Despite my surprise, I matched her enthusiasm and greeted her.
"Yes… It's been a long time, Sira."
She sat down beside me and spoke immediately.
"Theo, I didn't know you loved me. I didn't even know you liked me enough to want to get engaged."
I barely controlled the twitch in my mouth.
There were many things I wanted to say.
The truth was that Anastasia had been my childhood crush. Back then, she had been considered the most beautiful girl in the clan, and Sira knew that perfectly well.
So why was she pretending not to know anything?
Even Uncle Klein looked at her strangely. My father wasn't the type of person who would hide something like this from him.
Yet despite the awkward silence, Sira continued.
"Tell me, Theo… when did you start liking me?"
I tried to turn it into a joke.
"I've loved you since before you were born."
But she refused to let it go and kept pushing the topic.
Eventually, I couldn't stand it anymore.
"I should head back soon. I still need to study alchemy."
Fortunately, Uncle Klein agreed immediately.
As I was about to leave, Sira stood up as well.
"Let me take you home, Theo."
I accepted at once.
In truth, I wanted to speak with her too.
We walked in silence.
The frustration followed me the entire way until we finally reached the carriage.
After I sat down, she did something strange.
Instead of sitting across from me, she sat right beside me, pressing lightly against my side.
I frowned.
"What happened to you, Sira? Why have you changed this much?"
Strangely, she returned to her usual calm expression.
"It's not in my hands, Theo. The matter is much bigger than that."
My eyes narrowed slightly.
Every instinct in my body warned me that I was about to get involved in something dangerous.
I tried to stop it before it went any further.
"If it's that big, then it's bigger than me. I'm weak… and I'm not that important either."
From the corner of my eye, I noticed the deep sadness on her face.
The sight tightened something in my chest.
After all, she was still my cousin. And her father was someone very dear to me.
But what could I do?
I wasn't strong enough to solve a problem that could change someone's personality.
While I was sinking into my thoughts, her voice came again.
Cold. Calm. Unchanged.
"I'm sorry, Theo. I think I've burdened you with something heavier than you can bear."
That was the final blow.
I wasn't heartless.
If she had tried to pressure me emotionally, I would have had the perfect excuse to escape.
But apologising for burdening me only made it worse.
After a long battle between my caution and my conscience, I finally sighed.
"Sira… tell me everything. Don't leave anything out."
For the first time since the conversation began, her expression brightened.
That gave me a little relief.
But as she started explaining the situation, my frown slowly deepened.
Before she could even finish, my face already looked sick.
The problem was enormous.
It could even cause a civil war within the clan.
At the same time, anger surged through me.
I wanted to find the person responsible and punch him immediately.
That damn Elias…
So that was why he had been looking at me so strangely.
Elias was known as the greatest talent in the clan.
Yet Sira had broken through to Level Three before him, shocking everyone.
Still… something about this felt wrong.
Elias wasn't the type of person to act in such a roundabout way.
From what I understood, he had used a strange technique on her.
A technique that split her personality.
One personality remained her usual cold self.
The other… was cheerful and strangely drawn to him.
It had happened right after she broke through to Level Three.
Before her energy had stabilised, Elias had taken advantage of the moment.
Frowning, I asked the obvious question.
"Then why accept the engagement with me?"
Sira lowered her head.
"If I tell you the truth, Theo… will you hate me?"
I swallowed.
Part of me already regretted getting involved, but it was too late now.
"Don't try to blackmail me, Sira. Whether I hate you or not is my choice."
Her hands slowly clenched into fists.
But I ignored her tension and waited.
After a moment of silence, she spoke.
"I was the one who asked your father for the engagement first."
My knuckles turned white.
So that was it.
That explained the strange pressure my father had been putting on me.
Sira had always been very close to him.
He treated her almost like a daughter and rarely refused her requests.
She continued quietly.
"I told him that I loved you deeply… and that I wanted us to marry within a month after the engagement."
I stood up and moved to the opposite seat in the carriage.
For the first time in my life, I truly looked at her.
Evaluating her.
Yes, she had always been somewhat selfish.
But her usual coldness had made me forget that.
I had never expected her to plot something like this behind my back.
Even if her plan was technically in my favour… it didn't give her the right to manipulate the situation.
"The reason I did it," she said softly, "is because the second personality keeps pushing me toward Elias."
"So I had no choice but to marry you… to resist it."
I stared at her in disbelief.
A powerful technique that splits a personality…
And the solution was marriage?
Seeing the doubt on my face, she spoke again.
"Theo… have you forgotten our clan's bloodline ability? Because of it, I'm certain this method will work."
That eased my doubts slightly.
But I still asked seriously.
"Are you telling the truth, Sira?"
Her eyes widened slightly.
She bit her lip before answering.
"Do you really think I would lie to you, Theo?"
"Yes."
The word came out colder than I intended.
Like a blade.
She fell silent immediately, as if the answer had wounded her.
But how could she even ask that?
She was the one who had plotted behind my back and dragged me into this situation.
Seeing my cold expression, she frowned.
"Fine, Theo. I'm really not lying to you."
I studied her silently.
Then I finally sighed.
After all… she was still family.
"Alright," I said at last.
"I'll give you a chance."