This Book is Not Available for Subscription Under the Age of 18 - Chapter 226

“You used to ask me all sorts of things.”

“I was curious then.”

“And now you’re not curious?”

“Yes.”

“You said you were greedy of me.”

He didn’t mean it, but it sounded like he was nitpicking her. Liv narrowed her forehead at Demus’ questions.

But then she averted her gaze as though she had nothing to say. It wasn’t because she was afraid of him. If anything, she seemed rather irritated by this conversation.

Liv was no longer greedy of Demus. She no longer worked hard desperately for the coveted rose, no longer reaching for it at the risk of hurting herself.

When Demus realized it, his mind went cold.

“How could you abandon your god?”

Liv pinched the bridge of her nose. That action seemed as though she was tired of this annoying conversation.

It reminded Demus of his own response to her one day, when they had talked about reciprocity, in which he had replied with bitterness.

“I guess what I needed wasn’t a god.”

Liv answered with a sigh before adding with a calm voice.

“So you don’t have to be my god, my Lord.”

What do you mean by that? Didn’t you say that you couldn’t shoot me? Isn’t it because I am irreplaceable to you? You ran away because you couldn’t let go of your greed, didn’t you? How could you suddenly change and become disinterested?

What you just said must have been impulsive, right?

He felt that if he parted his lips even slightly, he would unleash an uncontrollable torrent of words. And so Demus could not spit out a word.

As Demus shut his mouth, Liv affirmed him as if reassuring him.

“I don’t want to know about those things. I won’t be presumptuous, so you don’t need to test me.”

Demus quietly sucked in a breath. His heart sank. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was facing a reality he could no longer ignore.

It wasn’t a situation he could afford to worry about Liv taking pity on Camille.

Demus realized that he was the one who had to earn her sympathy.

***

She had said coolly that she had no questions, but that was not the truth.

Liv had already heard through Camille that Demus had some connection to Cardinal Calliope. She couldn’t get the name out of her mind, so naturally, she constructed a plausible story in her head.

She also wanted to know the details of Demus’ situation, as he was openly hostile to Malte and Eleanor.

He was dealing with not one, but two great noble families, and Liv herself was the root of the case. Naturally, she was concerned. She also felt obligated to learn more about what was going on, since she wasn’t completely unaffiliated with the conflict.

She was more than a little… worried that Demus might have gotten into an unnecessary fight because of her.

I know he’s not the kind of man to take on something he can’t handle, though.

Liv knew her worries about Demus were foolish and silly. However, the way he’d been acting toward her since their reunion had been so unexpected, she couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.

That man hardly got any sleep right now.

Demus tried to maintain his usual demeanor, but he couldn’t hide his pale, haggard complexion. It was hard to trust a man who looked like that to have sound judgment.

What if he had touched Malte and Eleanor in a fit of rage because Liv had run away? Not that she was particularly worried about Demus, but since she was the one root of this whole thing…

Liv, attempting to rationalize her sudden apprehension, let out a wry laugh.

How foolish.

She couldn’t believe her heart weakened just because the man looked emaciated. Who was she to worry about Demus, when not long ago she was too busy running away from him.

… But that man isn’t in his normal state.

Unlike Demus, Liv was a person rich in human emotions. She had been taking care of her sickly sister for a long time, so she couldn’t easily ignore a sick person.

So it was only natural that she would be slightly concerned with a man with such an obviously emaciated face.

Regardless of her feelings, on a person-to-person basis.

Not in a rational manner, but humanly.

With that thought, Liv gritted her teeth and brushed her face with her hands. She was becoming soft just as quickly as she had him around. If she let her guard down a bit, she’d be swayed by an extra second.

This is why I ran away.

I’m going to end up the same way at this rate.

Liv’s mind drifted like this dozens of times a day.

Meanwhile, Demus looked like he was ready to answer any of Liv’s questions. In fact, he even questioned her for not asking more.

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