Translator: Nox

Chapter 20

‘This feeling is…’

A sudden shiver ran through her body, making Dana curl her toes.

It was a strange sensation.

Like the moment she first kissed Raios—this sweet, ecstatic, dizzying feeling.

“I want to see Juan.”

No. Wanting to see him wasn’t enough.

She wanted to run to him and throw her arms around him right now. She wanted to kiss him.

An intense desire surged like a flood, washing away everything else.

Dana bolted upright from her seat.

‘I have to marry Juan right this instant!’

She dashed through the garden.

Hurry. She had to see him quickly. She was going to hold him and kiss him right now!

“Dana!”

Just then, someone grabbed her arm firmly.

Dana looked up at him blankly.

A very tall man. Platinum blonde hair that seemed to soak up the moonlight. A handsome man with a gentle impression.

This man was…

Who was he?

“Dana? What’s wrong?”

She knew this face.

Who was it again?

‘Ah. That’s right.’

Danae’s uncle.

Karl Winzer.

“Dana? Did something happen?”

“Let go. I’m busy.”

However, Karl’s grip on her arm only tightened.

“You shouldn’t be wandering around in such attire this late at night.”

“Let go of me!”

“Dana, I’m sorry to say this, but it’s a full moon tonight. The light is exceptionally bright. It’s problematic for you to be walking around in a negligee. So.”

“Let go! Let go! Let go!”

“Yes, yes. I’ll let go. But let’s get you dressed properly first.”

With a sudden lift, the man scooped her up. In a flash of irritation, Dana began clawing at the man’s hair.

“Ahaha. Our Dana, you’ve gotten quite strong, haven’t you?”

“I told you to let me go!”

“Hahaha. My niece has the strength of a giant, a giant.”

Despite having his hair pulled, the man laughed refreshingly as he strode forward as if it didn’t hurt at all. Dana struggled frantically in his arms.

“Juan!”

But the moment Dana cried out.

“Juan, I have to go to Juan!”

The man’s footsteps halted. He tilted his head curiously.

“Why Juan?”

“I have to marry him. So let go of me this instant, right now!”

“And what is your relationship with Juan?”

“We’re in love. He proposed to me. I’m going to marry him!”

“Ah. Juan did that to you…”

The man let out a dry, hollow laugh.

His eyes, however, were not laughing. On the contrary, they turned as cold and sharp as a blade.

“That’s problematic, Dana.”

“Let go!”

“It seems my brother-in-law has been coaxing you. I suppose someone as pure as you could be swept away.”

“I said let go!”

“That fellow is after your fortune, Dana. He doesn’t love you.”

“Let go, let go, let go!”

Her condition was becoming increasingly strange. Dana felt it herself.

She couldn’t string her thoughts together. All that remained was an intense, surging desire for Juan.

Now, even forming a proper sentence was difficult.

“Juan, Juan!”

It was as if she had become an imbecile who knew nothing but that man.

“Poor Dana. How can you be so naive?”

“Juan! Juan!”

“Please forgive me. For the sake of protecting you and your fortune, I have no choice.”

“Juan! Juan! Juan!”

“Yes, Juan. I certainly can’t hand you over to my brother-in-law.”

The man spoke with gentle persuasion as he gripped the back of Dana’s neck firmly.

Had he hit a pressure point? The strength drained from her entire body. Darkness rushed in.

Dana went limp in the man’s arms, her consciousness slowly fading away.

“So that bastard dared to aim for your fortune.”

The man muttered to himself as he walked, carrying Dana.

Where was he going? She couldn’t tell. She was simply sinking further into the darkness.

“Oh, Lumie, you’ve arrived at the perfect time.”

All her senses were drifting further away.

“Father. Why is Dana…”

Juan. She had to meet Juan.

“Lumie.”

“Yes.”

“We’ll have to kill Juan.”

Juan, Juan…

…

“—Ah!”

Dana’s eyes snapped open.

At that moment, a massive wave of vertigo hit her, making the world spin.

She gasped for breath, blinking rapidly.

What?

What just happened?

‘This is… my garden?’

Her private garden where she had been drinking tea just moments ago.

A table sat right in front of her, and she was…

‘Huh?’

She was picking up documents that had fallen to the ground.

She was frozen in that exact posture, her body completely rigid.

‘What is this?’

What happened?

Why was she still in the garden?

Hadn’t she been in Karl’s arms just a second ago?

It was then that a maid entered the garden.

“My lady, I have brought your chamomile tea.”

