KFBRV Pt 2 Ch 33

[Odette] "......Your Excellency?"

The lazy elegance that usually clung to Zion had vanished. In its place, a lethal atmosphere pulsed around him.

He radiated a raw, vulgar intimidation that suggested a profound familiarity with merciless violence.

He projected a more primal and terrifying aura than ever before. With one arm completely drenched in blood, he looked like a wild beast ready to strike.

[Zion] "Ha......"

A sigh escaped him—a sound caught between a snarl of rage and a gasp of relief.

[Odette] "How are you—"

In the split second it took to recognize him, Johan’s massive frame eclipsed the view.

[Johan] "How dare you set foot here, Zion?"

Johan tensed his entire body, shielding Odette as if Zion were a rabid hound poised to lunge.

---

On a side path near the cathedral with a view of the clock tower, Zion stood alone long after Odette departed.

It was just the usual hallucination leaving me......

Yet, he felt like an abandoned dog. Perhaps the recent vision had been far too sweet.

His violet eyes trailed from the space where she had vanished down to his own wrist. The skin was a grotesque mess of gouges and scrapes.

With the hallucination gone, the suffocating weight of guilt would soon return. The reality of a life without Odette pressed in, the void choking the air from his lungs. Despite knowing hell had approached, he was powerless to stop it. How could he endure this emptiness?

I should have kissed her......

Perhaps that single memory would have sustained him.

Why had the heavens chosen him as a Transcendent?

Why was he born a monster that couldn't even die easily, condemned to regenerate every wound?

A Transcendent forsaken by his Purifier possessed no value.

The Gods were cruel... making a Transcendent love a Purifier so unilaterally.

[Zion] "God. Enough with the cruelty already."

A hollow laugh accompanied his unorthodox prayer.

He unfastened his right sleeve. His fingernails were always sleek and meticulously groomed. However, with enough strength, even a blunt edge could pierce anything.

He habitually pressed his nails into his left arm. They carved through the flesh as easily as blades. Blood cascaded down his arm.

Only pain could distract him from this infinite void. His arm became a tattered mess of gore, but he gave it no mind. It would regenerate on its own soon enough—the curse of being a Transcendent.

Suddenly, a loud bang echoed as fireworks erupted in the sky. The noise was violent enough to shatter his mental prison.

Ah......

He slowly looked up at the night sky.

The encounter with the hallucination felt brief, yet the world had plunged into darkness.

The fireworks were a spectacular display, but the violet eyes watching the feast of light remained dim. No trace of wonder lingered in his hollow gaze.

The raucous noise dragged him back to a wretched reality.

Zion pulled his hand away from his mangled arm. The vacant smile that had played on his lips during his self-mutilation vanished.

Right. I had an appointment with the Pope.

He was surely late by now.

As his shoulders slumped, a shout echoed from the distance.

[Unknown] "Lady Odette has been resurrected! She is heading toward the cathedral!"

The thrill in the voice was genuine, but the words were impossible to believe. In Zion’s current state of mind, it was far more rational to assume he was hearing things.

Odette...... has returned?

Reason and logic held no sway over his heart. Before he even realized it, he was sprinting toward the cathedral.

In his frantic dash, no trace remained of the Demon of the Torture Chamber, the Imperial Watchdog, or the powerful head of the Kleist family.

He was merely a fragile seeker desperate for salvation.

As he ran, the truth settled in. A soft, fragrant scent of peach blossoms—a scent found nowhere else in the Empire—filled the air. The aroma thickened with every step.

He felt as though he were ascending to heaven.

Odette, welcome back. I missed you.

Tell me what you want. Whatever you desire, I will make it happen.

He followed the scent and stopped. Odette stood before him.

[Johan] "How dare you show your face here, Zion?"

Johan blocked the path between them, but Zion remained oblivious to the Crown Prince’s presence.

[Johan] "How dare the man who tormented her come here?"

His threats fell on deaf ears. Zion was consumed by a maniacal rapture.

[Zion] "Finally...... you’ve come, Odette."

---

Rolf stood dazed by the conversation. Charlotte had accepted the adoption proposal with shocking enthusiasm.

[Rolf] "Are you...... genuinely accepting this?"

This was the same Charlotte who had refused even basic support for two years.

[Charlotte] "Yes, Mr. Butler. I want to become an Albrecht foster daughter. It’s common for Purifiers of commoner birth to be adopted into noble families."

He knew this well. Since Purifiers and Transcendents were rare, adoption was standard procedure when they emerged from the commoner or slave classes.

Count Albrecht had harbored this ambition for a long time, believing Charlotte would eventually join his house.

[Charlotte] "Do you dislike the idea?"

[Rolf] "It is a great honor for us. Very well. I must seek final approval from the Master, but—"

He had intended to use any means necessary to adopt Charlotte after overhearing her talk with Raphael. He had been agonizing over how to accomplish it.

Now that he knew she was an S-class Purifier—the true chosen of God—he had to secure her.

She even said she received the news of Odette being alive through a dream.

Furthermore, whenever Charlotte spoke of Odette, she sounded as though she were discussing a sworn enemy.

[Charlotte] "I intend to let the Count receive the subsidies granted to me. I believe he will approve. Just ensure the paperwork is meticulous."

He nodded vigorously.

[Rolf] "But...... why us so suddenly? You could choose any family you wish."

He knew the Brentano family had interfered for the past two years.

However, after the news that she would host the Founding Festival, high-ranking nobles had begun shifting to her side.

[Charlotte] "I have certain conditions."

He swallowed hard. It was too good to be true. He waited for her next words in tense silence.

---

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