‎”So, uh…” Carrion scratched the back of his head nervously as he looked at the table. “We are going to do this here?” He looked at Erlina who only wore a night gown in front of him.

‎”It’s going to take days on this ship… are you going to let me get cold every night like this?” Erlina asked as she wrapped her arms around Carrion’s neck.

‎”God damn it! I lost!” Carrion hid his face with his hands, his ears were red.

‎Erlina laughed as she pulled her hands away from Carrion and then grabbed the glass of whiskey. She offered the full glass of whiskey to Carrion, and forced him to drink it all in a single breathing.

‎Carrion struggled to swallow the whiskey that he almost gagged. Once he managed to not throw it all up, he collapsed on the floor as he groaned.

‎”It’s unfair to use your body for this challenge…” Carrion said as he tried to sit up and looked at Erlina and the others at the table. “Ugh… Having to drink in the ship is a bad idea…” he groaned as he held his head.

‎Astrea couldn’t help but laugh and flustered at those two because of their indecent and vulgar displays. She was embarrassed and overwhelmed because she had never seen or experience anything like that before.

‎”You two… Lady Astrea and Saint Serena are here with us. Please, behave…” Daryus said with a serious expression, however his face was red from witnessing it.

‎Serena didn’t even react to those two’s actions since she was Lilith underneath the body. She had so many things down in hell, and how her children seduced then tortured sinners there. What those two did was pale in comparison to what her children did to the tormented souls.

‎Lenin reacted almost the same as Serena since she didn’t find something like that to be taboo. However, Novia was quite the opposite, she kept covering her eyes the whole time because she couldn’t handle public affection.

‎Rasmus didn’t even bat an eye toward those two and kept his eyes on the book he was reading. However, he didn’t find the commotion to be disturbing or annoying. He enjoyed the light mood that Erlina always brought with her, and it was a pleasant to have her around.

‎Aris watched the whole thing without blinking her eyes. She was curious about human emotions, especially toward affection. She found it endearing and how something so simple could make them happy.

‎”Rasmus, can you ask about it to Her Holiness?” Carrion asked as he leaned his body toward Rasmus. His face was red, completely drunk and oblivious to what he was saying. “You know… that thing?” He slouched and slurred like a drunkard.

‎Rasmus knew what Carrion meant while the others were confused and curious about his words. Rasmus looked at Carrion’s eyes that were barely open. Even though he couldn’t smell anything, he knew that Carrion’s breath smelled like alcohol.

‎”Can you sit still first?” Rasmus asked as he stared right into Carrion’s eyes.

‎Carrion responded with a giggle, and his body was about to collapse, but Erlina stopped him from falling. Since it was her doing, she was responsible for Carrion’s current state. She pushed Carrion onto the chair, and then sat beside him, making sure he wouldn’t fall to the side.

‎”Lady Astrea, everyone might have this lingered in their heads. Carrion is wondering, if you have a husband since there’s no history or knowledge about him,” Rasmus asked as he closed his book and looked at Astrea.

‎Everyone became quiet and looked at Rasmus in disbelief to asking for something like that of Astrea. Although he wasn’t wrong that they were also curious about it, that question was a bit too personal and quite rude to ask.

‎”Because there’s none, Count,” Astrea answered as she smiled at Rasmus. “However, Aurelia is indeed my biological daughter,” she continued.

‎Everyone sat still, not saying a word and even held their breath, waiting for Astrea to explain it further.

‎”I did experience the love making, but there was no love or intimacy in it. I don’t even know who I slept with and who’s Aurelia’s father because I didn’t chose the man, the elders did,” Astrea said in a gentle voice as she looked at the table blankly. “They chose a perfect candidate, then they brought him into a pitch black chamber. Then I was informed about it and went there, did it in complete darkness,” she revealed.

‎”I didn’t remember that much of that day, or it was because I tried to forget about it,” Astrea continued as she looked down at her wrapped with bandages hands. “That’s the way of how the Saint keeps producing an heir, at least in the Holy Nation. I don’t know how it works for the Sancticus family up north since they can produce more than one heir,” she continued.

‎Everyone could tell that Astrea was uncomfortable talking about that matter.

‎”And you’re fine with Aurelia to follow that path?” Rasmus asked with a stoic expression.

‎”Honestly, I don’t know, Count. Do you think a Saint is allowed to care more toward one person than her followers?” Astrea asked back.

‎”Allowed? Who forbid it? God?” Rasmus asked back at her again.

