Olentia cautiously spoke to her as she took her seat.

“I hope I haven’t taken up too much of your time, Lady Daphne.”

Daphne lifted her veil and quietly shook her head.

“Not at all. I came because I was curious to hear that the Grand Duchess possesses divine power. And there are things I needed to tell you.”

“In that case, I’m relieved. Please let me know if there’s anything that makes you uncomfortable.”

She was willing to fix anything. The saint was a righteous person who had saved many lives through her prophetic dreams. Olentia had also had a few prophetic dreams, but they paled in comparison to the saint’s.

Daphne spoke with the corner of her mouth lifted.

“You are a kind person.”

Olentia clasped her hands together and looked at Daphne with sparkling eyes. It was truly amazing to have the saint right before her eyes. She saved people through prophecies in her dreams. How had she been able to calmly handle such terrible things all this time? Olentia thought her mental fortitude must be extraordinary.

“That’s because I respect you, Lady Daphne.”

It was easy for her to say she respected her, not only because of the prophetic dreams but also because Olentia had thought a great deal about divine power. She couldn’t help but respect the person at the pinnacle of that ability. Only the saint or the pope could stand against Satan.

However, Daphne did not seem very pleased. She gave Olentia a bitter smile and said,

“Prophetic dreams may feel like a blessing from God, but in reality, they are not.”

Olentia barely managed to hold back from saying she agreed and nodded her head.

“Yes. You can’t only see good futures, after all.”

“That’s right. Usually, we see many bad futures. And there’s no guarantee that we can change those futures either.”

“It’s a sad thing. Having to just watch and see the bad futures unfold.”

In the Odor territory, Olentia had changed the futures of Ankedo and Moring. In her prophetic dream, Ankedo had become a successful smuggler turned criminal, while Moring seemed to be doing well without dying. It was truly fortunate.

Then, to Olentia who was lost in thought, Daphne uttered a shocking statement.

“Actually, Grand Duchess, you appeared in my prophetic dream.”

Olentia was so startled that she hiccuped without realizing it. As she pounded her chest with a clenched fist to stop the hiccups, she said,

“Me? How did I appear?”

At that, Daphne took quite a long pause. Her brow was furrowed as if it wasn’t a very good thing.

The thought occurred to Olentia that it must be a very big deal if she had appeared in Daphne’s prophetic dream. After all, her prophetic dreams had never been wrong.

It was so difficult for Olentia to wait for her words that she blinked rapidly several times.

Only after a while did Daphne’s lips part.

“You were crying after being betrayed by the Grand Duke. I saw you losing everything you had and crumbling. Your married life did not look happy.”

Olentia paused for a moment. She found it hard to believe that Dimidius would betray her. They had been peacefully maintaining their contractual relationship so far. Even though he sometimes said unkind things, he was not someone she couldn’t trust.

Olentia held her forehead with one hand, her mind troubled, and said,

“How am I betrayed? Can you tell me that too?”

Daphne answered with a serious expression.

“I don’t know the exact circumstances. But I clearly saw the Grand Duchess losing everything and even becoming a maid. That’s what will happen if you continue your married life.”

Was she saying that with all the inheritance Olentia currently had, she would end up working as a maid? Was Dimidius going to take this money from her? She wondered if that’s what losing everything and crumbling meant, but no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t believe it.

But then again, Daphne had no reason to lie either. Daphne was someone who always used her divine power and made prophecies for the sake of the Bonus Empire. When such a great person said she had dreamed about her, it made Olentia feel fearful.

Olentia fiddled with her hands on the table, a serious expression on her face. Her hands had turned ice cold in an instant. She had originally intended to ask about strengthening divine power and how to deal with prophetic dreams, but she had forgotten all about it because she couldn’t make sense of anything.

Then Daphne said with a slight smile,

“Are you tense? I think this prophetic dream is a future that can be sufficiently changed. That’s why I thought it was fortunate. Because you can just get a divorce.”

Olentia had been planning to get a divorce in five months anyway. But after hearing Daphne’s story, she felt uneasy for no reason. She had a feeling something was bound to happen before the divorce.

She blurted out, rolling her eyes in confusion.

“Please keep this prophetic dream a secret between you and me, Lady Daphne.”

Daphne readily nodded her head.

“Yes. It’s a private matter between a married couple. Of course I will. So I hope you make a good decision.”

After that, Olentia had no idea what else was said. She kept worrying about what she should do to prevent things from happening as in Daphne’s prophetic dream. After all, even small actions could change the future.

But when she thought about it carefully, something was strange.

Olentia had definitely dreamed a long time ago about getting along happily with her masked husband. In that dream, Olentia had looked so happy. If that was a prophetic dream, then her prophetic dream and Daphne’s prophetic dream were somewhat at odds. They were completely different directions for the future.

‘How can this be?’

As Olentia was unconsciously clutching her hair, Daphne said,

“Then I will take my leave now. It’s time for me to go pray.”

Olentia quickly stood up and bowed.

“Yes. Thank you for your time.”

Even after Daphne left, Olentia couldn’t easily leave the room. Daphne’s prophecy kept running through her head. It seemed like she had come to see her to tell her about the prophetic dream, and while Olentia was grateful, she also felt conflicted. Daphne’s prophecies had never been ignored.

