Gasp!
Even Sister Dana came out. She was following closely behind Brother Viego.
I ran down the hallway, chasing the scene visible through the window. However, they soon disappeared around the corner of the hallway.
Where are they going? Don’t tell me.
They’re not going to Brother Viego’s room, are they?
I hurriedly moved to the hallway where Brother Viego’s bedroom window was visible. A moment later, the light in Brother Viego’s bedroom turned on. There, I saw Sister Dana’s silhouette!
Oh my gosh!
But then, swoosh! Brother Viego pulled the curtains shut as if they were about to have a secret meeting!
I was so shocked that I slumped down on the spot. What? What is this? What is even happening?!
At that moment, the trashy romance novel I had read earlier came to mind. The plot was exactly the same! They even secretly met in the bedroom in that story!
I didn’t know what was going on, but I couldn’t keep this to myself! I rushed off.
“Mom!”
It was Sandra’s bedroom. Mom, who was asleep, mumbled in a daze, not even realizing I had left.
“Mm, mmm? What’s going on?”
“Sister Dana and Brother Viego!”
Gasping for breath, I beamed widely. For some reason, I couldn’t contain my excitement.
“They secretly went into the bedroom together!”
* * *
Dana’s POV
“What is this?”
Inside Viego’s bedroom, my face turned serious.
Viego handed her a black-and-white photograph. It captured a book in a familiar shape. This is…
“He said it’s the original copy of the scripture.” Viego, with a cigarette in his mouth, leaned against the desk. “Ignis de Windsor gave it to me just a while ago.”
“…”
Click, he lit the lighter. Tilting his head slightly, he lit the end of the cigarette, furrowing his brows as he inhaled deeply. Then, exhaling a sigh of smoke, he spoke. “He even showed me what he claimed was the original scripture. This photo was left as a form of blackmail.”
“Ah…” I let out a small sigh.
So that’s why he’s so irritated. Ignis must have threatened him too. Ignis probably threatened him verbally during the day and then brought the actual scripture to show him at night.
That’s why he came to see me despite dressing like that.
I hadn’t noticed because of the confusion before, but Viego was in his sleepwear. He wore a long black silk robe and black slippers. Moreover, the platinum hair he always slicked back with pomade was now naturally falling across his forehead. And there was the subtle scent of soap… It was the first time Dana had seen him looking so disheveled.
He must be quite shaken up too.
Though it felt strange, I asked calmly. “What is written in the original scripture that’s causing this reaction?”
“It says the god of the moon is a demon,” Viego smirked. “In other words, it’s proof that my father is a fraud.”
“Do you believe this original scripture is real?”
“I don’t know,” Viego muttered with furrowed brows. “Whether it’s real or fake doesn’t matter. If it’s made public, people will believe it’s real.”
Given the recent human sacrifice incident in Kaltusa, if this scripture were made public, the Windsor family would lose all its honor. They would be remembered as demon-worshiping frauds who deceived the continent.
I let out a deep sigh. “So, what is it?”
He’s going to tell me to get married now, isn’t he? I braced myself. If he really forced the issue of my marriage with Ignis, I wouldn’t hold back anymore…
“Do you know anything?”
“…Pardon?”
“My father found a copy of the scripture on Treasure Island. He gave most of what he found on Treasure Island to you.”
Huh? My eyes widened at the unexpected remark.
Why isn’t he bringing up marriage? Could it be that Ignis didn’t mention it?
Of course, Viego’s statement was true. Demian Windsor had given most of what he found on Treasure Island to me. It was known that half of the treasure from Treasure Island was left to me—Though in reality, no one knew if it was exactly half. Demian had simply loaded the treasure onto his ship and said so.
Only I knew the exact location of Treasure Island. Demian had passed the treasure map solely to me. That map now rested safely in my private vault.
So Viego was asking if anything else related to the scripture had been given to me.
“No. He didn’t give me anything related to the scripture.”
“…I see.”
It seemed Viego hadn’t expected much.
I quietly watched him as he continued smoking. Didn’t he quit smoking…? If he had started again, it must mean he was deeply troubled.
I was sure of it. This was the biggest crisis in Viego’s life.
Yes. The Windsor family could be destroyed if things went wrong. Which meant… If I help him here, he’ll trust me even more, right? This is a good opportunity, isn’t it?
I approached him cautiously, hiding my smile. “Brother, don’t worry too much. I believe that scripture is a fake.” Because I gave the real one to the emperor.
I smiled at him confidently. “If it’s revealed that the scripture is fake, there’ll be no problem. Isn’t that right?” And I said what Viego most wanted to hear at that moment.
“…”
Viego looked at me, cigarette still in his mouth. Then, after a slight pause, he nodded.
“I’ll find a way to prove it’s fake.”
A moment later, he asked slowly. “How?”
“That…”
“Before that.” Viego closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again. “Could you step back a bit?”
“Pardon?”
“Have you ever heard that I hate the scent of lilies of the valley?”
“Ah.”
“That scent is all over you.”
I was startled by his words. My body smells like that?
“…”
Feeling embarrassed, I took two steps back. But Viego gestured with his head again as if telling me to step back even further. So, I took two more steps back. Only then did Viego take a deep drag from his cigarette as if trying to clear the scent he hated.
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