we're shown Rixus and Berylia growing old together and... *cues Katy Perry* "in another life..."

I agree that as of about chapter 40, it's starting to drag. The author appears to have gotten themselves mired in overly-complicated wedding procedures and coming up with increasingly elaborate and ridiculous cultural traditions. Indulging in this has caused a drift from the plot to focus on fun scenarios and petty drama from earning the nobles' approval.

I'd much rather they just get married already and return to the main focus and tension: her impending doom, and will he or won't he kill her this time when the blue roses bloom on her body at last?

Instead, to cater to these scenes, the author has to put the MC through situations where, in all honesty, as a regnant queen of a powerful foreign country, she should have said enough, back off, or there's going to be a war. It is annoying AF that she has to jump through all of these hoops to 'prove' herself to people who don't matter, when she would be marrying a man whose current status as Crown Prince is below hers, in a mutually beneficial alliance between equal countries, after they signed all the paperwork back in chapter FOUR.

Additionally the ML (infuriatingly) never has to do likewise, and there has been zero concessions to her own cultural traditions, nor have we seen a single nobleman from her country, either. It boggles the mind.

By making her act like she's a mere daughter of the lesser nobility who should just be happy to be there, the author is beginning to erode the fierce and wonderful character of the MC we saw and loved. Similarly, by making the Actoum country culture sex-obsessed, rather than making the story steamier, the adverse affect is happening, since now it feels like every single character other than the main couple are those gross, busy-body in laws who are way, WAY too invested in your s*x life because they want grandbabies, right now.

This story is genuinely amazing and enjoyable, so here's fingers crossed that once they FINALLY get married and move on with it, the narrative will find its way back and quit diluting its potential.

Though the male lead being the one who used to kill her in her last life (AND repeatedly at that) annoys me so much, he makes a pretty good impressions in the few latest chapters. I gotta say that it's kind of unfair for berylia, she got to remember all the stuffs the ML did to her while he didn't remember anything. I just hope he would somehow remember his last life and let the guilt over his past self swallow him whole or something lol, I'm not satisfied I still need revenge😔

Since the hero has no relations with the villain, of course he will go and slay the villain when an oracle appears that that said villain will ruin the world.

I did wonder, why didn't ML wait a little more to see if FL will really "ruin the world"? But then again I realised, in these kind of fantasy-world/settings, don't the people trust oracles a lot? and will the hero think to himself "Let's wait for the villain to destroy cities and kill x number of people before I deem him/her as evil and go kill him/her"? Of course not.

This lifetime was different because ML and FL spent a brief part of their childhood together (their meeting happened also because of the slightly different choices FL made when she was young, namely, visiting her parents). Time/more chapters will tell how exactly ML will react when the blue rose and oracle appears this round.

FL is inherently kind. And after so many regressions, she's tired and lonely. That's why when she saw the young, pitiful, battered ML in front of her, she couldn't push him away because she knew they were in the same position - neglected, poisoned, threatened by the people around him/his own countrymen whom he loves. The few days they spent together were so lovely and peaceful, they found comfort with each other and even considered the other person as their "home".

ML promised to solidify his position quicker so that he can give her a proper "home". He hasn't exactly fully accomplished that as he's still crown prince, not emperor, but he has enough to be able to shower her with affection and other materialistic things (that she didn't ask for). It is sort of like the typical behavior of most duke/cp MLs, but when referencing to their brief childhood together, it makes sense.

And above all, he has proven himself to be on her side all this while. Which was something she never got in all her previous lives even as Queen, her own countrymen are scared of her or find her odd-eye ominous, and though her staff/advisor in Spinel aren't frightened, they seem to just have a business relationship.

So... yeah, I can get on the ship with Rixus being the ML.

What I find fresh, but a bit of a paradox, is that the FL, Berylia, understands that she's in a novel and her death was part of the novel's plot - so while she regard the ML as the biggest obstacle and enemy in her life, she doesn't exactly totally hate the ML.

At where I am now (Chapter 27), the FL is like, "I'm marrying him for the country" & "He's handsome etc but he's also my lifelong enemy." Does she love him yet? Obviously, no. But is she attracted to him? Probably so. And I wouldn't blame her either given the way he acts towards her.

I do think that the ML, Rixus, is a little 'basic' at the moment. Granted, I'm only at C27 and the story is mostly from Berylia's pov.