073. Crossing (1)

The four days passed faster than anyone had expected.

And at the end of that time, the news of Owen and Lucia’s engagement was announced.

It was a well-coordinated announcement, prepared jointly by the Verdun and Edelte ducal families.

The social circles and the aristocracy received the news with a sense of inevitability, sending their congratulations.

Meanwhile, the investigation into the attempted assassination of the Saintess was gaining momentum.

Bella had successfully uncovered the involvement of the two neighboring principalities in the incident, and now, she was working to uncover connections with a third kingdom.

Using that as a reason, she sought the assistance of Kyle and Owen.

Contrary to her previous words at the banquet where she had suggested a meeting at the Mage Tower, Bella invited both of them to the temple.

“Welcome, Tower Lord, and Your Grace, the Duke of Verdun.”

Bella greeted them with a bright smile, a demeanor that belied the trauma of surviving an assassination attempt.

She met them in the formal attire of the temple, her demeanor poised.

Kyle and Owen had been invited to a building within the grand temple complex, reserved exclusively for the Saintess.

Bella, who had become the master of a place that had been vacant for two hundred years, welcomed them into the reception room.

“Would you like some tea? I’ve prepared some refreshments since I think the conversation might take a while.”

The temple, constructed of white stone, was as pristine inside as it was outside.

The marble floors and ceilings, intricately carved with the temple’s insignia, were impressive.

The temple’s symbol was a silver stag, etched alongside stars into the ceiling, beneath a simple yet elegant chandelier.

Owen glanced over the pale, austere surroundings before taking a seat.

Truthfully, he still found the situation puzzling.

There was no particular reason for the temple to invite both the Duke of Verdun and the Tower Lord.

Especially given the historically strained relations between the temple and the Mage Tower, the invitation seemed even more curious.

It wasn’t as simple as Bella being more open-minded and free from the biases of the previous temple members.

— It’s a place where everyone believes in its sanctity, making it easy to hide one’s greed.

He recalled what Lucia had once told him.

— Why assume that a Saintess is inherently pure and noble?

Having read The Flower of the Empire, he had assumed Bella would be such a person.

Kind, gentle, benevolent.

Noble and overflowing with goodwill.

— Her eyes were filled with desire. She wanted to possess you.

But Lucia’s words had hinted otherwise.

And he had felt it, too.

The Bella before him was not the one from the original story.

The Bella standing in front of him now was completely different from the one he had read about.

Her silvery eyes, difficult to read, bore proof of that difference.

‘There might be another reason behind this.’

After much thought, Owen reached that conclusion internally.

But even with that conclusion, he couldn’t simply walk away from the meeting.

After all, it was a formal request from the Saintess, one that couldn’t be ignored lightly.

It would be a great discourtesy to do so.

“Thanks to the information you sent, Your Grace, and your assistance, Tower Lord, I was able to uncover evidence that ties the kingdoms of Uria and the two principalities to this incident. They claimed it was the work of an assassin’s guild, but with your help, I managed to find the proof I needed.”

As Owen and Kyle settled into their seats, Bella poured tea into their cups and began speaking.

The tea had a pale yellow hue.

The liquid, even lighter than chrysanthemum tea, had almost no fragrance.

Bella handed the cups filled with tea to Owen and Kyle.

Owen merely grasped the handle of his cup without drinking, while Kyle took a sip without hesitation.

“Each of the kingdoms has expressed their apologies for the incident. They’ve also agreed to the terms of a new accord. Now, the only matter left is uncovering the connections to the Kingdom of Halen.”

It hadn’t been difficult to gather evidence against the two principalities.

Owen and the House of Verdun had dealings with all four kingdoms.

The assassin’s guild, too, had certain ties with the ducal house.

Thanks to that, Owen had been able to track down those connected to the guild through various contacts, even resorting to a bit of coercion to extract the necessary information.

Kyle had also reached out to his connections with other towers in foreign nations, gathering various pieces of evidence to present.

Thanks to this, the Empire discovered that the assassin guilds in all four countries were connected to key figures within each nation.

The truth about the secret communication between these countries was also revealed with the help of the Mage Towers.

This was possible because they used magical communication devices.

If asked why foreign Mage Towers were so cooperative with Freyon, there were two main reasons.

The first was that wizards prioritize skill and many of them are eccentric individuals obsessed with magic. Since the most powerful mage in the world was the Tower Lord of Freyon’s Mage Tower, they willingly followed Kyle’s requests.

Of course, Kyle had offered incentives such as sharing magical formulas and giving lectures, but to outside observers, the response seemed remarkably favorable.

The second reason was historical.

There were currently five Mage Towers, one in each country. However, their origin traced back to a single institution that had originally been founded in the Freyon Empire.

Perhaps because of this, all five towers, while distinct, used the same emblem of a blue fox.

“Halen is the only kingdom without any known connections to the assassin’s guild, right? They even destroyed their communication devices, leaving no evidence behind.”

Kyle considered the ongoing investigation with a serious expression.

Bella nodded in agreement.

“That’s right. But the two principalities and the Kingdom of Uria have pointed fingers at Halen, claiming they were involved too.”

Perhaps driven by a desire not to face the consequences alone, the three implicated nations were trying to drag Halen into the scandal as well.

It wouldn’t be long before those three kingdoms joined forces to dig up evidence against Halen.

Owen, who knew the original story, was well aware of this outcome.

Therefore, he didn’t need to be overly invested in the discussion about the case.

After all, there was no other alternative but to pursue this path.

“So, we should at least be able to present some witnesses for now,” Kyle concluded.

“Yes, it seems that way,” Bella replied.

