Chapter 90

No matter what the villains of this world were plotting, Citrina was at peace for now. After all, she was in love and the Pietro Duchy was Desian’s castle.

It was an evening without visits to the Senate or calls from vassals. Desian and Citrina had dinner alone.

‘It’s been a good day and I’ve enjoyed the time.’

The peaceful dinner was slowly winding down. Citrina gently put down her fork and knife. As she did so, Desian spoke up.
He brought up a new topic.

“Rina, I’ve hired some competent curse scholars.”

She appreciated his consideration. Citrina closed her eyes and smiled.

“Do I need to meet with them?”
“No, you don’t have to.”

Desian lowered his voice.
She wondered what the curse scholars were like and how many had been hired.

“Okay. Then I won’t do that.”

But Citrina replied plainly. There was something else she was curious about.

Dinner came to a close.
After sampling various dishes and desserts, she was full. Citrina patted her stomach and stared at the candlelight in front of her.
After her stomach was full, her unnecessary worries went away. Her mind was clear.

‘I’m drunk.’

The champagne gave her a moderate boost. Citrina looked at him in a mild state of intoxication.

“Del.”
“Yeah, Rina?”

Desian was sweet as ever. His consistent gaze sometimes made her forget about the events around them.

“There’s something I wanted to ask you.”
“Okay. Ask me.”

It was a neat reply. While meeting Desian’s gaze, Citrina had a sudden thought. He had awoken feelings she had long forgotten.
Actually, love is a simple emotion.
If you like someone, you like them. If you’re excited, you’re excited. The ambiguity was being flawlessly organized.
Citrina stared at him, jaw set. The man’s calm face was brightened by candlelight, and when the wind caught the candlelight, his face was shrouded in darkness.
It was like he had two faces. Looking at that face, Citrina asked mischievously.

“Since when have you liked me?”

Desian carefully chose his words as if picking a pearl from the sand.
Yet the words that came out of his mouth were clunky, eclipsed by the silence that had followed.

“Since the beginning.”

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As Desian spoke, he felt the urge to ruffle Citrina’s immaculate hair.
That summer day, when she’d stood beneath the trees, framed by their leaves.
It was her who had first made him curious- he who had floated aimlessly without a thought for anyone else.
Several seasons later, after that autumn had come and gone, Desian spoke.

“I’ve liked you since the beginning, Rina.”

Hearing his earnest voice and meeting his affectionate gaze completely, Citrina gave a small smile. It was cute how honest Desian seemed when he said that.
It was impossible to tell the depths of his emotions so Citrina smiled contendedly.

“Isn’t that the perfect answer?”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, it’s perfect.”

Desian laughed softly. He didn’t bother questioning it; he had no reason to challenge the depth of Citrina’s feelings.
With the small talk out of the way, Citrina decided to get down to business.

“No one’s talking about Arte Pianan’s death.”

She’d thought it would make a big impact.

“That’s because they came up with a good excuse.”

Hearing Desian’s cold voice, Citrina felt an odd sensation.
For some reason, she felt thirsty, so she reached for the glass of sweet-smelling pinot noir in front of her.

“Rina, if there’s one thing I know-”

As the blood-red wine sweetened the tip of her tongue, she met his penetrating gaze silently.

“It’s that you don’t need to worry about the curse at all.”

There was power in his words.
Citrina nodded, mesmerized, before snapping back to reality.

“…Why? Do you know how to fix it?”

She asked carefully.
She asked out of pure curiosity, even though her life depended on it.

“There’s no reason for me to let it stand in your way.”

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The coldness of the statement struck her.
She knew the future too. That was why her movements had changed the clockwork of this world.
Desian looked into Citrina’s eyes and slowly stood up.

“I’ll show you.”

Citrina stood up and followed Desian.
The maids, servants, and the butler did not follow.
The place where the swords were stored was underground.
The temperature and humidity of the room seemed to be perfectly controlled, like a wine cellar. Citrina marveled at the beautiful display cases, most likely powered by magic.

“Why are there so many marvelous things in this world? What’s this?”
“…be careful not to touch that holy sword.”
“Ah!”

Citrina nodded, attentive. Hearing her agreement, Desian reached for one of the swords in a row.
The tip of the blade bore a familiar sigil.

