C72
After a while, Tara asked me.
"In how much time should I wait?"
Tara possessed considerable martial power, but her specialty was intelligence gathering and covert maneuvers.
Even if she were to hide and launch a surprise attack, it would have been difficult to defeat Vinetta in a one-on-one combat. For now, she had no choice but to follow my words.
"Just one day. We will meet again at this place tomorrow. Then I won't mind if you break up with me and immediately seek revenge."
"Alright. Today, I'll settle for just seeing the face of that bastard I've been sketching with anxiety."
"Can you swear it?"
"I swear by the names of my deceased parents and my younger siblings who still wait for me."
"Understood. It's right here."
Tara checked the contents of the note I handed her with trembling hands.
"Spring Flower Park."
"Do you know where it is? There's a racetrack nearby."
"I've never been to the park, but I've been close several times. But I can't believe it's in the capital."
"It must be easy to lurk here since there are always visitors. Why don't you sit on the bench and read a book?"
"I'll have to see it with my own eyes."
Tara, who said that, left the forest without even greeting, unlike when she first arrived. She couldn't afford to because she must be very concerned about her revenge.
The next day, I waited for Tara at the same time and place. Vinetta asked, surrounded by the sound of biting insects.
"Do you think she'll fulfill her oath?"
"Why? Vinetta, don't you believe it?"
"I don't know the details, but when I looked at the face talking about revenge, it seemed like there was such deep resentment that it was hard to understand."
"......"
"Ethel-nim said it was only a day, but for her, it must have been a whole day. Although, if she had at least given a good reason to wait a day, I don't know."
"That doesn't make sense. What matters is whether Tara can postpone revenge without a good reason."
Vinetta immediately understood my intention.
"This is a test for her."
Yes. I wondered if Tara could fulfill the oath she made to me even when revenge was her greatest goal in life.
"As Vinetta said, postponing revenge even for just one day requires a lot of patience."
In the novel, Tara accidentally encounters her enemy, the Viscount of Chiléan, in the Spring Flower Park. The enemy of my parents, the person I've been searching for for more than a dozen years.
Blinded by the desire for revenge, she immediately seeks to avenge. She even forgot to inform Liena, to whom she was so loyal.
Although it irritated me a bit to test someone who was so desperate, I had to make sure if Tara was trustworthy or not. Only then can I leave this empire with peace of mind.
Tara continues to hide from Liena what happened about two months ago. This was certain. There was no significant change in Liena's attitude.
"Liena probably already has doubts about me because I helped the ambassador and his wife find Diana."
If Tara had told Liena that I strangely knew her situation well, her suspicions would have deepened, and Liena would have taken action. She must wonder if I'm someone who traveled back in time like her or not.
"At least that's the Liena I know and read about."
But there was still no particular reaction from Liena. This means that Liena's suspicions remained weak due to Tara's innocence.
I wanted to know if I could trust Tara more. Even if the powerful motivation that made her follow Liena to the point of deceiving her, revenge, disappears, will she still keep her promise?
"Will she continue to hide a secret about me from Liena and become my source of information?"
I vividly remembered what Liena said to me in court with a very distorted expression.
["For whom am I doing this? It's all because of you!
How are you going to escape from Cassius and survive in this harsh world?"]
I still don't know the meaning of those words or Liena's internal thoughts, but one thing seemed certain. There was a high possibility that Liena wouldn't just give up because Leandro and I divorced.
Perhaps she's trying to involve herself with me in some way. To respond to that, I also need an informant who can tell me about Liena's movements.
I had plans to use Tara as a double agent.
"... Well, am I going too far? I should be glad I didn't simply disclose my information."
In any case, it was essential to find out how much I could trust Tara.
I asked Vinetta just in case.
"Did you hear that something like an assault happened yesterday in Spring Flower Park?"
"This is the first time I've heard of that place."
"Maybe something about news of an unknown origin fire in the Elineth district?"
"No."
Before coming here, I also checked today's morning editions of all the newspapers published in the capital, but I didn't see any such article.
"Then Tara will come. You can bet on it."
"If Ethel-nim says so, then yes.