Book 1
(Akarna)
Prologue
The torrential rain soaked the ground. Every time the wagon's wheels moved over the muddy road, there was a gurgling sound. It was raining throughout the journey as if it would take away all the vitality of the earth.
"Akarna, are you feeling uncomfortable?"
At the coachman's words, the black-haired woman inside the carriage raised her head.
The woman, who had been blankly staring at the raindrops on the window, nodded a few beats later. Even after getting an answer, the coachman still walked around the carriage window several times, checking on the woman's condition.
"We will shortly arrive, so please be patient." And soon, the woman was left alone.
The woman heard the intermittent conversation of the men between the splashes of mud and neighing of horses.
"The Akarna doesn't look well. Is she okay?"
"Maybe because it's her first time going to the far outskirts like this? She may have been anxious."
"Rather than that..." The sound of voices diminished a bit.
"She must've been unsettled to hear His Highness, the Crown Prince's engagement."
Power went into the hand that was placed neatly on the woman's knees.
Engangement.
It was a word she hadn't wanted to hear for a while. Despite the temple's opposition, the man she loves for 5 years is getting engaged to another woman.
The person she loves, is not just an ordinary man, for he is the crown prince of the empire. Of course, the marriage of the heir to the throne of the empire is not going to be ordinary. It was only natural that he will marry a girl from a good aristocratic family.
Her opponent for the crown princess seat is the first daughter of the most honorable Margrave in the Empire. It was a long-established family that held the hand of the Imperial family for hundreds of years and protected the empire from the threat of demons in the borders.
A crown prince who made war breakthroughs and a beautiful young lady who grew up like a princess and was loved by her noble family. It was a sufficient condition for the common people to come and create a romantic story.
But the woman in the carriage was different. The Akarna is someone who is highly regarded in the temple, but that doesn't mean that she was respected. The temple treats her well, but only if she was faithfully fulfilling her role, the Akarna's Duty. And her duty is far from noble.
She must go to the Empire's outskirts with only one coachman and a few escorts, purify the land that is being eroded by demonic energy and save those who suffer. This was the duty that the temple had to do for mankind, and it was also Akarna's duty to obey God's will.
But there was never a time when the woman wanted this job. It was only because she fell in love with the crown prince that she willingly accepted the pain for the sake of the empire he would one day rule. And she did not doubt that her love will bear fruit.
For five years, they have loved each other so desperately. However, her expectation was soon shattered when the crown prince said that he will be engaged to someone else. And the woman has seen that someone from afar.
She was a lovely young lady who smiled brightly like a flower in full bloom while being escorted by the prince.
A lady with a cheerful character, an honorable and proud family, someone with a vast territory as well as high status, even her appearance will leave anyone in awe. That young lady was the total opposite of the woman who is sullen and timid.
Rattle. Rumbling!
The carriage continues to run. The rain was getting stronger but the carriage did not halt. That said, since they are in the middle of the road, they cannot afford to simply stop even though it was night.
The deeper their entourage goes, the tougher the trail gets. The woman wondered if it was her fault for telling the coachman to go to a farther place than usual because of her anger.
But even her shallow self-reproach was quickly dispelled by the excessively rocking wagon. No. The ground itself was shaking, not just the wagon.
'What is going on?' As the woman in the carriage tensed up, a panicked scream was heard outside.
"Go back! There's a landslide!
"It's already too late to turn, just stop the wagon from going there!"
Rumble. Bang!
Before the woman could prepare herself, a huge pile of dirt hit the wagon first. And the woman's vision also flipped in an instant. The carriage shook as if there was an earthquake.
The woman tried to straighten up herself in the corner but ended up rolling inside the carriage. She screamed as she fell off and hit her back on the chair.
"Ugh!"
The woman barely came to her senses. A half-destroyed carriage was now draped over a precipice. The woman braced herself and held on in the gradually leaning carriage.
Unfortunately, the woman slipped due to the wet and slippery floor.
"Ahhhhh!" The woman managed to cling to a protruding piece from the carriage, but she didn't know how much longer she can hold out.
The carriage was inclined even more, and the woman was not strong enough to keep holding on. The pouring raindrops also didn't help.
"Akarna, please keep holding on! We'll be down in no time!"
Fortunately, the escorts quickly came to find the woman. After all, the woman is the one and only Akarna, if they didn't take care of her properly, their superiors will surely beat them up.
Seeing the restless escorts, the woman surprisingly did not feel anything. Even if she got saved here, so what? In any case, wouldn't she still do her duty and return to the Empire?
What awaited her there was a repetition of boring work. She helps people in need of help and occasionally goes out to purify the black land eroded by demons. Then help people again, again, and again.
Doing that worthwhile work, she earned the praises of people and was revered as a saint. But even if she keeps doing that, a grand event will soon be held. The engagement ceremony of the man she loves.
"Hahaha." The woman, for unknown reasons, laugh and impulsively relaxed her hands.
"Akarna!!!" The escorts continued shouting. The woman felt fear yet also a sense of relief for some reason.
She closed her eyes. The person she secretly met despite the opposition of the temple. The person who taught her how to write and speak. Even after being betrayed like that, she still missed him. His touch and voice whispering of love when no one was there was faint.
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Translator: I finally had the money to buy the ebook version of this novel! This is a smutty book with reverse harem so stay tuned!
Edit: I discovered that there was already a translated version from another translator, but still, since I bought the whole ebook series, might as well continue🤷♀️
Edit: CHANGE OF PLANSS! The other translation is already 54 chaps in, I don't think I can catch up to that since I'm only doing all the work alone. Since I can't catch up to that, I bought another two Korean reverse harem and smut books. I perused the novelupdate and found that no one has translations for the two, so here I go!
If you're curious, the titles are: The Alpha Team's Lady, Four Hearts For the Wise
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