I Beg Your Forgiveness (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 80

The azure eyes looked up at him, filled with doubt. Christoph stared silently at his own reflection in her eyes.

A thrilling shiver ran down his spine. He wanted to kiss her lips right then and there, bury his face in her neck, and take a deep breath to swallow in her scent.

Pull yourself together, Christoph. Don’t ruin things.

“What do you mean by that?”

“It means you should count yourself lucky that Blauburg has no prosecutor as coldly logical as I am. Jenny was imprisoned in the basement by Bruno. Under his coercion, she was forced to paint—otherwise, her life would have been in danger. If the prosecutor views her as a victim and chooses not to indict her, that’s all that matters.”

“…I see.”

Marien nodded and quietly resumed walking. Though there had been no actual lock confining Jenny to the basement, she deliberately chose not to point that out.

“Are you worried about her?”

After a brief moment of thought, she nodded.

“Jenny’s last words to me at the council keep echoing in my ears—she said she only ever wanted to paint freely. She couldn’t possibly have known her paintings were being used in a crime. All she wanted was to paint. As you well know, it isn’t easy for a woman to pursue painting. She had to hide in that basement, painting where no one could see her.”

He couldn’t understand Marien’s feelings. Though Christoph had been present at the same place, he hadn’t thought of Jenny even once since leaving the hospital. Her final words hadn’t lingered in his mind at all.

Empathy.

Recalling something Marien had once said, he slowly added, “If your ideal man is someone kind, gentle, and deeply empathetic… then I’m willing to become that person. Or at least pretend to be.”

“I’ll meet with the prosecutor tomorrow—before he drafts the indictment.”

“Thank you, Christoph.”

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