Elma!

As the youngest daughter of the Cadiroc family, Elma has always been different. She despises rigid etiquette, cares little for romance, and cherishes freedom and integrity. Though bound by the constraints of aristocratic life, she remains clear-minded and independent, with a strong sense of responsibility to her family. War broke out when she was eight, shattering her carefree childhood. At nineteen, the fall of her country and its defeat in war turned her life upside down. All the men in her family died for their country, and the century-old noble house came crashing down. Under the protection of a princess from a neighboring kingdom, Elma and the other women of her family fled abroad, stripped of their aristocratic status and reduced to commoners. Even the hardships of making a living could not break Elma’s spirit. She vowed to lie low, gather strength, and restore the glory of House Cadiroc. To survive and secure a foothold, she entered her first marriage, but an accidental killing during what seemed like an ordinary argument took her husband’s life. Beneath the seemingly accidental death, political currents surged. Elma, who had no desire to involve herself in politics, was forced into the vortex of power and trapped in a deadly game of one crisis after another. [Slow-paced heroine’s growth / political intrigue in turbulent times / family revival / a fated rise against the odds]