Chapter 416
A Very Reasonable Deduction
Looking at Eivass, who had suddenly turned serious, Emma clasped her hands together apologetically. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.”
“…No, it’s that I myself am still lacking.”
Eivass fell silent for a moment, then shook his head slightly. After a long pause, he managed to utter a single sentence.
This raven… is rather unusual.
Scarlett Emma thought to herself.
She had been about to get Eivass to agree to stay with her tonight, only for a raven to ruin everything. This surprised her greatly.
Even without using her Extraordinary Ability… her natural charm should have worked on wild animals.
But she could clearly sense that the raven harbored some hostility towards her—Emma tried to offer it a gentle and harmless smile, but the subtle hostility only intensified.
…This feeling is like a child’s overwhelming jealousy.
Emma was somewhat familiar with this kind of situation.
She rarely actively used her mind-controlling Extraordinary Techniques, as her own beauty and charm were more than enough to easily twist people’s minds.
Emma also particularly enjoyed taking away other people’s lovers—regardless of their gender. She viewed it as a beast-like hunt, an invasion-like transcendence.
When she didn’t deliberately use her charm, a strong enough hatred and anger towards her could break free through sheer willpower.
Those little boys and girls, when their lovers, parents, idols, or crushes’ hearts and bodies were taken away by her, would often react intensely—not knowing how to cope, nor how to reclaim what they cherished, they could only glare fiercely with their eyes.
Such reactions were truly adorable.
Just as a little saltiness or bitterness accentuates the presence of sweetness, only when people hated and disliked her did the love from others seem even sweeter.
But… something isn’t quite right.
She examined the raven closely, but apart from finding it quite good-looking, she couldn’t discern anything unusual for a long time.
Being able to resist her Charm Aura, it must be some kind of Extraordinary creature.
This would also explain why it was so much more beautiful than a normal raven…
Emma could only confirm at this moment that this raven was definitely not an Extraordinary creature of the Path of Love or the Transcendent Path.
—Because she didn’t sense the power of those two Paths from it.
And if its Path energy level was the same as hers or even higher, that was even more impossible. Such a powerful Extraordinary creature wouldn’t be so docile as to follow Eivass like a pet.
It was precisely because of this that Emma became even more curious about Eivass, the raven’s owner.
“If I were you, I would stop coveting Eivass immediately.”
Without any warning, the raven’s clear and cold voice issued a warning.
Emma had considerable experience in discerning people—she could tell from its voice that it sounded very cultured.
Thus, she immediately dismissed the possibility of the raven being an Extraordinary creature and asked with interest, “Are you someone’s eyes? Could it be… Her Majesty the Queen?”
If the raven had no self-awareness at all and was merely a medium for someone else to spy on Eivass, then it would be explicable why she couldn’t charm it.
Emma’s charm ability had a core element related to her scent.
If one hadn’t been in close contact with her, and only saw her through newspapers, photos, and other visual means, they would at most find her beautiful.
And the person who met this condition…
Thinking this, Emma immediately thought of the “stubborn” new Queen Isabel.
She was an Extraordinary of the Path of Beauty. And she happened to be off Glass Island.
So, could it be that this raven was an artifact created by her?
That would also explain why it looked so beautiful. Because its form was inherently fake, fabricated.
With this thought, Emma reached out to touch the raven with interest. The raven, with its clear ruby-like pupils, remained motionless, gazing at her with cold silence.
But at this moment, Eivass suddenly reached out subconsciously and placed his hand on Emma’s.
This clear rejection made Emma falter for a moment.
Within her sphere of influence, he should have been obeying her requests as much as possible, caring for her safety and needs.
Had Eivass broken free?
“…It’s better not to do this.”
Eivass’s face showed clear signs of struggle, but he still warned her in the end, “For your safety.”
“Then… thank you.”
Emma chuckled lightly, then turned and clasped the hand Eivass had placed on her arm.
As if holding a hot water bottle, her hands covered Eivass’s palms, and she softly said, “Your hands are so warm…”
She completely ignored the raven’s warning.
Rather, it was precisely because of the raven’s warning that Emma became genuinely interested.
She loved the feeling of snatching things away from others. Not to mention, this was something that the esteemed Queen held dear.
“…It’s alright.”
Eivass, usually so verbose, became reticent at this moment.
He simply gave a brief reply and fell silent.
Emma could see at a glance that his rationality had detected something amiss and was struggling to focus his spirit to resist her interference.
—But how could something like that stop her?
She hadn’t even truly used magic to control Eivass, so this couldn’t be considered an attack. This was entirely a part of Eivass’s inner tendencies that she was influencing… his own body was rebelling against himself. This intense psychological conflict caused Eivass’s body temperature to rise, his cheeks turning unusually flushed, and his breathing becoming increasingly rapid.
“You know, Eivass,”
Emma smoothly changed the title from “Minister Moriarty” to Eivass, “I came to Avalon for the long-term peace between our two nations.”
“…Yes, I know.”
“Star Antinomy and Avalon are not enemies… they never have been.”
She murmured softly, pulling Eivass’s hand as they walked step by step into the house.
Eivass’s steps at the entrance were somewhat unsteady, almost as if he were being gently supported by her.
The raven glared at her, trying to attack several times. But Eivass stopped it with a wave of his hand.
Feeling the intense surge of killing intent, disgust, and hatred around her, the smile on Emma’s lips grew brighter.
—You might hate me. But as the Queen of Avalon, can you truly make a move against me before I truly infringe upon Avalon’s interests?
That would drag the entire Avalon into the mire.
If it were Eivass, he might be able to make such a decisive choice—he was indeed an excellent young man. So excellent that Emma was moved.
But Isabel was not like that.
Although she had received intelligence that Isabel’s previous demeanor was just a disguise, in Emma’s opinion, even if it was a disguise, it was enough to confirm Isabel’s tendency towards “waiting and seeing” and “enduring humiliation.”
—So what if you hate me? You still have to endure it, don’t you?
If she were to actually make a move against Eivass, perhaps it would solidify Isabel’s resolve.
But she hadn’t done anything, had she?
And this feeling made Emma more delighted.
She held Eivass’s hand, naturally pulling it to her chest, resting it beneath her bosom. Countess Emma smiled charmingly and said softly, “You know, Eivass… Star Antinomy has no ill will towards Avalon. A long, long time ago, we were even one family.
“The founders of Avalon were knights who left the Hrasal Empire. You were pioneers who conquered new lands and put down the giants who killed humans… The Empire was proud of you.
“And we, Star Antinomy, were just one branch of the Empire. Now, the Empire is only one piece away from being fully restored. Once the Empire rises again, Avalon will become our powerful ally—we will undoubtedly conquer further east and south, to vaster and more fertile lands.
“In the past, Star Antinomy wanted to make a move against Avalon. It was entirely because Avalon was situated on an important shipping route—because of Avalon’s rejection of foreign races, the Goblin merchant ships had to take a detour. This increased costs. In addition to Avalon’s high tariffs on many of Star Antinomy’s advanced products… we were forced to defensively raise tariffs on Avalon’s raw products.”
Emma spoke in a gentle voice, while Eivass remained silent.
Being in such close proximity, breathing in her scent, Eivass’s mind must be turning into mush by now, Emma thought.
But it didn’t matter, she wasn’t talking to Eivass in the first place.
She was talking to the bird perched on Eivass’s shoulder—
Although it seemed like a man and a woman were alone in the room, there were actually three people!
She thought with smug satisfaction.
