"Should I say the long version or the short one? Like, should I summarize it?"

    Christian, sitting beside Eva and staring at her side profile, didn''t hesitate for even a moment. He didn''t need to think about her question; his reply came immediately.

    "Of course, say the long one. Rather than summarizing it, don''t leave out a single detail. We have ample time, anyway."

    "As now that things have come to this, I want to know everything about you, every possible thing."

    Getting the answer she wanted, Eva, who had already realized there was no point in hiding things, especially since he would eventually learn the details if he remained interested in her, felt pleased by his choice even if briefly, as the content of her story was by no means something she was proud of. Still, she now preferred it this way; she wanted him to know everything, to come clean about it all. There was no need for any kind of pretense anymore.

    So, taking a deep breath, gathering her thoughts, she began.

    "If I''m going to explain everything in detail, then I think I need to start with the ancient families. That''s where everything began."

    "The ancient families... I don''t know how much you''ve discovered about them, but they can actually be divided into three types."

    "The first would be the traditional ones, those who shut themselves off from the outside world, never involving themselves in anything happening around them."

    "The second would be those who don''t care whether they''re involved or not and are simply swept along by their surroundings."

    "And the third would be those who aren''t just involved but are the masterminds behind almost everything significant that happens in the world."

    "They''re so deeply entangled that they can''t extricate themselves anymore."

    Her voice turned colder as she went on, "In ancient families, however, when the father and mother are both strong and talented, it becomes almost impossible for their children not to inherit that talent."

    "So, for my parents, who had me after a long struggle in old ages, me being talentless came as a massive disappointment."

    Seeing her clenched fists, her expression filled with anger and her tone laced with resentment, Christian hesitated. He considered holding her hand to offer comfort but ultimately decided against it.

    Someone like her, who had lived her entire life in such a suffocating environment yet still carried eyes burning with a strong will... a will that seemed to silently declare she would emerge victorious no matter what, deserved respect. She hadn''t given up, faced and dealt with everything on her own, all her life. So is it really his place to offer her emotional support right now?

    Eva, catching sight of Christian''s softened expression, one devoid of disgust or pity, felt a small sense of relief, and encouraged by this, she continued speaking, her heart feeling a little lighter as she delved further into her story.

    "It was then that the idea was approved, and I was raised as someone who would be sold, and started to be isolated by my family. With people around me just ones there as work; to teach me something... well, mostly how to please a man and be submissive."

    "Was it because of that? Because I was destined to be sold cheaply as a mere connection for my family to enter the political world?"

    "That made me want to treasure my body even more."

    "Every time they tried to teach me their ways, that desire grew stronger."

    "Then, when I grew a little older and understood things more clearly, I once inadvertently mentioned love, and how normal relationship works. But instead of understanding, I was scolded and told that something like love was a luxury I could never afford."

    "That only made me want to rebel against them more than ever, to prove that they were wrong. Even for someone like me, love wasn''t an impossibility."

    "And that made me long just for that."