"Y-you're going to assist... me...?" Anastasia repeated, baffled by this strange butler's sudden proclamation.
She was honestly stunned—not expecting such a bold statement coming from someone she had just met just a few minutes ago.
"That's right~," he confirmed once again... without any shred of hesitation. His confident grin never faltered.
"..."
And she was left in silence, still perplexed by this man's sudden existence in her life. She couldn't understand why someone so... strange, and yet so powerful, would lend his helping hand to her...
Someone who had committed the greatest sin against the Kingdom of Florentia.
What was his purpose? What was his goal? Did he have ulterior motives?
A multitude of questions and doubts started to cloud Anastasia's already dazed mind. She couldn't help it... after so much malice had been directed toward her.
Even if she knew full well that her household... her 'former' household had sent this butler to assist her... she couldn't bring herself to trust him.
The only people she could trust right now were her two aides beside her, who had sworn their loyalty to her...
And she still had regrets over dragging them into her cruel punishment, even if they themselves had said to her that they would follow her to the ends of Erdan...
But this man? A complete stranger? How could she trust his words that seemed so... tempting—
"My lady...?" The maid Bella spoke gently, breaking her out of her reverie.
Anastasia looked back to her loyal aide and saw her loyal aide's evident worry.
Bella had been cautiously observing her mistress's condition, her worried gaze shifting between the silent Anastasia and the butler before them.
"Ah, yes... Bella. I apologize if I made you worry."
"N-no, my lady! It should be me who apologizes for not being able to help you much, madam!"
"Thank you..." The mistress thanked her ever-loyal maid... before directing her gaze back to the butler. "Sir... Sebas."
"Yeah, Lady Ana?"
"What-?! Oi! You scoundrel!" Martha suddenly barked, her tone sharp with irritation. "How dare you shorten Her Grace's name so casually!"
"Martha, please be quiet."
"What-?! My lady, why???"
The female knight didn't receive an answer from her mistress, ending any argument before the former could even start. So... the loyal but also grumpy knight could only throw a deadly glare toward the damned butler...
Though it didn't really faze the man in question—not one bit, much to her displeasure.
Lady 'Ana' stepped in closer, facing the butler head-on. Her previous bewilderment was gone, replaced with a serious, sharp gaze directed at him...
But...
'Those eyes...' Sebas thought, finding the eyes of his patron to be... intriguing. They revealed the fate that had befallen her...
Eyes devoid of life.
Those eyes seemed to manifest without her knowing, as if she subconsciously wished to hide her suffering from her two close aides.
But to others? She didn't care. That was what she had become now.
A fallen noble... a fallen 'villainess,' and Sebas could make a good guess as to the likely circumstances that had transformed this once red-haired, proud villainess into this despair-filled one.
'So, 'she' chose the main 'love interest' in the end...'
The 'Prince' route, where the main protagonist gained her true love... but the 'villainess' Anastasia Rosavich lost everything that was important to her.
And now here she stood before him... as the fallen villainess.
"Sir Sebas... you said that you can assist me with... 'building' this land. Is that correct?"
"Heh, do I need to repeat myself, my lady~?" he said, finding her insistence amusing.
"Please answer the question," Anastasia pressed, her expression unchanged... or not, as a slight scowl flickered across her face.
"Sigh, sure. I'll say it a million times if I have to. So... let me say this again... I want to help you build this place."
"..."
His repeated answer brought another silence from her, but her scrutinizing gaze remained locked on him.
The both of them locked gazes—hers sharp but almost devoid of life, and his confident, almost carefree.
And she lost the unofficial staring contest, closing her eyes—she finally reached a conclusion.
No matter how much she tried to gauge his intention, she couldn't find any deceit nor... malice from him, and she somewhat could tell if someone harbored ill will to her after receiving so much of it recently...
"Very well, Sir Sebas... I'll give you a chance to prove yourself," Anastasia declared firmly, her voice steady yet carrying a cautious undertone.
"That's all I ask, my lady," he replied, bowing his head courteously... his ever-confident smile never leaving his expression.
Anastasia's eyes narrowed slightly, still weighing the risk of her decision. But after a brief thought, she took a step closer to him.
"In that case... tell me, Sir Sebas... what do you think we should do now?"
"Heh, I'm glad you asked that, Lady Ana~," he replied, raising his head from his earlier bow. "The first thing we need to do... is to survive!!!"
"S-survive...?!" she echoed, startled by his sudden outburst.
"As you might already expect, Lady Ana, the Garden of Hell is a treacherous land filled with untold dangers," he started, his previous carefree tone turning serious. "Not to mention, we are quite understaffed and have little-to-no resources to build your legacy here. So, right now... we have to make the best of our situation at hand."
"I-indeed, I can see the logic in your words."
"Indeed it is, Lady Ana~!" he exclaimed, surprising her yet again. "So that's why... we have to prioritize our survival first and foremost!"
"A-alright, Sir Sebas! I get it already!" Anastasia retorted, having had enough of his outburst. "So please just tell me already what your plan for our survival is..."
He didn't answer her immediately. Instead, he raised his right hand to the air—raising three fingers for her to see.
"What are you implying, Sir Sebas...? 'Three'...?"
"Correct, madam, three!" he affirmed her guess, a proud smile spreading across his face for reasons she couldn't comprehend.
"One of the many principles of survival... the Rule of Threes!"