C72
After a while, Tara asked me.
"In how much time should I wait?"
Tara possessed considerable martial power, but her specialty was intelligence gathering and covert maneuvers.
Even if she were to hide and launch a surprise attack, it would have been difficult to defeat Vinetta in a one-on-one combat. For now, she had no choice but to follow my words.
"Just one day. We will meet again at this place tomorrow. Then I won't mind if you break up with me and immediately seek revenge."
"Alright. Today, I'll settle for just seeing the face of that bastard I've been sketching with anxiety."
"Can you swear it?"
"I swear by the names of my deceased parents and my younger siblings who still wait for me."
"Understood. It's right here."
Tara checked the contents of the note I handed her with trembling hands.
"Spring Flower Park."
"Do you know where it is? There's a racetrack nearby."
"I've never been to the park, but I've been close several times. But I can't believe it's in the capital."
"It must be easy to lurk here since there are always visitors. Why don't you sit on the bench and read a book?"
"I'll have to see it with my own eyes."
Tara, who said that, left the forest without even greeting, unlike when she first arrived. She couldn't afford to because she must be very concerned about her revenge.
The next day, I waited for Tara at the same time and place. Vinetta asked, surrounded by the sound of biting insects.
"Do you think she'll fulfill her oath?"
"Why? Vinetta, don't you believe it?"
"I don't know the details, but when I looked at the face talking about revenge, it seemed like there was such deep resentment that it was hard to understand."
"......"
"Ethel-nim said it was only a day, but for her, it must have been a whole day. Although, if she had at least given a good reason to wait a day, I don't know."
"That doesn't make sense. What matters is whether Tara can postpone revenge without a good reason."
Vinetta immediately understood my intention.
"This is a test for her."
Yes. I wondered if Tara could fulfill the oath she made to me even when revenge was her greatest goal in life.
"As Vinetta said, postponing revenge even for just one day requires a lot of patience."
In the novel, Tara accidentally encounters her enemy, the Viscount of Chiléan, in the Spring Flower Park. The enemy of my parents, the person I've been searching for for more than a dozen years.
Blinded by the desire for revenge, she immediately seeks to avenge. She even forgot to inform Liena, to whom she was so loyal.
Although it irritated me a bit to test someone who was so desperate, I had to make sure if Tara was trustworthy or not. Only then can I leave this empire with peace of mind.
Tara continues to hide from Liena what happened about two months ago. This was certain. There was no significant change in Liena's attitude.
"Liena probably already has doubts about me because I helped the ambassador and his wife find Diana."
If Tara had told Liena that I strangely knew her situation well, her suspicions would have deepened, and Liena would have taken action. She must wonder if I'm someone who traveled back in time like her or not.
"At least that's the Liena I know and read about."
But there was still no particular reaction from Liena. This means that Liena's suspicions remained weak due to Tara's innocence.
I wanted to know if I could trust Tara more. Even if the powerful motivation that made her follow Liena to the point of deceiving her, revenge, disappears, will she still keep her promise?
"Will she continue to hide a secret about me from Liena and become my source of information?"
I vividly remembered what Liena said to me in court with a very distorted expression.
["For whom am I doing this? It's all because of you!
How are you going to escape from Cassius and survive in this harsh world?"]
I still don't know the meaning of those words or Liena's internal thoughts, but one thing seemed certain. There was a high possibility that Liena wouldn't just give up because Leandro and I divorced.
Perhaps she's trying to involve herself with me in some way. To respond to that, I also need an informant who can tell me about Liena's movements.
I had plans to use Tara as a double agent.
"... Well, am I going too far? I should be glad I didn't simply disclose my information."
In any case, it was essential to find out how much I could trust Tara.
I asked Vinetta just in case.
"Did you hear that something like an assault happened yesterday in Spring Flower Park?"
"This is the first time I've heard of that place."
"Maybe something about news of an unknown origin fire in the Elineth district?"
"No."
Before coming here, I also checked today's morning editions of all the newspapers published in the capital, but I didn't see any such article.
"Then Tara will come. You can bet on it."
