Chapter 167  

Was it because Lloyd had God’s hope?

His words sounded unpredictable, more than Aria had imagined.

‘I know it’s nonsense.’

But strangely, she wanted to believe it. She wanted to focus only on the desire to live.

‘Didn’t I do this before….’

Even in a desperate situation, Aria somehow smiled.

It was because she had superimposed her image, who said that he could live, that she would save him no matter what, on Lloyd.

She wondered if the words she had told people to believe in her so far sounded like this to them.

– Alright. Okay.

She responded with a faint smile.

The Pope was a generous master who tolerated his loyal dog, whether they be corrupt or not.

However, when the Cardinal was reported to have been gathering troops without the Pope’s knowledge, he had no choice but to express fierce anger.

“Deprive the Cardinal’s position, retrieve his divine power, and banish him to the lowest place.”

The Pope coldly ordered.

He was only tolerant of loyal dogs. He bestowed many opportunities, power, and wealth in favor of those who claimed to be his own dog.

But for the dog that bites its owner.

They of course have to be beaten relentlessly.

“Your, Your Holiness! You can’t do this to me! The head of the research lab must be setting up a ridiculous trap out of spite!”

The Cardinal was dragged along like a dog. To lose his divine power was equivalent to cutting off his limbs and plucking out his eyes.

The Pope said, staring indifferently at the Cardinal, who struggled not to get dragged.

“Unfortunately, there’s no way to know if it’s a trap or not.”

Valentine’s sudden invasion of the Kingdom of Bruto caused a stir around the world.

Rumors spread quickly.

From the outside, it was because Valentine and the Kingdom of Bruto had nothing to do with each other. However, the world, including the Emperor, tolerated Valentine’s sudden action.

So, with a tacit agreement, Valentine destroyed the lab.

‘There are even rumors circulating that the Grand Duke and the Grand Prince have been completely engulfed in madness and lost their mind.’

However, those who did not want to make today the day of their death took care of themselves.

Pope Ambrose was also forced to remain silent.

‘Leeches.’

His true intention was to declare war on Valentine because his stomach was boiling with anger.

‘Valentine has guessed all the truth about Garcia.’

And Valentine must have bitten on the truth like a leech and wasn’t going to let it go. It was clearly visible that they were trying to spread the secret through a devious scheme and try to bring down Garcia.

‘Especially Grand Princess Ariadne Valentine, no, it should be Cortez.’

The expelled Cardinal despised the Siren as a ‘singing clown’ and ignored her. Even the Pope had not yet esteemed her highly.

Of course, Valentine’s help was enough to reclaim the ship from the slave trader.

‘But no matter how much I think about it, it seems that the Siren, the Grand Princess, was the one who stopped this rampage……’

Then he had to redo all the judgments he had made so far.

“I heard that there is a trainee from Valentine, and his skills are quite good. What’s his name?”

Then the commander of the Holy Knights, who was waiting by the Pope’s side, answered.

“His name is Gabriel.”

“How is he?”

“He has a great potential that has never been seen before.”

He added with a little bit of admiration and awe.“It’s still a skill that hasn’t surpassed me, but it’s hard to even guess how far he’ll go when he grows up.”

“Hmm…”

It is a skill that even the commander of the Holy Knights can admire, who was the pinnacle of Garcia’s force.

The Pope pondered for a moment, then said.

“Call him.”

“This is the potion.”

Cuirre secretly handed Lloyd a vial of medicine.

It was made by combining some of the herbs that Lloyd had obtained directly from the Cortez mansion. A potion that not only makes her unable to speak, but also makes her unable to make a sound.

“The experiment is completed as ordered. And my prediction was correct.”

The doctor did not hide his gloomy expression and continued to speak.

“I think it would be better to tell the rest of the family, including the Grand Duke, Young Madam’s condition …”

It was then.

Lloyd looked down at the vial without saying a word for a moment, then opened the lid and drank the contents at once.

“Grand Prince?!”

Cuirre was terrified.

“Why would you drink it? It acts like poison to the body…!”

Aria said that she had been drinking it every single day since she was born.

Lloyd tried to spit out a few words, but had no sound, and turned to Cuirre.

[So, what’s the alternative?]

Cuirre looked down at what he had written and reported with a confused expression.

“If you haven’t had it in a while, a detoxifying drug might work. However, the Young Madam has been drinking this potion continuously for years.”

Cuirre knew all too well what the reaction would be if he said this.

‘Actually, I think she’s closer to time limited…….’

