The duke and duchess remained silent. Their silence was an affirmation. Had it not been for Riccardo and the Rochester’s help, my family and I should have died seven years ago. I understand that I have no right to resent them.
But Rochester should have left me to die with my family too.
It shouldn’t have just been me who was taken out and brought here.
Naturally, there was no way for me, an element of instability for the emperor and the ducal family, to freely leave this ducal residence.
“I have no choice but to wait for news of when my family dies.”
Again, they remained silent. I had no options.
“Or I could gamble with my life.”
“No.”
The duchess, who had been silent, now responded decisively.
“That’s a foolish choice. If you die, the emperor would have nothing to lose.”
“Don’t I still mean something to the Rochester family?”
“Yes, but… if you take your own life, as long as the Saintess exists, it would simply fulfill the prophecy. It wouldn’t be a significant loss for us. The gods… they disregard those who surrender their lives, regardless of their powers.”
Damn it. I had to bite my lip to stop the harsh words from spilling out. Creating a situation so dire yet preventing death – is that what they call divine?
“Even if Riccardo pities you and protects your family, how long will that last? The Schneider family is notoriously persistent.”
The duchess was right. Maybe Riccardo, like seven years ago, would protect them if I gambled my life for my family’s safety.
But the Rochester star has risen, and my existence has been exposed. It meant a drastic change in circumstances. Could such a method truly guarantee my family’s safety?
In a wave of despair, I forgot the presence of the duke and duchess and clutched my head.
“There is one way…”
“A way?”
“Yes, the only way to save your family.”
A ray of light pierced through the darkness at the duchess’s words.
She rose and walked towards the window, stopping in front of the landscape painted by Riccardo. Her presence completed the artwork.
“The safest place in this empire, no, in this world, from Dermaire’s emperor, to protect your family, is right here in the Rochester ducal residence.”
“I understand.”
“And the only way for another noble family to enter my family’s protection is one.”
That meant my family could be protected within the Rochester residence, as grand as any lordship?
“Please tell me that way.”
I thought of Jonathan, Sabrina, and Lady Pennel. If there was a way to save them, I would even kneel and kiss the duchess’s feet right now.
Were they always this precious to me? The family I always considered incomplete, only half there.
“Marriage.”
Ah, marriage.
“Pardon?”
“A union between Rochester and Pennel. That’s the only way to protect your family from the emperor of Dermaire. Even the emperor wouldn’t dare decree the extermination of a family promised in marriage to Rochester.”
“Wouldn’t it be more effective to just hold a knife to my throat in front of the young master?”
A stifled laugh echoed in front of me. I glanced at the duke, who was impassively sipping tea. I tilted my head and turned back to the duchess, trying to gauge if she was serious.
Her face, too honest to have ever lied in her life, looked earnestly at me.
So now it’s time for me to lick Riccardo’s feet? While begging him to marry me.
“What about the Saintess? I was under the impression that she was destined to be his partner from birth.”
The thought of discussing marriage with him filled me with a sense of guilt, yet no other option seemed visible.
“Well, we need to put out the immediate fire first…”
“…”
“Anyway, once the Saintess becomes Riccardo’s partner, you’ll become redundant…”
Her trailing voice made my blood run cold.
“Schneider won’t be as desperate to annihilate the Pennel family like now.”
The duchess’s words meant that once Riccardo marries, my situation might improve a bit. After he marries the Saintess, I won’t be an annoyance.
“You don’t have to get married right away. An engagement is enough for Rochester to justify protecting Pennel.”
“Are you suggesting to keep both me and the Saintess in the balance?”
She shook her head and chuckled, a smile that seemed both angelic and devilish.
“You’re misunderstanding, Lady Pennel.”
Her voice, which had been so gentle up to now, turned icy. I involuntarily swallowed dryly, feeling an oppressive aura around her.
“You’re already in Rochester’s hands. It’s not about making a choice.”
“Ah…”
Her words were an undeniable truth. For some reason, the duchess was showing me leniency, giving my family a chance to live, albeit temporarily.
What does pride matter in the face of absolute power? Once I made up my mind, I was quick to act. My goal was to live safely for as long as possible.
At 10, after nearly dying from cold and hunger and then coming back to life, I understood painfully.
Death leaves nothing behind. It’s not a fear that fades with experience. Death always means darkness, ruin, and an end.
“In that case, Duke and Duchess.”
Our eyes met briefly. His eyes sparkled. He seemed to find the situation very interesting.
“Do you both agree to me being engaged to the young master for a while?”
“Lady Pennel.”
“Call me Lienne, please, Mother.”
The duke cleared his throat again.
“Dear.”
The duchess, who sternly called her husband, walked slowly from the window to where I was sitting.
It felt like I was asking for marriage and waiting for consent, like a suitor. Or maybe I was like a person whose neck was on the chopping block. Whatever it was, her next words could either save or doom my family.
“Actually, I have no say in this. Lienne.”
My prospective mother-in-law called my name very kindly.
“Once awakened, a Rochester can’t really be called someone’s child anymore.”
“…”
“So, you don’t need to ask me for permission or agreement.”
The duchess gently stroked my cheek with her soft hand. The warmth from her hand felt even warmer than my face, drawing my gaze involuntarily.
“Riccardo will soon become Rochester itself.”
I thought about asking the steward to arrange a meeting with Riccardo, but then changed my mind. Despite being on the same floor, meeting him wasn’t easy. Requesting a meeting would mean waiting until tomorrow afternoon, and that’s only if he was staying in the ducal residence.
Knowing my family’s lives were on the line, sleep was out of the question.
I paced the room, ears pricked for any sign of his return. After a while, there was a slight commotion from the partially opened window.
‘He’s back.’
As I focused my hearing, I could hear the servants bustling around with short, quick steps. Once the commotion outside had settled, I waited a bit longer.
For a lady, especially a noblewoman, to seek a man’s bedroom in the middle of the night was unthinkable. If seen, it would lead to an irrevocable scandal.
Of course, for me at this moment, a scandal might even be beneficial, but still, I couldn’t bring myself to blatantly seek him out; my pride wasn’t that thick.
When all footsteps had quieted down and the previous silence returned, I mustered the courage to leave my room.
Knocking softly on the door, I hesitantly began, “I….” when Riccardo’s voice came from inside.
“Come in.”
He likely hadn’t expected it to be me, but with his permission, I boldly opened the door. The room was dark, perhaps he hadn’t expected me, but the curtains were wide open, letting in the moonlight.
And there he was, standing in the light, with a shirt hanging loosely off one shoulder.
“Ah….”
An involuntary sigh escaped me. Perhaps realizing the voice wasn’t who he expected, Riccardo slowly turned around.
Our eyes met, and my heart, which had long since abandoned any pretense of dignity, pounded fiercely.
As expected, there was no mercy in his gaze. Riccardo, piercingly looking into my eyes, twisted his shoulder to remove the shirt that hung off one side. The movement revealed his well-defined muscles under the moonlight.
I instinctively closed my eyes.
When yandere male lead believes she loves him — but she never did
“How dare you!”
“How dare you make me love you, only to cast me aside as nothing more than a friend?!?
“I will never accept that.”
“I will never let you return to him.”
“Even if I have to burn myself to ashes.”
“Even if I must shatter my purity, my dignity, my very soul.”
“I will never let you escape me!”
This was the first novel that introduced me to the matriarchal genre. I’ve read it three times already!
At first, the male lead despised the female lead. Later, he misunderstood that she liked him, so he condescendingly and reluctantly reciprocated her feelings.
Then, he suddenly discovered that she was kind to everyone in the same way, and there was already someone she cherished in her heart, and that person was not him.
The male lead couldn’t believe it, he became angry and crazy. He was determined to capture her body and heart by any means necessary.
Synopsis:
Want to see how a green tea bitch male lead falls in love with the female lead?
Want to see how he flirtatiously pursues the female lead?
Want to see how he gets slapped in the face repeatedly?
The male lead is a green tea bitch, a poisonous lotus, jealous, ruthless, unscrupulous, with a venomous heart, and he’s also a delusional maniac.
The female lead is righteous, positive energy-filled, kind, a holy mother.
Let’s see how two people with extreme personalities come together~
_____
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.]
