Hearing that, Catheryne immediately understood that Lathel was trying to preserve her honour, and this made her even more heartbroken: 'Ah! My son… You are so kind... so pitiful, it makes me want to cry.'
She glanced at Lathel with love and affection, then looked up at the sky and said with hostility: "Pope, are you still hiding there?"
Just then, a white carriage descended from the sky, landing right in front of Lathel and Catheryne.
From inside the car, a charming and saintly voice rang out: "Catheryne, we meet again."
"Huh!" Catheryne frowned and said, "What are you using the 'Soul Bell' for? Don't you know that anyone who hears three bells from the 'Soul Bell' will definitely become crazy?"
"I know…" The Pope spoke up.
"So…" Catheryne spoke as nine fiery phoenix tails appeared, enveloping Lathel and Arine inside: "Do you really want to become my enemy?"
From inside the cab came a sigh: "No, I just want to see... whether he is a genius like everyone is talking about."
Whoosh!
A feather shot out at a terrifying speed like a bullet, leaving a streak of red light in the middle of space, shooting towards the vehicle compartment.Bang!
The bell rang again, turning into countless concentric space waves that spread out around.
The phoenix feather was about to crash into the carriage, then stopped, trembled a bit, then disintegrated into countless small sparks, disappearing in the air.
"Catheryne, calm down a bit." The pope spoke calmly, her voice carrying a bit of indifference but also a bit of fatigue.
"Are you saying I need to calm down?" Catheryne said angrily: "What if Lathel cannot resist the ringing of the 'Soul Bell'?"
"I really just wanted to experiment a bit." The Pope spoke softly.
"I know that you are jealous of me. You are afraid that if you let a genius like him live, he will become a threat to you." "In that case… let's settle everything now, Pope," said Catheryne.
"You…" The Pope said tiredly: "Okay, it seems I was wrong."
"Huh! If I hadn't arrived in time, I'm afraid Lathel would have been killed by you. Would you just say 'I was wrong' like that?"
"Okay… Catheryne…" The Pope replied: "You don't need to push me to the end. The 'Soul Bell' only affects people with bad minds and darkness in their hearts."
"I also did this to ensure your safety. Think about it: What if your man... no, what if the genius you protect is filled with darkness?"
"If he grows up, then it will be the end of the world for you and for this entire empire. What I did was not wrong."
"I don't care." Catheryne frowned and said: "What you did put Lathel in danger. Besides, I completely trust him; I don't need you to do meaningless things."
"It seems... you have changed." The Pope sighed and said.
"No, I haven't changed. I'm still me; it's just... I don't want to show my true self to those trash people." Catheryne scorned.
The Pope was silent when she heard that. After a while, she continued: "I will leave the Holy Maiden with you. I will be back in three days."
After she finished speaking, she drove the carriage into the sky and disappeared.
Catheryne frowned as she once again confirmed that the Pope was no longer here. She then relaxed, as she felt extremely comfortable in her heart.
She turned and looked at Lathel: "Are you okay?"
Lathel nodded and smiled: "Thank you, Queen, for your concern. I am fine; I am not injured at all. Arine is also…"
"I only care about you; I don't care about anyone else." Catherine said coldly. Suddenly, she realised that her words could easily be misunderstood by Lathel.
No, to be more precise… Lathel will realise that she really only cares about him, which will let him know that she likes him.
"Thank you, Queen." Lathel replied: "I know I am the genius of the Empire, and Arine is the Holy Maiden of the Church. The Empire and the Church do not like each other; no, to be more precise, they oppose each other."
"It's normal that you don't care about Arine."
Catheryne sighed, feeling both happy and disappointed. She's happy that Lathel doesn't realise her true feelings, but she's also disappointed that he doesn't seem interested in her.
'Huh! Am I very bad? Could it be… he really doesn't like me? When Ryne's identity disappears, will he accept me?'
'AAA!!! What should I do?'
Although Catheryne's expression remained extremely calm, inside her heart, it was as if there was a storm sweeping through all her thoughts.
"You have reinforced the Demon Lord's seal…" Catheryne found another topic to talk about: "Currently, you are the hero, the genius of this empire; you are also the future of the empire. So protecting you is normal."
