You Can't Catch the Wind - Chapter 53
Ael picked up a cushion embroidered with the Hebridis Count family crest, examined the books on the wall shelves, and gazed out the window where rain was pouring down heavily.
While this room excited her mood, there was a separate reason why her heart was still pounding fiercely.
Ael placed her hand on one wall.
‘I wonder if Kyle has already fallen asleep?’
Kyle had a long conversation with the Count. And he also drank more wine compared to Ael.
He too had been constantly working to make today’s deal successful, so he might have fallen asleep early as the tension released.
She knew that his lodging was also on the top floor of the trading house. Near her room too.
At that time she didn’t think much of it, but why was she so conscious of Kyle beyond the wall today?
‘I must be crazy.’
Ael pressed the back of her hand to her flushed cheeks.
‘But it’s because Kyle acted that way that I couldn’t help but be mindful.’
The voice calling her his fiancée echoed in her ears, and the warmth of the hand that pulled her shoulder was still vivid.
Now that the goal has been achieved, this act is over too.
When night passes and morning comes. So when they leave this mansion, from then on she and Kyle will return to being employees of Ash Trading Company.
She remembered Ino recently grumbling that he was getting busier day by day.
Kyle also tried to increase the time he spent with her as much as possible, but the number of times he left her side increased, and signs of fatigue were seen more often than before, as if he had reduced sleep.
‘Besides, he said buying the Count’s land was the most important of the remaining deals.’
Now Ash Trading Company’s land deals have entered a stable phase.
Not only did delayed deals progress thanks to Ael’s quick and accurate interpretation of ancient documents, but above all, as rumors spread that an ancient language expert had joined Ash Trading Company, the number of people trying to scam drastically decreased.
Also, as many deals progressed, the way of handling work was organized.
Thanks to this, now document review at Ash Trading Company takes less than a day.
So now Kyle will start other work. He might be in charge of the Oltbea mansion he showed earlier today.
Although that place is not very far from the capital, it would still be troublesome to commute to the trading house every day. Then wouldn’t he just stay there altogether?
‘Then it will be difficult to meet.’
He might even change his place of residence to the Oltbea mansion. Then even if she goes to work at the trading house, it would be difficult to see him.
Ael’s shoulders drooped. Just as her hand was about to brush past the tapestry hanging on the wall.
Knock knock.
There was a sound of knocking on the wall behind the tapestry.
“…!”
Startled, Ael stepped away from the wall.
For a moment she thought she had misheard, but no matter how loud the rain was, it wasn’t a sound she could have misheard.
Moreover, it wasn’t just the sound of knocking on the wall. Although not clearly heard, this was definitely the sound of knocking on a wooden door, not a wall.
‘That can’t be?’
Ael wondered as she carefully lifted the tapestry hanging on the wall.
Then there was an old-style wooden door where she thought was a wall.
‘Originally, these rooms were connected.’
Then Kyle would be beyond this door.
Knock knock.
While Ael was pondering what to do, another short knock was heard. Thanks to lifting the tapestry, this time the sound was louder and clearer than before.
“Kyle?”
Ael called his name close to the door, just in case.
Then, as if it was the correct answer, a cheerful and quick knocking sound was heard. As if saying it’s correct, so hurry and open this door.
Ael grabbed the handle and turned it.
Creak. The wooden door, seemingly unused for a long time, opened with difficulty, making a slightly creaking sound.
The air from the room across rushed in through the opened gap.
Being far from the fireplace, it was cool and humid air due to the rain.
But mixed in that air was Kyle’s scent that had been beside her all day.
So Ael unconsciously took a deep breath.
“You’re not asleep yet.”
“Perhaps because I can’t believe the work ended well, I just couldn’t close my eyes. Why haven’t you gone to bed yet, Kyle?”
“For the same reason. I thought if I closed my eyes and opened them again, everything that happened today might become a dream.”
At that answer, the two looked at each other and smiled. No matter what, today’s work ended too well.
Ash Trading Company got the land, and the Count and Countess got a lot of money.
If it were an ordinary deal, it would have ended there. But the Count and Countess felt the joy of recalling old memories, and Ash Trading Company gained the Count’s deep trust.
Although there was a difference in age and status, it was a kind of emotion worthy of being called friendship.
“If you’re not going to sleep yet, can we talk for a moment? There are a few things I need to discuss.”
“Of course.”
At the word ‘discuss’, her drowsy mind woke up.
Is there still something left?
But didn’t he just answer as if everything had ended well?
Thinking the conversation might be long, Ael tightly fastened the shawl draped over her shoulders.
Even in summer, nights in Denertum get cool.
Moreover, heavy rain poured down today. As the cool air laden with moisture filled the room, the Count’s servants put plenty of firewood in the fireplace.
But where the two were standing was on the opposite side of the fireplace, so that warmth could hardly reach.
That alone was enough to feel the chill, but her still-damp hair from washing made her body shiver even more.
Kalon noticed this fact too. He looked alternately at Ael’s cold-sensitive appearance and the fire in the fireplace, then carefully suggested.
“If Ael doesn’t mind, how about sitting down to talk? You can come to my room or if you allow, I’ll go to your room.”
“……”
At his words, Ael looked at the floor for a moment.
They had been talking all this time, but he didn’t step a foot through the door.
Even though he could have come in if he wanted to.
Somehow, where he was standing seemed to reveal his heart instead.
Although he showed kind words and actions all day, inwardly he had no intention of getting close to you at all, and you and I are drawn with this line between us.
After being lost in thought for a moment, Ael carefully took a step into his room.
Anyway, Kyle is someone who will never cross this line. So if she wants to see more, she has no choice but to go in herself.
Thinking thoughts she could never utter aloud, Ael entered his room.
His room had almost the same structure as Ael’s room.
As if a mirror was placed in the middle, the position of the door was opposite, but things like the fireplace and window frames were the same. But the atmosphere was completely different.
If Ael’s room felt comfortable and cozy, the room he received had a darker, heavier atmosphere with deeper colors.
The hanging paintings were mostly dark-colored landscapes or portraits rather than genre paintings, and even those were few in number.
Instead, it was full of hunting trophies of various beasts that seemed to have been collected over a long time.
In that room, Kyle stood comfortably and confidently as if he were the owner of this room.
He too is just an employee of Ash Trading Company. Although his position seems high, he’s clearly a man who has lived as a commoner of the empire, but sometimes from him she felt a more distant authority than from any others she had seen.
Such an appearance was completely different from his usual playful and affectionate self, strangely unfamiliar, but also frighteningly fitting.
As Ael entered, he naturally guided her to the sofa closest to the fireplace.
Ael swallowed dry at Kyle’s scent mixed with the smell of heavier wood.
She came in boldly, but once inside, embarrassment rushed over her.
‘To think that I’m now at night… entering someone else’s, and a man’s room first…’
It’s something she couldn’t have even imagined just a few months ago.
‘It’s not just this.’
Everything she was doing now was only things she thought she could never do until recently. Things she thought she shouldn’t do.
But now it didn’t matter at all.
The things that had been forbidden until now were nothing.
It’s not that her morality has declined by doing these things. It just gave her more confidence the more she did them.
“Your hair isn’t fully dry yet. Sit closer to the fireplace.”
He moved a plush chair closer to the fireplace and invited Ael to sit.
Seated in the chair, Ael held up both hands to warm them by the bonfire.
As the cool night air dissipated, a warm drowsiness spread through her palms.
The crackling sound of burning wood and warmth, the sound of rain, and the familiar scent from the past few days. Everything surrounding her was peaceful.
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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