A sound.

Aelfrie slowly opened her eyes to the sound of a harsh wind brushing past the window. At the same time, she felt an intense thirst.

‘Water…….’

Aelfrie reached out to the side, groping for the water jug she always kept on the bedside table.

Instead of the familiar touch of the table, she felt the soft sensation of a cushion.

What?

Where is the water jug?

“Jenna, are you outside? I need water…….”

Aelfrie, calling for her maid, once again strained to open her eyes against the overwhelming thirst.

As she blinked a few times, her blurry vision cleared.

The moment she saw the beautiful ceiling painting, Aelfrie realized where she was.

“……!”

This was not her room. Specifically, it was her husband’s room.

“Ah…….”

Upon realizing that fact, she felt an aching stiffness all over her body.

From her neck to her lower abdomen. To be honest, it was almost everywhere.

As she touched the areas where she felt pain, Aelfrie’s face turned red, for the pain was most intense in places where she should never be touched.

“Euh…….”

With a moan, Aelfrie raised her body.

Beneath the falling, powerless blanket, the traces of the previous night’s activities were laid bare.

Before looking at her body, Aelfrie turned her head to gaze at the spot where her husband had been the night before.

There was nobody there.

All that remained was a wrinkled sheet, as though to prove someone had been there.

Aelfrie touched the wrinkles and soon gave a bitter smile.

The wrinkled sheet was cold, devoid of any warmth, as if to tell her that the one who had been there had left long ago.

Aelfrie turned her head to look out the window.

The horizon of the distant sea was tinged with red. Despite the sun not having risen yet, her husband had already left.

He might have left early due to work. As the ruler of the continent’s top echelon, he might have more work waiting for him than time to sleep.

But anyone who wasn’t a fool would know that, no matter how busy he might be, the day after spending the night with his wife wouldn’t always be so.

Aelfrie tried to recall if she had ever seen him after waking from sleep. Ridiculously enough…….

‘Never.’

Since their marriage, the only time she could see his face was one night a week. And that was only at night.

Even that was brief. He always came in late and moved only to fulfill his duty.

Once Aelfrie fell asleep first, he would leave without waking her, just like this.

As if to say, having done his duty, there was no reason to stay with her any longer.

‘Does he hate me that much?’

Aelfrie’s mouth twisted in selfmockery.

Of course, he didn’t like her. She was nothing but a wife bought with his money out of necessity.

Calling her his wife might even be an overgenerous gesture. To him, she was just a tool to produce an heir to his golden rule.

“……Even though I’m failing at that.”

Muttering with a bitter expression, Aelfrie cautiously got out of bed. No matter how carefully she moved, the pain still lingered, weighing her down.

She barely managed to pick up the gown on the floor and put it on, then headed for the next room. In that room, devoid of any sign of life like the bedroom, her clothes were neatly arranged.

Ignoring the throbbing pain, Aelfrie quickly dressed.

Soon the sun would fully rise. Then the servants of the main building would come out to start their day, so she had to leave before then.

If they encountered each other, both she and they would be uncomfortable.

No, to be exact…… she couldn’t bear their gazes.

Aelfrie, without properly fastening the top button of her blouse, hurriedly put on her shoes and opened the door. She carefully looked down the hallway, and fortunately, there was still no sign of anyone. Aelfrie quickly left the room and headed outside the mansion.
Leaving the spacious hallway that led to the center of the mansion behind, she descended through the narrow staircase used by the maids, and as if someone might follow, she opened the side door and went outside.

Swoosh.

As soon as she opened the door, a gusty wind that seemed to have just reached the land from the vast ocean blew Aelfrie’s hair into the air.

But Aelfrie, without even thinking of fixing her hair, almost rushed into the garden.

Anyone who saw this sight would surely think it strange.

This mansion was the home of Calon Ash, the owner of Ash Trading Company, and Aelfrie was his wife. Thus, staying in this mansion was natural. But she was hurrying away from the mansion, as if she had entered a place where she shouldn’t be.

As she entered the forest trail, passing through the wellmaintained garden, Aelfrie looked back at the mansion.

Now, the light of the sun that had just appeared above the horizon gently covered the orange roof of the mansion, making it shine brilliantly.

Feeling the glare of that light, Aelfrie slowly blinked.

It was the largest and most beautiful mansion in the Kingdom of Denertum. Yet even at this hour, when the morning sun was pouring down, the mansion remained quiet as if no one was there.

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

_____

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.

[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]