Chapter 35: Partner in Shadow
Edward entered the palace to find Lilian waiting for him, anxiety having etched pale lines beneath her eyes. The moment she saw him, she rushed forward with a barrage of questions: "Where were you? Why were you so late? Are you hurt?"
At first, Edward tried to evade her or concoct a lie to shield her from the grim reality of what had happened, but he found himself powerless before her sincere gaze. For some reason, he felt that lying to her was the only betrayal he couldn't stomach. He began to speak, recounting everything: the darkness, the auction, the gold, and the monster he had become. He expected her to recoil in horror, to see him as a blood-stained beast, but her reaction shocked him.
Anxiety mixed with joy across Lilian's features. She was worried because she feared losing the only person she trusted, but she felt an overwhelming sense of ecstasy hearing about the auction. The idea that those who had stripped her family of everything were finally suffering soothed her bitterness and extinguished a part of her old grief.
She told him in a firm tone: "Always tell me everything... I will help you even if the whole world looks at you as a monster." These words fell upon Edward's heart like a soothing balm; he had finally found a safe corner where he could trust unconditionally.
Then, Lilian began to think with practical intelligence, saying: "Edward, do not settle the debts all at once; it will shake the city with suspicion. The Ravencroft family won't speak of what happened because the scandal would destroy their prestige, but the other families will be watching. Let's divide the money into small amounts, and claim that you've started working and winning some profit through gambling and luck. That way, they'll think you're just a lucky noble, not a peer of the darkness."
Edward completely agreed with her, while Tula watched the scene from the shadows with a faint, cryptic smile. He looked at Lilian not as a human being, but as a new "trump card" he could manipulate in the grand game of power.
Lilian went to prepare food, and Edward followed her to the kitchen to help, in a rare human moment where the features of the underworld leader temporarily vanished, replaced by a man just trying to feel like he belongs