I’m surprised at how satisfied I am at how this went down. 4 stars instead of 5 because no one died in the process of her getting revenge and that just felt a bit like the author might’ve been afraid of killing off characters (revenge is not supposed to be this neat of an affair to execute), but fine that just made this count as a more fluffy type of story for me. I do wish her aunt got tried for her mother’s death and their mistreatment instead of just getting attached to her trash hubby’s crimes (its obvious she didn’t know about them - even if she still would’ve reaped the benefits she looked like she had a line she wouldn’t cross which is why she was terrified when her actions led to Julia’s death). Still got death tho which is the revenge Robilia wanted. Folks keep mentioning if the ogFL (Ina?- I’ll use Ina for her) was evil and I just saw her as a spoilt brat who acted no more evil than what her parents told her to do - like they could tell she didn’t feel comfortable treating Robelia as a slave even which is why they said to treat her like a doll. Like she seemed as neutral as any kid might’ve been if it weren’t for her parents’ bad influence and example (I’m surprised she wasn’t worse considering how she knows her mom treated Julia and Robelia). The main thing that made me totes chill with her and not consider her evil was that as soon as her dad smacked her, she IMMEDIATLY called herself a doll that her parents controlled and she didn’t kick up any fuss for things that she didn’t think was to try and save her family (cuz she didn’t know her dad was a mass murderer). Like she didn’t even bring up that she ‘treated Robelia as a sister’ in public like she had before that event. I also attribute that pretentious remark she used to make as influence from her mother because all her life she saw her mom treat them like slaves and still boast about how kind she and her husband were to look after the ‘illegitimate’ niece, so what else was she supposed to learn? Additionally, I’d like to point out that her immediate thought to burn documents first came as a question of if she should as well as an impulse to save her family that she JUST realized stole everything from the girl she was raised to interpret as the person who was stealing from her ever since she left the house. Like the fact that she even though it in the form of a question if she should rather than just grabbing them and chucking them into the fire is a huge statement to how she isn’t inherently evil, because she really should’ve been after being the raised the way she was. Also yes, I get that she was able to tell they were copies, but that wasn’t the first thing she realized. She noticed that after thinking they were legit and was trying to figure out what to do. This pause and evaluation of her situation is actually why I also agree with the prince’s opinion that she would’ve been great as an empress. I was actually worried when I thought she’d go stupid for love but was uber relived when I saw her face during the hug. Like the girl has brains and is probably neutral by nature which tends to be what is sought after in royalty. Being able to think things through rationally while prioritizing one’s nation (her family in Ina’s case which is why she was even thinking of business ideas after the first mine fiasco) is the job or royalty. I also get why she would reject the prince’s proposal tho. Even if it was something she wanted, I don’t think she would’ve been able to have someone with her now status and familial history becoming a potential weakness for the empire due to becoming its empress. I just like that she shows significant character growth and development. As for our main couple Robelia and Jake (crap I think that was his name?), I actually REALLY liked their dynamic. Like he oozes respect for her and he doesn’t always act like a pushover for her or anything. It’s just sweet to see how they develop their relationship together and slightly change in ways that are better for their happiness over time. Now for our prince (as minimally his appearance was), I get weird tyrant-ish vibes from him. Like his mom always looked like the one that was more in control of the situation and even just her composure (which is what is expected of royalty) and even the way he thought of Ina was just really off putting to me. I can’t tell for sure because we didn’t see him in action with policies, but it bothered me that he was mentally a ok and not guilty feeling about using Ina’s love for him (as far as he knew) to get the bond and then ditch her to die (the smirk he had as they hugged is my reason for believing he had no remorse over it - whereas Ina just had a somber face because she knew it was a lie and he was fine with hurting her and using her like a tool the same way her parents had been using her as one - that might also be why she rejected his proposal now that I think of it; can’t trust the guy). Just him thinking that she was the perfect woman before the misdeeds of her folks came about and then wanting to use her as a tool and then having the audacity to propose to her after all that because he realized she was smart is WAY too icky to me to think of him as a sensible and respectable guy. He’s just thinking of the things he wants and not thinking forward enough to see what she could see (her becoming empress could’ve hurt the empire’s image to other countries with her family being hung and guilty of multiple murders) or even being able to be honest with someone he supposedly loved (I don’t really think he loved her but if he did then he should’ve been more honest with her and wouldn’t have tried to use her). Also just realizing the prince might’ve been the emperor already?? I don’t remember how he was announced but if that’s the case then just replace prince with emperor (I don’t remember seeing his dad at all but he also barely showed up so…)
TLDR: Cute story, healthy main couple, don’t think Ina should’ve gotten so much flak from the comments, suspicious of the prince/emperor of being a potential future tyrant/overly emotional ruler.
