Finally opening his mouth, Viscount Lyranepf laughed in disbelief. After chuckling, he spoke confidently, his shoulders straight as if he had nothing to be ashamed of.

“You can’t call that ‘evil.’ Trying in any way to prevent the continent’s destruction, why would that be ‘evil’?”

There was no hint of guilt. He felt no shame for what he had done. There was not even a trace of remorse or apology.

“Killing children, killing Ayana, hurting many people. How is that not ‘evil’?”

“Then, is there another way? Oh, there was… sacrifice the saint!! Isn’t the problem that the saint didn’t sacrifice herself?”
Viscount Lyranepf openly expressed his anger without reservation, clenching his fist towards me as if blaming me for his own corruption.

The repulsive side he had been concealing all along was now clearly exposed.

It was different from the usual appearance where he wore a well-fitted mask. Perhaps, after learning about my identity as the saint, his composure broke, allowing anger to seep through.

“So, you must know where Genevra is.”

I swept my forehead sharply with my palm, piercing him with a cutting gaze. Lyranepf, who had been venting his anger all along, sealed his lips again, as if that was the justice he had to protect.

Revampel approached me, blocking Lyranepf’s gaze as if indicating that there was no need for further discussion.

“Enough, Terry. You don’t need to hear more. …If you don’t want to talk, you don’t have to. After dying several times and coming back… you might forget things.”

“What, what?”

“Forgot? The empress is the saint. As long as you don’t die, anything is fine. For example…”

Revampel raised his hand and pointed at Lyranepf’s body.

“It means you can stab him with a sword as much as you want.”

It was madness. But because it was Revampel saying this madness, I couldn’t just dismiss it as crazy talk.

“This place, no matter how much noise you make or what you do, no one will come here. Since the time of the former emperors, this place has been used to confine those among the nobility who made mistakes. So, no one is allowed to enter here.”

“Dare you… dare you…”

“Don’t engage in futile struggles. The door outside won’t break, so it’s better not to make useless efforts.”

No wonder it wasn’t maintained properly, and I thought there were no people around…

“I know because I was locked up here when I was a child.”

What?

I looked at Revampel in surprise.

Revampel looked around, smiling with a nostalgic expression.

It seemed that this was the place where Revampel was confined by his mother when he was a child.

“When you feel like talking about it, let’s have a conversation then.”

“Your Majesty!!!”

“If you’re thirsty, drink the rose tea there. You used to like it, right? Drink as much as you want.”

Revampel grabbed my wrist, then turned my body without mercy.

“You!!”

With an angry face, Lyranepf shouted at Revampel. It seemed difficult for him to rush in immediately with Clint blocking the way.

“You can’t kill me!!!”

At Lyranepf’s scream, Revampel’s hand paused. Lyranepf, who confirmed the momentary pause, laughed brightly and resisted with his whole body.

“There’s a reason you can’t kill me, isn’t there?!! A reason you can’t lay a hand on me!!”

“…”

“But is it really okay for you to lay hands on me like this?! Your Majesty!!”

For some reason, Lyranepf knew that Revampel wouldn’t harm him.

Yeah. Unless he was a fool, he couldn’t not know. Even when another person who made the same mistake was punished, Lyranepf Lyranepf never laid a hand on him.
At first, he might have found it strange, and then he would have used it as an opportunity. For some reason, the emperor couldn’t kill himself… It must have been easy for him.

“Nonsense.”

I discreetly raised my hand to cover Revampel’s ears, then glanced at Viscount Lyranepf, murmuring softly.

Following my request, I summoned Viscount Lyranepf, threatened him, and confined him. However, when he heard those words, there was a shadow of fear on Revampel’s face.

It seemed that he was anxious and worried about whether I would die, get hurt, or something bad would happen to my future.

I covered Revampel’s ears with my palm and spoke sharply towards Viscount Lyranepf.

“The reason I haven’t killed you so far is not because there is some reason for your misdeeds to be right or because you’re too scared, Lyranepf. Your Majesty. Your Majesty gave you several chances because…”

Clint, who was blocking Lyranepf, subtly nodded his head to ensure that Lyranepf wouldn’t notice. His face looked composed.

“Cough.”

I cleared my throat, composed my expression, and confronted Viscount Lyranepf again.

“Anyway. Your Majesty has given you several chances as if you misunderstood that there was some reason why he couldn’t harm you.”

“L… Lies.”

“Lies? Ha.”

I exerted force on the hand covering Revampel’s ears and stared at the disheartened Viscount Lyranepf with a more stern expression than usual.

“Then, where is the lie? Take this opportunity to engrave it on your body properly. Since you brushed aside the Emperor’s kindness.”

“Wa… Wait!”

As my command ended, Clint forcefully pushed Lyranepf. I and Revampel left the side building’s bedroom.

Clint, the last to leave the bedroom, locked the door from the outside.

“How dare!! How dare you lock me up like this!! Am I looking fine!! The envoys will come looking for me!! How dare you!! If I am released from here, I will reveal all the emperor’s injustice at the noble council meeting!!!”

His desperate shouts echoed through the hallway of the detached building. However, they soon disappeared into a dreadful silence.

‘Perhaps he won’t speak easily.’

Viscount Lyranepf was extremely uncomfortable with being equated with Genevra. However, even so, he believed that what he was doing was right. While he despised Genevra, he claimed that Genevra’s experiments were about saving people.

‘Viscount Lyranepf finds it very unpleasant to equate himself with Genevra. Then he doesn’t want to destroy that.’

When he finds out where Genevra is, he will have to discard all the justice he has maintained until now.

‘Viscount Lyranepf equated himself with Genevra. But still, he wouldn’t want to destroy that.’
After abandoning justice, the only thing left is a sense of guilt for the heinous and atrocious crimes committed while believing oneself to be justice.

Does Viscount Lyranepf have the courage to face that?

“Do those involved in the Perdiac experiments not know that they will be executed immediately? How foolish. They don’t even realize that being confined here without announcing it extends their lives.”

Revampel clicked his tongue, looking at me.

“Are you okay? How’s your body? Not in pain?”

I interrupted my thoughts, smiled at Revampel as if telling him not to worry.

“I’m fine, Revampel. Look at this. I confined Viscount Lyranepf, but I’m perfectly fine now.”

Revampel examined me carefully with his eyes, checking if anything had changed about me. I held his hand until he calmed down, giving him enough time.

“Don’t worry, Revampel. Those nonsensical words can’t hurt you or me. Never.”

I reached out and embraced Revampel’s neck. He leaned into me, murmuring ‘yes’ while hugging me.

“Trust me, Revampel.”

“Of course, I only trust you, Terry. My savior.”

I held him tightly and looked around the dilapidated detached building. Young Revampel had been trapped here.

In a place where even an adult’s scream couldn’t be heard just a little beyond the corridor.

Young Revampel had been confined here, unable to escape, no matter how hard he tried.

“…”

It was strange.

Certainly, the place seemed unfamiliar before. So it felt like I was seeing it for the first time.

Oddly, the place felt familiar to me.

“Revampel.”

I called him earnestly.

“Have you and I met here before?”

Revampel’s body tensed up, stiffening as if thoroughly on edge.