Becoming the Villain’s Family - Chapter 297
Chapter 297
She summoned her voice to challenge.
Only a Siren could infuse a song with magical power, and Aria was the last of her kind in this world. A fact even the Grand Duke from a devastated world should know.
‘What song shall I sing?”
Aria pondered, eyeing the Duke who seemed to ask her to try.
‘Those eyes…’
In her past life, she’d never fully understood. The depth of madness that desperation could bring. It was the look of someone who had lost everything and had nothing left to lose.
Aria had been contemplating finding an exorcist. She had been concerned for Lloyd’s state.
‘But now, in the Kingdom of Garcia, that’s not possible.’
Observing his gaze again, she felt a pang of sympathy for the Lloyd from another dimension.
‘He was my savior, after all.’
Of course, Lloyd had always been her savior. Before and after her return, he always gave a helping hand.
But Grand Duke Valentine before her return, wasn’t he the first to show her hope’s light?
‘A song the Grand Duke will remember.”
The most recent song he would remember her singing.
After deciding on a piece, Aria closed her eyes gently.
“O moon, the sole light that illuminates the dark night.”
The aria from the opera ‘Gertrude’.
“Goodbye, Night.”
Although she couldn’t repay him directly, she showed a glimmer of hope. She couldn’t cross into his world. Even if she could, leaving Lloyd and their children was out of the question.
Too much had become precious in her world since her return.
“The world that forms me was always engulfed in darkness, and you were the hope that allowed me to breathe.”
Perhaps, in the same way she had seen hope in the deepest darkness, she could now offer him a semblance of that light.
“You were the hope that allowed me to breathe.”
Perhaps, she had died just after reaching this part.
Aria stopped her singing, recalling the moment before her return.
She then slowly lifted her eyelids. If the skeptical Grand Duke Valentine doubted even a Siren’s song, she saw no further options. She had to call an exorcist.
She wondered if there was even one capable of banishing Grand Duke Valentine’s soul from this world.
‘Maybe Vincent and Winter know something about this. Together, they might come up with something…’
Her thought was cut short. Grand Duke Valentine had the most fragile expression she had ever seen on him. She didn’t expect he could reveal such raw emotion.
“Si, ren…”
He stuttered out her name in a grave voice. It was markedly different from the mocking tone he’d used when he thought of her as a devil.
What should she say?
It felt as if his soul was resonating with his emotions as he called out to her.
“Siren.”
As if he regained some sense, Grand Duke Valentine called out more firmly.
He stood up, staggered yet swiftly reached out to her.
Aria instinctively trembled and leaned back. She remembered his poor treatment of her
“….”
Grand Duke Valentine’s face twisted in pain as if recalling his own actions.
“Siren, I… “
“….”
“I didn’t know.”
He must’ve realized no excuse could justify his rudeness, he withdrew his hand. And he knelt before her without hesitation.
“Have you been here since that day….”
It seemed he was beginning to believe Aria had returned from another dimension’s timeline.
‘I should have sung earlier if this was going to happen.’
Yet, feeling relieved that the misunderstandings were being cleared, he said.
“So, you didn’t fall into hell.”
Was that supposed to be regrettable?
Despite his visibly shaken state, his voice carried no emotion, just a hint of wetness. But, it was understandable why he might feel that way.
‘He said let’s fall into hell together.’
Ultimately, Aria gained another chance and an unimaginably happy life. Meanwhile, Grand Duke Valentine continued to trudge through the mud, bearing the world’s sins.
Even if he blamed her for finding happiness alone, she had nothing to say. Because the Grand Duke, who had ended her vengeance and shown her hope, fully deserved his own chance.
“Initially, after my return, I thought I could willingly fall into hell as a price for my revenge. But now, it seems impossible.”
“….”
“Sorry.”
Aria confessed honestly. She waited for his response.
Yet, Grand Duke Valentine, as if feeling too guilty even to touch her, carefully took her hand. He rested his forehead on her knee and closed his eyes.
Like a believer praying fervently to God for salvation.
“Siren.”
His voice was gentle.
“Yes.”
“It doesn’t matter, hell or another world. All that matters is I’ve found you again. That’s enough for me.”
“….”
Aria was taken aback by his unexpectedly calm reaction. His response was calm as ever, vastly different from his initial agitation.
He was too quiet. It was even more unsettling
“I prayed to meet you again. Now my wish has come true.”
“…..”
“That’s all that matters.”
No, no.
No, it wasn’t resolved.
The Grand Duke wasn’t a believer seeking salvation. But one expressing gratitude for a prayer answered. Celebrating that his prayer had come true. Whichever God the devil Grand Duke served remained unknown.
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