Lathel bowed: "Yes, my queen."
"Okay, I will bring you back to the Empire." Catheryne waved her hand, carrying Lathel and Arine back to Karol.
…
In the evening, a party was held extremely grandly, and Lathel drank so much that his stomach seemed about to explode.
After all, he is a hero and the man Catheryne loves. Of course, only a few high-ranking nobles knew about this, and they didn't dare say it.
But... for that reason, the nobles also paid more attention to him, wanting to approach and befriend him.
Before the party ended, he hid in a corner in the palace garden.
Lathel sat on top of the palace while looking into the distance and thinking about many things.
'Arine may have come to this world, perhaps through Dandite, so... what about the others?'
He began to think about the people he felt suspicious of: 'Selvia, she is probably in this world too, even the other women.'
'However, the question is… why did they come here? Are they here because of me, or is it because of some other problem?'
'Besides… Why did Dandite accept them into this world?'
Many questions appeared in Lathel's head, but he did not know the answers, nor could he find any clues to answer those questions.
Ring!
Ring!
A sound like a rattle rang out behind him.
"Are you thinking about something?"
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out. Lathel didn't need to turn his head to know who had just spoken.
"Ah! Are you awake, Arine?" Lathel sighed and said.
"Uhm!" Arine smiled and nodded. She gently walked next to Lathel and sat down.
As if Arine had known Lathel for a long time, she gently rested her head on his shoulder. Lathel also did not resist. He even lowered his body so that she could do it more easily.
"Do you… already know who I am?" Arine suddenly asked.
Lathel didn't feel strange but just asked again: "What made you say so?"
"You didn't resist when I approached you." Arine smiled and said: "You are not the type of person who easily lets other women approach you, even if they are beautiful women."
Hearing that, Lathel nodded: "Yes, but I only remember a few things."
Arine smiled, tears flowed from her eyes; as she choked: "Sorry, Lathel."
"Sorry for what?"
"I'm sorry… Your death… was because of me."
Lathel: "…"
He was silent.
Arine pursed her lips tightly, then used all her courage to continue: "I... you... don't you hate me?"
Lathel remained silent.
"I hate the feeling of you next to that bitch, Selvia. I don't want you to be with her, I... I just wanted to make you leave her."
"But… but… I didn't think you'd be killed. I'm sorry… my fault… It's all my fault…"
Lathel sighed: "I'm not angry, nor do I think it's your fault."
Arine was startled. She quickly hugged his arm tightly as if afraid he would leave: "No! Please… Be angry with me; you can hit me, scold me… You can do whatever you like…"
"Please… don't act like you don't care about me."
Arine cried, her tears wetting Lathel's sleeve.
But Lathel didn't show too much emotion; he just said softly: "In fact, even if you don't kill me, I will still find a way to leave that world."
"It's because of Selvia, right?" Arine seemed to misunderstand something.
Lathel shook his head; in reality, he was just a passerby, just visiting that world for a bit.
After completing the mission, he was forced to leave, but... he tried to stay in that world for three more years to change Selvia's mind.
Lathel tried to fight the fate of the male protagonist and Selvia, but he failed.
The moment he stood on the bridge and called Selvia, he knew the relationship between him and her could not be saved.
It's just... he tried to find a little hope, but in reality, there was no hope at all.
Lathel sighed and asked: "Arine, why did you come to this world? Your boyfriend… don't you like him?"
"No!" Arine immediately said: "Lathel… The one I like is you. After you died... I couldn't live, I was..."
"I was… killed by someone else."
"Hmm?!" Lathel frowned and said: "Who killed you?" Your fan?"
"No…" Arine shook her head: "You don't need to know; you just need to know that… I came here to find you."
"Lathel… do you like me?"
Lathel was silent. After a long while, he sighed and pushed Arine away: "Sorry, Arine. I don't like you."
Arine was scared when she heard that, as if something had just disappeared from her hand.
Her heart ached; it hurt so much that it was difficult to breathe. Arine couldn't stand it, so she knelt down, her hands clutching her chest, trying to breathe.
However, she also tried to raise her head, and look at Lathel.
At this moment, Lathel just looked at her indifferently, then turned and left.
"Lathel… why?"
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