He said no. Like, how much more do you want? It is his maturity that is allowing him to make light of the situation and diffuse the air. He is not making light of your feelings but he is saying no. To Lilia, he said no in a more indirect way because his MATURITY allowed him to make the most compatible decision that suited Lilia's personality and situation. He said no to you in a more direct way because his MATURITY trusted that you would also be mature enough to understand that he thinks what you did was inappropriate and frankly, he doesn't want you to do it again (and also, he's not currently interested in you). I think the way he's handled and is currently handling the romantic approaches from young girls is absolutely appropriate (whether or not he transmigrated from a different world at an older age).
Just think about this, if Art had been a girl and Tess was a boy... the gender roles swapping would make it completely stark as to why Tess' behavior is completely inappropriate. If someone says no, take it! Don't have a tantrum that they weren't listening to YOUR feelings when obviously you didn't care enough about HIS feelings when you attacked him when he was in a vulnerable position. Also, y'all are like, 14. Like, chill out. Yes, she's 14 so she's still a child who is infatuated with a young boy and she hasn't figured out what boundaries are yet. But 14 is plenty old enough to know how to be empathetic and understand rejection. You don't get a pass on sexual harassment because you are a young, attractive girl. Don't feel entitled because you knew him for the longest time, or because you know his secrets, or because you have feelings for him, or for any reason. You don't get to feel entitlement over someone's personhood.
Lol, rant done. Sorry, but I've recently just been reading so many stories (manga and manhwa alike) that think women empowerment is allowing a girl or woman to act like a manipulative and sexual deviant boy/man. Like... personally, I don't think "overpowering" a male partner, physically or mentally or sexually, is empowering or even good. It makes me hate you as much as I hate the male characters who exhibit those characteristics. Lol, I still love this story and want to see the development of these characters.
Yeah, I still can't bring myself to like her. She's not like Yuri from Beware of the Villainess. Yuri also felt trapped and possessed by the "male leads" but Yuri tried to change. She tried to rebel. She strived to make her own future and carve her own story. But this girl? I don't like it that she plays victim and isn't doing anything to TRULY help anyone. I don't know. Maybe my dislike of her is unwarranted but her character is too fragile and shallow for me to feel any empathy for her.
Those 2 situations aren’t really comparable. Yuri was aware that her story was repeating over and over and she accepted it until the story stopped going as it was supposed to. Helena can’t really do anything to change how things are going. She can’t defy the prince and his mother, and if she does then they will take it out on the people around her, who already feel wary of her.
Yuri was a duke's daughter and she's a palace maid. You see the difference now? And why Yuri can do that and she can't?
To those who disagree with my comparison, I wanted to respond because I do see that my comparison was flawed and I want to further explain my point. Lol, I'm not in any way trying to argue or fight. I just want to better explain my opinion.
I understand those two ladies have different situations HOWEVER, I prefer Yuri's character development as someone who has possessive and yandere male leads around her. Yes, while having more freedom compared to a fallen noble/maid, she was held down by the fact that she knew she was trapped in a story. Both these women were trapped in their own circumstances. YET, Yuri rebelled. She knew she was trapped and her life would restart if she "messed" up the storyline. But she continued to rebel; Yuri rebelled against her known circumstances and the consequences. YET, this story doesn't provide that development. This story lacks any sort of... personality for her character. She's not rebeling, she's not reacting, she's not doing anything. If anything, her kindness and "saint" like personality makes her robotic and inhuman. I'm not saying she isn't humane or kind but I'm saying she doesn't feel human so I don't feel any human empathy for her. Yuri is likable because of her spunk. This character... doesn't have any redeeming qualities about her (for my liking). I'm not hating on her or this story, but as a character, she's too flat for me to care about her. The only emotion I feel about her is frustration.
Additionally, I dislike this character for her fragility. It's understandable. I'm not hating on her nor her decision because it is understandable. Yet, her fragility and "saint" like personality is what is frustrating about her character. Her fragility and "saint" like personality is what is causing her to "protect" the people around her but at the same time, it is exactly what is making EVERYONE around her seem evil in comparison (to her male leads). When someone has privileges, they have many choice but generally, their choices fall under two categories: am I going to sit back and allow myself to reap the benefits (even if I have my own personal problems) or am I going to use my privileges to actually help people? And her fear and fragility is what is making her choose the first option because she thinks that will help people. But it's not. The reason people are wary is because she's not willing to take a stand. The reason people are wary is because they know she's not going to help them in an actual fruitful way. This is an extreme example but if there are a group of kidnapped people and this girl was chosen to "help" the kidnapper, obviously she has no choice because complying will keep everyone safe (for now) but is that going to change the fact that they are all still kidnapped? She's only keeping them safe for now. In the other maids' perspective, she's the only one reaping the benefits because even if she weren't here, nothing would change for them. It is for her own self-satisfaction that she is complying to the prince. I don't care that she was trying to help in her own way. At the end of the day, she's doing more harm than help.
