Return of Black Lotus system:Taming Cheating Male Leads

Chapter 397: Chapter-397

As Heena walked back to her courtyard, the heavy silence between her and Samuel gave her time to think. Her mind was buzzing with one very clear, very sharp emotion.

There are many things Heena hated in these different worlds. She hated trashy men. She hated scheming women. She hated completely useless families. But more than anything else in the entire universe, she hated a parent who neglected their child while pretending to be a good person.

> ’At least the mother is an honest monster,’ Heena thought coldly.

>

Sure, the Marchioness was a viper. She had literally pushed her own daughter off a cliff to hide a secret. Heena didn’t fully know her main motive yet, but she could almost respect the sheer honesty of it in a twisted way. The mother had never liked Seera. She never really pretended to be a loving, caring mom. She showed her true, evil colors from day one.

But the Marquis? This so-called father was the absolute worst kind of human being.

He was the type of man who always stayed far away, acting cold and distant, but would occasionally drop a tiny crumb of care just to make himself feel like a good dad. This hypocritical, hot-and-cold act was the exact reason why the real Seera had been treated so badly. When the head of the house doesn’t step up to protect his own blood, the rest of the family sees it as an invitation to attack.

Heena broke down her feelings quite simply:

’ ’’For the Mother:’’ She felt intense anger and a deep hatred. The mother was an active enemy she needed to crush.

’ ’’For the Father:’’ She felt nothing but pure, rotting ’’despise’’.

She didn’t even know yet if the Marquis was secretly working with his wife, or if they had planned the murder together. Honestly, to Heena, it didn’t matter.

A coward who looks the other way and lets his child get eaten alive is just as bad as the monster doing the eating. From the very core of her heart, she ruthlessly and utterly despised him.

As she walked briskly down the stone corridor, her dark thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a soft, muffled mumbling coming from right behind her.

”Um... my lady, could we perhaps walk a little slower?”

Heena blinked, snapping out of her cold fury. She stopped and turned around.

Samuel stood a few paces behind her. He wasn’t wearing heavy, clanking armor. Instead, he was dressed in the crisp, flowing navy blue robes of a high-ranking estate guard. The dark fabric was tailored perfectly to his broad shoulders, cinched tightly at the waist by a thick woven sash, allowing him to move with silent, fluid grace.

But it was his face that caught the attention. He was wearing a traditional, full-face wooden mask—the kind often seen in ancient festivals, carved and painted to resemble a sleek, stoic cat. It completely covered his features, tied securely at the back of his head with a thick silk cord. Right now, he had one large hand pressed awkwardly against the smooth, painted cheek of the cat mask, as if the sheer embarrassment radiating from his face beneath it was trying to escape. Even with the mask covering him, she could practically ’feel’ how red the tips of his ears were.

A slow, wicked smirk curved Heena’s lips. Her dark aura evaporated, replaced instantly by a terrifyingly playful, dominant authority.

”What happened, guard?” she asked, her voice dropping into a soft, ordering tone. ”Can you not even give a proper word? Can you not keep up?”

Hearing that tone, Samuel’s frame gave a slight tremble beneath his navy blue robes. He shifted his weight, the soft fabric swishing quietly. ”Um, my lady... could we just sit for a while?”

Heena looked at him, her smile widening. ”What are you talking about?” she teased, taking a deliberate, slow step toward him. ”We still need to walk around the estate. You know, walking is incredibly good for your health.”

She leaned in slightly, invading his space.

Samuel immediately took a shaky step back. He bit his lower lip hard beneath the cat mask, his voice dropping into a desperate, hushed plea. ”My lady, shouldn’t you go back and rest in your room? That... that would be very good for your health.”

Heena tilted her head, her smile turning entirely innocent and soft. ”But what are you talking about? I have just come out of my room, my dear guard. We should definitely walk more.”

Samuel trembled again. A visible shudder wracked his muscular thighs beneath the drape of his robes, his body betraying the intense, lingering exhaustion from her ”punishment” earlier. ”My lady, I beg you. Please.”

Heena paused, pretending to think about it. Then, she clapped her hands together lightly. ”Ah! I suddenly remember. I need to go to my study. Grandma should be waiting for me there.”

With a graceful pivot, Heena turned around and began walking again, casually humming a light, cheerful tune.

Samuel stood completely still for a second, trying to gather his strength. ”My lady—”

”Follow me, my dear lad,” Heena called out over her shoulder without even turning her head.

Left with absolutely no choice, Samuel forced his trembling legs to move. He followed her down the winding corridors, his navy robes fluttering slightly, though a faint, feverish ache radiated through his waist and legs with every single step.

Soon, they arrived at the heavy, intricately carved doors of Seera’s personal study. Heena pushed them open and stepped inside. Samuel followed, standing silently by the doorframe like a tall, dark shadow, his cat mask completely unreadable.

”Oh, you’ve come?”

The old matriarch was already sitting near the center of the room. Heena smiled warmly, her earlier cruelty entirely vanishing. ”Ah, yes, Grandma.”

As she stepped further inside, Heena took a moment to truly look around the room. There was a stark difference between a study in this ancient era and a modern, Western-style office. Instead of heavy chairs and towering desks, this room was designed for the floor. Plush, intricately embroidered cushions and pristine bamboo mats were arranged around low, polished wooden tables.

But what caught her attention the most was the immaculate condition of the room.

It was completely spotless. Stacks of ancient documents, brush pens, and inkstones were perfectly arranged. Just by looking at it, one could instantly guess how fiercely someone had protected this space and taken care of it.

This was the original Seera’s study, and it had been completely locked down the moment she supposedly died. Of course, it wasn’t her mother who had preserved it. It was the grandmother. The matriarch had sealed the doors, absolutely refusing to let anyone touch her precious granddaughter’s belongings.

Heena scoffed internally. If it had been left up to her so-called mother, this beautiful, pristine study would have been handed over to that damn parasite, Kavien, years ago.

Heena gracefully lowered herself onto a thick, embroidered silk cushion opposite her grandmother. The low wooden table between them held a freshly steeped pot of floral tea, its sweet, earthy steam curling into the quiet air of the study.

”You kept it exactly as I left it, Grandma,” Heena said softly, letting a genuine trace of warmth color her voice. She reached out, her fingertips lightly brushing the polished edge of a pristine inkstone.