CHAPTER 43: CONFRONTATION

Staring into Julian’s transparent eyes, deep within them was like a clear spring—pure trust, nothing else. Faced with eyes like that, even Myris, for a moment, felt uncertain. The difference in strength between them was like heaven and earth, yet right now, Julian’s aura seemed to suppress hers.

Myris furrowed her brows, then suddenly gave a cold, mocking smile as she asked, "If I’m not mistaken, weren’t you the one who came out of her room this morning?"

She clearly remembered Julian emerging, his whole body radiating a soft, vibrant aura, a mix of shyness and happiness that only someone who had just experienced their first time would show. Even his exposed skin bore marks left by Losiya from the night before.

Julian’s pale face tinged with a hint of red, silently accepting Myris’s words.

Seeing him like this, Myris went blank for a moment, but inside, she felt deeply uncomfortable. Driven by that emotion, she continued: "So that was voluntary too?"

That question left Julian with even less to say.

Myris finally revealed a smug smile, pressing on: "It only took a few days for her to consume you completely. Aren’t you even a little afraid?"

"Afraid?" Julian asked, confused.

"Right now, inside her manor, you seem to have quite the status. The maids treat you with great respect. You’re living a life of luxury you’ve never known before. You can come and go freely from the Countess’s quarters and the rear garden. And at night... she showers you with affection."

Her voice was soft and tempting.

"But in truth, you’re no different from the rest of the servants." Her tone shifted suddenly.

At some point, the cat cake had jumped back into Julian’s arms. Hearing her words, Julian instinctively hugged it tighter. He understood what Myris was implying.

"You’re just another person who survives because of Losiya’s favor. The only difference between you and the others is that you receive more of her affection."

"Unfortunately, in this world, what people praise as love is often the cheapest thing of all."

Myris placed a hand on Julian’s shoulder, circling around to stand in front of him. Her beautiful eyes looked at him with layered meaning.

"How cheap? One moment they swear eternal love, the next they throw you away like an old shoe."

"Losiya probably just likes your face and the novelty of it. You give yourself to her so unquestioningly—do you really not worry at all?"

Julian’s continued silence seemed to affirm her claims, which only made her more intrigued. "Depending on others is never as good as depending on yourself. Don’t you want to..."

"Holy Maiden, is this how you guide people?"

A cold voice cut in from the side—Losiya stood next to Myris at some point, her familiar backup sword at her waist.

"Tch..." Myris showed a bored, disappointed expression. Knowing she couldn’t keep pushing the conversation, she simply fell silent.

From the moment he arrived until now, Julian hadn’t said a word. He calmly stroked the fur of the cat cake in his arms, head lowered, lost in thought.

"Oh? I was just looking for you, and here you are." Coming up beside Julian, Losiya chuckled.

Her right hand naturally draped over Julian’s shoulder. She looked down at the cat in his arms and found a topic. "This little guy’s gotten so fat. Those people really don’t know how to take care of a cat—feeding it anything without a clue."

As she spoke, she smoothly lifted the cat, who flailed its limbs and raised its tail in protest.

It seemed that the cat cake had long since become an unspoken presence in the manor.

Myris smiled faintly on the side, then turned to leave.

"Holy Maiden, please wait."

Still holding the cat cake, Losiya suddenly spoke in a calm voice.

"Does the Countess have some advice for me?" Myris stopped and turned back to ask.

"If I didn’t mishear, you were just using some rather provocative words with Julian?"

"Provocative? I only wanted to wake him up from his romantic delusions."

"Delusions?" Losiya raised an eyebrow.

"Why do you always assume others have bad intentions? Were you betrayed or hurt before?"

A surge of power burst outward from Myris, like waves centered on her, immense and unimaginable. A tide of magical force rushed toward Losiya.

But Losiya shielded Julian behind her and stood firm amid the waves.

"Julian just told you—if there’s something he doesn’t want to do, I would never make him do it."

Myris looked at her in confusion, unsure what Losiya was getting at.

"But in truth..."

Losiya gently ran her fingers through Julian’s long hair, gazing at him tenderly. "From my perspective, if there’s something I want him to do, I believe he would never refuse me."

Julian felt his body go soft. Being held by Losiya, he leaned directly against her—otherwise, he probably wouldn’t be able to stand at all.

That single sentence was a perfect counter to Myris’s entire argument. This kind of mutual trust was something Myris could never hope to rival.

Caught off guard, Myris stared blankly for a long time before finally coming back to her senses, sneering as she prepared to speak—only to be interrupted by Losiya.

"What you said earlier wasn’t entirely wrong," Losiya said slowly. "But your suspicions are a bit extreme."

"You said Julian and the other little ones only survive because of me. But if you look at it from another angle—they’re also a part of me. Yes, they need me, but I need them just as much."

Her hand slipped a bit lower while holding Julian, and Losiya smiled with meaningful playfulness.

"Take Julian, for example. Without him, I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep a single night."

"At the end of the day, what you said depends on how you view people. You think love is a lie—but I don’t. At least in my case, it’s not. Caring for each other, changing for someone else... the people I see and the ones you describe are not the same."

That calm, honest answer left Myris without a retort.

"No wonder you’re the Countess—Roland Empire’s most celebrated prodigy. It seems your talent lies far beyond just magical ability," Myris unexpectedly said with admiration.

"Coming here today was my misjudgment. So, I wish you both a long and happy union."

With that, she waved her hand and walked off.

That kind of casual, non-confrontational exit made Losiya uneasy. This Holy Maiden truly was hard to read.

But under the shadowed path she walked away on, Myris’s flawless face carried a cold, mocking smile.

*Such beautiful words... Then let me see whether your actions match your speech.*