Additionally, I also really dislike her because she's NOT an agent to HER OWN destiny. None of her decisions are actually helping anyone, nor are they pushing her own life forward. She's stuck in a vicious cycle and she's unwilling to create any sort of wave that can develop her own life. She has the victim mentality, WHICH IS UNDERSTANDABLE, but as a character, I find her irritating. And knowing people like her in real life, I find her personality to be more harmful than helpful.
Sorry, I'm not trying to preach. I am just trying to explain myself. I understand why she's trying to live the way she is, but I can't help but just dislike her because she's too idealistic. She's portrayed as a woman who is unflawed and kind but she is also a really flat character... I can't empathize with her (similar to how people dislike Disney princess-esque characters because they live in their own idealistic and pretty bubbles). Unfortunately, I can't seem to like her YET. I'm not denying her pain or experiences but I find that this backstory on her was... a bit useless if their goal was trying to make me empathize with her. For me (I'm not speaking for others), this sobstory was... ineffective.
But thank you for those who disagreed because you helped me in articulating my point and how the comparison was flawed. Also, thanks to those who have read this far lol
This story has barely even started. We're just in chapter 24. And the author just saw us Helena's backstory. Her mother constantly telling her to stop expressing her feelings and pretending to be naive so that she can get everyone's love obviously affected her a lot. Her development hasn’t even begun. You're just hating on her and not even understanding the situation she is in
And Yuri decided to rebel against the male leads solely because Melissa was there to help her and come to her aid. But in this story, Elise has been nothing but mean to her. So expecting her to rebel on her own when she was taught those fucked up morals since childhood and no one is there to actually help her is too much
isn't that exactly what her backstory explains though? she CAN'T speak out, she was taught to always, always act like an idiot and feign ignorance in order to survive. she prob has some self esteem issues or a messed up mind due to her mom. she even thought it was okay for her own mother to scar her face when she was A CHILD. anyways, we can't be impatient with the character development lol <3 yuri is amazing, yes, but she had far more choices nd chances than helena ever had or will. one thing is that yuri is loved by everyone she meets (the heroine role) while helena is hated by her coworkers no matter what she does, and people have diff emotional levels. although someone may not care about people's opinions, others would go through lenghts to make sure everyone is okay with them.
Lol, thanks for everyone disagreeing in a CIVIL manner. Bwahahahaha you never know with online commenting. It's nice to see those disagreeing with me because it's always great to see a variety of opinions. Lol, I know I'm hating on her for no legit reason and I know I need to give her more time for character development. But... I still dislike her. I can't explain it; I think it has to do with my preferences of characters (I just, by heart, don't care too much for idealistic female characters... its weird, I know!) Lol, I mean, I know that the author is trying to make us empathize and they are trying to develop her character but... I still find it ineffective (as of now!). Obviously, I like the story enough to have continued reading this far and to comment with a tedtalk of my opinion lol. I am ready for her development but... with only this recent chapter, I still can't bring myself to like her. However, I see all your points and I'm looking forward to when I can actually feel good about her character!
