I Became the Young Wife of the Martial Arts Novel’s Male Lead

Chapter 1

1. My family is ruined, what the hell is this?

 

The heat overflowed from the fully lit furnace.

 

But unlike the warm spring air, the atmosphere around me was heavy.

 

“…I can’t let you go like this.”

 

The people surrounding my bed were all shedding thick tears.

 

I smiled faintly while gasping for breath.

 

“Don’t cry, what am I supposed to do if big adults like you are crying?”

 

“How can you say that!”

 

“You know exactly what you mean to us!”

 

Amidst their sobbing, I reflected on my past life.

 

Suddenly being possessed by a character from a martial arts novel was frustrating enough, but I even became a character from three hundred years ago before the main character was born.

 

The absolute ruler blessed with eternal ice, Baek Seol-ryeon, the best swordsman in the world.

 

She was the ancestor of Hyun Do-yul, who established the North Sea Ice Palace, which dealt with the martial arts of winter, and would become the main character of the novel.

 

She was also the character I was possessed by.

 

“Ha, really. Just thinking about all the hard work I did after becoming Baek Seol-ryeon…”

 

I was faithful to the original work.

 

Of course, because the main character, Hyun Do-yul, was my favorite.

 

“If the original work gets twisted because of me, it’s a big problem, you know?”

 

In the midst of such a crisis, I worked tirelessly and laid the foundation of the North Sea Ice Palace by working myself to the bone.

 

I didn’t forget to take in the child who would become the distant ancestor of the main character as my disciple and make him my successor.

 

“Well, that brat was talented enough to match the main character, so it was really fortunate.”

 

If it weren’t for that child’s help, I might not have even been able to hang the signboard of the North Sea Ice Palace until I died.

 

Ahem, anyway.

 

The future of the North Sea Ice Palace was now solid as a rock.

 

The main character who inherited everything I built will surely spread the glory of the North Sea Ice Palace far and wide.

 

Now that my physical life has come to an end, I have already prepared myself for death.

 

I have finished everything I needed to do, so even if they don’t know, can’t I return to my original world?

 

I left a word of thanks to the people who stayed by my side with the last bit of strength I had left.

 

“Thank you all, truly.”

 

“Your Highness!”

 

“Please!”

 

Desperate cries echoed, but my body was as heavy as soaked cotton.

 

I felt truly sorry for those who mourned my death, but the last emotion I felt before closing my eyes was…

 

“I can finally rest.”

It felt like I was flying with satisfaction.

 

Well, there were various things…

 

But still, it was a satisfying life in its own way, wasn’t it?

 

Now that I just need to go back to my original world, everything will be over.

 

“Haah.”

 

I let out my last breath and slowly closed my eyes.

 

Soon, my vision became pitch black.

 

* * *

 

…It would have been nice if I could leave this world with such satisfaction.

 

Ultimately, my expectations were completely shattered.

 

“…Lin… Miss Lin.”

 

“…”

 

“Yerin, Miss Yerin!”

 

A sharp scream pierced my ears.

 

At the same time, intense pain surged from my scalp.

 

“Ouch!”

 

I reflexively let out a scream.

 

It hurt so much that tears welled up in my eyes.

 

But the hair-pulling argument that followed was like a scolding that blinded me.

 

“Don’t be such a crybaby. It’s just a little hair-pulling…”

 

And without any mercy, they started combing my hair.

 

“Who’s the one being absent-minded like this?”

 

The nagging that naturally followed was just a bonus.

 

No, seriously, what’s going on?

 

In my confusion, I hurriedly raised my head.

 

“…Where am I?”

 

In an instant, I felt a bit dazed.

 

It was understandable, considering that the scenery reflected in my sight was a shabby room I had never seen before.

 

Tattered wallpaper, furniture with not a single intact corner.

 

And even a torn paper on the door.

 

“No, no. Wait a minute.”

 

The place where I let out my last breath was an elegant bedroom where the North Sea Ice Palace’s ruler resided.

 

Where did that bedroom go, and why am I sitting alone in this eerie room as if a ghost would come out?

 

But then, at that moment.

 

Thunk!

In an instant, sparks flew before my eyes.

 

“Ow!”

 

The hair-pulling argument let go of my hair and swung a wooden comb, hitting my forehead hard.

 

And that’s it?

 

They even scream and nag at me!

 

“Stay still for a moment!”

 

No, is this crazy?

 

Why do I have to endure this kind of treatment from this hair-pulling person?

 

I am Baek Seol-yeon, the founder of the North Sea Ice Palace, the first Ice Palace Princess, and a renowned swordsman who is one of the best in the world!

 

“What the hell is this…!”

 

As I was about to sternly rebuke the hair-pulling person, I suddenly froze in place.

