Chapter 11: 11

Ivanna’s alertness and anxiety declined noticeably over time. Sullivan, who visits Ivanna every day, was convinced that she will soon be able to have affectionate relationships with others; and that she will also be able to take a bath soon. 

Dante strengthened the escorts around Ivanna. The twins came to meet Ivanna secretly like squirrels hiding acorns.  And Alaine prepared fresh dishes for her.  All were relieved upon hearing Sullivan’s news.

‘The atmosphere in this place that is completely blocked from the outside is quite helpful. The unsociability of the Duchy from the outside world and it’s privacy really helped.’

Sullivan, who visited Ivanna today, watched the child play with a ball with a warm look on her face. The fluffy ball was brought by the twins, saying that Ivanna must also play well to grow healthy.

Ivanna touched and played with the ball for the first time in her life. It was fascinating to her because it seemed to be soft but always returned to its original state no matter how much she squished it.

Sullivan happily watched Ivanna poking her ball with her scarred little finger.  At that moment, Ivanna opened her mouth wide and bit her ball.  Sullivan was embarrassed but only for an instant.

When Ivanna mumbled with the ball in her mouth, Sullivan sighed and bit her lips tightly.

‘Oh, my God, what is this? She’s so cute.’

‘Even if it’s a clean polished ball, it’s not very good to bite it like that. I have to take it away quickly, but it’s so cute that I can’t interfere.’

‘Isn’t this like when a newborn baby puts something in their mouth to feel what they have in their hands?  It looked exactly the same.’

‘This is driving me crazy. How could there be such a cute kid?’

Lovely, cute, and fantastic. Sullivan felt like it was a miracle that she was able to meet such a child.

 “Oh, that’s not good.”

Ivanna, who had been biting for a long time, immediately stuck out her tongue and raised her head.  Sullivan let out a big cough and suppressed the laughter that was about to burst out from her again.

“But I am not eating it.”

 “Then what are you doing?”

 “The ball is soft, round and light. If I drop it on the floor, it’ll roll over and over without end.”

Ivanna lightly bounced the ball as she answered Sullivan. Unlike other things that break when dropped on the floor, the ball rolled around with a light sound.

 “The ball is running away!”

 “If it runs away, you have to go after it!”

At those words, Ivanna hurriedly pursued the ball. But the moment she stretched out her arm to catch her ball, her foot, which arrived before her arm, kicked the ball.

Ivanna stared blankly at the ball that was rolling away.

“The ball ran away on its own. Is the ball alive?”

It was a very serious question.  But Sullivan fell on the floor because she was as cute as before. Her shoulders shook from holding back laughter.

In the meantime, with a serious face, Ivanna kept running around to catch the rolling ball.  Even when she was already sweating and panting, she did not stop.  As the twins said, children really need to play to grow up well.

“Eve, can I play with you?”

After finally catching it Ivanna threw it, and the ball flew into Sullivan’s face.  When she caught the ball reflexively and stared blankly at Ivanna, she hesitated and pointed at the ball.

“I guess Eve is good.”

‘You’re so cute. I’ll let you go.’

Sullivan laughed lightly and rolled the ball, which Ivanna followed again.

The two played together for a long time to the point that they ran out of breath. Ivanna’s cheeks, which were usually pale, quickly turned red.

“You run very well!”

Sullivan lavishly praised her while playing.  Originally, at this age, kids may go wrong if you give them too much praise, but not Ivanna.  Her self-esteem was at rock bottom because she had been abused and neglected for so long. Praising her would help her raise her self-esteem.

“But don’t fall. Your dad would be sad.”

Sullivan adjusted to her strengths and weaknesses appropriately. The child, who was happy with the compliment and tried to run quickly, quietly slowed down at her remark. Dante and Ivanna got closer, so Sullivan said that, but it worked better than she thought it would.

‘How easily did such a hurt child open her mind when someone reached out to her kindly?’

There is still a long way to go. But Dante’s efforts were great, and the child’s condition was stabilized quickly.  He was a great man. Again, no matter how excellent the counseling doctor was, the parents’ sincere affection and interest was what mattered the most.

Sullivan was very happy that she had met a very good person.

“Eve, now, let’s take a break.”

But that is that, and this is this.  The physical strength of the mid-thirty year old, and the physical strength of a child who has just started running can never match.  Sullivan painted while lying on the floor. She also took off her cumbersome glasses because she sweated so much that her nose was moist. There was no such luxury as lying down like this in the princess’s room.

“Are you sleeping?”

When Sullivan lay down, Ivanna crept up with the ball. It was so cute to see her snooping around.

“No, I’m not sleeping. I’m taking a break.”

Ivanna squeezed the ball and sat next to her after putting down the ball. The smell of sweat was mixed in the air, but Sullivan didn’t express any disgust.

‘How dare you turn away from the smell of deep wounds?’

It was also something the child had to endure.  Originally, treating wounds for the heart had a lot of things to endure for people around them.

“Is it difficult?”