I’m surprised at how satisfied I am at how this went down. 4 stars instead of 5 because no one died in the process of her getting revenge and that just felt a bit like the author might’ve been afraid of killing off characters (revenge is not supposed to be this neat of an affair to execute), but fine that just made this count as a more fluffy type of story for me.
I do wish her aunt got tried for her mother’s death and their mistreatment instead of just getting attached to her trash hubby’s crimes (its obvious she didn’t know about them - even if she still would’ve reaped the benefits she looked like she had a line she wouldn’t cross which is why she was terrified when her actions led to Julia’s death). Still got death tho which is the revenge Robilia wanted.
Folks keep mentioning if the ogFL (Ina?- I’ll use Ina for her) was evil and I just saw her as a spoilt brat who acted no more evil than what her parents told her to do - like they could tell she didn’t feel comfortable treating Robelia as a slave even which is why they said to treat her like a doll. Like she seemed as neutral as any kid might’ve been if it weren’t for her parents’ bad influence and example (I’m surprised she wasn’t worse considering how she knows her mom treated Julia and Robelia). The main thing that made me totes chill with her and not consider her evil was that as soon as her dad smacked her, she IMMEDIATLY called herself a doll that her parents controlled and she didn’t kick up any fuss for things that she didn’t think was to try and save her family (cuz she didn’t know her dad was a mass murderer). Like she didn’t even bring up that she ‘treated Robelia as a sister’ in public like she had before that event. I also attribute that pretentious remark she used to make as influence from her mother because all her life she saw her mom treat them like slaves and still boast about how kind she and her husband were to look after the ‘illegitimate’ niece, so what else was she supposed to learn? Additionally, I’d like to point out that her immediate thought to burn documents first came as a question of if she should as well as an impulse to save her family that she JUST realized stole everything from the girl she was raised to interpret as the person who was stealing from her ever since she left the house. Like the fact that she even though it in the form of a question if she should rather than just grabbing them and chucking them into the fire is a huge statement to how she isn’t inherently evil, because she really should’ve been after being the raised the way she was. Also yes, I get that she was able to tell they were copies, but that wasn’t the first thing she realized. She noticed that after thinking they were legit and was trying to figure out what to do. This pause and evaluation of her situation is actually why I also agree with the prince’s opinion that she would’ve been great as an empress. I was actually worried when I thought she’d go stupid for love but was uber relived when I saw her face during the hug. Like the girl has brains and is probably neutral by nature which tends to be what is sought after in royalty. Being able to think things through rationally while prioritizing one’s nation (her family in Ina’s case which is why she was even thinking of business ideas after the first mine fiasco) is the job or royalty. I also get why she would reject the prince’s proposal tho. Even if it was something she wanted, I don’t think she would’ve been able to have someone with her now status and familial history becoming a potential weakness for the empire due to becoming its empress. I just like that she shows significant character growth and development.
As for our main couple Robelia and Jake (crap I think that was his name?), I actually REALLY liked their dynamic. Like he oozes respect for her and he doesn’t always act like a pushover for her or anything. It’s just sweet to see how they develop their relationship together and slightly change in ways that are better for their happiness over time.
Now for our prince (as minimally his appearance was), I get weird tyrant-ish vibes from him. Like his mom always looked like the one that was more in control of the situation and even just her composure (which is what is expected of royalty) and even the way he thought of Ina was just really off putting to me. I can’t tell for sure because we didn’t see him in action with policies, but it bothered me that he was mentally a ok and not guilty feeling about using Ina’s love for him (as far as he knew) to get the bond and then ditch her to die (the smirk he had as they hugged is my reason for believing he had no remorse over it - whereas Ina just had a somber face because she knew it was a lie and he was fine with hurting her and using her like a tool the same way her parents had been using her as one - that might also be why she rejected his proposal now that I think of it; can’t trust the guy). Just him thinking that she was the perfect woman before the misdeeds of her folks came about and then wanting to use her as a tool and then having the audacity to propose to her after all that because he realized she was smart is WAY too icky to me to think of him as a sensible and respectable guy. He’s just thinking of the things he wants and not thinking forward enough to see what she could see (her becoming empress could’ve hurt the empire’s image to other countries with her family being hung and guilty of multiple murders) or even being able to be honest with someone he supposedly loved (I don’t really think he loved her but if he did then he should’ve been more honest with her and wouldn’t have tried to use her).
Also just realizing the prince might’ve been the emperor already?? I don’t remember how he was announced but if that’s the case then just replace prince with emperor (I don’t remember seeing his dad at all but he also barely showed up so…)
TLDR: Cute story, healthy main couple, don’t think Ina should’ve gotten so much flak from the comments, suspicious of the prince/emperor of being a potential future tyrant/overly emotional ruler.