Chapter 33 – You Never Know What I Might Do

‘Dahlia… Lorenheim?’

It was only then that Evelyn snapped back to her senses, and she found herself genuinely impressed. Dahlia was even more beautiful than the novel had described.

With a faint blush tinting her cheeks, the woman in front of her greeted her in a gentle, almost musical voice.

“May the Baltian Empire’s glory shine eternal. It’s an honor to meet the Young Lady of House Inevasel.”

For a moment, she stared at Dahlia, eyes wide with surprise.

“You know who I am?”

“Of course. The Young Lord of Lorenheim told me about you.”

Perhaps it was because she had shown interest in Dahlia in front of Felix that he had given her a hint beforehand. A gentle smile touched Evelyn’s lips as she returned the greeting.

“May the Baltian Empire’s glory shine eternal. It’s a pleasure to meet the Young Lady of House Lorenheim.”

For some reason, Dahlia seemed genuinely pleased by her formal courtesy. Meanwhile, Evelyn glanced around the deck, then asked, her tone casual yet curious.

“But what brings you out here, my lady?”

Dahlia lifted her eyelids with a desolate expression and replied in a quietly forlorn voice.

“I’m meant to meet someone here, but it seems they’re running a bit late.”

‘…Could they be someone truly important?’

She couldn’t help but wonder if, besides Khalid, there was someone else the female lead was destined to meet. While Evelyn nodded lightly in understanding, a sudden flush of relief bloomed across Dahlia’s face.

“Oh, that’s a relief. I thought I might have to leave empty-handed.”

“Pardon…?”

Evelyn furrowed her brow, uncertain if she had heard correctly.

Dahlia’s violet eyes curved kindly, her lips parting in a faint, mysterious smile.

“It’s nothing of importance.”

‘Was Dahlia Lorenheim always meant to be like this?’

Just as Evelyn was composing herself in response to Dahlia’s enigmatic words, the faint sound of footsteps and the murmur of noblemen’s conversation drifted over from nearby.

“Come to think of it, didn’t the Young Lord Valentino look rather unwell?”

“Is that so? Even the great Young Lord gets seasick?”

“Well, we’re at sea. It’s not as if he can return to his estate straight away.”

Her expression froze instantly as she overheard their conversation.

‘Axion never suffered from seasickness.’

Which meant, could it be…?

She recalled a conversation she had once had with her fiancé not long ago.

“Lately, the intervals when my magic becomes unstable have been happening more frequently.”

Perhaps Axion’s magic was beginning to spiral out of control. The two of them, bound by the same sigil, had been meeting often of late, and each encounter seemed to tangle their abilities further, leading once again to a surge of power.

But none of it made sense.

She had done exactly as the book instructed, even giving him her saliva.

‘Why then…?’

Confused, Evelyn’s gaze clouded with worry as she tried to piece together a theory.

Maybe, with such overwhelming magic, Axion Valentino simply had no other way to suppress his rampages except through imprinting. Still, she couldn’t just stand by and do nothing since she was partly to blame for his current state.

She bore partial responsibility for his magical turmoil.

“My lady, are you alright? You’ve gone pale.”

“I’m sorry. I need to go!”

After excusing herself to Dahlia, Evelyn quickly approached the nobles who had just been talking about Axion and asked where he could be found.

︵‿୨ ₊‧꒰ა ཐི༏ཋྀ ໒꒱ ˚₊ ୧‿︵

Moving quickly, Evelyn made her way down the corridor, finally stopping before a room at the very end, far from any prying eyes.

‘Such overwhelming magic…’

She had witnessed formidable magic a handful of times in her life, but what she sensed now dwarfed all prior encounters. Every hair on her body stood on end.

Crash—

As the sound of things shattering rang out from within the guest suite, she flung the door open without another thought.

The room, plunged in darkness with not a single lamp lit, was in utter ruin. Shards of glass from a broken window glittered across the floor, and the rest of the furnishings were so mangled they were barely recognizable. In the faint, silvery moonlight, she saw a man collapsed on his knees, clutching the ground and stifling a groan.

It was clear he was fighting desperately, forcing his magic back with all the strength he could muster just to keep his sanity.

‘It’s even worse than last year…’