‎When Rasmus mentioned God, Astrea couldn’t answer the question. There wasn’t a single rule that a Saint couldn’t have a partner.

‎”You’re no longer a Saint, Lady Astrea. It’s time for you to live as a mother, purely as a mother who wants nothing but the best for Aurelia. She’s bright and compassionate, but don’t ruin her with a blind obedience. She was born with unnecessary heavy burdens while others saw it as virtue and blessing. Become someone that she can be comfortable and be away from her duty,” Rasmus said as he opened his book and continued reading.

‎The room became silent once again, and this time it was heavier. Mothers like Astrea and Lenin found Rasmus’s words to be eye-opening, realizing what they had neglected for the one they loved. For Erlina and the others, they were burdened by their responsibilities, realizing they were born with something that they didn’t ask for. The pain, the suffering, the sacrifice, and the bad things that happened to them, it was all connected to what Rasmus said.

‎”Count, have you always been this empathetic toward people?” Astrea asked out of curiosity because in the past weeks, she felt like she was being comforted by Rasmus in his own way.

‎”Not toward people, Lady Astrea. He cares toward people he sees fit,” Erlina smiled as she looked at Astrea. “You just don’t want the people around you to make mistakes, right, Count?” She chuckled, teasing Rasmus, who was focused on the book.

‎”Mistakes aren’t always bring regrets. Some right choices can bring regrets. I just want to make them not to have those regrets,” Rasmus answered as he kept reading.

‎”Well, there you have it, Lady Astrea,” Erlina smiled gently at Astrea.

‎Astrea smiled as she chuckled softly and nodded, finding all of Rasmus words to carve into her mind. She knew Rasmus didn’t have any moral compass, but every time she was with him, he spoke nothing but the truth. It was hard for her to put him in which side he belonged to.

‎”How do you do that, Count? How do you always have the right words to say?” Lenin asked as she crossed her arms.

‎”Because I don’t open my mouth to something that I don’t fully understand. It’s not that I’m always right, I just speak when I know what’s right,” Rasmus answered as he flipped the page and kept reading.

‎”What an admirable self-control you have there, Count,” Lenin smiled as she leaned toward the table and stared right into Rasmus’s eyes. “Anyway, when are you going to tell us the truth about your servant, Videl? I know that the paladin that serves Saint Serena is him. I have never seen your servants ever since Archduke Thalior mentioned his disappearance a few months ago,” she confronted with a smirk on her face.

Novia and Astrea didn’t know about that, and when Lenin mentioned it, they began to realize about the disappearance of Rasmus’s butler, Videl. Carrion and the others didn’t react to it since they already knew, and they didn’t want to get involved in this issue.

“Ah, seeing that your people aren’t reacting, that means they already know,” Lenin said with a smile as she stared at Rasmus.

“They knew, and I didn’t try to hide it in the first place, Great Sage. Nobody asked about it, and I don’t need to reveal it anyway,” Rasmus answered as he stared back at Lenin. “You already know how powerful Videl was back when we went to the spatial room. But the real question is, why do you want to know a lot about him? Is there a specific reason why you’re prying on the background of the people that follow me? Is that out of fear, suspicion, or something else?” He asked with a stoic expression.

“Nothing to be worried about, Count. I’m asking out of curiosity because you seem to have planted a lot of seeds wherever you go. Bringing in various people from different backgrounds and different views of reality. And yet here you are, having these amazing individuals under your wings, wondering how many more that you would collect,” Lenin responded, still with a smile on her face.

“Who knows, Great Sage. The future is a mystery,” Rasmus answered and focused on the book again. “Don’t tell me you think I have predicted and planned everything?” He asked as he glanced at Lenin.

“Am I not allowed to speculate? You’re just giving me off that aura of someone who would have seen and predict the future,” Lenin answered as she chuckled.

The tension in the air became heavy when those two talks began, but suddenly Carrion threw up, and that broke the tension immediately.

“It’s getting late, I think we are all tired… so why don’t we call it a night?” Erlina asked with a smile on her face.

Everyone nodded in agreement since they didn’t want to be a part of the tension anymore.

“Well then, let’s head back to our own cabin,” Lenin smiled as she stood up. “Let’s not do a drink game again tomorrow,” she chuckled as she stared at Carrion who was barely conscious.

“Agreed,” Daryus nodded.

Everyone chuckled while Rasmus only put a smile on his face as he kept reading the book.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep