he stolen glances at her like this?
Duke Hart knew the reason why the woman was pulling his gaze like a magnet.
‘The woman who saved me.’
Her plain brown hair and lackluster appearance didn’t stand out, but her curly hair and small stature matched the vivid image in his memory.
Her running figure, resembling a squirrel, had been ingrained in his mind.
Duke Hart thought he would be certain when he heard the woman’s voice.
As he slowly moved through the crowd of people gathered like clouds, the woman suddenly disappeared from view.
The woman who vanished like a mirage was nowhere to be seen.
The Duke’s forehead creased.
He wanted to find the woman.
The Duke had to find the woman again and hear her voice. Then he would be certain that she was the woman who had saved him that day.
‘Where could she be?’
The Duke looked around the party hall packed with nobles.
If there was one thing that was clear among all this, it was the woman’s status. If she attended a party hosted by the royal family, she was likely a noble living in the capital.
With just that information, finding her wouldn’t be too difficult.
Among the nobles living in the capital, a young woman with a small stature and brown hair.
He could find her in three days.
If he let her slip away like this, he would find her even if he had to employ people for it.
The Duke suppressed his growing urgency.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
