Tidwell had never once regretted being so open with Ravia.

After all, he was the one who caught feelings first. He was the one who opened the door without permission and peeked outside. How could he blame her?

Ravia figured out his situation thanks to the small hints he dropped here and there, so he wouldn’t dare to blame her.

Unless.

She tried to use all those hints to throw him out.

Beyond the door, Herod asked in a surprised tone.

“Don’t you think it’d be much easier to kill Tidwell after he gives up on Leontine?”

“So I opened a small path for him to reach his goal. He won’t even be obsessed with Leontine if there’s another way to achieve his goal.”

Her voice, as she answered, sounded compassionate.

It was rather fortunate that no one was watching him, because he couldn’t help but smile.

He smiled like that not because of Ravia, but because he recalled his past actions.

Again, what was his motive for poisoning Duke Leontine in Velocio Theater?

It was to set the stage for Ravia to become the head of the family.

He wanted to see Ravia be as ambitious as himself.

He was wondering if Ravia at that time was just as blind as himself now.

There were two things that Tidwell thought of when he realized that Ravia was completely aware of his circumstance, including the fact that he had fooled her and the reason he had come to Leontine.

Anger and hatred.

There was hardly any trace of goodwill left.

Wouldn’t it be right to rip off the crocodile’s snout if it were after Leontine?

Without a doubt, if he had been in her position he would have killed his opponent.

Wouldn’t it be more convenient to use Herod to kill him than using such a cumbersome method?

His cheap life didn’t deserve to be pitied by anyone.

What was so difficult about killing someone who had trampled on many lives?

Even if she strangled him right now, it wouldn’t be weird at all.

A conman who deceived her and stole her place.

Nevertheless, what was the point of using such a cumbersome method?

A cheap sympathy for abandoning him? Or affection? Thinking of the latter, Tidwell shook off his thoughts as if he were fed up.

No way.

Sympathy was possible, but definitely not affection.

No, it might have been possible. He hoped so earnestly for it to be true.

If her affection for him was the reason she went with such a tedious method rather than just killing him…

The moment when he, who didn’t believe in a god, bowed his head and held the door handle as if confessing his sins.

Ravia’s voice pierced his ears.

“…We were strangers from the beginning.”

Ah.

“So it doesn’t matter. We’ll just go back to square one. Regardless of my intention, my father will know everything soon.”

Haha.

Tidwell laughed at the absurdity and released the door handle. Only then did he realize that he was holding the door handle more tightly than necessary.

And the fact that he couldn’t endure it without holding onto something.

He took a step back as his thoughts wandered all over the place. He staggered back as if someone had pushed him hard.

The brass-colored door handle was still in shape as if no one had ever grabbed it.

The door didn’t even budge. Everything was in place just as before.

Except Tidwell.

His emotions were not at all silent, in contrast to the silence created through clenching his teeth.

All that contrast seemed to deceive him, so Tidwell left as if he were running away.

Maybe it was a sign that he’d soon fall into madness.

No, he had already lost his mind.

If not, then none of this would make sense.

Silence persisted in a place that remained unchanged. So how did what he had been holding back in his throat come out as a whisper?

Tidwell.

Turns out it’s you who’s being thrown away!

WIth that thought, Tidwell eventually stopped walking.

Because he realized that he was chased by his own shadow.

He had a hunch that no matter where he ran, he wouldn’t be able to escape the feeling of falling into the pit of hell…

His neck felt it was being stabbed indiscriminately by something. Whether it was despair or anger, he just held his breath.

Otherwise, whether it was a cry or a scream, he was afraid something would erupt.

He wasn’t sure if the numbness in his feet came from betrayal or resentment.

And that’s how Tidwell was thrown back into the wilderness.

In the middle of the wilderness, his head was filled with the loud sound of wind buzzing and whirring. He couldn’t take a step because he didn’t know the way.

“…Sister.”

Tidwell saw Ravia coming down the stairs.

He knew right away that all the things that had been noisy in his head until a while ago disappeared in an instant.

She was all he could see even when his mind was shattered. He was breathless as if he was choked.

His heart beat irregularly as he watched Ravia coming down the stairs.

The burning sensation in his chest was painful.

For the first time, he felt disgusted by the lingering affection he had after being betrayed.

And when his beloved sister seduced him by saying this.

“You’re right. But it’s not like you’d reveal your true feelings either. You’re not going to carelessly say let’s run away either.”

Tidwell realized that he had gone completely nuts. Otherwise, he wouldn’t think of strangling her thin neck and kissing her deceptive lips.

His mind couldn’t be this skewed unless he was a nutcase.

How could he be this in love with someone while also feeling such misery and hatred for them unless he was crazy?

Tidwell was tempted by Ravia and tried to erase the truth.

Maybe this confusion would go away when their breaths mingled, and he let himself sink into pleasure.

But when the morning came.

Ravia tried to escape Tidwell’s side as if she had waited.

Observing that, it became clearer that last night was only the beginning of the crack.

Ravia will abandon him.

The confession of his sins, which he had thought about many times, was put to rest with that straightforward sentence.

What happened after that was like a rock rolling down a slope.

It was a time where betrayal conflicted with guilt.

The days when he firmly believed that he couldn’t let go of Ravia. At the same time, he found a way to overcome his crisis.

Everything was as uncontrollable as that boulder rolling down a slope.

Until that point, Tidwell’s cracks weren’t noticeable. Rather, he had been covering his guilt and resentment.

After all, he had brought all this on himself.

Later, there was an incident where the cracks could no longer be hidden.

* * *

The day after returning from Marquis Callister’s banquet.

Tidwell immediately began his investigation.

The reason was simple. Because he couldn’t interfere with her plan yet.

Especially because of the last words Ravia had said.

–Regardless of my intention, my father will know about everything soon.

That seemed to be the clue to everything.

Duke Leontine will soon find out everything.

He could easily thwart Ravia’s plan only if he had complete knowledge of the circumstance.

‘What should I do…’

Should I proceed in a way that Ravia won’t be able to forgive me, or should I tell her everything now?

Funny enough, the internal struggle that seemed to have no end came to a quick conclusion.

“Maybe I’ve been high on drugs, too.”

Wasn’t it too coincidental with the current situation where the emperor had ordered an inspection to the outskirt area?

The Dark Flower’s production site also happened to be located in the outskirts.

‘There was also a letter with a royal seal. So I might not be wrong with my assumption.’

It would be prudent to assume that the emperor gave the command to look for the Dark Flower.

He ordered an investigation of the organization’s headquarters, as well as the production sites, and remained conflicted until the evening.

As she stroked his hair, he was honest with her. He knew he was drugged, but he kept his eyes closed for fear of waking up.

But the answer that came out contradicted Tidwell’s internal struggle.

“I think it’s time to wake up.”

It was clear what Ravia meant when she said it was time to wake up.

It was time to wake up because their time together was merely a dream.

That it was time to let go.

Something broke along with that realization.

After the loud noise, the wind blows through the wilderness. The madman laughed at last.

My sister.

I love you.