After choosing to leave, they regretted it.

In response to Heidi's question, he just answered it casually and lightly.

This made the princess' emotions reach the brink of being out of control in an instant.

"...What do you mean? What the hell do you mean by this!?"

As Heidi questioned angrily, her lowered hands clenched into fists involuntarily, and even her bones kept cracking because of the excessive force.

Large drops of cold sweat quickly formed on the skin and slid down the cheeks.

In fact, Heidi was basically certain of the true identity of the guy in front of her in the afternoon.

As for other demons, such as Charlotte who visited before, Heidi didn't feel any extra displeasure because of her relationship with Aize.

It's just a normal, universal feeling of jealousy.

But Violet is an exception.

Five years before the Human-Demon War broke out and nearly half of the kingdom's territory fell, it was Villian and the witch army she led who broke the kingdom's defense line that had been maintained for hundreds of years.

Then came the full-scale invasion of giants and vampires.

It can be said that if it weren't for the great witch Villian who suddenly appeared in the middle of the journey, the kingdom would never have fallen into such a state.

And Heidi's family might also be in a different tragic situation than it is now.

But Heidi could tolerate all of this.

Because she trusted Aize and knew that she had her own considerations for keeping this woman by her side.

Taking the current situation of the royal capital into consideration, Heidi didn't mind lying to herself and pretending to be stupid.

In her imagination, Villian should be very secretive about her identity, hiding it, and even pretend to be stupid and refuse to admit it no matter what.

After all, you owe the kingdom a blood debt.

Facing his number one creditor, he should at least feel guilty, if not guilty.

However, it does not.

She just said it so casually, as if it wasn't worth mentioning at all.

Then the nature of the matter changes.

For Heidi, the feeling at this moment was like that of the family of a murder victim being pointed at and mocked wildly by the murderer in court.

It collapsed all of a sudden.

"Do you know how many people died and how much the kingdom paid because of you?!"

"Because of you, none of my parents, brothers, or sisters have returned alive! I can't even find their bodies. Tell me, why is that?!"

Heidi roared, her angry voice echoing in the vast yet enclosed treasure house.

He even walked up to her, grabbed Villian's collar, and pressed her against the wall of the treasure house.

"Now, now... now... no, after all you've done, why are you still standing here in front of me so calmly? With so many victims, do you really not care at all?!"

The moment Heidi made her move, Miss Witch had already drawn her wand.

He followed the other's movements and pressed against her throat.

Villian's expression remained calm.

Faced with the questioning, she just said lightly:

"Indeed, I don't care."

"you--"

"Humans and demons have been fighting for over a thousand years. There have been countless attacks and massacres between them. The reason you are like this now is not because of me, but because your family was defeated. That's all."

Throughout the long history, the battles between humans and demons have generally been fought with both sides winning and losing.

During the period of human prosperity, they also crossed the Central Mountain Range many times and entered the territory of the demons, and carried out looting and destruction that was not much different from that of the demons.

Otherwise, where did these hybrids in human territory come from?

That's why Aize thinks that the war in this world is a complete mess.

From Villian's perspective, she was on the side of the demons at the time, so naturally she had to do what the demons were supposed to do.

What's more, she and the witch clan's army only participated in breaking through the human defense line, and had no interest in and did not participate in the subsequent atrocities.

To Villian, it made no sense for Heidi to blame her for this.

On the other hand, Villian deliberately did not mention the binding spell that controlled her behavior when she was a great witch.

Because this kind of behavior of trying to evade punishment will inevitably waste a lot of time due to wrangling.

Nor is it the point of this conversation.

The former great witch didn't say this to defend herself.

"Of course, if Aize said he wanted to punish me for these actions, I would have gladly accepted it without any complaints. But he didn't. He still chose to keep me by his side."

Aize was actually quite troubled by Villian's identity and past experiences.

During her time as the Great Witch, the Demon King exploited her so thoroughly that Villian was long regarded as one of the most dangerous and brutal leaders.

He made countless enemies for this.

If her identity was exposed at this moment, she would inevitably attract considerable criticism and even retaliation.

But it is unrealistic to keep it a secret forever.

Therefore, Aize's strategy is to let her participate in the fight against the demons as much as possible.

This is to achieve cutting and a certain degree of whitewashing.

