He coldly eyed the space behind a circular column in the hallway, his face devoid of any warmth, filled with a chilling killing intent.
It was a simple question.
But the pressure made Delia, who failed to immediately reveal herself, tremble with fear as she stepped out.
“It’s, it’s, it’s me, Your Grace.”
The atmosphere was nothing like when she was first welcomed to the mansion earlier.
It felt like a completely different person, one who just happened to look like Laches.
Delia hugged her trembling arms, forcing a smile.
“Why are you here?”
The response was cool, much colder than she expected.
“You were startled, weren’t you? Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you….”
Despite his stern look, the guardian of the North was beautiful.
Completely different from other men in the capital who button up and read in the library, exuding charm. There was an undeniable allure.
“It must be lonely staying here alone….”
Just a single shirt, perfectly fitted. The lightly unbuttoned shirt was stylish.
The thought of revealing the fierce monster hidden under that thin fabric with a few movements made her heart race.
“I came to talk to you, Duke. Earlier, I was distracted. You weren’t at the banquet either… Are you busy?”
Her light indoor dress fluttered, as if it was her weapon, intruding into his space. Laches’s face involuntarily crumpled.
“Detor went for a walk when I said I was stepping out. He’ll be back later, so I have plenty of time.”
Laches didn’t hear Delia’s nonsense. Regardless of what she did or wore, or even took off in front of him.
Laches had no interest at all.
He stood there, continuing to listen to Delia’s nonsense out of a primal curiosity as to why she was here.
‘This never happened before.’
Why the change?
No sooner had the question arisen than the woman who sipped wine floated into his mind. Her presence was changing many of his actions and responses.
A change in choice naturally leads to a change in circumstances.
‘Detor also said he went for a walk, so his actions must have changed too.’
One variable was leading to entirely different outcomes.
“……Truly irritating.”
See? Just thinking about her once and she’s already occupying my mind again.
Laches brushed his hair back as if to shake off thoughts of that woman.
“Just thinking about it doesn’t make it go away.”
“Huh? What’s bothering you……”
“Get lost.”
With his question resolved, Laches was ruthless. As if deeming her presence unworthy of his time, he curtly cut off Delia with a harsh rebuke and turned away.
Delia was taken aback by the clear dismissal. In the capital, men had always been eager for her attention, captivated by just a glance or a touch. She had never experienced such a sharp reaction and vulgar language from a man before, leaving her bewildered.
Being the sole heir of the renowned guardian family of the empire, such behavior was expected, but Delia was oblivious to it.
“Even street thugs don’t talk to me like that!”
“So I’m worse than a lowly thug, huh.”
Whether it was from the cold, shame, or fear, Delia shivered uncontrollably as she watched Laches walk away.
“I am a guest here!”
Her sharp voice shattered the quiet of the northern silence.
“I came to thank you for allowing me to stay with all due courtesy. You refused my request for guidance and didn’t join me for dinner! You must be mistaken about something…… I’m a guest and deserved to be treated with respect!”
“Like that?”
Laches sneered without even looking at Delia. Her pride was more than just bruised, it felt trampled, and she bit her lower lip hard.
“I’m about to be married, you know? Don’t get any ideas!”
At her baseless lie, Laches half-turned. His laughter at the sight of Delia fuming and sputtering was scornful.
“The fiancé you stole from your dead friend?”
“……How can you say something so cruel……!”
“Cruel? Me?”
Laches couldn’t contain his laughter. He covered his mouth with his hand as he chuckled quietly.
“Who’s more cruel? The person who steals her friend’s fiancé without guilt, or the one who simply points it out?”
“……Show some decency! I am from the Palo family……!”
“Well said. If you’re an uninvited guest, you should behave accordingly, Miss Palo.”
Laches glared at Delia, his jaw clenched with force.
“Don’t forget where you are shouting right now.”
Violent Castle.
And the sole ruler of this castle.
As soon as Delia faced his insane, merciless gaze, she acutely realized his presence.
“If you’ve finally understood, then keep quiet while I’m still willing to be a gentleman.”
He had just relaxed his guard and even shared a drink with her, but he couldn’t let her escape now.
“Leave as soon as your carriage is repaired. Whatever you think you’ll find here, there’s nothing you can do.”
Even if it involves discovering her deceased friend.
Just as Laches was about to turn away…
“…….”
He sharply turned his head towards the window. What’s out there?
Delia followed his gaze to the window. It was quiet outside.
“Damn it.”
