The Kind of Evil

‎They arrived at the Caldara Kingdom, and the peaceful atmosphere was different than what Thalior and Rasmus had expected. The people who used to support the revolutionary parties had decided to submit themselves to the Servil faction. It was all because of the leadership of Xena Servil, the woman who was capable of making a better world.

‎Aris and Javi didn't come with Rasmus and stayed behind to prevent the enemy or the demons from taking advantage of the situation. It assured Thalior that there was nothing to worry about with both Aris and Javi back there.

‎"She might be the answer to our concern, Count. She might be capable of persuading the revolutionary parties who are against the demons and the emissary," Thalior said as he looked out the carriage window.

‎"Don't try to burden your responsibility to those who have no desire. You're only going to push them away," Rasmus responded with his eyes closed, enjoying the smooth road. "The Servil faction wants nothing, and even if she has something that she wants, Queen Amalfrida has prepared it for her. After all, those two are friends," he pointed out.

‎Thalior knew that Rasmus was right, and he also knew that as well. He had never spouted something that came out of his mind without a second thought before. He realized that having Rasmus around made him feel a bit comfortable. It was because Rasmus didn't judge, he only stated the truth.

‎"Let's stick with the plan, compromise our goal, and the revolutionary parties that are against demons. Listen to their demands and try to fulfill them as long as they're reasonable. We don't need them, that's a fact, but you don't want it to feel bitter, and it's your decision," Rasmus said as he slowly opened his eyes and looked at the people walking on the sidewalk.

‎"You're only being considerate when it won't change anything, don't you, Count?" Thalior raised his brows, staring at Rasmus.

‎"I never overcomplicated things nor do I oversimplify anything," Rasmus responded as he looked at the palace in the distance where the meeting was planned to be held.

‎"I have never asked this question before, and I know that it has something to do with your past when the whole world doesn't treat you like a human being..." Thalior paused to form a sentence without trying to be disrespectful. "Do you despise people, Count?"

‎"I don't despise those who are innocent, Your Grace. However, my hatred toward the ones who are responsible for my suffering, the innocent will always be the one who pays the price," Rasmus answered as he stared at Thalior. "However, I never bothered to listen to what people say about me. It's not out of ignorance or anger, it's because I had enough."

‎"So you don't actually hate people? You just don't want to involve yourself with them because of your detachment? If so, why did you have someone like Carrion and Daryus, Count?" Thalior crossed his arms and furrowed his brows.

‎"It's better to have people who care about the world on my side, no? Would you prefer me to have more people like Aris and Javi, Your Grace?" Rasmus asked back with a cold gaze.

‎Thalior realized he was prying too deep into Rasmus's business and had crossed the line. He immediately shook his head and decided to not answer the question to respect Rasmus's privacy.

‎"We have arrived..." Thalior looked out the window as the carriage entered the palace area.

‎"A word of advice, Your Grace. I did say that you shouldn't pressure Xena, but your ideals and hers might align. Try not to persuade her, try to make her understand," Rasmus said as he fixed his suit.

‎"Thank you for the heads-up, Count," Thalior nodded with understanding.

‎They walked out of the carriage and already saw dozens of carriages that belonged to different nations based on the flags they represented. They saw a few carriages that belonged to the Holy Nation, and they knew that Astrea was already there with the others.

‎They were escorted by the knights into the spacious hall where everyone was gathered. They didn't expect it would look like a banquet since there was food and drink on the tables.

‎"I guess it's fine to loosen up a bit for everyone..." Thalior muttered under his breath and began to greet everyone.

‎Rasmus took a glass of wine and decided to distance himself from everyone. He preferred to enjoy the food rather than with the people.

‎"You're not going to speak or socialize with them?" Novia approached Rasmus with a glass of wine in her hand.

Rasmus glanced at Novia, who seemed to be out of place, just like him. He knew that she didn't know anyone since she spent her whole life in the Magic Tower, learning and working under Lenin's guidance.

"You can stay here with me if you don't know where to go. After all, you approached me because you don't have anywhere to go," Rasmus said and took a sip of his wine.

Novia should have known that Rasmus could read her like an open book. She couldn't argue since the only people she knew were Thalior and Astrea, who were busy talking with people in the hall.

"That's the case for me, but you should have known these people since you have been in South Neva for almost a year," Novia stared at Rasmus and took a sip of her wine.

"And you believe that if I go over there, I won't make a scene? I'm distancing myself because I don't want to waste my time and to make the South Neva Union look bad," Rasmus explained as he turned around and leaned against the table. "You can look at those people. They're wagging their tails, treating this situation like an opportunity to gain recognition from Her Holiness rather than dealing with the issue," he continued with his arms crossed, observing the people in expensive attire, faking their laughter and smiles.

"Opportunist to the core..." Novia sighed as she nodded. "Got myself a fair share since I'm Great Sage's disciple," she muttered.

"And you can't blame them for being like that. Not everyone is fated to be a part of the world, some are born barely with any influence," Rasmus said and took a sip of his wine, and then noticed that Xena was approaching him.

"Yeah, but they should know the time and place to do that," Novia muttered and stared at the nobles with a cynical gaze.

Xena noticed Novia's cold gaze toward the nobles, and when she glanced at Rasmus, he only gave her a faint smile as he sipped his wine. She decided to join them because somehow she felt like she belonged with them.

"Count Blackheart, Lady Novia," Xena bowed her head at them.

"My Lady," Novia bowed her head at Xena while Rasmus nodded at Xena.

"Whose idea was it to make this meeting into a banquet?" Rasmus asked Xena with his brows raised.

Xena stared at Duke Gerald, the same person who was one of the representatives who came to South Neva Union headquarters back then. Rasmus nodded slowly as he took a sip of his wine, not making it obvious to those who were staring at him. He then grabbed a glass of wine from the table and offered it to her.

"Thank you, Count," Xena grabbed the wine and decided to stand beside him. "I heard that your side encountered the Corrupted, and Lady Aris dealt with them."

"Yes, we have someone who's capable of dealing with such a threat," Rasmus nodded. "You're quite lucky, unlike the Alliance forces that almost got wiped out by the Corrupted."

"Yes, but it won't be a problem anymore because Her Holiness is going to let her three Archbishops stay here to help us deal with the next revolutionary party that we are going to invade," Xena said and took a sip of the wine, surprised by how smooth it was. "Her Holiness will help the Alliance from now on, so there should be no problem on their side either," she continued.

"Count, there's something that quite bothers me," Xena cleared her throat as she faced Rasmus. "We found records of this nation in the treasury room, and there's one record that has some kind of information about certain organizations that have existed here, in South Neva," she said with a serious expression.

"And what bothers you?" Rasmus asked.

"There's a location where they gathered since the former royal family of this nation was a part of it. We went to check it out two days ago, but that area was surrounded by bandits. We believed that the place had something to do with a demonic cult. We didn't want to risk it to check that place, so if you're interested, we can go there tomorrow," Xena answered.

"I see, let's do that," Rasmus nodded. "Are you coming, Lady Novia?" He looked at Novia with his brows raised.

"Yes, of course," Novia nodded.