"If Ethel-nim says so, then yes.
Vinetta didn't bother to ask why the Elineth district was mentioned here, even though the Spring Flower Park was mentioned. She simply waited in silence with me.
The promised time arrived. But Tara didn't appear. We continued waiting in silence. Time kept passing.
About an hour after the appointed time, I saw a figure running among the trees. It was Tara.
"Jaa, ja... I'm sorry. The lady gave me a sudden errand, but it's not the kind of thing I can reject or postpone for someone else."
Tara was soaked in sweat and panting.
I stood up and approached her.
"Tara, it's okay, rest easy."
"Why are you suddenly treating me so courteously...?"
"I am no longer Cassius's little lady or Tara's superior. And I am the kind of person who is courteous to those who are courteous to me first."
Tara realized that when I talked about courtesy, I didn't simply mean being polite.
"That's amazing. I haven't told you yet. How did you know? The fact that I just returned after seeing Viscount Chiléin."
"I would like to say I know everything, but Tara kept her oath, so I'll tell you the truth. Viscount Chillien is a tougher person than he seems.
At first glance, one might have thought that Viscount Chiléan, who lived a life hiding his identity and went to work at the racetrack every day after passing through Spring Flower Park, would be pitiful. But he wasn't wasting time gambling.
"A lot of money and people gather at the racetrack. Information accumulates naturally. Besides, the information guild is deeply involved in the operation of the racetrack."
Tara muttered under her breath.
"He's still a daring one. The more people there are, the more chances there are of getting caught."
"At the same time, he is meticulous. Tara, if you had attacked him hastily, the self-defense spell would have been activated."
"!"
Viscount Chiléan strictly maintained himself with the wealth he extorted by cheating people. He spared no expense in installing powerful self-defense magic or various traps in hideouts.
"As a result, in the novel, Tara almost loses Viscount Chiléan, whom she had captured."
At that moment, it was a story in which Liena, who seemed like a heroine, caught the Viscount. This was possible because Liena, who was with Tara in Spring Flower Park, noticed that she was acting strangely.
Subsequently, Liena gave Tara the opportunity to take revenge herself, and Tara apologized to her teacher for her rebellious behavior once the matter was over. Liena willingly forgave Tara, and the episode ended on a warm note.
"Chiléan's self-defense magic is a type of dark magic. The moment you touch him with malice, the pain is proportional to the degree of malice... Additionally, in his hideout in the Elineth district..."
I gave Tara as much information as I could about the man from the novel. Tara listened to me with incredible concentration and asked.
"I won't ask how you know this so well. I'm used to it thanks to Lady Liena. But why didn't you tell me this information yesterday?"
"Would it offend you if I tested to see if you are someone capable of keeping an oath or not?"
Tara's eyes briefly widened, then the corners of her mouth drew into a smile.
"Not at all. Ethel-nim, I know that two months ago I said and did many rude things."
She could see why. Tara was genuinely smiling at me for the first time.
"If I had given you information as a favor without this test, it would have been challenging for me to trust you. This is fatal for business."
"Can you trust me now?"
"Yes, wasn't the reason you had to test me because you would need me in the future? Then there would be no reason to test me."
I couldn't believe she figured it all out at once.
"You understand quickly."
It was a moment when my desire to make her mine became even stronger.
"Thank you for the compliment. I guess I have to go now. I want to prepare for revenge right away."
"Are you planning to take revenge tomorrow?"
"My heart is like a chimney, but tomorrow will be difficult. But I will finish it as soon as possible."
Tara's eyes burned silently but with more passion than yesterday.
"I am grateful to you."
Tara said, looking at the ground.
"Yesterday, I was very resentful of you for telling me to wait even though my enemy was right in front of me. But now that I've calmed down, I understand. I shouldn't deal with him in an emotional state. Revenge makes more sense when it is colder and complete."
I didn't try to imagine that Viscount Chiléan would find a different ending than in the novel. He was a human unworthy of sympathy.
"May your revenge be a success."
I sincerely prayed. Tara looked at me, hesitated for a moment, and then made a request. It was quite unexpected."