Chapter 2 (Part 6)

The gentle, coaxing voice felt empowering. Ria slowly hid her anxious gaze behind her eyelids, then revealed it after a moment, finally parting her lips that had been tightly sealed.

“…Looking back on it, it was a situation where I acted impulsively. However, I didn’t feel that way at the time… and as you mentioned, it somehow felt comfortable as if we entered into a relationship naturally.” 

“Wait. Impulsively? What did you do?”

“What? Oh, Rune tried to insert it while covering my eyes with a cloth… and then suddenly, even Eden from behind… “

As Ria spoke, she flinched at Leah’s sharp tone for a moment, curling up her body.

“Shall I kill them?”

Not realizing Ria’s state, Leah’s aggressive stance caused the space to ripple. After a few deep breaths, Leah finally managed to suppress her rising anger and the ripples ceased. Ria heard her softly mutter a curse, but she pretended not to notice, keeping her gaze averted.

“Whoa, Leah, I don’t mean to defend the Duke of Carlisle, but just hear me out.”

The cursing stopped and Leah, who swept her hair out of her face, said with an expression of disbelief.

“In the Empire, there’s a myth that ‘only those with unique abilities can ease the powerful Imperial family and the two Dukes.’ But that’s not just a myth; it’s actually true.”

Pressed by her demeanor, Ria simply nodded in response.

“I think he believed in that myth and acted accordingly. Yeah. Still, he’s a bastard, right?”

Although Leah was smiling, her smile seemed more sinister.

“Sigh, I knew this would happen, so I left a mirror and a diary in Duke Astina’s room. Damn it.”

This time, she was cursing the Duke of Astina, Rune, for making things like this happen. Ria glanced at her, wondering if she had said the wrong thing, and then carefully asked what was bothering her.

“Um… then, did Eden really act that way because of the destiny determined by God?”

As she slowly continued speaking, her heart tightened. 

If that were the case…

The tears that had been welling up in her eyes began to spill out again.

My feelings for them cannot even be defined as love, so why do I feel betrayed? Why do I hope that Eden had done what he said he did because he wanted to have me?

“They’re the only people I know in this place, the only people I trust. But if that’s not genuine… if it’s because of fate, because of such a relationship, then…”

Ah, I understand. 

This is an extension of what she told Kahin. Despite her sudden wariness of trusting them, she had actually begun to trust them. Hence, even the slightest assumption that this trust could be betrayed made her shaky and anxious.

A single, unstoppable tear slid down her cheek. 

Could I be any more foolish?

Despite being already torn apart by wounds, she had easily succumbed to sweet affection. But she couldn’t help it. Affection wasn’t something commonly given to her, so she kept accepting it, even though it was so desperately sought after that it was hard to recognize.

As tears flowed, Leah quickly moved to sit beside her, wiping them away with her handkerchief and holding her hand.

“No, it’s not that. When I asked you about sleeping together, it was to perhaps reveal to you a destiny you might have changed.”

As Ria lifted her tear-stained eyes to Leah, Leah could see the hurt in them, and she could guess why, and she pulled her into a hug, comforting her.

“Serre was different from the Emperor and Duke Carlisle because his eyes were filled with deep affection for the people themselves. I saw that in the two Dukes now. And though I’m not them and can’t confirm it, I can assure you I wasn’t mistaken. It’s always been the same look I’ve seen in Serre’s eyes. How could I not recognize it?”

“…….”

“Ria, they love you sincerely, with all their hearts, not because you’ve stabilized them.”

“But… But the former Emperor and Duke Carlisle only found out later. If they were the same…”

“Count Fernon.”

Interrupting her trembling voice with the mention of Kahin, Leah released her embrace, held Ria’s shoulders, and met her gaze firmly.

“Count Kahin Fernon doesn’t belong to a relationship determined by the gods. Do you think the feelings he showed you were false?”

Leah believed in Kahin’s emotions she saw in the rain. There couldn’t be another person added except the Emperor to the two dukes. Yet Kahin easily disregarded that, revealing intense and deep emotions. That was the biggest reason Leah believed Ria’s fate had changed.

