Chapter 135
“Three years of contempt ended so easily, didn’t they? Then a feeling like that—won’t it end just as lightly?”
“Albrecht, rather than insulting someone’s sincere feelings, I’d rather just say I don’t like it. That way, I wouldn’t be this angry.”
“There’s no need to undo an oath in the name of God over fleeting emotions—”
“Odet.”
He cut her off with his sweet voice. Before she could even realize it, his purple eyes had turned a deep golden hue.
[The mind of the ‘Necklace’s Owner’ has been caught in Zion’s ‘Brainwashing.’]
Without a moment to resist, her mind was torn apart in an instant.
‘This crazy bastard. Doing whatever he wants again…’
His lips moved as if to speak, but no sound came out.
A faint sensation, like floating in a weightless space.
When she came to, she was sitting on the floor, her consciousness hazy.
[Zion’s ‘Brainwashing’ has been lifted.]
Seeing the status window before her, Odet’s anger surged.
‘This damn bastard.’
Zion still knelt on one knee opposite her, gripping her shoulder as if to restrain her.
But with her body still heavy and sluggish, all Odet could do was glare at him. Zion gave her a twisted smile.
“Hoo. Why make such a fuss over something so small, Albrecht?”
Judging by the relief in his purple eyes, it seemed that while her memory had been disrupted, he had successfully erased the Purifier’s oath.
A wave of heat hit him, mixed with sweat. He seemed to be trying, in some way, not to completely destroy her mind.
[Warning! Side effects of ‘Brainwashing’ may temporarily cause confusion between memory and reality.]
‘Even leaving side effects? This bastard.’
“Don’t say you’ll leave carelessly again. It’s an unachievable goal and only ruins my mood. You do know what kind of being a Transcendent is, don’t you?”
“…….”
“You’re so fragile that there’s no guarantee the brainwashing will finish without a hitch every time. So, let’s not fight, Albrecht.”
Zion’s eyes, back to their usual purple, shimmered with a manic obsession. He seemed perfectly satisfied with the situation.
“I’ll make sure you don’t get hated.”
Zion released the hand that had been gripping her like a vice and gently brushed her hair aside.
A light smile, a tender voice.
Even though he was threatening her, he acted as if he were courting her—it was utterly disgusting.
Just as Odet tried to twist her powerless body to escape, there was a crash from the window.
Turning her head with effort, Odet’s eyes widened. A massive moon blade was flying at incredible speed, aimed directly at Zion’s neck.
“Does this bastard never let go of our darling’s hair?”
It was Victor’s voice, laced with fury.
Whoosh— The moon blade flew with lethal precision. Zion caught it barehanded.
“Who are you making a ruckus in front of? This is why street-born people…”
Even with blood streaming from wounds that revealed bone, Zion merely clicked his tongue lightly.
As his injuries healed, a man with red hair entered through the window the moon blade had come through.
‘Why is he here too?’
Victor’s sudden arrival was already disorienting, and now a calm, deep voice spoke as well.
“Odet, are you alright? Were you startled?”
From their presence, Odet quickly realized:
‘Not just Zion… he brought these two along to stick with me.’
A hollow laugh threatened to escape her lips.
‘So what’s changed from my past life? Nothing.’
Their disgust may have reset to zero, but they still followed her wherever she went, interfering with every plan she made.
They weren’t trying to kill her—just as in her past life.
‘If things don’t go their way, they use powers on me, assign people to spy on me, and intrude into my space at will.’
Why did no one ever ask for her permission? Why was it so natural for them to interfere?
In this life, Odet wanted not love, but at least a minimum of respect. Was even that too much to ask?
Look at what Zion just did. He said he liked her, yet he tore apart her mind at will.
‘What’s the point of struggling so hard not to be Fernand’s puppet? These monsters are just trying to turn me into a puppet anyway!’
At that moment, the sound of rain tapping against the window began, gradually swelling into a heavy downpour.
At the same time, faint afterimages of the three men she had encountered in her past life appeared before her eyes.
[Warning! Side effects of ‘Brainwashing’ may temporarily cause confusion between memory and reality.]
Only then did she understand the warning: the confusion meant that events from her memory could appear entwined with reality.
‘Damn it. The Count made this place resemble his townhouse…’
The torrential rain, the villa resembling the Count’s estate, three Transcendents, Odet kneeling.
It was too similar to the moment in her past life when she had almost been caught by these three while hiding in the Count’s secret passage.
Because of this, memories from her past life and the present moment were merged in Odet’s eyes.
Victor approached her, still weak and unable to move.
“Darling, I was worried.”
Though relief and concern mixed on Victor’s face, Odet saw an expression filled with hatred, disgust, and mockery overlapping it.
“…Worried?”
Even still a little dazed, Odet scoffed at the word.
“Oh, right. Of course, you were worried. I left in a high fever, right? I must have been an entertaining sight, groaning in pain—how worried you must have been not to miss that fun scene.”
Victor, whose footsteps had been approaching, suddenly halted at her cynical sarcasm.
“You said it was a ‘once-in-a-lifetime scene’ to watch me die.”
“Darling, that’s—”
“Don’t call me that!”
“Goodbye, darling.”
“Every time I hear it, it’s disgusting and makes my blood boil.”
Because the last word she had heard before dying in her past life had been “darling,” Odet had always hated that word.
No, it wasn’t just that word—just their existence was always horrific to her.
“Odet.”
Johann, who had stepped back to observe, called her cautiously.
“We really came because we were worried. You looked like you were in pain when you left, and you still seem feverish.”
His calm voice overlapped with another Johann’s voice.
“Yes. You were always this kind of person. Always.”
“Why? You hated and despised me so much. Why are you worried now?”
Johann closed his mouth tightly in guilt. Victor seemed uncharacteristically flustered at seeing this side of Odet.
Zion simply watched her with his deep, calm eyes.
When they fell silent, the only sound in the room was the rain.
Then, ding— a status window appeared before Odet.
[Charlotte will appear in front of the male leads shortly.]
[In 10 minutes, the male leads’ disgust will increase 61-fold.]
‘Wha…t?’
The sudden notification left Odet stunned.
[Charlotte’s appearance accelerates the timing of the special reward settlement!]
[Previous quest special reward settlement: Reputation exceeded 500 / Remaining period: 2 days]
[Special Reward: ‘Shackles of Time’ (4)]
[Shackles of Time: Can restrict a designated target’s actions for 1,000 hours (applies to an adult male; varies with target’s physical and mental strength)]
‘Why all of a sudden? This is impossible. I already checked the remaining time with my dagger. Until just now, there were still three days left.’
Odet hurriedly opened her inventory window.
[Invisible Sincerity (Dagger) use schedule has changed.]
[Invisible Sincerity (Dagger)]
[In 10 minutes, a dagger to cut the invisible at ‘Meursault Cliff’.]
But instead of three days, the status window now displayed 10 minutes.
And that wasn’t the end. Ding, another status alert appeared.
[♡ Quest Activated ♡]
[Quest Objective: Awaken Karl]
[Duration: 10 minutes]
[Karl normally has 100 days until awakening, but strong emotional turmoil can accelerate it.]
[Within 10 minutes of Charlotte’s arrival, create intense emotional turmoil to accelerate Karl’s awakening ♥]
[Reward: Restores the ‘Affection’ function in the status window]
[Penalty: Karl’s disgust increases by 40]
[Quest will be automatically accepted.]