But Laches’ face, looking towards the far northern territory, contorted violently with rage. His hands clenched into fists so hard that veins bulged.
“He’s really caused a mess.”
Delia’s legs trembled under the suffocating murderous aura. She collapsed to the ground, having nowhere to turn.
Laches turned back. His eyes were fierce, and Delia covered her mouth with trembling hands.
It felt like Laches would kill her right there.
“It seems the man you’re to marry has stirred up trouble. What should we do?”
“Gulp!”
Delia gasped, hiccupping in shock at his threatening low tone.
Laches looked at her dismissively as if she were worthless and shouted out the window to the guards below.
“Gather everyone immediately. Monsters are invading from the north-south direction.”
Upon Laches’ command, the knights moved swiftly, as preparing for a monster invasion was routine for them.
“Mo, mo, monsters?”
However, Delia was not accustomed to it. Having only read about and heard rumors of monsters, she was shocked to confront the reality of the word and trembled in disbelief.
“You said, monsters right now? Here, monsters are invading here right now?! Then, what should I do? Where do I hide?!”
“Do you see any hiding places here? Survive on your own.”
Laches’ cold dismissal caused Delia’s eyes to well up with tears as fear gripped her.
“You should’ve expected at least this when you came to the North.”
Laches left Delia behind and moved on. Lights began to turn on in the dark Violentus Castle, and the sounds of knights, woken from their sleep, running around filled the air.
‘I wonder if that woman is scared too.’
Laches’ pace was unimpeded, even quickening to a run.
“Your Grace! Where are you going? The castle gate is this way!”
“Yeah. I’ll just be a moment. Wait.”
Waving his hand dismissively to those looking for him, Laches hurried to the room of the woman with whom he had shared wine earlier.
‘I can’t let that woman die again…’
Rationalizing his actions, Laches raised his hand and knocked on the door.
Knock, knock.
A cursory, polite knock.
Without waiting for a response, Laches burst open the door.
“Monsters are invading. We need to get to a safe place right now…”
The room was cold and devoid of warmth. Lepherentia was not there.
My Arch-enemy Sealed My Memory and Said That He is My Husband
This is an incredibly captivating story that you absolutely shouldn’t miss! I’ll give a brief introduction here, and below you’ll find a detailed synopsis of the plot.
The female lead is a fierce and powerful demon king. The male lead is a once-in-a-millennium celestial lord, admired by the entire cultivation world.
They are equally matched, legendary rivals who have battled for centuries.
In the final duel, the female lead is gravely injured. The male lead saves her, seals her memories, and hides her true identity. He tells her that he is her fiancé. His entire life has been flawless—except for the one thing he never expected, never controlled, and never wanted to control: falling for his greatest enemy. She is his inner demon, his obsession.
When the female lead regains her memories, she is furious at his deception.
She makes his life a living hell.
And somehow, the male lead—possibly a total masochist—doesn’t mind at all. In fact, he’s happy she’s paying attention to him.
Yep, we’re back to my favorite trope: male lead suffering. If you love this kind of story, jump into the pit with me now!!!
Intro
Dong Xia lost her memory.
Her handsome and extremely powerful fiancé Li Qing comforted her: “It’s okay if you can’t remember. I’ll always be with you.”
Everyone thought Dong Xia’s ancestors must have burned incense to get such a perfect fiancé. He was the number one person in the immortal realm, yet he remained chaste and only loved her.
…
The day before marrying her fiancé, Dong Xia finally remembered everything.
She wasn’t suffering from memory loss at all.
Her arch-enemy had made her fake her death, destroyed her cultivation, replaced her memories, and pretended to be her deeply in love fiancé.
No wonder he said, “It’s okay if you can’t remember”!
Dong Xia laughed coldly as she pulled out her long knife: Li Qing, prepare to die 🙂
*
Li Qing, as the supreme being of the immortal realm, was the people’s shining beacon.
The only unknown stain in his life was his affection for Dong Xia, the ruler of the demon realm.
In the final battle of the war between immortals and demons, the sky collapsed and the earth shattered. The ruler of the demon realm was finally slain under the sword of the supreme being of the immortal realm, and everyone in the immortal realm applauded.
The cultivation world lost a ruler of the demon realm.
And in the back mountain of Li Qing’s cave dwelling, he secretly hid away a fiancée.
Notes:
1. The female lead is white on the outside, black on the inside, and the queen of flattery; the male lead repeatedly tests the edge of darkness, a VIP guest at the crematorium.
2. Fantasy cultivation world setting.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
