Black clothes.
Gloves stained faintly with old blood near the fingertips.
His presence alone changed the air around him.
And his eyes— cold enough to make most people lower theirs immediately.
Lem.
He looked first at Nur.
Then at Olivia.
And for the first time since entering the district—
Olivia stopped walking.
Not from fear.
Recognition.
Lem stared at her silently for several seconds.
Unreadable.
Then finally—
“…Olivia.”
His voice was low and calm.
But everyone nearby immediately lowered their heads.
Nur looked between them nervously.
Olivia met his gaze directly.
“You became difficult to meet.”
Lem’s expression did not change.
“And you became difficult to recognize.”
Silence.
Neither smiled.
Neither moved closer.
This was not reunion warmth.
It felt more like two dangerous people measuring each other after years apart.
Lem finally looked at Nur briefly.
“You brought her here?”
Nur immediately defended herself.
“She forced me.”
“That sounds accurate.”
Olivia ignored them both.
“I need your help.”
Straight to the point.
Several people nearby visibly stiffened.
Because almost nobody spoke to Lem that directly.
Lem looked at her quietly.
“You came personally for that?”
“Yes.”
His gaze sharpened slightly.
“That means it matters.”
Olivia did not answer immediately.
Then—
“There are children involved.”
The atmosphere changed.
Subtly.
But Olivia noticed it.
So did Nur.
Because for the first time—
Lem’s expression shifted slightly.
Not softness.
But attention.
Real attention.
Lem slowly removed his gloves while watching her carefully.
“That explains why you are here instead of sending knights.”
Olivia remained calm.
“I need protection nobles cannot touch.”
Lem gave a faint, humorless smile.
“So you came to criminals instead.”
“To results.”
Silence.
One of the assassins nearby looked tense enough to stop breathing.
Because nobody spoke to Lem this bluntly.
But Lem…
did not look offended.
If anything— he looked more interested.
His eyes stayed on Olivia for a long moment before he finally spoke again.
“You changed too much.”
Olivia’s expression remained cold.
“People keep saying that.”
Lem stepped closer slowly.
Close enough now that the others visibly grew more alert.
Dangerous men always reacted when dangerous men moved.
But Olivia did not step back.
Not even slightly.
Lem looked directly into her eyes.
“And yet,” he said quietly, “you still walk into dangerous places without fear.”
Olivia answered simply—
“Fear wastes time.”
For the first time— something almost like amusement flickered briefly through Lem’s cold eyes.
Very brief.
Then gone.
Interesting.
Very interesting
The room fell completely silent after Olivia’s words.
Even the assassins hidden in the shadows looked stunned.
Nur closed her eyes briefly like someone already preparing for disaster.
Because nobody spoke to Lem like this.
Nobody.
Lem stood in front of Olivia quietly, black eyes fixed on her face without blinking.
Under the dim light, his dark red hair looked almost like blood.
Sharp.
Dangerous.
Everything about him felt controlled violence.
And Olivia looked directly back at him without hesitation.
“I need you,” she said calmly.
No fear.
No uncertainty.
“And your men.”
One of them actually moved his hand toward a hidden blade before another stopped him subtly.
Lem noticed everything.
But his eyes never left Olivia.
“To be mine.”
Silence.
Heavy silence.
Nur looked genuinely pale now.
Because this was not a request.
This sounded dangerously close to possession.
And Lem—
Lem hated ownership.
Entire underground groups had died for trying to control him.
But Olivia continued calmly anyway.
“I do not care about noble influence anymore.”
Her voice remained steady.
“I need something stronger than status.”
Lem finally spoke.
“You came here to buy loyalty?”
Olivia answered immediately.
“No.”
That made his eyes narrow slightly.
Because money would have been simpler.
Predictable.
Olivia stepped closer instead.
Not emotionally.
Strategically.
“I am offering purpose.”
Several assassins exchanged looks immediately.
Lem remained still.
Olivia continued,
“The empire is becoming unstable.
Noble factions are already moving against each other quietly.”
Her gaze sharpened.
“And eventually, they will target the children connected to me.”
Lem observed her silently.
