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Viola had somehow taken on the role of an adopted daughter a bit too well. Chapter 60 focused on her gaze directed at the thin blade.

I was shocked, but I didn’t show it.

‘The smell of blood!’

My heart raced.

‘No, don’t you dare act up, heart.’

Viola had to work hard to keep the original Viola from resurfacing.

So she couldn’t pay much attention to the Viscount.

“You don’t seem surprised.”

“Should I have a reason to be surprised?”

Honestly, Viola had no idea what she was saying.

Holding onto her rationality, she blurted out whatever came to mind.

With a blank expression, she counted one elephant, two elephants.

‘It’s peaceful right now, Viola.’

If she suddenly sprang out and slashed the Viscount’s throat, it would ruin everything.

Just stay quiet for now.

If I need you, I’ll call upon you then, please.

Perhaps her wish was heard as her racing heart slowly calmed down.

‘Phew.’

Only then did she hear a bit of voice.

“It was.”

“What did you say?”

“I wanted revenge on my wife.”

The Viscount murmured quietly while looking at the dripping blade with cold eyes.

At that point, Viola began to feel a bit nervous.

‘What is he talking about?’

He wanted revenge?

So, he did take revenge?

What’s with the bloody knife?

‘No way…’

It couldn’t be.

He didn’t kill his cheating wife, did he?

Surely, he wouldn’t do something so terrible.

‘It can’t be. In the novel, that doesn’t happen.

In the novel, it absolutely doesn’t happen.

The settings established by the author hold significant influence in this world.

That can’t be, but the blood dripping down caught her eyes.

‘Right, it’s not true.’

She took a deep breath, making sure no one could notice.

If it were anyone else, it wouldn’t be possible, especially a character like Viscount Seaal.

“So, what kind of revenge did you want?”

Viola smiled while hiding her trembling thoughts.

On the surface, she looked calm and composed.

“My revenge is…”

“Was your own death a punishment for your wife?”

The Viscount momentarily lost his words.

It felt as though the young princess could read his heart completely.

Those pretty eyes gave off a chilling sense that they were crawling through his mind.

“You lost a son, so you’d know, right?

How painful it is to lose someone you love. So, maybe you wanted to choose your own death.”

It must’ve been complicated.

Loving his wife, yet on the other hand, resenting her, wanting to forgive but unable to, thus going off to fight a war to preserve his honor and dying valiantly.

Viola, who had read the novel, hit the nail on the head.

“Think seriously about whether you really wanted revenge.”

At those words, the Viscount couldn’t say anything.

He thought earnestly.

Did he really want revenge?

Was he so filled with hatred for his wife that he thought of just ending it all?

“You seem pretty confused.”

She noticed the tip of the blade trembling.

It seemed like even he didn’t understand his feelings.

So she just let him know.

“You didn’t want revenge on your wife; you wanted revenge on yourself.”

“…Are you talking about me?”

“For your own mistake, you must be blaming yourself for your wife’s infidelity.”

If only I had loved her more.

If only I had made her happier.

If only I had brought her more joy.

If only I had made her laugh more.

Then maybe my wife wouldn’t have cheated.

Deep in the heart of Viscount Seaal, those thoughts resided.

“Your love wasn’t wrong. It’s not your fault.”

“…”

In that moment, the Viscount felt as though his heart had dropped.

‘It’s not your fault.’

Perhaps Seaal was the one who wanted to hear that the most.

Viola’s words became a huge comfort to him.

“The one who wronged is your wife.”

It was her fault.

In the intoxication of the atmosphere, she acted as a spouse shouldn’t.

“Remember, the one who abandoned the responsibilities and duties of marriage wasn’t you, but your wife.”

“But…”

“Despite that, you won’t be able to punish your wife.”

That’s the character of Seaal.

A character who loved his wife so much that he ended up taking his own life.

“You can’t throw her out.”

Because…

“You love your wife too much.”

The Viscount dropped his sword.

Blood dripped from his palm, still not clotted; it looked like a pretty deep wound.

Just a few hours ago.

He had shouted like this.

‘I cannot forgive you!’

He had known, but hearing the confession directly was unbearable.

In a moment of losing his rationality, he had slashed his palm with the dagger he was carrying at his waist.

His wife screamed in terror, “Ah!”

That was his revenge.

Harming his own body.

That was the maximum revenge a husband who still loved his wife could carry out.

“I’ve told you everything just as you suspected.”

“Why? I wished I hadn’t heard anything from my wife’s mouth.”

“Because you need to face the truth to move forward.”

Viola picked up the fallen blade.

Holding it with both hands, she handed it back to the Viscount.

“I fully understand that you can’t forgive right now. You’ll need time.”

The sense of betrayal must’ve been immense due to how much he loved her.

She understood that feeling very well.

“Don’t blame yourself. The wrongdoer is your wife. The one who wronged, she confessed to you and bravely sought your forgiveness.”

“The choice is now yours. Whether you choose to forgive or not.”

“I…”

He accepted the sword that Viola extended.

His eyes met hers.

In those twelve-year-old eyes of Viola, a strong spirit shone.

A resolute heart that wouldn’t waver no matter what, or perhaps a strong conviction.