Thank you for understanding
Even though I also feel bitter towards the ML, I understand that he was also put into a place of pressure. It's easy to look at their dynamics and believe he had it better and he was making a dumb choice, but you have to really look at where they both were. She was abused and neglected... and he was too. He was an illegitimate son. His mother was dead. He was also the second son. The "true" son and the "true" wife of the current Duke were in power. In other words, he was also abused too. I'm not trying to make this a pity party but we have to understand that abuse and trauma doesn't care about "who suffered more"; trauma effects everyone in a tragic way. Personally, I felt more pity for the FL because she's a woman and the main protagonist (so we've been getting her side of the story). I am going to be honest. I pitied her more because she was a woman. The tears of a woman is powerful, let's not deny that. But you must understand that even if he wasn't crying or showing his suffering like his wife, the ML was suffering too. Yet, as a reader, a female reader, I found myself more empathetic with a suffering woman. However, I've taken a step back and am looking at the big picture now. He was also abused and neglected. For him, he was the same as the FL. That's why he was attached to her when he saw her in the greenhouse, that's why he asked for her hand in marriage. He saw himself in her. Yet... he was a man. Being a man, having that status and gender provides him a slight head start compared to the FL and he took it. I think it's reasonable when you think about it. Yes, she was abused and she was neglect by her family and eventually him... but isn't it reasonable for an abused child to take a chance to level up, even if that means stepping on another abused child? They are adults (and more convincing, he's a man) so it's easy for us to empathize with the FL because her abuse was illogical and it makes sense for us to feel angry at the ML because he was compliant to her abuse. But I think we need to step back and also remember that the ML was abused and took his chance to rise. As evil as you may think that was, the ML's reaction is completely understandable.
I don't know how you all grew up but I'm going to use myself and my family as an example. For the record, I'm not a victim nor was I ever abused but I understand the ML's dilemma. I understand because I have done the same. I'm an Asian woman in America. Let's be honest, I'm a minority but I definitely have advantages many others do not, even within my own race. As a minority, as a woman of color, I know the disadvantages I am at but if I am given a chance to rise, I'm sure I'm not the only one who would take that chance even if it means having to use others as stepping stones. Because I know how much it hurts to try to survive. I know how much it hurts. As an adult, I would regret my actions and wonder if I was evil because I decided to help myself instead of finding a way to help BOTH of us. But... when one is desperate enough, the will to survive takes over. My parents are both refugees. As they escaped their village, they were found SEVERAL times attempting to escape in the middle of the night. Every single time, my father and mother were brought back to their village. My parents were lucky they were able to escape because I'm sure others died in the hands of the soldiers. I'm sure my parents had to make several choices, whether to save others or to run for themselves. I'm sure my parents had situations where they had to choose themselves over saving others. But this is what survival is. When you find yourself at a dead-end and someone finally throws you a rope, sometimes we cut the rope after climbing to the top because our fear of the pain we knew of exceeds the amount of empathy we can extend.
Lol, I didn't mean to make such a long and depressing post. Thanks for anyone reading until the end. But I think there are sometimes where being in the gray shows us just how complex human life is. It's easy for us to say "how dare you choose yourself over someone else who is suffering your same pain" but I know that survival, especially for people who have faced trauma, often leads us to making decisions that are terrible. But in the face of survival, many of us would plead for one more day of living because we are afraid and we are hopeful and we are human. Thanks for listening to my ted-talk. (〜￣△￣)〜
I've spent several hours, lol I'm not kidding (I don't have a life), looking for a manga similar to this one. If anyone sees this and can help me, I will be so thankful!
Okay, so the general plot line goes like this: a princess (or Saint, lol it's been a while) and a knight fall in love. However, they were unable to be together. They promise to be together in their next life and lo and behold, they are reincarnated into modern day Japan. Yet! They are pushed back with another issue! He was reborn nearly 2 decades after her! They quickly found each other, with he in high-school and she as an salary woman. But their large age gap plays a role in their further difficult times. For visual cues, I remember the fl to have short bobbed (lightly tinted) hair and the ml to have light colored hair.
Please, I've wasted too much of my time to NOT read this freaking story. Lol. Thank you!
Looooool, nevermind. Those hours were not wasted because I found it! For anyone curious, the manga I was looking for is titled: I’ve Sworn to be in the Afterlife, But it Became a Mess After Reincarnating
Thanks I was just Abt to ask the name cz it seems interesting
I don't know what I was expecting... actually, I know exactly what I was expecting! I was expecting something light and cute like Yankee Boy and Otaku Girl... and boy was I COMPLETELY WRONG. Lol, I could have stopped reading but this was too funny to stop. I kept reading because I wanted to see how crazy it was gonna get. And I was laughing hard in the end. My favorite moment is at the end of chapter 20, the translator note that says "beyond this chapter, this manga will be categorized as hentai" and I literally screamed "and it wasn't before?!" LOL, this is so bad it's funny.
Bwahahahahaha, I'm dying!!!
This is one of the stories where I wanted Wataru to disappear. Disappear. Leave the city, change his number, find a job where he can be protected, and disappear from Hachi's reach for YEARS. And better yet, I want Hachi to SUFFER AND STAY SINGLE AND CELIBATE FOR ALL THOSE YEARS. STAY DEPRESSED AND FEELING GUILTY AND ONLY LOVING WATARU. That was the conclusion I wanted and then, and only then could Wataru magically and coincidentally go to an event where Hachi was at. Then there is where Hachi should sincerely apologize and they can SLOWLY fall in love.
