"What"
Ryan's words sounded strange to Anna, so she wondered
"What do you mean, and who are these scoundrels?"
But Ryan didn't speak this time and took off his shirt, revealing a sight Anna hadn't expected.
Ryan's body was covered in scars, and Anna knew why: it was burns.
She had seen the burns on his hand, but she hadn't expected his body to be covered in them.
"What happened to you?"
Ryan touched his chest to feel the scars and said,
"This is because of those bastards you said were just following orders and weren't to blame."
"What do you say? Should I forgive the person who did this to me, or should I blame the person who ordered him to do it?"
Anna hesitated for a moment.
"I didn't mean..."
But Ryan interrupted her and spoke firmly.
"No, I will not forgive the one who did this to me, or the person who ordered him to do this, I will kill them."
Anna was looking into his eyes, which were filled with hatred. And opened her mouth to say something, but he didn't give her the chance.
"Seeing their deaths is the only thing that will heal these burns on my body."
A brief silence.
"Therefore, I have no regrets about killing that scum, and I never will."
Then he stepped forward, past Anna, and opened the door to leave.
When he opened the door, he found Aleth there waiting in front of it, holding a crystal ball.
Then a voice came from the crystal:
"Mr. Alith, is everything alright? I can't hear anything anymore."
It was a familiar voice; he recognized it immediately.
"my sister."
It was Liara's voice
**************
After I left for Ryan's room, Aleth went to his office to await news of the interrogation of the kidnapper he had apprehended.
Because his heart will not be at peace until he knows the reason for the attempt to kidnap his daughter—was it for money, or something else?
He went upstairs towards the upper floor where his office was located.
Since his office was away from the noise, he opened the door and entered.
The room was spacious, its walls were made of dark wood, with old maps and decorative frames hanging on them, and a large desk in the middle, very carefully arranged.
He headed towards his desk and sat down in a chair. His back was straight… his hands were clasped in front of him… and his eyes were fixed on the papers.
But he wasn't reading those papers; he was thinking about something else.
Then he reached to the side of the desk and opened a small drawer.
He took out a small, transparent crystal; it was strangely pure, and a faint light moved inside it.
He closed the drawer.
He placed the crystal on the table in front of him.
He gazed at it for a few seconds… then said quietly,
"Liara Darvin."
Silence fell.
Nothing happened at first…
Then—the light inside the crystal flickered.
Then he heard a voice coming from the crystal ball:
"Mr. Alith, why are you calling me? I thought I had paid my debt in full."
Aleth laughed.
"Miss Liara, do you think I'm someone who only calls for money?"
Then he coughed slightly.
"Excuse me, I made a mistake. Perhaps I should call you 'Madam' now."
Then he paused for a moment.
"Or Her Majesty."
Liara spoke:
"Shut up."
Alith laughed.
"Hahahaha, I'm just kidding, but you'll have to get used to it since you're going to marry the prince."
Liara spoke in an angry tone:
"Did you call as a joke? I'm busy, so I'm going."
Alith quickly said something to make her not go
"Wait, it's something about your brother."
Upon hearing the phrase "it's about your brother," Liara quickly asked,
"What happened? Did something happen to him?"