What…?

Utterly dazed, she stared at the maid. The maid approached slowly and set the chamomile tea down before her.

Clink.

In 그 moment, the scent drifted to the tip of her nose.

The calm, quiet aroma of chamomile felt pleasant.

This was undoubtedly the same scent she had smelled just a moment ago…

“The night air is chilly. Shall I bring you a shawl?”

“…”

When the silence stretched on, perhaps the maid took it as a refusal. She bowed politely.

“Then I shall take my leave.”

In the same voice, the same tone, and with the same motions, she bowed and withdrew.

Everything was exactly the same as before.

What on earth was this…

‘Ah. I see.’

In that instant, realization flooded her.

She thought she finally understood.

Dana looked down at her hands.

‘I… I saw the future.’

---

Seeing memories engraved upon the world.

She had experienced it once before.

The past, the present, and even fragments of the future that had unfolded upon this earth—she had once caught a fleeting glimpse of them.

‘That’s how I was able to know where the Sacred Artifact was.’

However, this ability to ‘see’ had only manifested once.

It had flashed like lightning, without warning, and then vanished.

Since that day, she had never once glimpsed the world’s memories again.

‘Yes, it wasn’t a mere hallucination or a dream. I just saw the future.’

The future that would have unfolded had she drunk that chamomile tea.

Just to be sure, Dana walked through the garden along the same path she had seen in her vision. And then.

“Dana?”

She encountered Karl Winzer.

Platinum blonde hair bright under the moonlight, a handsome man with a genial smile.

His attire was exactly the same as in the future she had just glimpsed.

“Dana, are you out for a night stroll?”

Karl approached with a pleasant, kind smile. For a moment, Dana felt a chill and almost recoiled.

And why wouldn’t she?

‘This man… he forcibly knocked me unconscious.’

That wasn’t all.

He had intended to kill Juan, his own brother-in-law. Without a single moment of hesitation.

‘Wasn’t he supposed to be a devoted husband?’

He was willing to kill his beloved wife Sandra’s younger brother so easily?

A sudden shiver ran down her spine.

Karl Winzer, always so kind and cheerful. His duplicity was suddenly terrifying.

‘Well, he is the man with a plan to ensure I have a short life, after all.’

With such a beautiful, dignified, and kindly smiling face.

“You shouldn’t be wandering around in such attire this late at night.”

Pretending to be so worried, deceiving her until the very end.

All while thinking of killing her.

When Dana merely stared at him in silence, Karl tilted his head curiously. He then took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

“The night air is cold. What if you catch a cold?”

He spoke words of tender concern.

“If you intend to continue your walk, at least wear a proper coat.”

Dana gripped the jacket tightly, barely managing to squeeze out a calm voice.

“Yes. I was just about to go back and rest.”

How loathsome.

She felt like she was going to vomit.

“Thank you for your concern.”

You are a devil, Karl Winzer.

“Yes, that’s a good idea. It’s late. Go inside and get some sleep.”

“Goodnight to you as well, Uncle.”

Dana turned away with a natural smile. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she stopped.

“By the way, when do you think Brother Lumie will return?”

She asked casually.

“Ah, as a matter of fact, I heard Lumie is on his way back now. He should be arriving at the mansion right about now.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It seems he achieved a great victory once again.”

“Brother Lumie is truly amazing.”

After exchanging those brief pleasantries, she walked away. With every step she took, her certainty grew.

‘This confirms it.’

Everything was unfolding exactly the same way.

The moment she touched the ground to pick up the documents—that was when she had briefly glimpsed the future.

‘Juan, that bastard…’

A murderous aura surged within her.

That bastard had put something in the chamomile tea.

Because in the future she glimpsed, abnormal symptoms appeared after she drank that tea.

She had heard that devil worshippers sold things like love potions, and that an overdose could turn a person into an imbecile.

He had clearly put that in.

‘Son of a bitch.’

Juan failed this time, but he would keep trying.

He would keep trying to turn her into an imbecile and steal her fortune.

He was a fool, but if he kept trying, she might eventually get caught by mistake.

‘I have to get rid of Juan Rolland right now.’

She had been preparing to remove him eventually anyway.

Finally, the time had come to use the love letters from Juan that she had been steadily collecting.

“Rete.”

Late at night, Dana summoned her secretary again. She then held out an envelope.

“Deliver this to Juan Rolland.”

“What is this?”

At that question, Dana gave a wide smirk.

“It’s a reply.”