Novia opened the door wide and immediately the wind hit her face and the sound of heavy wind breached her ears. Her hair was blown by the wind and a few strands of hair hit her eyes, slowly tucking them behind her ear. Her gaze was pointed at Rasmus, sitting on the bench with his father's journal in his hand. The beautiful big garden on the 345th floor of the tower was one of the few favorite places for the guests to visit.

Novia walked toward Rasmus with the cloud moving around them. She held the dark red book and had read everything about the truth that the Refenus Kingdom and the Runesche family secrets. She didn't know what to feel, didn't know what to say, or what to think about it.

"I have read it..." Novia said, offering the book back to Rasmus.

Rasmus glanced at the book before he lifted his head to look at Novia.

"And what your thought about it?" Rasmus asked, slowly moving aside to give a big gap of distance and space for her to sit on the bench. "I don't need it anymore. You can have it," he said and took his focus back to his father's journal.

Novia looked at the empty space on the bench, hesitant to sit with Rasmus. However, she decided to sit down on the far side of the bench, not wanting to get too close to him. She looked at the fast blue sky around her as she thought about the content of the book.

"Evil, and I understand why your late father decided to raise his banner for a rebellion. To think the whole nation and the people who ruled over the people were using them and nurturing them to be sacrificed for something evil," Novia answered, staring down at the book in her hand. "The fact that there are more people like them, more nations that served as vassals for the Zevrathi and the demons. I don't know what to think," she added.

Rasmus nodded his head and kept reading the journal.

"Now you know the truth, what are you going to do, Lady Novia? Are you going to stay quiet even after knowing the truth?" Rasmus asked, flipping the page as he leaned back, making himself comfortable. "Does justice can even fathom for what they have done in the past centuries? To make them pay for what they have done?" He added.

Novia took a deep breath as she leaned back and looked up at the blue sky. She exhaled slowly with her distant gaze filled with uncertainty and doubt.

"No..." Novia shook her head. "They have caused so many deaths with their lies and deceptions. They were aware and purposely kill innocent lives for the lord they served. No, those people deserved to die," she muttered.

"Do they? What makes you and I so different then when we both want the same thing?" Rasmus asked, closing the journal and putting it in his inner suit's pocket. "You know the truth that it wasn't me who killed innocent lives in the capital city of the Refenus Kingdom. It wasn't me who killed the Runesche royal family during their daughter's coming-of-age ceremony. But that doesn't mean I don't want them dead. You and I aren't that different in this context, are we?"

Novia glanced at Rasmus, not liking the idea that she would put herself in the same shoes as him.

"No, we are different. You don't care about the lives they took and you don't do it for the people, you only care to get rid of them because they were an obstacle that need to be eliminated. We are not the same, Count," Novia answered with a stern look on her face.

A smile formed on Rasmus's face as he stared at the distance. Novia expected him to give a piece of his mind, to argue, but there was nothing but silence. She didn't know what to feel when she realized that Rasmus didn't tried to win the argument. Did she just corner him? Did she just win an argument? But she felt anxious rather than relieved.

"I don't want to be like you, Count. I would rather kill myself than have to even set my foot on the line you're walking on," Novia said, staring at Rasmus with a serious and stern look. "Yes, I believe we are different. Yes, I'm aware that in the end we want the same thing. Yes, I might sound naive or a hypocrite. But this conversation alone won't justify my naivety or hypocrisy. The end does justify my conviction and belief, proving that I am different than you, Count," she continued.

"Then prove it," Rasmus slowly turned his head to look at Novia, staring into her eyes with his piercing blue eyes. "Follow the Great Sage's step because the world needs people like her. Nobody is strong or brave enough to be standing where she's standing. She's righteous and stands where the truth is, even if it means to be against the majority of people and makes her the enemy of humankind. She and I aren't that different, one misstep and she will be seen in the same line where I'm walking on. So, be careful, Lady Novia, be very careful," he continued, his eyes never leaving Novia's.

Novia was shocked, unsettled deeply moved when Rasmus suddenly said something that caused her heart to clench. She wanted to hate him for who he was and for what he had done, but he couldn't completely hate him. She questioned Lenin about why she would let Rasmus in, why she would keep indulging in a conversation with him, why she would tolerate him, and why she never thought of killing him while she could. This moment was when she felt it, the feeling of being seen, acknowledged, and recognized for her belief and conviction by someone who she hated that apparently understood her more than anyone else.

Novia felt tears pricking in the back of her eyes, and immediately blinked them away. She averted her gaze and tried to look at the flowers around her as she took deep breaths.

"The war, do you understand why I want the war to break? Sure, I want humankind to fight against the demons, to kill each other. But this is also a perfect opportunity to get rid the corruption, the rotten roots that have caused this illusion of peace that you believed to be the peak of humanity," Rasmus said, looking up at the sky. "You can't clean a pond without getting rid of all the water first," he muttered as he closed his eyes.

Novia turned her head to look at Rasmus, finding his last quote to be so true that she hated to admit it. She didn't say a word, and Rasmus knew that she didn't want to agree with his words.

"Of course there are other methods, the more complex, time consuming, and putting unimaginable efforts to clean the pond. But in this case, war is inevitable. There's no choice but to get rid of the water, Lady Novia. It's not because you want it that way, but because it's already happening and you have to take the opportunity to do so. It's not about what's right or wrong, it's about being efficient in every situation," Rasmus said, slowly opening his eyes.

Novia didn't say a word, there was only silence and her grip on the book tightened. She agreed but silently, not wanting to be seen as if she agreed with Rasmus, not wanting to give him the satisfaction.

"I said it, Lady Novia. The path that Great Sage is walking and the path I'm walking, the gap is so thin and yet it feels so different for those who understand it," Rasmus looked at Novia as he slowly got up from the bench. He let the breeze, the sound of humming wind around him to blow away the thick and heavy atmosphere. "As I said, be careful, be very careful of the path you want to follow, Lady Novia. That's the only thing that I can say to you," he added.

Novia slowly looked up, finally having the conviction and the strength to stare into his eyes again. There was a lump in her throat, and she chose to let it out even though she would regret it afterward.

"Why are you being so considerate, Count?" Novia asked, her heart pounding and holding her breath.

"When have I ever not been considerate, Lady Novia? Is it the hatred that makes you so blind to seeing it? Or is it something else?" Rasmus asked back, tilting his head. "But to answer you question, it's because I never look down on others unless they're forcing me to," he smiled as he lowered his head a bit before he walked away and went back inside the tower.

Novia exhaled deeply as she put down the book before she rubbed her face with frustration and confusion.