But no, here we are. A gaslighting Hachi apologizing for the sake of apologizing and Wataru just giving in because a hot guy abusing and manipulating you isn't abuse or manipulation but "sexual tension" and "teasing". Sigh, this is one of those times where I would rather read the raws so that I can't actually READ and understand anything because I can't logic outta nonsense!
Samee same same same
Wow, so many people share my sentiments. I also hate the red-haired girl. Unfortunately, she was too annoying for me to remember her name. Not annoying...more like... overbearing. I wanted a story about a father-daughter relationship (I read the synopsis and it hooked me). I didn't come here for a one-sided overbearing crush. I also really dislike her character design. I love the fact that Dojun makes it clear that they were objectifying the red-haired girl. YET THE CHARACTER DESIGN OF HER STUPID CATSUITS FLIPS THE PROGRESSIVE NARRATIVE OF HER NOT BEING AN OBJECT ON IT'S HEAD. WHY ARE YOU GOING TO TRY TO CREATE A NARRATIVE THAT SHE SHOULDN'T BE TREATED AS AN OBJECT YET FURTHER HER CHARACTER TO BE FAN SERVICE-Y AND TO BECOME THE ANNOYING LOVE/CRUSH OPPORTUNIST, WHERE SHE WILL NOW BE SEXUALLY OBJECTIFIED?! ughhhhhhhh, there is just so many wrong things about her character. Like, the fact that she one-sidedly made Dojun her "lord". Like, isn't that kinda creepy, that she has created an unknown connection between the two of them? And her possessiveness over him... he's just there to work. My head. For real, if the genders of these two characters were swapped, the red-haired girl would be a creepy dude rather than a hot guy. Being a busty bombshell is too annoying for me, as a woman, because she's so flat as a character and to further her as a character, the one thing you could do was add volume - not to her character depth but to her curves?! Yeah, this character is adding nothing! She's adding no significant substance to this great story. I'm really disappointed as a woman reading this strong female character and feeling more annoyance than awe.
But... on the other hand, I love Yongyong. Can we give more love to him? Lol, stop feeding this poor dragon dog food.
Thank you for screaming out the frustrations of my heart. *deep bow*
Poor Elizabeth, why must she suffer as the bargaining chip between the competition of two men? Why must she be treated like an immoral and cheating person when A) she was raped by the king and B) she fought hard and allowed herself to be taken as an object to save her husband's life?! Are women indispensable?! Poor Elizabeth... neither of you deserved her...
I CONCUR
Fr also isnt she sick rn? And like the king is holding it over Arthur's head? Like hello? Shes your mom?
He is a trash father. Trash trash trash! Neglecting his child then suddenly "caring" for his child because all of a sudden, now his son has power that would benefit the family. Trash. Showing "love" for your child does not mean uprooting them and taking away the people they love and are comfortable with because they weren't up to your standards. What standards do you deserve to have when your child has been neglected by you all his life?! I don't even want a redemption arc for him. He doesn't deserve it.
Is it mean for me to say this...? But... I kinda want the professor to start pursuing Hyuk. This is one of the few times where I am actively looking for a love triangle in order to create a wave in the story plot. Like... I think (lol, I THINK, not I KNOW) the doctor likes Hyuk but he's a bit suspicious and... I think he needs to learn how to be desperate in a relationship. Ahahaha I feel like that would be a really large advancement in Hyuk's character development if he were to learn how to say no and learn to stop giving in. Like, if the doctor really thinks the way he does (that it's okay for someone to "soothe" someone, such as the professor to Hyuk, who feels lonely or insecure even if that means participating in infidelity), he needs to experience it and... like, be okay with the outcome. Lol, sorry, I'm bitter. I want them to end up together but I feel like Hyuk has and will always be chasing after the doctor at this point. I want to feel the desperation in the doctor's eyes when he's chasing after Hyuk. I want him to want to have an "idealistic" and "pure" relationship with Hyuk because I feel like both Hyuk and him lack a bit of what the other has. It's a great dynamic.
Looking forward to the development ~~~
Ditto, I'm rooting for hard for a love triangle. I usually don't love conflict but damn I hope we get some here
Real hard*