Ivanna couldn’t answer and just nodded. She ran around vigorously, but as she sat down to see if it was difficult, she continued to breathe heavily for a long time. It was unfamiliar for her to see the sweat flowing from not only her face but her whole body. It was a strange feeling to her that her body was hot and heart was bursting.

‘My heart pounded when my powers were pulled out from me or when I was hit. But now I feel good, unlike those days when I was only hurting. I thought I could run more.’

‘More, farther, higher, faster.’

‘In a wider place than here.’

Ivanna’s gaze naturally turned to the window in front of her.  A bright light completely different from the dark corner of the room was pouring out from the large window. Ivanna opened her mouth.

“You know, Eve.”

“Yes.”

“Is it wider outside?”

Sullivan closed her eyes, took a breath, and slowly opened her eyes. The sunlight pouring in front of her was dazzling.

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“People always put me in jail. When I was out of prison, it was only when they wanted to take away my powers.”

The way to the temple and the room where the altar is located were the only places that Ivanna saw outside of her prison.  Even when she moved every year, she couldn’t see outside of the carriage that was meant as a transport cage for her.

Just once, Ivanna was able to stand alone and look outside.  That was when her first life, which has an endless cycle of pain, ended. That day, Ivanna was able to stand on the ground with both legs for the first time and see the outside scenery with her own eyes.

And in return she died. The scenery accompanied by death was unforgettable and intense.

‘Will the outside still be like the scenery of that day?’ 

‘Even if I close my eyes, I can’t forget the view from that day.’

 “Are you curious?”

 “I’m curious.”

 “Would you like to go out then?”

Ivanna shook her head right away. The child who was shining brightly under the bright sunlight quickly fled into the darkness.

‘I was curious. I am curious, but I couldn’t move forward easily from the past.’

 “I’m scared.”

 “You are here now. You have a dad, an older sister, and an older brother.  What are you still scared of?”

 “What is scary is scary.”

‘I was afraid that this life, which was a little different from then, would end in vain like before.’

Yes, Ivanna now has something she is terrified of, apart from having her power pulled out.

It scared her to even think that this joyful and fun life could end in vain.

‘At one time, I cried out why I was born again. But the memories of that time were now hazy.’

“Then, can I tell you what the outside is like?”

“Really?”

“Yes, as much as you want.”

As Sullivan laughed, Ivanna seemed to be worried for a moment, then quickly nodded.  The child is finally interested in outside. Sullivan was so happy that Ivanna had improved a lot. But the joy didn’t last long.

Ivanna asked Sullivan.

“Is the world still gray?”

“Huh? Gray?”

“Is it still on fire?”

“The world is not on fire. It’s bright, it’s clear.”

“My world was. It was dark, gray, and burning.”

Sullivan’s eyes wide open. The child said one more sentence in a very determined voice, as if what she was saying was the truth.

“The monsters have covered the world.”

 

Someone slammed open the door to Dante’s office without permission.  But Dante knew who it was as Sullivan was the only one who would not be dragged out of this mansion even if she did that.

“What is it?”

Dante, who was processing the documents, jumped up when he saw Sullivan, who came in a hurry.  The ink bottle fell over and the paperwork was damaged, but it wasn’t of the slightest concern to him.

“Did something happen to Ivanna?”

“No. Today, we had an exciting game with the balls given by the Princess and Prince. There is no problem with Princess Ivanna.  But there is something…”

“What the hell is going on?”

“I have something I would like to ask your sire regarding the Holy Spirit.”

Sullivan’s face was serious. Realizing that this wasn’t normal, Dante tapped the table a couple of times.  After confirming that the unseen escorts in the area had left, he nodded to the doctor.

“Tell me.”

“Can the Holy Spirit predict the future?”

A vision of the future. It was nonsense.  As Dante’s eyes distorted, Sullivan asked him again firmly with all seriousness.

“Or can the Guardians of the Holy Spirit foresee the future?”

“Even if the Holy Spirit is a great being with divine power, future foresight is impossible. It is a fragment of a god with divine power, not a god.  The future foresight is a power only God has.”

“And the guardians of the Holy Spirit?”

“The Guardian is also not a god, so of course it is impossible. Louise didn’t say a single word about this to me.”

“Isn’t it possible Lady Hugor kept this from you?”

“If she could have predicted the future, she would never have let our daughter become so miserable.”

Dante laughed coldly. Sullivan quickly lowered her head, realizing that she had crossed the line in her excitement.

“I’m sorry. I went too far.”

“That’s enough. Rather tell me where the nonsense of future vision comes from.”

Sullivan touched her forehead. Her head, heated with excitement, sank to some extent by the cold voice of Dante.  She took a deep breath, took off her glasses and rubbed her eyebrows. Ivanna’s words were still hovering around her ears.

“Princess Ivanna said that to me.”

“What did she say?”

“She said that her world is gray, dark, on fire, and also······. The monsters cover it.”

At that moment, Dante’s yellow eyes flashed violently.

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