A Background Character’s Path to Power

"Wait, are we even talking about the same people?" I asked, my suspicion growing.

Cassandra squinted her eyes. "What, you got more fiancées?"

"Urgh, that's not what I meant." I gritted my teeth at her teasing. "According to the records I read, shield families traditionally married their children to each other in each generation. And I was probably the candidate for it this time. As for the fiancée candidate, it is probably the Carmine girl we met in the city. She's from the Viremont family after all. As for the House Fenvar, my mother is from them. So, the fiancée candidate probably can't be from them."

Cassandra listened intently. She raised her brows when I mentioned the Carmine girl, but didn't say anything. She was also surprised to hear that Mother was from the Fenvar. Well, I was, too, even more than her. But it made sense, my water affinity probably came from her.

"Then... We really must be talking about different people." She muttered. "But then, who were they? Could it be they were lying? Or..."

"From the Black Star?" I mumbled, my eyes widening as the possibility hit me.

"That's not impossible." Cassandra nodded warily. "If they are as you described them to be... It might have been their extra plan to take care of you."

"...Right." I nodded. Just how persistent and meticulous are they? To plan something like this...

"But, they could be entirely different people too," Cassandra added after a moment of analysis. "What if it happened around the time you left your home and woke up with no memories?"

I considered her words carefully.

"Well, I'll probably find out eventually," I said. "So, don't worry about it."

"Hmm, alright." Cassandra nodded.

"But you can ask for help if you need it," she added with a slight smirk. "I'm almost a pro at dealing with fake engagements and unwanted marriage arrangements, after all."

We both chuckled, the tension from the talk easing somewhat.

Hmm?

Just then, my senses picked up a presence approaching the library. Probably a maid, to call us to dinner.

I turned to Cassandra. "It seems like we have to end it here today."

She nodded, though I caught a flicker of surprise in her eyes as she seemed to realize what had just happened, that I'd detected the approaching person before her.

"Just how strong are you?" she asked quietly while deactivating the privacy artifact.

I shrugged casually, not wanting to make a big deal out of it. "I'm just an Initiate Resonator. Just a frog at the bottom of the well, trying to see the sky."

Cassandra just smiled, not inquiring any further.

Soon, the door was knocked and a female voice called, "Mr. Lumin, Lady Cassandra, dinner is ready."

"Alright, we are coming out."

I said as we rose from our seats.

"Let's go."

____ __ _

[A few hours later.]

"Hmm..."

Cassandra squinted her eyes at the screen floating in her vision.

She was watching the replay of her conversation with Amaniel. She recorded it with her Legacy tier relic. It was one of its useful functions she'd discovered. She could and would always use it in her negotiations and later review everything.

Although she believed Amaniel more than anyone in this world now, she held a fundamental rule as a merchant and survivor - trust, but verify, always.

It was the only way to slowly fight against the deep-seated suspicion born from years of betrayal.

That's why she didn't say anything about it to him. Although she felt a little guilty since he didn't lie to her for almost the entire conversation, she still felt it was necessary.

She also couldn't shake the feeling that something unusual had occurred during their conversation. She couldn't understand how she had so easily revealed her past to someone else.

The words had simply flowed out of her, as if some invisible force had loosened her tongue and stripped away the carefully constructed barriers she'd built around her most painful memories.

Sure, her emotions were stirred during her conversation with his mother. It was really intense that she barely held herself back from joining Lady Selva's crying. And she also trusted him enough to talk about her past.

But not in that way, or manner...

It was all because of that weird phenomenon.

Cassandra guessed.

What exactly happened?

She had felt connected to him on a deeper level during their conversation, felt like she could understand him fully, sense his heartbeats. And it was probably the same for him, or even greater.

It was unlike anything she'd ever experienced before.

She wanted to ask the system, but she decided to see everything by herself first. Besides, she promised herself not to rely on it for everything, unless necessary. She also didn't want to waste money.

Hmm...

She continued watching the reply with an intense focus, studying both his and her own expressions, how he acted, the genuine emotions expressed in his eyes and expressions, the way his face had tightened with anger when she described her suffering...

But then she saw it.

Her breath caught in her throat as she witnessed the moment when ghostly, translucent images had begun flickering behind her - scenes from her past playing out like phantoms in the air.

She was shocked to see her own childhood memories coming to life, even they appeared to be mere illusions. But still...

They were eeirely similar, if not the same.

Then...

That means...

He not only heard everything she'd said, but also saw it. Every humiliating moment, every beating, every tear, every desperate act of survival.

He had witnessed her at her most vulnerable, most broken state.

A chill ran down her spine as the full implications hit her.

She felt completely exposed, naked in a way that had nothing to do with physical appearance and everything to do with the soul.

What if... What if he... What if he used this against her? What if he were like them? What if this was all an elaborate scheme? Was he working for someone? What if he was planning to blackmail her with her own trauma?

...

Cassandra went silent.

A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips, but it was tinged with self-reproach.

No... What am even I thinking?

She blamed herself for doubting him as she continued watching his recorded reactions, hearing his genuine words of comfort and understanding.

No... There's no way he is someone like that.

She remembered everything.

How he rescued her at the city, helped her to come here...

How he told her his own story, how he sacrificed himself for sake of the others...

The way he revealed himself...

The way he looked at her, not with pity or disgust, but with pure understanding and... and something she could only describe as protective fury on her behalf.

The way he offered her his handkerchief without hesitation, the careful respect in his voice when he told her she wasn't a commodity or a failed product...

They...

They weren't actions of someone planning to exploit vulnerabilites.

His actions and expressions were raw and natural, too geniune to be fabricated. Based on her experience, everything about his demenaor screamed sincerity.

Of course, there were moments he didn't tell the truth, or even lied, but she did the same. And they weren't exactly big lies, or malicious ones. More like omissons, or half-truths to protect himself, something she understood too well.

And...

There was another proof.

Her gaze shifted to a message window that had appeared in the corner of her vision, glowing softly in red letters.

[Your affinity with Amaniel Von Luthaire has reached 4.5 stars.]