Read in one sitting

I'm prolly the only person who doesn't rlly pity Helena. Lowk, she acts like she's the only victim in this world and DOESN'T do anything even if she actively sees that she's a homewrecker and that dude is a cheater, blatantly play Infront of her face. She just sits there acting all meek, and then even be surprised if the fl says something mean to the CP. And then she's surprised that she's stuck with the CP??? Girl.

Like look at chapter 82. She's rlly filled with love, and she doesn't rlly care how much the fl suffered in that palace lmao I don't get how someone so "kind-hearted" is doing this. Ig kind-hearted to everyone, even if those ppl have hurt the fl.

Came back for a reread, but before I do.. I initially pitied her backstory and how everyone just sees her as a pretty accessory to own, despite her own feelings. However, it doesn't compare to how much of a sitting duck she was throughout the entire story. Her ending as a useless loner empress is a result of doing nothing and expressing none of her thoughts, so it's deserved (dare I say more than she deserves).

Not only did she fail to use the little power or influence she had (connections gained through her looks), she took basically zero action when it comes to helping the one who needs it the most. I don't agree with her being portrayed as genuinely "good" or "kind" just for the sake of subverting expectations. She has 0 brain cells, can't think for herself, can't think for others, can't even speak up. What CAN she even do? Not surprised if she ends up as a puppet figure.

I just feel like you could sympathise with her as we learn more about her, but in the end she just seems so pathetic that she's undeserving of my pity.

I feel like you missed the entire point of Helena character. Look I get not liking her even after reading the story but to say she totally has power means you didn't understand what position she was in despite reading it. She and og Eris were just pawns tied down to a hierarchy of those who holds true power. Helena couldn't do anything. You talk as if she has the power to do anything but she in fact does not. Any time she tries to do something, it results in the people around her getting the short end of the stick by the prince and the queen.

You saw how she tried to speak up for Eris during the time she was the Prince partner at the ball but people in turn twisted her words to their liking. She saw saw this and couldn't even speak up anymore.

Helena knows her position extremely well. She knows that to all these so called men that love her don't truly love her. If they did, they wouldn't put her into a position where she couldn't say no to their intentions. She can't even work normally cause once the queen or the prince calls for her, she MUST immediately leave her post go to them while handing off her work to another or else an innocent person will get hurt. She learned that from experience so she doesn't try to fight it. How could she? She has no power nor family to rely on. She truly is weak.

You may think she could help but with what power? Her looks? Her looks is exactly what got her into a position she doesn't want. You think those men are willing to truly help her with how they act around Eris? Do you think Eris wants their help? Of course not. She rather die then ask those men for help.

Helena isn't that naive either. She once hated Eris for torturing her so much because of the prince putting her in that position. But she came to a realization early on when she saw Og Eris crying. She did selfishly think she understood OgEris until the moment of Eris reveal. She realized how arrogant she was to think that. It's why she does not bear any ill will towards og Eris and our MC. When our MC was about to stab Helena, she accepted it. Helena did the one thing our MC truly needed and that was her way of helping our MC make that decision that she needed the most to get back to her world.

Once Helena woke up, she finally had the power to take control of her own fate. She could now say no to the King. She was never delusional about his love for her cause she never once loved him.

Anyway, if you read it this far, you are completely fine in not liking her. Not everyone has to like Helena. I wasn't trying to change your mind about Helena but I just felt the need to speak out about Helena facts. This is coming from someone who originally did not like Helena but came to understand her situation. I just pity her and ogEris being thrown around by the men around them.

I've reread the story somewhat, and I agree with most of the points you mentioned. You're right, I may have been too harsh on Helena, and I do apologise for I was wrong. Still, I find it difficult to understand her. In fact, I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand her.

She’s not as knowledgeable or perceptive as they make her out to be, though I won’t go into every detail since discussions about Helena are already plentiful.

Take, for example, the moment at the ball when she tried to speak up. She says, “But I heard your engagement with Lady Eris was called off. So even if they were lovers, it wouldn’t count as cheating. Isn’t that right, Alec?” Here’s how I interpret that situation:

Her intention was to justify Eris’s earlier actions, an attempt to make it seem as though Eris hadn’t done anything wrong. However, despite her good intentions, what she said wasn’t helpful at all. In fact, it made things worse, didn't it? Yes, the nobles spreading rumors about Eris would have twisted any of her words to suit their agenda anyway, that was their goal from the beginning.

