In Ayla’s eyes, Diana looked like a moving porcelain doll.

Her gray eyes were neither clear nor murky, and her neat movements were precise and disciplined, without any excess.

Since she never showed emotional upheaval, there was no truth that could be read from her expressions or actions.

In contrast, the current Ayla was emotional enough to be considered a rookie low-ranking soldier.

Easily revealing her feelings and showing her hand was absolutely not the behavior that the most promising senior commander of the rebels should display.

“Ha… I got a bit excited for a moment. I’m not in my right mind due to the ongoing battles. Please understand.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

She rubbed her deeply furrowed brow and rebuked in a tired voice.

“But I sincerely hope you stop the prayer meetings. If you’ve decided on your path, I think you can show that much consideration for the sake of loyalty.”

“I will do so.”

When Diana easily agreed as if it was no big deal, Ayla also did not point it out further.

At this time when the temple had lost its power and was acting as the emperor’s propaganda mouthpiece, there was no ally as useful as Diana.

Moreover, she did not want to waste emotions on this kind of matter. This was an attitude that did not suit her lifetime’s worth of achievements at all.

She turned her head as if it was nothing and glanced at the man leaning against the wall. The taciturn man who made her feel like a child.

He had been silent for a while. No, he had been consistently cold for several months.

She recalled the day Raoul awoke from his deep slumber.

On the beach, Ayla was certain of Raoul’s affection, and that night, she told him about the prophecy Diana had made.

〈According to Diana’s prophecy, we are destined to board a ship together. I desire the holy relic and absolutely want to avoid anything that diverges from that future.〉

The forest they snuck into to avoid the eyes of their subordinates was dark, desolate, and simultaneously beautiful.

When the cool light descending from the sky illuminated the man’s face, her slowly beating heart started to pound.

Ayla deliberately feigned nonchalance and spoke as rationally as possible.

〈The mission I’ve been given this time is to have you join the rebels. That’s why I saved you.〉

Raoul calmly asked back without any emotional disturbance.

〈You said the rebels’ goal is to pull the current emperor from the throne and liberate the slaves?〉

〈That’s right.〉

〈You must know that you’ll have to face the Sword Master.〉

〈Of course.〉

Ayla, who answered indifferently, added in a confident tone.

〈The rebels’ numbers are not small either. No matter how skilled the Sword Master is, there’s a limit to how many people he can handle alone if we use human wave tactics.〉

〈If you think you can beat the duke with that kind of petty tactic, you’d better give up early.〉

〈Of course not. We are moving according to the prophecy. The operations we’ve carried out so far are the same. To conquer the capital, we need three people, and you’re one of them.〉

〈Who are the other two besides me?〉

〈One is me, and the other is the Trian prince studying abroad in another country. Not long ago, he attempted to escape across the border, and our side is also searching for him.〉

〈What if I refuse to join?〉

Ayla, who looked momentarily flustered, soon smiled softly and replied.

〈…Why would you refuse? Even if you go back now, there’s no one who will believe you. On the other hand, if you side with us, you’ll gain numerous comrades. Everyone will welcome the lycan who appeared in the prophecy.

〈Is there a reason to do something reckless just to gain some friends? If you offer your neck, misunderstandings will easily be resolved, so why should I join the rebels?〉

〈Yes, maybe so. But is there a reason for you to choose such dishonor? Whatever the emperor promised you, we can provide it too. If the rebellion succeeds, we’ll confiscate the lands and titles of the nobles who sided with the emperor and redistribute them to the founding contributors. It may seem too materialistic to say this, but if you actively cooperate in finding the holy relic, we can even bestow you with the highest-grade title.〉

〈You’re saying you’ll reward me?〉

〈Yes. As much as you want.〉

Raoul looked around with a frosty face and said.

〈Well. It would be easier for me to kill everyone on this island and escape. Why would I choose the reward you’re offering?〉

The anxious Ayla tried to persuade Raoul in a different way. She walked with her back to the moon and slowly untied the robe draped over her shoulders.

〈Do you remember this handkerchief?〉

As the black cloth fell to the ground, revealing her white arm, Raoul’s eyes became completely different from before.

His pupils, burning hot as if stirred in a furnace, turned to the handkerchief hanging on her arm.

Ayla, who pulled his body that had suddenly come closer and met his gaze, spoke in a soft voice as if gently coaxing a ferocious beast.

〈I didn’t know back then. I never thought the girl I saved had feelings for you. I didn’t know the handkerchief I brought would be stained with someone else’s affection… It’s a bit bitter.〉

At the absurd remark, Raoul’s face distorted nicely. He coldly brushed off Ayla’s hand and used his sharp nails to instantly cut off the handkerchief hanging on his arm.

〈No need to be bitter. Because nothing will happen between you and me in the future either.〉

He tilted his chin crookedly as if telling her to say more if she had anything to say. It was an aggressive attitude he had never shown in front of Diana.