“And the way the two dukes look at you, their actions towards you, are they not different from the Count?”

Leah’s question struck Ria deeply. She felt as if she had been hit with something heavy, and her eyes filled with tears.

Kneeling in the rain, offering himself, and unhesitatingly kissing her on her sole, Kahin’s emotions were undoubtedly profound and undeniable. They were not much different from the emotions conveyed by Rune and Eden. It had always been a question for her as to why they were so devoted to her.

“No… no, they’re not.”

And in Rune’s case, aside from everything else, she couldn’t conclude that it was just fate that had caused him to start traveling back and forth to Korea, a country he knew nothing about, just to see her. Ria remembered him vividly from their third encounter.

Leah looked at Ria, who seemed to be recalling each supporting event and tucked her hair behind her ear.

“Try to trust them a little more. I think it should be okay from what I’ve seen. But if you’re still deeply anxious and can’t trust them, ask for an oath of obedience.”

“Oath of…obedience?”

“Yeah. Didn’t Kahin do it? Unlike a pledge of loyalty, an oath of obedience, once bound, can never be unbound. It’s one of the conditions I demanded from the Gods as I came to this world. Everyone in the Empire knows it’s a lifelong leash, so if they don’t have those feelings for you, they’ll refuse it.”

But Leah knew well. The moment Ria demanded it from them, they would gladly lick her feet, eager to be bound to her. Perhaps that’s what they’d been secretly hoping for all along.

Yet the reason Leah refrained from revealing even that was because actions spoke louder than words, especially to a scarred Ria. One action was worth more than a hundred words in building trust.

“Ria, I actually asked God to grant me a wish if I succeeded in doing what he wanted me to do, because I saw it as an opportunity to get away from Korea, which was hurting me, and I promised myself that I would take everything I could get and live happily ever after, unlike before. So, what I’m saying is… perhaps you could see it as an opportunity too.”

Leah gently held Ria’s hand and stroked the back of it in a slow rhythm. She hoped her words wouldn’t become just another wound.

“You know you can’t return to Korea once you’re here in this world, right?”

“…Yes.”

“Yes. So you might as well get your hands on the powerful people of the Empire, they’ll always be useful to you.”

The words were spoken playfully, but Ria could see the concern and sincerity behind them. Despite her initial wariness, her heart warmed to the woman who empathized with her pain.

“And, there’s one more thing I want to tell you… Your family and friends back home think you’re far away, studying abroad and doing well. Perhaps you could consider it as manipulation when you came to this world.”

“…….”

“When needed, I’ve made sure your image appears, so don’t worry.”

“Did God do that, too?”

“No, I did. I had to clean up after God because it was the only thing I could do for you in your sudden arrival here.”

Ria seemed to want to say something, but she ultimately didn’t. The words of gratitude didn’t readily come out. The thought occurred to her that maybe it was better that her friends didn’t know, but her family did.

…Let’s just think about how I didn’t cause sorrow to my friends with my death.

Ria, with a bowed head, belatedly expressed her gratitude to Leah. The fact that her friends were the reason she could endure there was a great comfort to her.

Leah, who was gently stroking Ria’s head as if she understood everything, suddenly stopped and looked at the reception room door.

“I’d better get back now, they’ve realized you’re gone.”

“I’ll never see you again?”

Ria, feeling regretful at the thought of leaving, grabbed Leah a bit desperately and asked. Leah smiled softly and stroked her hair a couple more times.

“Of course not. You can call me anytime you want. As long as you have that red orb, we can meet.”

Before Ria could nod, a red glow emanated from the orb. Leah looked at Ria with warm eyes as her form gradually disappeared. Before she disappeared completely, Leah quickly placed a small vial in Ria’s hand.

“This is for you to use. I don’t want the others to know, but I want you to use it with Eden. But only while blindfolded and with his hands tied.”

“What?”

“That way, you won’t be devoured. And this is very important, be careful in the Empire.”

As Ria opened her mouth to ask what that meant, Leah completely disappeared. The rippling space transformed from the reception room to the view of the garden.