“The empress seems a bit strange. The strange unfamiliarity I felt from her mother seems to be emanating from her. Could it be that she also made a shell with the Parallel Butterfly?”

It could be possible, or it might not.

The only certainty was that nothing should be believed or concluded until it was directly confirmed with one’s own eyes.
As the bustling voices of people walking from the opposite side became audible, Rakrahann quickly hid in the darkness.

“Is it true that Vercheria is back?”

“Yeah, that’s right. If we don’t see her now, who knows when she might disappear again. Suddenly she might vanish.”

“When we meet, I’ll ask her to make it rain heavily over my territory. Maybe she’ll listen.”

“Then I’ll have to ask too. So that our kids can make as many snowmen as they want.”

Smiling, Rakrahann bypassed the passing men and returned to the corridor.

It was not strange that people were getting excited like this.

Vercheria’s return of the protective aura to the people was different from just a few days ago.

It wasn’t just an increase in strength.

She had become the most powerful goddess among all Vercherias who had passed through centuries.

Rakrahann recalled for a moment the distant past.

Back when he was being chased by the Absolute Deity.

What he worried about back then was solely Vercheria’s life.

The Absolute Deity couldn’t directly intervene in the life and death of humans, but it was possible to extinguish the already dead souls.

They could be permanently extinguished, and it was also possible to confine them in a hell from which they could never return.

So he was afraid.

Afraid that Vercheria would disappear from this world.

So, he recommended to the Absolute Deity to make Vercheria a goddess.

In other words, it was he who made Vercheria a goddess.

He thoroughly concealed the fact that he had learned about her ability to kill gods, and continued to beg the Absolute Deity.

The only way to preserve Vercheria’s soul was for her to become a goddess since she was not a human.

It was the only way to prevent her from being destroyed later, even after the Absolute Deity learned the whole truth.

Destroying a god, even if it was the Absolute Deity, was an extremely difficult task.

After that, deceiving the eyes of the Absolute Deity, he shared love with her.

The happiest memory throughout his life.

Edkins learned emotions from her that he might not have been able to feel forever if he were born as a god.

In the end, the enraged Absolute Deity made him human, but that was also something he had expected.

As long as he remained alive, he believed that he could have Vercheria someday.

However, the painfully long time until the two would meet again weighed heavily on his mind.

A long and arduous time until the Absolute Deity would grow dull.

So, he sealed and hid their memories in the border regions where the continent was divided.

Even after a very long time, even if the country changed and rulers changed, the key area that could only be a border region was the most suitable place.

‘If we were separated with memories intact, it would have been an unbearable time.’
Perhaps, the time was too painful, and the two might have tried anything to forget each other.

After experiencing how happy and sweet love could be, it was nearly impossible for them to love someone else.

Loneliness must have gradually consumed their souls.

As Rakrahann arrived at the entrance of the empress’s room, the door unexpectedly opened from inside.

Rakrahann quickly flattened himself against the back of the door.

“Cleaning up this much should be enough, right?”

“Anyway, the emperor is not coming, so who cares?”

“Oh my. Look at this one. Who’s there?”

“Who would be listening? They should all be at the banquet hall.”

Chuckling at the noisy departure of the maids, Rakrahann clicked his tongue.

The duplicity of humans always disgusted him.

The better the place, the better the life, the more evident this repulsive aspect became.

As the voices of the maids faded away, Rakrahann waited for the surrounding commotion to completely disappear before opening and entering the empress’s room.

“Where are you going?”

Laurence, who was about to get up, looked at Vercheria, who was holding onto his arm, with a vacant face.

Vercheria also looked at the empress without showing any emotions.

“I was just about to fill a cup for Her Majesty the Empress.”

“Vercheria?”

Laurence alternated his gaze between the wine and clean cups placed next to Vercheria, then suddenly smirked, catching Kelita’s eye.

Having exchanged glances with Kelita for a moment, Laurence looked at Vercheria and smiled.

“Well, of course, you should drink.”

As Laurence sat down, Vercheria’s gaze naturally shifted towards Kelita.

‘There’s something between the empress and Kelita.’

Depending on the intention of the person possessing the parallel butterfly, it could either take lives or leave nothing but an empty shell except for the soul.

If the person with it had a powerful ability, the power could become even more versatile.

So, there was nothing certain.

Vercheria poured wine into the empress’s cup.

“Drinking the wine poured by the goddess. Could there be such an honor?”

Just as the empress was about to raise the cup, Kelita disappeared from Vercheria’s sight.

Vercheria, who thought about Rakrahann checking the empress and Kelita’s rooms at this time, stood up.

As soon as she did, Gerard rhythmically tapped the wine glass with a knife.

With a frozen Vercheria in sight, Gerard, who smiled slyly, said loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Since Duke Rakrahann has come to the palace, how about having our wedding with Kelita?”

Uttering unexpected words, Gerard fidgeted around him and then chuckled, adding.

“Oh, oh. But it seems the two have already disappeared after exchanging glances, huh?”

“……!”