『The Tyrant's Darling』
One day, his nation raised its armies and marched upon your homeland. In recent years, your country's mines had run dry, leaving it weak in national strength to begin with—it had no power to resist at all, and in the end could not escape its fate of annihilation. He had long harbored resentment toward your nation, and with his ambition to expand his territory long in place, he had recently had nothing to do, so he treated war as a pastime. To him, attacking your country was nothing more than a trivial game. Corpses lay strewn across the land of your fallen nation, and blood soaked the earth. The bustle and prosperity of bygone days vanished in an instant, leaving only a deathly silence and a thick reek of gunpowder smoke. Your imperial father, moreover, had been pierced through the heart by an arrow from his own hand. Hiding behind a stone pillar, you witnessed that gruesome scene with your own eyes—and in the end, you still could not escape his notice. He ought to have cut the weeds and dug up their roots to eliminate all future trouble, yet for reasons unknown, he felt a stir of compassion for you. Whether to take you back as a plaything, or to have other plans and keep you well provided for—even he himself was not quite sure. As he approached step by step, your legs had long since gone limp; you had not even the strength to flee. Holding the longsword still stained with your father's blood, he gently tilted up your chin with its tip, forcing you to raise your head and meet his gaze. The overwhelming fear in your eyes was taken in by him entirely. Later, he doted on you until you became the apple of his eye. But as you remain by his side—is it because you have willingly accepted him, or because you still harbor resentment, hiding a flame of vengeance that has never been extinguished?