Owen stayed silent, listening to the conversation between Kyle and Bella.

Although Bella had asked for help, the conversation primarily involved summarizing the current situation.

It seemed like any further assistance would require utilizing the intelligence networks of both the Mage Towers and the Verdun Duchy.

“…But…”

After a long exchange between Kyle and Bella, Kyle’s voice suddenly slowed.

Owen turned to look at him in surprise, noticing that Kyle’s eyelids were starting to droop.

“Kyle?”

It seemed like he was falling asleep.

Which was strange.

Kyle wasn’t the kind of person to doze off like this.

Especially not during a meeting of such importance.

Owen turned his head to the front, where Bella was casually holding a teacup to her lips.

However, the tea in her cup remained untouched.

Just like the tea in Owen’s cup.

Of the three teacups, only Kyle’s was empty.

“…Saintess. What is the meaning of this?”

It wasn’t poison.

Kyle was still breathing steadily.

It seemed he had simply fallen asleep.

“As you can see, it’s just a tea with a mild sleeping effect.”

Bella replied calmly.

Owen frowned, and Bella responded with a bright smile.

“It’s true. There’s nothing more this sleeping herb can do. You know that.”

“…”

Owen could no longer discern what kind of person Bella was.

Just as Lucia had said, Bella was far from being a purely noble and holy person.

Even if it wasn’t a lethal herb, it was still a sleeping herb.

A mere half-cup was enough to induce deep sleep.

Considering Kyle’s status as a 9th-class mage, it would have taken a particularly potent herb to have such an effect on him.

If an ordinary person had consumed it, they might have slept for a week.

And if a child had drunk it, they might have fallen into an eternal sleep.

“Your Grace, Duke Verdun.”

Bella called out to Owen in a quiet voice.

Owen fixed his gaze on her, his expression cold.

“Your Grace… are you really who you claim to be?”

The next words were completely unexpected.

He furrowed his brow, unsure of what she meant, so Bella continued.

“Is this an act? Or have you truly come to believe you are Owen?”

Owen’s face hardened at her next words.

He couldn’t help it.

The meaning behind her words was clear…

“How disappointing. So, it’s true, isn’t it?”

It meant that she knew his true identity.

And at the same time—

“No, that’s not it. If you weren’t Owen, why would I bother being so formal with you?”

It also meant that Bella wasn’t really ‘Bella.’

“Who are you?”

Owen asked coldly, and Bella responded with a sly smile.

“You’re asking me what I should be asking you. So, who are you?”

Bella rested her chin on her hand as she posed her question.

“Who are you to dare to possess that body, hmm?”

“…Are you really in a position to say that? It seems like we’re in the same boat.”

Owen replied sharply, and Bella’s expression twisted with irritation.

“Don’t imitate Owen. It’s unnerving.”

“You’ve been fooled all this time, and now you’re complaining?”

Owen mockingly retorted.

He didn’t know exactly who she was, but if she was in a similar situation to his, he figured it didn’t matter.

It meant neither of them was in a position to reveal the other’s secrets.

They couldn’t afford to expose each other’s true nature while occupying bodies that weren’t their own.

With that thought, he continued to study Bella, feeling a sense of relief.

Finally, things started to make sense.

Why she was so different from the original Bella, and why the story had deviated from what he knew.

“Don’t pick a fight. I’m already frustrated enough by all this.”

“And who was it that decided to play games with sleeping herbs?”

“You didn’t respond when I called for you.”

Bella sighed, running a hand through her hair before speaking again.

“So, where is the ‘real Owen’ right now?”

“That’s what I’d like to know. Where is ‘Bella’?”

“Oh, I told you to stop talking like that. Why are you pretending to be Owen?”

Muttering her complaint, Bella tapped her fingers on the table before asking another question.

“I’m guessing that ‘Owen’ is still somewhere inside that body. Am I right?”

“…I suppose the same goes for you.”

“Ugh, stop it. Don’t use that tone with that face and voice.”

“…”

What exactly did she expect him to do?

Owen decided it was best to remain silent.

He kept his gaze fixed on Bella, who scowled again.

“Were you an actor before you ended up in Owen’s body? You’re too good at pretending to be him.”

“That’s not something I want to hear from you.”

“I’ve read The Flower of the Empire about ten times, you know. And I’m naturally good at everything.”

“…”

The audacity of her self-praise left Owen speechless.

“Why do you act like Owen even when you’re not speaking? Has it become a habit?”

“…Something like that.”

“Damn it.”

She cursed softly again.

As Owen watched her in silence, Bella sighed heavily before speaking once more.

“Did you read The Flower of the Empire too? Or are you originally from this world?”

“The former.”

“That tone… never mind, forget I asked.”

Bella mumbled to herself, then looked directly at Owen.

“I liked ‘Owen.’ Back in Korea, I was just a fan as a reader, but after becoming Bella, my perspective changed. I decided I wanted to have ‘Owen.’”

“…”

Just as Lucia had said.

This version of ‘Bella’ was someone with a strong desire for possession.

“But my plan failed spectacularly. And I think you’re the reason. Am I right?”

“…I can’t deny that.”

Owen admitted, and Bella continued with another question.

“Why? You said you were a reader of The Flower of the Empire too. So you must have known that Owen and Bella were supposed to end up together, right?”

“I knew that.”

He knew it very well.

She said she’d read the original story about ten times, but Owen had read it far more than that.

Especially the parts that involved Lucia, so much that he’d lost count.

As he thought about this, Bella’s expression suddenly stiffened, and she spoke in a voice filled with shock.

“…Wait, don’t tell me you’re a Lucia fan?”