Looking into those eyes, he felt strangely at ease.

“I will forgive.”

Viola was right.

He loved her too much to punish or cast her away.

“I swear I won’t let this disgrace exit outside. Your honor won’t be tarnished. I swear it in the name of Bellatu.”

“You swear in the name of Bellatu…?”

“You’ve now got a weakness over me.”

She deliberately gave him a weakness.

A promise not to spread rumors.

The Viscount was deeply touched by that promise.

He couldn’t understand why Viola was doing this for him.

“What do you want? Why are you helping me like this?”

“I hope you and your wife will find a brighter path.”

That’s how it should be.

For the unborn child within, they must grow up in a peaceful environment to become my insurance!

She hid her dark thoughts.

“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I expect your wife’s child to have excellent talent for magic.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course, it’s not certain. This is purely my intuition and the scent.”

No, I’m sure of it.

It’s mentioned in the novel.

It’ll actually become a formidable enemy threatening Bellatu.

She swallowed that part.

“I see… You’re saying you’d like to invest in the child?”

The Viscount despised that child.

Yet, on the other hand, it was also his wife’s child.

He couldn’t love it but felt he might come to love it.

A complex and unexplainable emotion dominated his body.

“My name is Viola Bellatu.”

Viola stood and looked down at the half-kneeling Viscount.

Now she had to speak as Bellatu.

“I, Viola Bellatu, wish to be the guardian of the newborn child.”

*

Viola flopped down on the bed.

‘I did it!’

She had accomplished all she had aimed for in this place.

She prevented the war between the Bellatu and Seaal houses and eliminated the horrific situation.

Now, there wouldn’t be a dangerous enemy named Bengas born from Bellatu, and instead, she had even gained the position of Bengas’ guardian.

Even the Viscount had said this much.

“I will see Lady Viola as my mentor.

Thanks to Viola’s movements, my wife confessed to her own sins.”

“It might take some time, but we’ve found our direction. We will proceed in the right direction.”

“All it needs is the right direction. As long as the direction is right, it’s okay to go slowly.”

As long as the direction is right, even if it’s slow, they would eventually head down the right path.

“I believe we can maintain a close friendship with the Seaal family.

Starting with Hixson, then Jackal from the Storm Fortress, and even the Viscount, they became allies.

It felt as though she had achieved everything possible since coming here.

Zeno brought over strawberry ade.

“It’s delicious.”

“Has your skill improved lately?”

“It has.”

“Changing the paralysis poison to lethal poison made the taste smoother.”

Cough!

Viola almost spat out the strawberry ade.

The flavor had subtly changed; it turned out he had used lethal poison instead of paralysis poison.

“I’ll try using a bit more next time, Your Highness.”

Zeno smiled brightly.

He looked very happy.

Then he stared at Viola with eyes that seemed to observe her for a long time.

“It’s a deadly poison that could kill even an elephant, yet the Princess seems unfazed.”

A day passed.

Perhaps due to the lethal poison, Viola felt a slight stomachache.

“Pfft! The great Viola has a stomachache.”

Hixson chuckled as if he found it amusing.

“A stomachache!”

“Oh goodness, oh goodness, my stomach! Even the great Viola is having a stomachache! At times like this, you act like a child?”

Zeno smiled brightly.

“Our Princess even has stomach pains.”

Hixson continued to giggle for a while before going out and returning covered in dirt.

It was a strange herb that looked like a bellflower.

“This is a medicinal herb that neutralizes the Sambo poison you ingested. It’ll settle your stomach.”

Zeno’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Isn’t this the root of Warm Grass?”

“That’s right.”

“It’s extremely hard to find, and…”

“Forget it. I just picked it up while passing by.”

Viola knew about Warm Grass too.

Not only was it rare, but it could also sap the heat from the person harvesting it, leading to instant hypothermia and death.

Thus, Warm Grass was also infamous as a man-eating plant.

It was certainly not a medicinal herb one could casually pick up.

“Here. I’ve removed all the toxins, so eat it.”

With rough hands, Hixson shoved the root of Warm Grass into Viola’s mouth.

Viola grimaced.

“It’s disgusting.”

“Healthy food usually tastes bad.”

She could see Hixson’s hands trembling slightly due to Viola’s sharp gaze.

Pretending not to be affected, he seemed to feel a bit cold from losing heat while harvesting the Warm Grass.

‘Should I pretend not to know?’

If she acted all-knowing, he’d probably feel embarrassed.

“Next time, bring something tasty.”

“Even if I bring it, would you mind?”

Hixson grumbled but didn’t stand up until he confirmed that Viola was feeling better.

“Uncle, where are you going?”

“To apologize to that viscount.”

Hixson, who had often bullied Seaal during his childhood.

He intended to seek forgiveness for his childish actions.

“Calm down, and sincerely seek forgiveness until he accepts it.”

“I will.”

“Apologizing just to ease your own conscience isn’t real forgiveness. It’s about doing so until the other person forgives you. Got it?”

“Ugh, you old brat. I understood!”

Hixson waved his hand dismissively and left.

And that evening, an incident that stirred up the Viscount’s territory occurred.