Though Olivia subtly threw the words, Bonita did not react at all.

“A type without a sense of responsibility.”

“Responsibility, huh?”

Repeating Bonita’s answer, firmly stated, Olivia, like anyone else, uttered words that anyone could say.

“Even in the face of unavoidable misfortune?”

As if suggesting that just like Bonita, the servant also got entangled in misfortune and chose a different path.

But Bonita shook her head, denying it.

“The only unavoidable misfortune is a natural disaster. That servant made a wrong choice on her own.”

“On her own?”

“Yes. No one told her to push herself away and make such a choice.”

“Hmm, indeed.”

Agreeing with a nod, Olivia, as if she had just remembered, added.
“The servant who left the palace entrusted herself to the temple, hoping for the mercy of the gods.”

And between them, a very dry silence flowed.

Olivia, having said everything she wanted to say, closed her mouth. Bonita, who had been answering smoothly until now, also simultaneously closed her mouth.

From the moment the word ‘god’ came up, Bonita’s eyes, which had been like a dead fish, strangely flickered, and that change was noticed by both Cryer and Olivia.

The next moment, a sardonic smile appeared on Bonita’s lips.

“The mercy of the gods. I hope you have found the right gods. To purify your sins.”

Olivia tightly gripped the hand hidden in the hem of her skirt.

Is it not too explicit?

Is there no intention to hide it at all? Why?

“That aside, gods. It’s a distant story for you, Your Highness. The Bolsheviks have a long history of opposing gods, so they say.”

“Well, the past is the past of the past.”

As Olivia gave an ambiguous answer, Bonita caressed the glass with her fingertips and lowered her eyes.

How much time has passed in this time of measuring each other, or rather, one side being confident while doubting, and the other side sowing the seeds of doubt.

Suddenly, Bonita glanced at Cryer, who had been silently guarding her behind Olivia.

“You.”

She did not address him as a knight, and Olivia and Cryer noticed this fact.

Nevertheless, Bonita asked
At that moment, as if she had read his thoughts, Olivia overlapped her hand on top of his hand, resting on his back, and spoke.

“Have you become the answer, Viscount? No, what should I call you?”

While her lips were smiling, Olivia’s eyes, as sharp as a blue blade, pierced Bonita.

And Bonita, with a somber face, lightly lowered her head.

“It was a personal curiosity. I can’t go back. That’s right.”

Bonita looked at Cryer with eyes like a dead fish, but she did not say anything more.

Olivia, after lightly clapping her hands to freshen the air, smiled as if she had drawn something.

“It was a very informative conversation today, Viscount.”

“I apologize, Your Highness.”

Bonita still had an expressionless face, but she accepted Olivia’s extended hand and shook hands.

The touch of Bonita’s hand, as it met Olivia’s, felt awkward like the sand of the desert and at the same time slippery like fish scales, but Olivia’s smile did not crumble.

Returning from Viscount Heinder’s residence, Olivia had completely melted away.

“Ugh, it’s heavy!”

Throwing away the jewels that had been scattered all over her body, Olivia changed into loose clothes.

“Ha, so exhausting.”

As the servants who had rushed in retreated after finishing their tasks, Olivia immediately rested her cheek on the desk.

Knowing well that Viscount Heinder was not an easy opponent and anticipating that the visit itself would be arduous, Olivia was drained more than expected.

She learned that Viscount Heinder is involved with an ancient god and supports the ‘purification’ of the world according to the damned will of the ancient god.

However, knowing something didn’t mean she could do anything about it right away.

There was no justification for pulling her out of the viscountcy, and there was no reason to make her unable to see the light again.

Not only was Viscount Heinder not a family that could be easily pushed around without any justification, but Bonita wasn’t likely to retreat obediently either.

“I never thought this worst-case scenario would fit so perfectly. It’s more of a headache than before.”