Hearing the story from a different perspective, Shartia felt a new, unfamiliar wave of emotions wash over her—ones that made her question everything she had known until now.

"…No way. That idiot couldn’t have thought that far ahead."

"Are you sure? From my perspective, it seems like Ricardo went out of his way to look out for you."

"Really?"

"Think about it. Back when Desmont’s influence was at its peak, who would dare criticize Desmont Olivia, especially someone referred to as the 'Devil of the Empire'?"

Shartia had always thought Ricardo was incapable of such foresight. At the time, it …