He lamented inside, imagining the future, where he would leave before Aria, whose life was limited. But he couldn’t say that he was going to lie about something that was completely impossible.

He said, closing his eyes tight.

“I’m very sorry to say this……but I think you need to prepare your mind.”

As soon as the doctor had finished his words, he was terrified, shrugged his shoulders, and squeezed his eyes shut.

However, no matter how long he waited, he did not hear the sound of the sword being drawn. The cool, sharp blade of a sword did not even move close around his neck.

‘What?’

Cuirre felt suspicious and slowly opened his eyes.

Lloyd seemed to be uninterested in the conclusion Cuirre had reached, and wrote again with a stern look in his eyes.

[You’ll have to say something more useful than that.]

He didn’t know how handwritten words made his heart tremble as much as hearing them with Lloyd’s own voice.

This time, the doctor was really prepared to die and shouted.

“Grand, Grand Prince. Anyway, it really is like that. With the current medical level, there’s absolutely no way to save Young Madam!”

[I’m not saying to kill you.]

“What? Huh?”

He made a low pitched sound.

Lloyd sighed and wrote again.

[Are there any herbs in this potion that you have never encountered before?]

Obviously, Count Cortez said, Aria’s mother tried to kill herself by eating a poisonous poison he had never heard of before. So he searched the whole country and desperately saved her life.“Ah, yes. There is a medicinal herb that was obtained from the northernmost region with the advice of scholars who majored in herbal medicine. Unfortunately, the plant only grows in that region.”

The northernmost tip.

‘The known location where Atlantis sank 1500 years ago was also in the north.’

If so, it would mean that there is a high probability that they were adjacent to each other before.

‘I’ll have to start from there.’

Lloyd made a quick decision and ordered Cuirre.

[Go and tell the Black Falcons. Everyone, go to that region, no exception.]

With Aria’s consent, Lloyd revealed the truth to the family, including Tristan and Sabina.

“I thought it was a bit strange, but no way…”

Vincent muttered, covering his mouth, in shock.

“…Call the doctor right now.”

Tristan, who seemed to be confused for a moment, showed a reaction that everyone expected. He had the same reaction when he found out Aria couldn’t eat.

“I can’t believe it. How incompetent is it that you haven’t been able to properly grasp the state of her body?”

His faded eyes slowly began to glow with a different light. The light is called ‘an intent to murder’.

“No, no. I’ll go by myself.”

As if there was no need to waste time, he drew his sword and moved without hesitation.

It was just before another bloodbath.

Aria quickly grabbed his hand. And, sent a message for everyone to hear.

– Don’t do that. I’m still in good health without any problems, and we’re able to figure it out quickly.

It was true.

They found out at least a year before Aria’s death.

No, she actually thought they wouldn’t know after she became an adult. So she put the condition that they divorced after she became an adult.

‘But we’ve become everything to each other more than I could have imagined…….’

Aria’s continued greed was not limited to Lloyd. It also included the family, whom she will never forget even in death.

– Sorry. I’ll make sure I’ll survive.

Aria copied Lloyd’s reckless remarks while holding Tristan’s hand tightly.

“Ho…….”

Tristan was reminded of the cigarette he had quit for a while, and he exhaled slowly, calming his anger.

At that moment, Sabina’s voice suddenly mumbled.

“…Ah, is that it.”

She couldn’t say anything at first, but then she hugged Aria tightly and muttered.

“This is how my husband and son felt.”

Sabina clenched her fists until a vein sprang up over the back of her hand.

The helplessness of waiting for a loved one to die of incurable disease.

The helplessness that they cannot do anything on their own.

Obviously, Tristan and Lloyd must have felt the same way at the time.

“It’s a waste of time to go to each doctor one by one. The first thing to do is find a way to treat you by any means.”

Winter then said, as he was listening to all the stories from a short distance away.

“I’ll try to mobilize all my connections. Surely, there must be a way somewhere.”

Then Vincent, who had unconditionally reacted to Winter’s words, took it seriously this time.

“If neither the doctor nor the divine powers are of any use, we must really do whatever it takes.”

He gives some examples.

Scholars who study various ancient myths and legends, including a medical doctor who once made a name for himself in the gutter.

Even the merchants who only deal with eastern continent goods and the scammers who say they are selling items with mystical powers.

Lloyd, who had been silent until the end, finally opened his mouth.

“I’m going to take Aria to the province of Attis at the northern end.”

Then, he spread out the report posted by the Black Falcon and added.

“It seems that Aria can be cured by using flowers that only bloom in that region.”