Change The World

Rivia was suspicious of what Magnus wanted to do. She walked backward and put her arms forward to keep him away from her.

"I'm sorry..." Magnus said in a soft tone.

Rivia was stunned and confused. She felt the genuineness of his voice, and her feet stopped moving.

Magnus reached her and wrapped his arms around her body.

"I'm sorry... I forgive you... You have suffered enough..." Magnus said as tears uncontrollably leaked from his eyes.

He was a prideful man. Crying was not something he would usually do, but just this time, he didn't care.

He had tried to cope with this horrible world, but that only made him stray further from what he wanted to do. He realized his mistake and wanted to change for the better.

"W-What is going on?" Rivia asked and reluctantly wrapped her arms around his back.

"I didn't want to kill Caitlyn. She... she knew something I had to keep a secret," Magnus said and held Rivia's shoulder blades.

The two of them stared into each other's eyes. Rivia could feel his honesty. It was practically impossible for him to lie right now.

"..."

Rivia didn't know what to say in reply. She was a Cynthian woman, so she felt a sense of camaraderie with all Cynthian women. He might look guilty right now, but she still couldn't let it go just like that.

"I will make it up to you. I will change the Sun and Moon world," Magnus said.

He stared into her eyes. His conviction was conveyed to her very clearly.

"Let me go."

Rivia didn't respond to his words, but rather, pushed him away. She was getting tears and snot on her body.

Magnus reluctantly let her go.

"Tch."

Rivia clicked her tongue when she saw the reluctance on his face. She was annoyed with him. Although her heart had softened, she still hated him. The only difference was that she was willing to listen to whatever excuse he was about to say now.

"You're going to change the world?" a voice asked Magnus.

He turned his head and saw Ava watching them from behind. She was grasping her maid uniform tightly.

"Ava, don't believe him. He is not capable of that," Rivia responded.

She knew how deep the culture of hating men was in the Cynthian Empire. It was the same here in the Phaeton Empire. It was impossible for one man to change the world.

Ava took a step forward and stared into Magnus' eyes. She looked him up and down and saw his pitiful appearance. He didn't look like a strong and helpful man. Rather, he looked like a kid who just finished crying.

"I know. I just want to understand why he wants to change the world," Ava replied with a curious tone in her voice.

"Do you really want to know?" Magnus asked softly.

His past was not something to be taken lightly.

"If you don't tell us, we will forever be doubtful of you," Ava replied and nodded her head.

"I used to sell drugs. I became rich very quickly. I was able to buy the things I wanted, and even have all the prostitutes for myself, but then... my friend betrayed me and snitched on me. I lost everything, and I'm here.

"The drugs I had sold ruined many lives. I saw many of them go into debt, commit suicide, divorce, sell their kids off, and even lost themselves... That's why I want to change. I want to be a better person. Not only for myself but also for those that have suffered because of my deeds.

"I'm sorry for killing Caitlyn, but I had to. Believe me, I did it for my own survival. She... was a threat."

Magnus revealed the truth of his past life and omitted a lot of it at the same time. The look in his eyes changed. He reminisced about his past and regretted them.

"..."

"..."

Rivia and Ava were surprised to hear his words. It didn't seem like he was carrying that kind of burden when they first met him.

"If you two don't believe me, I will prove it with time."

Magnus felt confident. He was different from everyone in this world. He knew a lot of things that they didn't know. Things like Science, Technology, Society, Psychology, and many more.

He was equipped with the knowledge to change this world from the very bottom. If he didn't try, how would he know that it wasn't possible? It sounded a lot like a pipe dream, but it was Magnus respecting his past self who was filled with guilt while waiting for his death sentence.

"I believe you. I was watching you from the start. You didn't know I was watching, yet you still stopped yourself from punching Rivia. For me, that spoke volumes about who you are. I also want to change the world, but I don't believe I can do it. ...If you can show me you can, I will help you," Ava said in a gentle tone.

This was the first time Magnus had heard her voice sound like that. It was usually cold and detached. Even when she was friendly with him he never heard her like this.

"Ava..."

Rivia felt complicated hearing Ava's words. She, too, wanted to be free. She had also questioned why the world was like this. So much suffering and pain, but why?

She wanted to argue with Ava that it was impossible to change the world, but she couldn't bring her heart to say those words.

"Having someone help me would definitely be nice," Magnus replied and couldn't help but smile as he wiped his tears away.

"What is going on here?"

A guard walked over. He looked at Magnus in confusion.

Once he saw Rivia's half-burnt face, a look of disgust and disdain filled his expression causing him to immediately turn back to Magnus.

"I merely punished her. No need for you to be involved," Magnus explained.

The guard squinted his eyes and stared at Magnus suspiciously.

"Do you want me to report to the Young Master? We can punish her severely," the guard asked.

"..." Magnus felt his heart drop. "If you do, I won't be able to punish them myself."

"Oh... Fine then. Suit yourself."

The suspicious look on the guard's face disappeared. He nodded his head in understanding and turned around to leave, pretending he didn't see anything.