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Whether the manhwa artist did a good job or not is up to the reader to decide but for the record, Cárcel is the best looking man in the novel canon. Everywhere he goes, there is someone who talks about his looks. Even children. Factually, Ines describes him as the most handsome man in the world without or beyond borders.
Here is a quote where Ines compares Carcel and Emiliano’s appearance directly. This came up in ep43 but the manhwa, as usual, left out the part where Ines compares the appearance of both men and simply just talks about who would be faithful to their pregnant wife.
Anyway, this quote is Tappytoon’s ‘SOULLESS’ version of the Korean text:
Despite his handsome face, Emiliano was single-minded and never pursued more than one love. He was an exception to all rules. Technically, Cárcel was even more handsome than Emiliano. He even had the body, title, and wealth. Cárcel Escalante had more than one could list on one hand. Even if he did not wish to cheat on his wife, he was born with the perfect conditions to do so.
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This is Kim ChaCha’s Korean direct translation version:
Emiliano was the only man she knew who didn't betray his pregnant wife, but even when Inés was most deeply in love, she made a cold judgment that
'He wouldn't dare betray me because he has no money.'
Of course, he had his face so what couldn't he do if he was just eager...? Emiliano knew only one thing in principle. Whether it was love or painting. But this sort of man had always been irrelevant to the subject.
If one considered the face, this side was better (CARCEL). Perfect face, perfect body, natural power, huge wealth... He possessed so much that he didn't know what he didn't have. Cárcel Escalante had everything good to use to betray, even if he didn't try to betray his wife.
There is never a shortage of posts condemning Carcel for his premarital lifestyle. However, exactly how long has Ines been plotting against him? Ines plotted 17 whole years. Manhwa shows her talking with lawyers who visited her home estate, Perez, at the young age of 12. She questioned the lawyers about divorce and related topics. Just imagine while she’s doing that, 12 year old Carcel was busy taking succession lessons as heir and probably doing all the things that little boys do.
Not only that, even after marriage, Ines spends six months plotting to get Carcel to cheat. She even goes as far bringing in a crazy woman who is obsessed with Carcel from afar and she and her friends encouraged the woman to be bold and go to the bedroom where Carcel was. But no worries. It was all part of her plan since 17 years ago and she needed to see it to the end.
We saw all her efforts to get him to commit adultery after marriage but what about before marriage? Here’s Tappytoon’s dry version of only part of her plan during the engagement years at a time when she wasn’t completely ignoring him. The summary confirms a few things and fills in the lack of info in the manhwa that addresses the details of her plan that began during the engagement years.
1. Ines wore black dresses and boring buns to support her plan. This is the appearance she had in the first chapters of the manhwa until marriage.
2. Ines reveled in the reputation she created where nobles gossiped that Carcel is too good for her and named her The Black Crow. This bad reputation is confirmed in the manhwa.
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She had been scheming to get Cárcel to cheat on her for her whole lifetime. She downplayed her attractiveness by wearing black dresses. When others remarked that only women who were “mourning, living as a nun, or had become clinically insane” would wear black dresses, she smirked in delight. She matched the drab frocks with boring buns or braids.
She had kept this disinterested and uninteresting identity in front of everyone not just Cárcel. The whole world needed to remind Cárcel that she was never enough for him. She needed to ensure that he would not have a sudden change of heart one day. She did not want him to ever be intrigued by her even for a split second.
Inés had grown a sizable ego from her past experiences. She worried that Cárcel would fall for her at least once in their long relationship. To hide her charms and her decent face, she needed to be careful to choose the least attractive outfits and avoid all makeup. Once she stripped naked, she wouldn’t be able to hide behind the ugly clothes though. A sigh escaped her throat at the mere thought.
Thus, she resolved to be extra careful. She had to keep associating herself with all the boring and ugly things in his mind. She would continue to exhaust him with her suffocating attitude, gaze and outfit. Back when he feared her the most, she sent him an overwhelming amount of presents and letters to scare him off. He didn’t panic immediately as she expected. Still, she did manage to send him off to military academy and navy army in fear of marriage.
Inés would eventually have to marry into his family even if he tried to ignore her for many years. Their betrothal was inevitable — no wonder he was stricken with fear. Inés wanted to seize this chance and get him to be so stressed about their imminent marriage that he had no choice but to cheat on her when they did marry.
Until their marriage ceremony, she planned to make him feel less guilty about cheating.