“This… is the sigil on Elaina’s sword.”
“It means it’s from Genfiros’ private organization.”

Desian whispered low. His husky voice echoed in the cave-like space.

“…You mean Genfiros created a private organization himself? Did he use sword magic to control spirits inside the swords?”
“That’s right.”

So that meant…

“You have so many…amazing swords here.”

She had worked at the dwarven atelier, inlaying mana stones in swords, but she didn’t know much about swords themselves.

‘I’ve always wondered about swords.’

As Citrina looked at the jewel-encrusted swords, sharp blades, and sword scabbards one by one, she suddenly stopped.
That’s because there was an object that couldn’t help but grab her attention.
She quickly rubbed her eyes.

‘…This, I recognize it.’

The color, shape, and sensation were all familiar to her.
She slowly rubbed her eyes a few times.
Even after rubbing her eyes, what stood before her was the same.

‘This…is the magic sword, isn’t it?’

It had been cleaned up and made to appear like a regular sword. But Citrina could tell.

‘What is this doing here?’

She knew that this was the magic sword of Desian Pietro, the villain in <Elaina’s Flower Garden>.
In <Elaina’s Flower Garden>, this sword had been Desian’s constant companion. It was described as a sword that captivated everyone’s attention the first time they saw it. The blood-red stains seemed like an illusion.
In the novel Citrina had read before her reincarnation, the description of the sword was always extravagant. It was to the point that one could recognize it at a glance.
Unlike other swords, it was completely pitch-black, had a long and elegant shape, and even its handle was encrusted with rare gems.

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It was the only sword of its kind.
Therefore Citrina who had read the book dozens of times had no choice but to remember it.
This was the sword Desian had used to kill and seal the half-demon that had constantly eaten at his mind.
His blade had cut through numerous things, including the blades of the world tree.

“Del.”

Then…if Desian Pietro had been fully rehabilitated as a young man, he would not be here. This would not be here.
Citrina tapped her fingers on the glass of the display case. A gentle voice, like a soft breeze, reached her ears.
Desian still looked at her with loving, rather innocent eyes.

“What is this sword?”
“It’s nothing much.”

Desian stretched out his body gracefully as usual. His demeanor was normal.
However, his body completely blocked the space between her and the magic sword.
It seemed pretty intentional.

“Are you done sightseeing?”
“…For now.”

Citrina asked, fighting her nerves to open her mouth.

“Then let’s get out of here, Rina.”

Citrina took one last look at the magic sword before turning away.

“…alright, let’s go.”

Citrina smiled, skillfully hiding her embarrassment.
She thought of the occasionally cold side glances, the gossip, and also the magic sword.
Citrina wasn’t completely convinced, as she was the type to knock on stone bridges before crossing them. Nevertheless, given the current situation and the fact that Desian seemed to know the identity of the sword, the answer lay before her.
Desian Pietro is a villain.
He was never rehabilitated.
He was only pretending to be ‘reformed’ because he liked her.
After coming to that conclusion, Citrina looked at him.

“Del, I’m going to the annex.”
She didn’t say, “I need to think about something”.

Desian casually held out his hand. Citrina took it.
She wasn’t afraid to hold his hand.

After dropping Citrina off at the annex, Desian went back to stand in front of the sword.
Its blade was fine and easy to cut with, but it seemed Citrina had sensed something fishy about it.
It was a pity to get rid of it.
But it was not as valuable as her trust.

“How should I extinguish it…”

As with the spirit in Genfiros’ sword, he was inclined to destroy it.
That’s why Kai, the half-demon sealed within the sword, trembled in fear.
This guy who was worse than the devil might kill him.
Kai didn’t want to be destroyed. He wanted to somehow stick with this devil [Desian] and continue sucking up the blood of stupid humans.
What could he do to avoid being annihilated?
Kai decided to bring up what the human had mentioned earlier.
-You said it was a curse, didn’t you? I know how it’s made. And, uh, how to destroy it.
Desian licked the blood bubbling up from his lips.

“How can I believe anything a demon says?”

-I have a way to make it disappear! It’s true!

The offer was quite tempting.
Desian decided to deal with Genfiros first.