To me, Helena comes across as especially ignorant. She fails to understand the situation or read the room. Even if she sensed that anything she said might be futile, she still chose one of the worst possible approaches. I’m no expert, but if she had even a partial awareness of the dynamics at play, she might have stayed silent or tried to redirect the conversation instead of escalating it.

Countless times she was told to maintain the decorum expected of her status, yet she continues to cross the line. She's too oblivious and dense to maintain boundaries and doesn’t fully understand her own position. She’s been taught to smile and act ignorant, and she remains stuck in that mindset. She rarely clears up misunderstandings effectively and instead watches from the sidelines, accepting that she’s only meant to follow orders and accept whatever she’s given.

But who does this mindset ultimately benefit? Did she truly stop to reflect, what did I do wrong? Why did others react the way they did? How can I improve? Did she truly have no control over her actions? I can pity and sympathise with her to a certain extent. She’s no saint, and she’s not particularly smart. She tried her best given her circumstances, especially without any formal training or education. Everyone has flaws, but as a char, she often acted in ways that defy common sense, unintentionally causing harm to others.

I don’t think I’ll ever understand what was going through her mind. I don't know how much she has changed after her revival as it is not shown. She's compassionate to a fault. Part of me wishes she had learned from her mistakes, did some self reflection and shown some growth way earlier on her own, instead of only changing because of Eris's interference with the og story. When she met her “demise” at the hands of Eris, I had hoped to have felt something for her. However, I only felt heartbroken for Eris, who was forced into the role of a murderer.

By the end, she holds the title of empress largely because the king favours her. But what real standing or support does she actually have? The former empress and the nobles who backed her are no longer by her side. It’s doubtful whether she’ll be able to accomplish what she set out to do. She was forced into this role, but she also played a part in the way she accepted it.

Nonetheless, that isn’t the main point of the story afterall. Her char clearly serves a purpose to show how powerless someone can feel amid the nobility and rigid power hierarchy. For the most part, she was a huge victim. I just felt that when compared to Eris who was so deeply human and realistic, that it made Helena's char feel more flat and one dimensional. I understand she lacks power, but even within that limitation, her decisions and awareness feel underdeveloped and that's frustrating to witness. It's hard to like a char who chooses to remain.. dumb?

I’m probably too biased, cynical, and jaded to see things through rose tinted glasses. I'm likely projecting as well, so I'm the real pathetic one here.

Don't think of yourself like that. It's not really seeing things through rose tinted glass as someone who is just viewing how Helena is as a character. While we got some things from Helena pov, we also don't have a lot to go on but the things we got to see. I mean we can go on and on about how Helena situation but overall, we at least agree that there were things she couldn't do due to her position.

Sometimes when you're stuck in a position like Helena where you're just suppose to act a certain way for years, it's harder to break out of that without outside help. Plus Helena doesn't have all the knowledge as she was taught quite late in etiquette for high society.

It's true she was always the bystander when ogEris was treated. But you also have to remember that if she tried to save anyone, it would just be ogEris and Eris who will treated as the villain even when they haven't done anything. The palace maids have proven that. Though og Eris did in fact torture Helena due to her wanting the prince love.

I think having Helena be compassionate was what helped Eris kill Helena. She made it loud and clear with her words and action that Eris should never feel burden by killing her. She knew Eris wanted to go back home and if she had said anything else, Eris would've feel guilty forever even though Eris knew Helena would still live. This for me was different compared to when Eris killed the prince. His was truly a murder that plague her while with Helena, she could continue to move on for the sake of returning home as she cried doing it. Both girls were victims to the fate of the world but still tried their best with what little power they had.

Whether Helena gains power or not, we'll never know but imo, at the end when we saw how she gaze at the prince, I think she'll do just fine. It'll most likely turn into the prince wanting Helena love but she'll never give it to him. It's like a reflection of the prince parents so called love in the later portion of their life.

Talking about characters usually helps in understanding them and their motives if they have one. Although that doesn't always mean you'll like them.

Anyway, I hope you have a good day. Take care of yourself as the world itself is crazy atm.

Nah its all good! I like that you made me step back and think about Helena more. I relate to her circumstances but not really her. Also, interacting with people like her irl, with no social awareness, can be really something.. which is why I dislike her but to each their own.

I enjoy analysing chars once in awhile, but it does make me look kinda crazy. (A bit personal, but I had been in a helpless situation before, albeit not the same way as Helena but somewhat similar vibes. If I had handled it the way she did, I literally would've been murdered lmao)

Thanks, love. Sending warm hugs your way.