Sir, Go Easy

Once everything had settled, the two of them were still embracing each other.

Vivian spoke slowly, "Little Kexin, you need to take the acting of the potion slowly. The Witch Cult is currently screening for a new 'Saintess,' and that's not a good thing."

"And besides, I can't bear to let you advance to Sequence Seven now."

Those words made Count Altair's blood surge, and he asked directly, "Vivian, what Sequence are you now?"

When asked this question, Vivian sighed helplessly and said, "I just advanced to Sequence Six not long ago, and only started digesting the potion after being with you. At the rate we went this morning, it'll take at least half a year."

"Little Kexin, you should probably know some things about the Witch Cult, though not much. Let me introduce it to you now."

"The Witch Cult controls the Full Assassin Pathway and part of the Diviner Pathway. They have some Low Sequence Formulas for other pathways, and possibly High Sequence Formulas too. But when cultivating new members, the Witch Cult never trains people from other pathways—only Assassins. A few lucky ones become 'Diviners,' but they don't join the Witch Cult; they can only join the subordinate organization, the 'Spirituality Society.' The core of the Witch Cult is only Witches."

"And at the core layer of the Witch Cult, the Archbishop is the 'Grey Witch' Judith, child of the 'Primal Witch,' along with the Thirteen High Sequence Witches."

"As for now, you're the antidote for my advancement to Sequence Five."

Seeing Vivian's smiling, teasing expression, Altair knew her mood had stabilized. So he teased back, "Then according to your Witch Cult's rules, you should be my wife now. I'm not your antidote—I'm your husband."

Vivian looked at the serious expression on the man before her and said with a smile something she'd later regret, "That still requires my consent."

"So? Do you submit now?"

Her response was silence.

Feeling the person beside her stir again, Vivian could only resign herself.

It wasn't until the dusk sunlight was about to fade that she helplessly gave Altair the answer he wanted.

Through Vivian's behavior that afternoon, Altair had noticed something off about her.

After recovering from the afternoon's exertion, Altair got up to find some food. Seeing him about to rise, Vivian forced herself past her physical discomfort to dress him.

Watching her still pushing through, Altair felt an unexpected warmth in his heart, along with a pang of regret—had he gone too far?

Once dressed, he told Vivian to rest in bed while he went to find food.

When Altair left the bedroom, he noticed that some of the gas lamps in the villa were already lit.

Going straight downstairs, he saw Hahn. The butler was looking at Altair with a strange expression, his lips moving as if to speak, but unable to form words.

Finally, he sighed and said, "Count Altair, you should take care of yourself."

"Is there anything you'd like for dinner? Or anything Miss Vivian wants?"

Hearing Hahn's words, Altair knew he'd figured things out. Awkwardly rubbing his nose, he said, "A normal meal is fine, just add a bowl of chicken soup."

Knowing dinner would take a while, Altair grabbed some pastries from the table and, under Hahn's odd gaze, temporarily returned to his room.

Meanwhile, Vivian was leaning against the headboard, waiting for her "beloved" to return. As the sound of the door opening reached her, she broke into a smile.

From Altair's perspective, Vivian started smiling the moment he entered.

Seeing her smile, Altair walked over and said, "What? Miss me that much?"

Hearing his clueless remark, Vivian thought to herself, Still a child. Needs more education, but can my body take it?

Watching her expression shift, Altair picked up a pastry and said, "Dinner's still being prepared. It'll be a while. Have some pastries first."

When Vivian said she felt unwell and couldn't lift her hand, Altair fed her bite by bite.

They hadn't eaten many pastries before dinner was ready.

But after a full day of intense activity, Vivian still hadn't recovered. Altair had to help her dress and carry her to the dining room.

As for the other servants, Hahn had sent them away. The Kingdom of Ruun was ostensibly a conservative country—though behind closed doors, things could get wild, appearances had to be maintained.

Since last Sunday, Vivian had essentially moved into Altair's home, eating and sleeping together. When he went to class during the day, she watched from the side, sometimes wiping his sweat or handing him tea...

In the evenings during free time, she taught him Occult Knowledge, Yoga, Jujutsu...

By Friday night, as they lay in bed chatting, Vivian finally told him about how she had schemed against him.

"Kexin, have you ever wondered why you were forced to become a witch and made a count? Doesn't it confuse you?"

Hearing the person beside him voice his own doubts, Altair asked curiously, "Do you know the reason behind it? I still can't understand what George III's goal was."

Hearing this, Vivian turned her head to look at him and said, "No one else was scheming against you. From becoming a count to taking the potion, I was the one pulling the strings the whole time."

"Then what was your goal?" Altair asked after she finished.

Altair's harsh gaze still stung Vivian. Afraid to look at him, she turned her head and said, "I set my sights on you the moment you entered that banquet. Later, when you followed Leif Strauss to beg George III for the title inheritance, it struck a chord with me—my ancestors were once just like you. At the time, I thought you should have been embraced by the 'Primal,' so I used George III as an excuse to drag you down."

"But after all this time together, I've found that I might have fallen for you. I've been thinking about it these past two days—whether to tell you. I deeply regret my original decision."

After listening to Vivian's explanation, the doubts in Altair's heart were finally resolved—why he had been made the Countess.

He turned to Vivian and said, "I don't hold a grudge against you. After all, you are my beloved, and becoming a Beyonder was already part of my plan—it was just forced upon me by someone else."

"So that night, the 'George III' I saw was also you?"

After Vivian had finished speaking the words she had buried deep in her heart, she heard no reproach from her "beloved"—instead, he was joking with her. Her mood lifted, and she said, "That's right. How was that mirror? It was the first mirror I made using my blood combined with Extraordinary Materials, and I gave it directly to you."

Seeing Vivian's improved spirits, Altair gritted his teeth in mock anger and said, "Have you thought about how you'll accept your revenge?"

Watching her beloved act like a child, Vivian felt a headache coming on. She could only soften, trembling as she said, "I can only let you do with me as you please now."

"Go easy on me, my lord."