After taking Scarlett home and heading to the embassy, Viktor entered the Oval Office. As usual, he reached towards the decanter to pour himself something to drink. Then he paused and stared down at his hand.

He remembered Scarlett pulling his arm over and snuggling up to him last night with her head pillowed on his arm. 

“…”

He vaguely knew the night before that Scarlett might not have really lost her memory. In fact, he was almost certain of it.

Scarlett was not good at lying. Back when she returned from the interrogation, he was convinced that her words were lies.

She was like a nomadic person from the scriptures of Edellord, the official religion of Salantier. Scarlett’s gaze was always fixed on one thing, just like the nomads who had settled in this land after following a little star. It was probably Isaac Crimson before their marriage and himself after marriage. And now it was watchmaking. Her gaze had already moved on from him.

As she fell asleep right after their union, Viktor thought that Scarlett’s body was the only thing he wanted from her. It was ridiculous, but at the same time there was nothing to lose. He knew that they were both being dishonest, but he had wanted her, and that was enough. 

Whether she was pretending to lose her memory or actually lost her memory, Viktor knew Scarlett wouldn’t blame him for his actions afterwards. So for one long night he unleashed his desire to the point of bruising Scarlett’s body.

Still, Scarlett got up at dawn and pulled on his arm to lay back down in his embrace. 

Viktor struggled to push aside his thoughts about Scarlett’s incomprehensible behaviour. In the early days of marriage, it was easy to push them away, but it got harder and harder as time went by. 

Instead of pouring himself something to drink, he headed to the wall where a map of Salantier hung. As he was studying the map and trying to organise his thoughts, Evan and Pallin entered the Oval Office.

The three began a long meeting looking at the map.

Salantier’s navy was divided into different fleets, and the commander of the first fleet was also the commander of the entire navy.

If Vestina declared war unexpectedly, Viktor had to leave for the South immediately. He had to lead an elite squadron of ships in the first fleet, the Rubied, anchored near the air base. Their job was to land immediately north of the border with Vestina. That was Salantier’s best method of attack and defence without an anti-aircraft system.

Therefore, the operation had to be well-coordinated. There would be elite troops from Vestina stationed at the border. As of yet, they did not have any information on how many soldiers Vestina had deployed there.

Salantier was protected by its geography and did not experience war in the past hundred years. Therefore, the only military with hands-on experience were the Rubied, who fought against pirates for years.

At the end of the meeting, Pallin paused for a long time, as if weighing what he was going to say.

“Sir, we need to get more of that drug and give it to Miss Scarlett.” 

“No.” Viktor answered brusquely.

“That’s what Miss Scarlett wants. She wants to get more of her memory back.” 

“There are side effects to that drug.”

“But Miss Scarlett…if you risk the side effects, she could be a big help to Salantier’s military.”

All the data in the lab left by the late Earl of Crimson and his wife were encrypted.

Scarlett wanted to take a closer look at her memories again, and Pallin knew there was a drug that might make it possible.

Pallin had escorted Scarlett several times while she was travelling to the engineering college and knew that she had a thirst for knowledge. Viktor just looked at the map without answering. But he felt Pallin’s persistent stare and decided to answer decisively.

“Just say there is no drug the next time she asks. I got divorced because of the side effects of that drug. I don’t know what’s going to happen after giving her more,” he responded.

Pallin knew that Scarlett would take the drug if she knew it existed. He had been observing her from the side, and she had always been that kind of person. -Before and after the divorce. She always chose to help others. Viktor was the exact opposite. It was probably natural that they got divorced.

As Pallin became better acquainted with Scarlett after spending more time with her, his impression of her changed favourably. He thought that she was clear inside, while Viktor, with whom he had spent a much longer time together, was dark. 

Because Pallin knew Scarlett’s character, he was still trying to persuade Viktor. But Viktor didn’t seem willing to accept Pallin’s words at all.