The Male Lead isn� Chapter 147: Taken!

Chapter 147: Taken!

He didn’t care if his body deteriorated from the excessive use of forbidden magic, he wasn’t willing to wait around this ti. He was going to get her no matter what. She promised him... He will hold her accountable...

Controlling the Captain, the Head Priest, what a waste. He should dream bigger, he intended to control the Emperor, turning him into a puppet to do his bidding.

He sat down to write a letter, but before his quill could touch the paper, he abandoned that idea. For so twisted reason, he didn’t want to respond right away.

They say imagination is far scarier than reality. He wanted her to stew in her thoughts and make sure her will to oppose would diminish on its own. It would save him so ti.

On a normal person the thought of so many suffering because of them would be enough to tornt them, to feed all the deepest, darkest thoughts in their mind. If that happened and she was left vulnerable, taking advantage of the situation would be so easy for him.

He was already tired from the deterioration, at least this way he can simply reap the rewards. He did think of controlling Adeline, but soone with the Sun Goddess’ blessing, so much holy power surely had a stronger resolve.

Their soldiers had been preparing for war. Their numbers might be low... But with their healing powers, their army would have infinite vigour.

The next day Adeline received a letter, she thought it was from Edward... But she was disappointed to find out that it wasn’t. She just wanted to solve this problem as soon as possible.

From the seal, it was clear that the letter was from the palace... She could feel the panic overco her as she thought about the Empress inviting her. Nope! She won’t be doing that again!

Her heart quickened as she broke the wax and unfolded the elegant parchnt.

"From Cassian," She murmured, scanning the contents. She was pleasantly surprised to hear from him.

The letter was brief yet brimming with subtle emotions. Cassian invited her to the palace, hinting at missing her company. Though his words were formal, Adeline could sense the underlying longing in his tone.

Adeline let out a small sigh, a mix of nostalgia and hesitation filling her chest. It had been a while since she had seen Cassian.

Too much was going on in her life right now, her powers, Dimitri’s departure, the growing threat of the Holy Temple... They had overwheld her. Before, she thought that maintaining a friendship with the Male leads was nothing but a ans of survival.

But oddly enough, she missed Cassian too. She felt like she was building real connections. She wouldn’t avoid them, but she didn’t intend to let her guard down either.

Without giving herself too much ti to overthink, she decided to accept the invitation. The old Adeline would not believe her if she said that she had beco friends with the crown prince! The very person she wanted to avoid!

After all, she reasoned, keeping her bonds with Cassian and Benedict strong was crucial... Not just for the future of the story, but also for her own sense of stability in this chaotic world.

As Adeline prepared her response to Cassian, another thought struck her. She hadn’t written to Benedict in quite so ti. In the original story, she, Cassian, and Benedict had been an inseparable trio.

However fake their relationship might have been in the novel, it was sothing that Adeline wanted to keep. Too many things around her have strayed from the plot. This was sothing she wasn’t willing to change.

Reaching for another sheet of parchnt, Adeline penned a letter to Benedict. She kept it lighthearted, inquiring about his well-being, and then she finally got to the point, she invited him over to the palace the sa day Cassian invited her.

She wondered about Dimitri. What was he doing? Did he reach safely? He had to, right? If not the Goddess would tell her. The last ti she went to visit them, Dimitri was with her. This ti, she would have to go alone.

She sulked for a bit and plopped on her bed. She was too sad to do anything! The tutor once again had to chase after his young student to make her study! He would have quit if not for this child being a prodigy!

anwhile, at the Northern Duchy, Benedict was enjoying a rare mont of peace with his family.

His mother, who had recently awakened from her coma, had beco determined to make up for lost ti. She insisted on family picnics, horseback rides, and long evenings by the fire.

For Benedict, these monts were bittersweet. He relished the closeness he shared with his parents, but a part of him couldn’t shake the fear that it might not last. His mother’s health was still fragile.

He started to grow more and more suspicious of Anna. It took a while, but slowly his trust in his father had co back and he explained everything that had happened on his end.

His mother knows nothing of it, his father didn’t want anything to upset her while she was still recovering.

Both of them ca to a mutual agreent, to monitor Anna, to act like they didn’t suspect her. They waited for her to make a move so that they could finish her once and for all.

Benedict would never spare her... She coveted his mother’s place... He would never let her get anywhere near her. As for the Duke, he shared a similar thought process, anyone who dared to lay their hands on his wife will be eliminated.

During one such picnic, the family’s laughter carried through the open fields. Unbeknownst to them, Anna watched from a distance, her fists clenched tightly at her sides.

Anna’s eyes burned with resentnt as she observed the happy family. She had worked tirelessly to secure her position within the duchy, only for it to be ripped away when that woman—Benedict’s mother—miraculously survived.

"She should have died," Anna muttered under her breath, her nails digging into her palms. "Everything was falling into place... And then she had to wake up."

Didn’t that child from the Holy Temple say that she wouldn’t wake up?! How did she wake up then?! Traitors! Liars! All of them! Her palms started to bleed because her nails dug too deep... She clenched it, not minding the pain.

Her hatred ran deep, but she kept it hidden behind a mask of civility. Anna knew she couldn’t act impulsively. The duchy’s servants already started to disregard her. All the influence she built was for nought.

And Benedict’s father had grown distant. She needed to bide her ti, waiting for the perfect opportunity to reclaim what she believed was rightfully hers.

Just as she stepped away from the sickeningly happy family, soone grabbed her. Their hand was firmly placed on her mouth to prevent her from screaming. There was a small flash that didn’t attract attention...

Before anyone knew it. Anna was gone. She vanished without a trace. No one saw her leave the estate... But no one could find her either... The Duke knew that sothing was amiss... She was planning sothing, wasn’t she?