Ayla smiled brightly and took a step forward.

〈Will that really be the case? I don’t think so.〉

Raoul’s eyebrows drew an uncomfortable diagonal line. He had an expression that he couldn’t even predict what kind of nonsense would spill from her wily mouth.

Ayla picked up the robe that had fallen to the ground and said.

〈I pity you.〉

〈Who’s pitying whom?〉

〈Me, pitying you?〉

Ayla looked down at the edelweiss handkerchief tied around Raoul’s arm and mumbled.

〈She probably seems like a pretty good woman to you. She must have tamed you with nice clothes and good food. But think about it. If you confess, will she accept you? You’re just a knight of slave origin, and a lycan at that.〉

〈So what? I’ll change that with my own efforts. It’s not even funny how you’re trying to distort Diana’s true feelings when you don’t even know her.〉

〈I’m not distorting, it’s the truth. If she really loved you, she would have resisted this unfair world and kept her place by your side. She wouldn’t have been watching operas while sucking her fingers when your life and death were at stake. But did she do that? Did she fight with her father for you? Did she say she’d marry you even if you were nothing?〉

〈Ha… You’re overstepping your bounds. What does that have to do with you anyway?〉

〈I feel sorry for you suffering from futile hope. I saw her in the newspaper a while ago… She got engaged to a famous person from the Eastern Continent and was enjoying herself in the capital. If it were me, I wouldn’t do something dishonorable like kneeling before the emperor for someone who doesn’t care about me one bit.〉

Raoul looked completely sick of Ayla, who was spewing out only what she wanted to say. He gritted his teeth and rebuked.

〈Mind your own business. Even if I join the rebels, I won’t ever desire your embrace.〉

After that, Raoul didn’t even make eye contact with Ayla.

She regretted bringing up Diana’s story emotionally to the point that it backfired.

She had hoped Raoul would join the rebels without any lingering attachment after realizing the reality, but it only earned her more animosity.

He carried out his duties as a rebel and supported Ayla from the rear, but he never opened up to anyone.

Sometimes, her heart ached at the thought that she might lose her comrades by trusting only the prophecy and Raoul.

She felt like she had made a foolish choice, burning with moth-like love.

In an effort to hide that fact, even the smallest things made her temper flare up recently.

Not knowing that the transformed Sebastian was Raoul, Ayla glared at his deplorable face and rose from her seat. Her following subordinates did the same.

Even after the sound of footsteps had long faded away, Diana remained silent.

Although Ayla had poured out her emotions, there was not a single thing she said that was wrong.

〈Isn’t that woman who sucks the blood of slaves and lives in luxury also a sinner we must punish?〉

Even if Diana was a child out of her father’s favor, she lived enjoying everything she could as a noble lady.

Even though she knew the reality of Raoul’s discrimination, she turned a blind eye and only thought about her own safety.

Using excuses like not having magic power, not having divine power… She accepted the unreasonable reality.

It was a thoughtless idea she could have because she wasn’t being harmed in any way.

Diana thought she had no right to complain even if Raoul left her side, so she let go of the tunic she had been clutching tightly and deeply bowed her head.

Raoul, who had been looking down at the silent Diana, kissed the top of her head and stroked her slumped shoulders.

“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it. Can you push the brick behind me a little? It must be hard for you to stay like this.”

Diana nodded with her forehead pressed against his chest.

She struggled to pull out her arm tightly wedged between their chests and reached over his towering shoulders, feeling the third stone from the top on the left.

Diana pressed the stone firmly while almost hugging his thick neck.

Creak.

The door rotated and a rush of cool air poured in.

Diana was carried out while clinging to his neck. Even though it must have been heavy, Raoul also had no intention of forcibly detaching Diana.

He kissed her soft hair and constantly whispered Diana’s name. At the sweet voice spreading in her ears, tears welled up.

‘What right do I have to criticize Raoul…? We’re not even lovers. Besides, I’m the one who told him not to confess…’

Diana had only hated Raoul despite driving him into a dead end and doing nothing.

‘Luxurious living’—had Raoul also thought that way? Her heart, which had been trembling with anger until a moment ago, became heavy with sorrow.

As her sobs grew louder, Raoul carefully detached Diana from his chest.

His calloused fingers moved over her damp eyelashes. Now that she looked again, Raoul’s body, which appeared blurry, was covered in wounds.

They were scars carved in a mess, enough to make her heart ache without her knowledge.

Raoul lowered his lips to Diana’s forehead as if kissing something sacred and said.

“You might get angry if I say I missed you, but…”

“…”

“Still, I missed you. Constantly…”

Raoul, who whispered apologies countless times, only started a new story when Diana’s crying subsided.

It was the truth Diana had not known until then.