
Y'all when is this arc over?? I honestly don't care for Serenade or her maid, I just wanna go back to our lovely OG's and see some tower defense + other world exploration

Bro hates character development. If you didn't hate women so much you'd see that this arc is necessary to show both Ash's backstory and his relationship with his family/ his role in the world. It also is setting up what's going to happen in the future. We are clearly getting more world building lol.

Oh no, I don't like two fictional characters, one who tried to kill the prince because shes impulsive and doesn't think about consequences (tbf she'll probably be badass later, but right now just stupid), and the other, obsessed with a man because he was nice to her 20 years ago, which means I hate women (even though I haven't had a single problem with any female characters thus far)! How silly of me to want actual action in an action story instead of 20 chapters of bland one-sided dribble based on lame cliches (the family scene was fine because that actually WAS world building, this whole arc could've been done in 10 chapters).
Maybe get your head out of your ass and accept that people are allowed to criticise the writing of characters or plot points that are weak, even if they're about women or romance

You did not say any of this in you're original comment. All you said is that this arc was taking too long and that you wanted to get back to the action/ world building. Well there's plenty of world building happening and there are action scenes (the impulsive girl you mentioned) had you simply JUST said "I dislike these characters I want to go back to the main cast" I wouldn't have commented. But you typed "+other world exploration" Learn to type what you mean, goofy.

In my opinion, Serenade and her maid are actually far more complex and interesting than they might initially seem. Sure, the "obsessed childhood lover" trope can be a bit overdone, and the impulsive loyalist trope often feels like a convenient plot device, but that’s not really the case here.
Serenade’s feelings for Ash aren’t just the surface level cliché “obsessed lover” trope. Her upbringing, her father’s ambitions, and the royal family’s influence all shaped her intense connection to Ash. But at its core, their relationship was kinda mutual until, under pressure from her father, she requested for his seed.
Just to add, I think her asking Ash for his seed again is not just out of some obsession, but a sense of duty towards her family, and to get at least something from their deal with the royal family, and longing to preserve and represent something meaningful in her life with their child.
And let’s not forget about her maid! While she may not be the brightest, her loyalty and confidence in her strength are clear part of her character. Her attacking Ash was a way to properly introduce, and build on who she was as a character.
She’s willing to sacrifice herself if it means doing what’s best for Serenade.
Plus, given that Ash is basically a death flag magnet means that the attack was bound to happen.
In short, both Serenade and her maid are layered characters with real motivations and depth. They’re much more than just tropes and bad character writing.

Nah that's g, I like reading other people's opinions on this. Idk if there'll be better background for these characters in the future, but right now it feels like 30 chapters of nothing, and boy I just want it over with.
I understand what you mean with the explanation of the characters (the loyalty, the familial pressure), but I do feel it could've been written better. I have a huge irk with people writing female characters to be so...lame and lackluster, especially when every other female character in here has been badass. Like either write enough background to make the character likeable and cool, or don't bother with them at all
Girl...free tickets are free tickets
Exactlyyyyy lole I'm going to pass it up maybe if they hinted theu changed their mind and want to go with a " girlfriend" but ML tried to convince him untill last moment
Right!! Like, even if I thought they had a partner it's like, okay we can just go see my favourite band (/pianist) together as friends??? They asked me and want me to go, I'M GOING