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The past.

Every second, every minute, people let the past slip away. Once gone, that time could never be reclaimed or grasped again. Moreover, as human life was finite, choosing one\'s path was of utmost importance.

Thus, the raging waves of karma were always to be feared.

Karma was like a noose that dragged one down by the ankles with irretrievable memories, robbing those who repeatedly made wrong choices of the strength to move forward.

Those who had lost their drive to walk towards the future were no better than bones buried in the earth.

So if one\'s feet were bound by that noose, it had to be humbly accepted. Fate would judge the sinner, leaving no other choice.

However, if one could break free from that law and turn back time.

If one could escape the noose of karma.

Surely, that would deserve to be called a miracle.

---

---

It was September, as summer\'s heat began to fade.

If Elphisia\'s midsummer could be summarized in one word, it would be stagnation.

She attended to official duties during the day and spent romantic evenings with Harte. Of course, unlike the superhuman Harte, Elphisia was an ordinary human, so her time with him was limited, excluding sleep.

The political situation was much the same.

She received some concerning reports about Glen, but quickly pushed them from her mind. Elphisia was confident she could counter whatever schemes Askalion might attempt. Besides, she had long since secured many of their weaknesses.

Among the most critical weaknesses was the location and identity of Tina\'s mother.

In the past, as soon as Elphisia learned that Tina was a half-dragon, she headed straight for her family\'s secret library.

Fundamentally, half-dragons couldn\'t exist. Interbreeding between species was biologically impossible.

Yet, faced with this impossibility, a possibility flashed through Elphisia\'s mind.

She found that possibility in one of the books seized from Castle Baskhill when Cardi Luminel arrested the King of Baskhill - the Baskhill genealogy.

The massive tome chronicling the royal bloodline\'s history recorded their mysterious abilities.

The clan of fertility and propagation.

They were the only humans capable of interbreeding with other species. As Elphisia had suspected, researching the genealogy yielded an answer.

A distant branch of the family had taken root in the empire as commoners.

Digging a bit deeper led to the conclusion that Tina\'s birth mother had one foot in the Baskhill lineage.

In other words, Tina and Glen were distant relatives, practically strangers.

However, until now, Elphisia hadn\'t realized.

Since Glen was clearly of Baskhill blood, there was no need to investigate him.

And because his race was undoubtedly human.

She had no idea whose bloodline he truly descended from.

"Shall we depart?" Glen asked Elphisia, who had just finished her preparations.

"Just a moment."

Elphisia set down her well-polished ruby necklace on the side table. Instead, she put on a necklace with a simple glass ornament and said:

"Now, let\'s go."

Today\'s schedule was packed with a charity party.

In the past, Elphisia wouldn\'t have bothered attending such an event. The comfort of others had no direct connection to her family\'s interests.

So the host who sent the invitation did so merely out of courtesy. They never truly intended for Elphisia to attend in person.

Yet Elphisia accepted the invitation. She thought Harte might give her a wonderful smile if she told him about it. That was all.

"It\'s been a while since you\'ve attended a social gathering, I believe."

"Are you mocking me?"

"...No, not at all."

The reason Elphisia had vanished from official functions was simple and clear.

She was busy with official duties during the day and meeting Harte at night. Considering that most social gatherings were evening affairs, this was the natural result.

If someone were to accuse her of neglecting gatherings because she was head over heels for a man, she\'d have no excuse.

"I\'m joking."

"I... see."

Given Glen\'s personality, he likely wasn\'t mocking her, but Elphisia felt stung nonetheless.

If not for Harte\'s influence, she wouldn\'t have even considered attending a charity party.

"Let\'s go."

"Yes, Your Grace."

And so, Elphisia set out with a light heart.

A charity party was just a matter of enjoying some drinks and snacks, then handing over some money or goods before leaving.

There shouldn\'t be any problems.

It wasn\'t as if it were a banquet at the Court Count\'s mansion. Just a charity gathering to show some goodwill...

---

---

The charity party was held at a theater in the capital.

It was commonly called the Grand Theater, as it held the record for being the largest and most spacious theater in the empire.

Count Rinel, the host who had rented out the Grand Theater, was busy greeting guests. Whatever his true intentions, many nobles attended due to the event\'s good cause. The unexpected turnout left Count Rinel unable to hide his generous smile.

However, his smile soon met its demise.

