Charlotte could not imagine how he was supposed to keep this boast going.
Saint Michael's Island was quite nice, but it belonged to Inglima. It was fine for him to occupy it, but giving it away would feel improper and unjustified.
That Divine Creature?
Whether it was appropriate to give such a thing away in private was one matter, but it definitely could not be mentioned publicly.
Other things...
Could he give Anne a chance to summon an evil god?
Count Brittany would definitely personally chop him to pieces!
Perhaps necessity had sparked his wit!
Or perhaps when people were driven to desperation, they could do anything.
Charlotte spoke in a measured, flowing tone. "In this world, even heroes grow old! Even emperors age. Even those with overwhelming power will someday suffer loneliness and humiliation; even wealth beyond measure will leave its owner; even the most precious treasure will have a day when it is no longer needed."
"But there is one thing that can endure forever, so long as humanity remains!"
"That is civilization!"
"Anne and I wrote several novels together, and they are of quite good quality!"
"I believe that even a hundred years, two hundred years, or even five hundred years from now, people will still read them and remember that these novels were written by a man named Charlotte Mecklen for the girl he loved most!"
"I do not know how long your name will remain engraved in history, but I can assure you that Anne's name will be passed down longer than yours—far, far longer."
"At most, in a hundred years, perhaps fifty, whenever someone mentions your name, they will surely say: Oh, we know him, Miss Anne's father!"
Kreil and Abner quietly took another step back. Both knew that Charlotte wrote novels, and both