My Past Life is Riddled With Many Sins - Chapter 101
She was at a loss for words with his shameless behavior.
“Alright, just stop.”
“So, you’re forgiving me?”
His insistence on getting confirmation to make it a fact pushed Regina to surrender.
“Yes.”
Then, she suddenly realized that she didn’t know his name in this life. It was the opposite of Bliss, whom she knew only by name but not by title. Since she couldn’t keep calling him Count Hartmann forever, she intended to ask for his name.
“Shall I tell you something interesting?”
“What is it?”
“I’m Lennon.”
“Yes. Lennon.”
What was so interesting about that? She didn’t understand, so she turned to look at him. He chuckled and replied.
“Right now, my name is Lennon.”
Regina faced him, puzzled.
“So, you were Lennon Kysis in your past life and now you’re Lennon Hartmann?”
“Yes.”
“Not a deliberate name change?”
“My parents gave me that name. Isn’t it interesting?”
Whether it was interesting or not, it was certainly surprising. Having the same name in both lives was unusual. Unlike names like Friedrich, Skyler, or Prince Iskanda, which were so different that they were hard to recall, this was striking.
With this new topic, she decided to address another curiosity.
“By the way, I don’t know Bliss’s last name either. Why does everyone call him by his first name rather than his title?”
In social circles, it was customary to use a combination of a surname and title unless one was personally close. Yet, she had never heard anyone address Bliss in that manner.
“He has a fit if called by his last name.”
“Why?”
Was it because it wasn’t Linzmeyer, or did he dislike his surname? Perhaps he was born into a family he had a strained relationship with in his previous life.
“I don’t like it either, but he probably hates it even more.”
Lennon’s answer sparked an unpleasant hypothesis in Regina’s mind.
‘Could Bliss’s last name be…?’
She gave Lennon a look, seeking confirmation of her suspicions. He simply smiled, neither confirming nor denying. Sensing that she already knew the answer, she chose not to press further.
‘How did this happen…?’
Among the seven guardians, if anyone were likely to have a fit of temper, it would be Skyler Linzmeyer—Bliss’s past life. It was particularly striking that such a thing had happened to him.
With a sigh inwardly, she changed the subject.
“You said you’d help me at the palace banquet.”
“Yes, I did.”
“Why?”
“Well, I…”
“Not the answer ‘because I’m Lennon,’ but tell me what benefit you gain from helping me.”
She fixed him with a determined gaze, not willing to settle for flattery or vague reassurances. He let out a soft sigh.
“It means I can be by Your Majesty’s side without being excluded, like everyone else.”
“What do you intend to do by being at my side?”
There are three motivations for wanting to be close to someone: affection, personal gain, or to cause harm.
“I want to be cherished by Your Majesty, like before.”
Her anger faltered at this unexpected reason. Lennon gently cupped her cheek.
“Then, if things go well, perhaps I could have you all to myself.”
The glimmer of possessiveness in his calm gray eyes felt strangely foreign. Feeling uneasy, she subtly averted her gaze.
It was disconcerting that, like Bliss, this man also seemed to want something from her. She had expected to be at the mercy of her past life’s misdeeds, given she had lost her power and status… though it might still be a performance to lower her guard, so it was not possible to completely trust him.
“You used to say you wanted to erase my existence from your mind.”
“Are you upset about….a careless remark made in anger?”
Lennon, holding her close, nuzzled her shoulder with his prominent nose and acted like a big, sulky child. Overwhelmed, she found herself grumbling inwardly, unable to express her discomfort.
Yekarna could handle Lennon’s physical closeness with ease, but with this body, it was proving too much… Mana might help her endure, but was it worth it? To put up with the playful behavior of a grown man over thirty?
After enduring Lennon’s affectionate and needy behavior, which left her feeling utterly drained, she managed to push him away and fell into a deep contemplation. Now, she faced a choice between Bliss and Lennon.
‘Which one should I ally with?’
Though she wished she could just abandon everything and run away, it seemed an impractical fantasy. As a commoner, Regina Heather couldn’t imagine escaping the clutches of such powerful men without assistance. It seemed more rational to choose one as an ally and have them protect her from the others.
Given the possibility of a human-demon war and the need for a partner to cleanse the demonic poison, having someone reliable was crucial….
Bliss, who had been her sword in a past life, and Lennon, who had been her mind. At the moment, she didn’t feel she could trust one more than the other. However, she needed to be cautious. There was no guarantee that one of them hadn’t been the one who killed her in her previous life.
‘This is driving me crazy.’
She ran her fingers through her disheveled hair. If there was anyone among the seven who seemed suspicious, she might think that person was the culprit, but honestly, she had no idea. She had wronged everyone similarly, so they all had motives. Even when she tried to recall any suspicious behavior before her death, no clear culprit emerged.
She had argued with Lennon that day, but it was merely a disagreement over national affairs. If Lennon had harbored murderous intent over such a dispute, she would have died hundreds of times over.
The same went for the others. No matter who she considered among the seven, she couldn’t convince herself that any of them were the murderer. Yet, one of them had to be.
She couldn’t narrow down the suspects due to her trust in all of them and it paradoxically made everyone a suspect, and this left her mentally exhausted.
“Please take your time to consider and make your decision. I won’t rush you.”
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