Violet was well aware of this idea.

"Since he has chosen this, I will definitely stay with him even if it takes all my strength, and I will never allow anyone to get in the way."

Act based on Aize's ideas.

Even when it came to the question of whether to stay or leave, Vivian firmly adhered to this principle.

As she spoke, the witch sneered:

"So, Your Highness, I really don't care about the things you said. Because I really don't care about anything other than Aize."

"And if, for these things I don't care about at all, you want to do something that will separate me and Aize... Hehe, in the past, I would have directly cast a fatal curse on you, but now, for Aize's sake, I will at least give you a chance for a fair duel."

This is the purpose of Villian's showdown.

The few words she had heard in the workshop before made Villian realize that her identity had actually been exposed.

According to her own ideas, Heidi should be killed directly to avoid trouble.

But no.

Aize is determined to solve the blood plague problem in the royal capital, and Heidi is his indispensable helper.

Killing her would affect Aize's plan.

For Villian, this was an outcome that went beyond her own personal safety and was unacceptable.

So, after thinking it over, she decided to come clean.

Express your attitude directly by speaking frankly and openly.

This will eliminate the destabilizing factors caused by oneself.

Of course, if Heidi insisted on revenge, she wouldn't mind beating her half to death.

As long as Aize agrees.

"What do you say? Shall we duel now, or shall we remain in peace until this is resolved? Your Highness, the choice is yours."

"I……"

Heidi bit her lips until they bled.

Even if we don't consider Aize's problem, right now, if there is anyone who can unlock the stone tablet and save the capital, it seems that only she can do it.

Therefore, there is no value in worrying about Vivian...Vilian's identity.

Heidi actually knew this a long time ago.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have chosen to play dumb in the beginning.

Therefore, there is actually only one answer to the multiple-choice question given by Vivian.

Despite this answer, it was extremely painful for her.

"I understand. For now... let's just leave it at that."

The princess released her hand and continued to glare at the other person while taking two steps back to create some distance.

Villian calmly hung the wand back around her waist and straightened her crooked collar.

He turned around and continued to study the contents of the slate as if nothing had happened.

He ignored Heidi.

Heidi could only scratch her hair, and then left the treasure house with an extremely depressed mood, and returned to the throne room along the stairs she came from.

It was also here that she ran into Arthur, who was probably on his daily patrol.

Seeing his princess's extremely ugly expression, Arthur quickly approached her:

"Your Highness, what's wrong with you? Is there something wrong?"

"I don't know, I just feel like... I lost, lost again, lost miserably..."

In the matter of Aize, he once had an absolute advantage, but ended up dying in vain.

When it comes to the issue of the nobility, he is so self-righteous and arrogant that he ends up causing the entire city to suffer along with him.

And now, when it comes to family issues, one of the important enemies is right in front of him, and he even dares to provoke him fearlessly, but he can only run away in despair.

Lose lose lose.

Losing numbness.

What else do I have to lose?

But in the end, these words were not spoken.

As a princess, how could I say that?

Whether it was Aize's affairs, the nobles' affairs, or the family feud, it was all my own choice.

If you continue to make choices while crying that "there is no other way", then deceive yourself and shirk responsibility, living in a false and pure world.

What's the difference between me and my former self, the one Aize despised?

To make a difference, you must first start by taking responsibility for your own choices.

So, under Arthur's worried gaze, Heidi quickly adjusted her mood and shook her head vigorously:

"Nothing, but there is one thing you need to do immediately."

"Please give your orders."

"Miss Vivian, one of Aize's entourage, is studying the stone tablets in the treasury. We must ensure that the treasury remains open for the next few days. Also, have tables, chairs, beds, paper, and pens delivered immediately to facilitate her work."

From any perspective, this is ironic and embarrassing.

But since I didn't choose to duel, this situation was inevitable.

What else is there to say? Even if your face is shattered, it is only your own fault.

Should.

Heidi laughed at herself in her mind.

Chapter 69 Find Me an Opponent

Relying on the label of being a traitor, Aize easily forced Arthur into proving his innocence in order to indirectly put pressure on the Adventurer's Guild.

In this way, no matter what position Arthur and the guild are in this incident, they must make a statement.

There are two ways to make it difficult for someone to obtain information.