As she let out a deep sigh, Crown Prince Legalis entered. Perhaps sensing the strange atmosphere, he had a puzzled expression.

“What’s the matter? Did something happen?”

Olentia couldn’t tell him what she had discussed with Daphne, so she just shook her head.

“Nothing. But what brings you here, Your Highness?”

Legalis shut the door firmly and said,

“I thought it was right for me to come out since I had arranged this meeting. How was it today?”

She had never dreamed that she would suddenly hear Daphne’s negative prophecy. It felt like her heart was still pounding. This was troublesome.

Olentia forced a smile and said,

“Yes. It was wonderful. Thank you for arranging this opportunity.”

“It doesn’t seem to have much soul in it?”

“How could that be? I’ll express my thanks with all my soul. I’m truly grateful.”

Only then did the crown prince nod with a satisfied face. He seemed quite pleased.

“Then please return safely.”

She wondered if the crown prince had come all the way here just to hear her thanks.

Olentia left the place with the sweet scent vibrating and returned to the Grand Ducal carriage waiting in front of the dressing room. Her steps were unusually slow like a snail. When she opened the carriage door, Bobby, who had been waiting inside, looked at Olentia with eyes full of anticipation.

“What kind of person was the saint?”

Olentia answered with a blank face.

“She was a peculiar person.”

Crown Prince Legalis quietly watched Daphne elegantly holding a teacup. His gaze was quite blatant.

Daphne took a sip of tea and said to him,

“She seemed quite shaken. We must hope she makes a good choice.”

Legalis nodded with his arms tightly crossed.

“Yes. The Grand Duchess seemed very confused, so I also withdrew quickly today.”

“I see.”

“By the way, are you really helping me without any ulterior motive?”

Legalis thought that by this point, Daphne should say what she wanted. Whether it was money, body, or heart. But she just looked at him with steadfast eyes. For a moment, her gaze seemed sharp enough to make him think it was sharp.

After a while, Daphne’s lips parted.

“If you mean motive, I hope Your Highness will safely ascend to the position of emperor.”

“If that’s your motive, then I welcome it.”

Although Legalis had received Daphne’s help once, he intended to continue watching Olentia. If she didn’t make a decision quickly, next time he would even pretend to like her if he had to. Daphne’s prophetic dreams were frightening to that extent. In the past, when she predicted wildfires or earthquakes, they would always actually happen.

‘So I must stop it.’

Legalis was determined to make Olentia and Dimidius get divorced no matter what.

It was the last night staying at the Grand Ducal Residence.

Olentia couldn’t sleep, so she took a short walk in the garden. It took some time for her eyes to adjust to the pitch-black darkness.

But a moment later, she was startled to see the person who appeared before her eyes.

“Your Grace?”

It was him. The person Daphne had said would betray her and take everything she had. Dimidius was still wearing his sharp-cut suit. He must have been working in his office until this hour.

Olentia found herself looking at him with bloodshot eyes.

“What are you doing up instead of sleeping?”

Then Dimidius put his hands on his waist and said,

“Didn’t you have something to say to me?”

‘No, how did he know that?’

Olentia’s eyes widened in surprise. She had a lot of things she wanted to say to Dimidius out of frustration, but she wondered how he knew.

Dimidius imitated her actions from just before when she had been walking around the garden. With his arms tightly crossed and even sighing, he looked really similar. She didn’t know why he was imitating her, but it made her face turn red with embarrassment.

Dimidius stopped walking and said to her,

“I thought you might have something to say to me because you were walking around in a place that was very visible from the office.”

“Oh! Did you think I was doing the same actions in the Odor estate garden that Your Grace did? Is that why you came down from the office?”

She wondered if he had really made such a wild guess.

Dimidius cleared his throat into his clenched fist.

“Well, one can make a mistake like that once in a while, no?”

There was nothing strange about it, as he said. She had a lot she wanted to get off her chest to Dimidius right away. Olentia had been fixated on one thought, and seeing him made it even harder to hold back. She felt like she might blurt everything out to Dimidius.

Seeing Olentia fidgeting, Dimidius tilted his head.

“But it seems you really do have something to say?”

Olentia shouted at him with a whatever-I-don’t-care attitude.

“Are you going to betray me? Do you covet my inheritance?”

Olentia looked up at him with eyes that had somehow become moist. If that were true, it would feel like the sky was falling. But Dimidius must have found it absurd, because he immediately stretched out both hands and refuted, asking what on earth she was talking about.

“What in the world are you saying? That I will betray you, my lady? That I covet your inheritance? Does that even make sen-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Olentia added,

“I think the same. I don’t know why Your Grace would betray me, and it’s strange for you to covet my inheritance when you already have so much. It couldn’t happen unless we were entangled in a love-hate relationship.”

“Love-hate relationship?”

“Yes. If someone has feelings of liking another, even abnormal things tend to happen. But our relationship is a thoroughly contractual one.”

That’s what Olentia believed. She thought her relationship with Dimidius was transparent, just helping each other out.

But Dimidius was silent for a moment.

When a strange silence fell, Olentia gripped the shawl around her shoulders tighter. She felt nervous for some reason.

After a while, Dimidius spoke, looking at the roses blooming in the garden.