\'What\'s this? There\'s a commotion at the entrance...\'

The Count, engaged in conversation at the center of the hall, couldn\'t see the entrance. His view was blocked by a dense wall of people. So he unconsciously furrowed his brow.

But that didn\'t last long.

Click. Click.

The sound of shoes lightly tapping the marble floor echoed through the hall. Oddly enough, the footsteps of this person caused the wall of people to shrink back.

The confident and arrogant gait clearly revealed itself. Women with such presence were rare. It made him wonder if perhaps the Empress Dowager had graced them with her presence.

But soon, the identity of the figure that caught his eye was even more unexpected than the Empress Dowager.

"Du-Duchess Luminel...?"

"Count? What\'s this... Haa."

The man talking with the Count exclaimed in shock.

The owner of the imposing stride - Elphisia Luminel - approached them in a straight line with leisurely steps.

Faced with this unexpected situation, the Count forgot to manage his expression and froze stiff.

"It\'s been a while, Count Rinel."

"Y-You honor us with your presence, Duchess Luminel. But what brings you here..."

"I received an invitation, so I came... Is there a problem?"

"How could there be? It\'s just that I never imagined you\'d actually come..."

Charity was the word furthest from Elphisia\'s character.

It was questionable why this cruel woman, who used to terrorize and plunder like a starving beast, had personally come here.

Thus, as the host, Count Rinel couldn\'t help but feel tense. One wrong move, and this woman alone could bring the entire charity event crashing down.

"I don\'t mind if you think so. It\'s true that I\'ve neglected social gatherings."

"Ha ha... Well then, I hope you enjoy yourself."

"You may go."

Elphisia didn\'t bother to detain Count Rinel. There was no point in keeping someone so visibly uncomfortable by her side.

\'Well, it doesn\'t matter. I\'m used to being alone anyway.\'

If she said this out loud, Harte would probably be indignant. Or maybe he\'d try to comfort her, saying it\'s sad that she\'s accustomed to being alone in a life meant to be shared with others.

Either reaction would be worth seeing at least once.

The thought amused her, causing her lips to curve into a smile.

At that moment, the people around her who had been stealing glances burst into astonished chatter.

"My word, we\'re witnessing Duchess Luminel smile."

"Has some scheme of hers come to fruition?"

"She\'s still as inscrutable as ever..."

Elphisia couldn\'t hear their conversations clearly, but she got the gist of it. Once again, the remnants of her past seemed to cling to her like a dark shadow.

Now, brazenly, she felt regret.

She never imagined she\'d question the direction of her life at over thirty years old. Much less that the cause of her doubt would be the character of a man who occupied her thoughts.

Just a little, ever so slightly...

She wondered if she should have lived like that saint who was supposedly Harte\'s childhood friend.

There had been more than enough opportunities, but in the past, she had thought such a life utterly meaningless.

She believed that if life ended with death, it was right to live according to one\'s impulses.

Even though she was well aware that creatures who lived by impulse alone were called beasts... In the end, she had chosen the path of a predator.

"Hah..."

As one who walked the predator\'s path, she had sworn to take full responsibility for the consequences of her actions. But now that the noose called karma was becoming clear, a sigh of dejection escaped her.

Yes, karma.

If only she had known that karma, which strangled and crushed its victims, would approach so closely at this charity event she had capriciously decided to attend...

She would have deliberated for at least a few more minutes.

"...Elphisia Luminel."

"What?"

Elphisia instinctively turned her head towards the voice that called her name. There, a man in servant\'s attire carrying food glared at her with gloomy eyes.

"Did you call me? By name?"

She asked to confirm, unable to believe it.

She felt more baffled than angry. Even the Emperor of the Empire couldn\'t address Elphisia by her full name. It was impossible for anyone but her lover, Harte.

Yet strangely, the servant also seemed to take a sharp breath, as if equally confused.

"Don\'t you... remember me?"

"I\'m afraid I\'m too busy to remember every employee who isn\'t even part of my household."

"... Ha, haha... Ahahaha!"

Suddenly, the servant burst into maniacal laughter. Elphisia responded with a look of disgust and a single remark:

"Have you gone mad?"

The bizarre scene drew the attention of the crowd. It was somewhat burdensome, but she didn\'t bother to show it outwardly.

"Elphisia Luminel..."

About five seconds after he uttered Elphisia\'s name again.

A momentary scream pierced the ceiling of the Grand Theater, and a murder that would long be the talk of the charity event unfolded.