 

It was because the sight in front of me had just entered my vision.

 

“…What the hell is this?”

 

I shook off the hair-pulling person’s hand and crawled towards the sight.

 

The Baek Seol-yeon I remember was a mature beauty in her early thirties.

 

It was because she had reached the level of a transcendent and stopped the aging of her body.

 

But the appearance I see now…

 

“A little kid?!”

 

I muttered in disbelief.

 

A pale-faced girl who looks like she’s only twelve years old at most.

 

Her natural beauty alone is enough to aim for the best in the world, but that’s all.

 

Her pale complexion and slender physique looked fragile enough to collapse if touched.

 

Moreover, this attire…

 

“…Why are you wearing a wedding dress?”

 

As if she was going to hold a wedding today…

 

The sight of the girl, wrapped in layers of a gorgeous wedding dress, seemed like she couldn’t even bear the weight of the clothes.

 

At that moment, the hair-pulling person opened her eyes and called out to me.

 

“Miss Yerin, why haven’t you been listening to me since earlier?”

 

“Yerin… Miss Yerin?”

 

“Is Miss Yerin deaf? Who else could this girl be if not Miss Dang Yerin?”

 

Dang Yerin.

 

…Why does that name come up here?

 

I felt my heart sink.

 

Because I already knew who Dang Yerin was.

 

The shame of Sacheondang Gate, the black sheep, the youngest daughter of a despised family.

 

And the villainess who constantly interferes with the love of the male and female leads.

 

Oh, why do I call her a “villainess”?

 

Because the male lead had no interest in Dang Yerin and only devoted his love to the female lead.

 

The problem is that the twisted Dang Yerin, who tried to harm the female lead, ended up being killed by the male lead instead…

 

“No way, am I Dang Yerin? Really?”

As if peering into my confused thoughts, Sibi interjected with a question.

 

“You’re not going to throw a tantrum now, are you?”

 

“What, what are you talking about?”

 

“The only thing a lowly North Sea worm like you can do for Sacheondang Gate is just that, isn’t it?”

 

A mischievous smile formed on Sibi’s lips.

 

It was a deep mockery.

 

“You’re insulting me, a lowly North Sea worm.”

 

Wait a minute, a lowly North Sea worm?

 

In this world, there is only one place associated with the “North Sea.”

 

The only place I had worked so hard to establish, the North Sea Ice Palace…?

 

A sense of foreboding washed over me.

 

I asked Sibi in a trembling voice.

 

“What on earth are you talking about?”

 

“What?”

 

“The North Sea Ice Palace is the loser of the North Sea. It’s not a place where you can insult so casually…”

 

“Seriously, even your nonsense is not funny.”

 

Sibi looked down at me with pitiful eyes.

 

“What loser of the North Sea? The North Sea Ice Palace was thriving until just before its demise, you know?”

 

“What?”

 

The North Sea Ice Palace was thriving until just before its demise?

 

The family where the male lead, who would be born in the distant future, and my family that I dedicated my life to establishing…

 

…Is on the verge of collapse, is that what you’re saying?

 

But then, it happened.

 

A searing pain shot through my head.

 

“Ah!”

 

I clutched my head with both hands and gasped for breath.

 

Memories related to the North Sea Ice Palace flooded in relentlessly.

 

About ten years ago, the North Sea Ice Palace suffered significant damage due to a clash with the ultimate villain in this world, Hyeolgyo.

 

In the midst of it, the Ice Palace Lord was assassinated, and the young son hastily ascended to the position of Lord.

 

And…

 

That “young son” is none other than the male lead of this world, Hyundo Yul!

 

I stood there, mouth agape, shocked to the point of fainting.

 

“T-This can’t be.”

 

“…Miss?”

 

“No, how is this even possible?!”

Sibi looked at me as if I was crazy, but I didn’t have the energy to pay attention to his gaze.

 

As the ancestor of the male lead, I had worked tirelessly to establish the North Sea Ice Palace for the male lead who would be born someday.

 

The loser of the North Sea, the absolute family of the Saewae Forest that cannot be ignored even in Jungwon.

 

That was the North Sea Ice Palace that I had achieved with my life.

 

But what?

 

The North Sea Ice Palace has collapsed?

 

That’s impossible. In the original work, the North Sea Ice Palace thrived until the end!

 

“Lies, it’s all lies!!”

 

“No, why are you shouting… Miss? Miss!!”

 

Sibi, who had been looking at me with a suspicious expression, panicked and reached out to me.

 

I collapsed on the spot.

 

Dang Yerin’s young and frail body was too weak to overcome sudden headaches and shocks.

 

What was even more unfair was that…

 

“If I had Snow White’s body, I wouldn’t have fainted from this little shock!”

 

With that desperate internal scream, I lost consciousness.