“No knight order will protect them properly because knights obey political chains.”
A pause.
“But you?”
Her eyes met his directly.
“You obey survival.”
The room became deathly quiet.
Because she understood them too accurately.
Lem slowly tilted his head.
“And what exactly are you offering in return for this loyalty?”
Olivia answered without pause.
“A place untouchable by the empire.”
Nur stared at her.
Even Lem’s expression shifted slightly now.
Because that answer carried ambition far beyond ordinary noble politics.
Olivia continued evenly,
“You built power in the shadows.”
“I built independence,” Lem corrected coldly.
Olivia nodded once.
“Then stand beside me instead of beneath nobles who will eventually try to erase you.”
Several assassins looked unsettled now.
Because she wasn’t insulting them.
She was speaking like someone planning long-term war already.
Lem stared at Olivia quietly for several long seconds.
Then suddenly— he laughed.
Low.
Brief.
Dangerous.
The entire room stiffened instantly.
Because Lem almost never laughed.
“You walk into my territory,” he said calmly, “and try recruiting an assassin organization like you are discussing business contracts.”
Olivia remained expressionless.
“It is business.”
“No,” Lem replied softly.
His black eyes sharpened dangerously.
“It is madness.”
Nur silently agreed.
Completely.
But Olivia did not look bothered.
“Will you refuse?”
Lem studied her carefully.
Not her title.
Not her beauty.
Her composure.
Because Olivia genuinely was not afraid of him.
And that alone made her different from almost everyone else.
Finally, Lem stepped even closer.
Close enough now that the assassins nearby looked ready to move instantly if needed.
His red hair fell slightly across his eyes as he looked down at her.
“And if I decide to kill you instead?”
Nur’s heart nearly stopped.
But Olivia simply answered—
“Then you would have done it already.”
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Then— another faint flicker crossed Lem’s eyes.
Interest.
Real interest.
Because she was right.
If Lem truly wanted her dead, she never would have reached this room alive.
Lem slowly straightened again.
“You came alone except for Nur.”
“Yes.”
“You trusted me not to harm you.”
“No,” Olivia corrected calmly.
The assassins nearby looked shaken again.
Because somehow— she understood Lem frighteningly well already.
Lem stared at her for a long moment before finally turning away slightly.
“Leave us.”
The room emptied immediately.
No hesitation.
Within seconds, only Olivia, Nur, and Lem remained.
Nur looked deeply uncomfortable.
Lem sat down slowly in the chair across from Olivia, one arm resting lazily against the side.
Dangerous.
Relaxed predators were always more frightening.
His black eyes remained fixed on her.
“You changed too much, Olivia.”
Olivia sat across from him calmly.
“That is irrelevant.”
“No,” Lem said quietly.
“It is the reason I have not refused yet.”
The room remained silent after that.
A single candle flickered between them, shadows shifting slowly across Lem’s face.
Up close, he looked even more dangerous.
Dark red hair falling carelessly near sharp black eyes.
A man shaped entirely by violence, survival, and control.
And yet— he was sitting here listening to Olivia seriously.
Nur stood near the door looking increasingly exhausted by this entire conversation.
Lem leaned back slightly in his chair.
“You still haven’t answered something.”
Olivia looked at him calmly.
“What?”
“Why me?”
Simple question.
But important.
Because Olivia had access to power already.
Knights.
Noble alliances.
Imperial influence.
Yet she came here instead.
To the most feared man in the empire’s underworld.
Olivia answered without hesitation.
“Because nobles betray each other the moment fear outweighs loyalty.”
Lem stayed silent.
“Knights obey chains before judgment.”
A pause.
“But people who survive the shadows understand value properly.”
His black eyes sharpened slightly.
Olivia continued evenly,
“You built loyalty through survival.
That lasts longer than politics.”
Lem gave a faint hum.
“That loyalty was built with blood.”
“I know.”
Silence settled again.
Then Lem asked quietly,
“And the children?”
Olivia’s expression shifted almost imperceptibly at the mention of them.
“What about them?”
“You are building all of this for two boys.”
Observation.
Not mockery.
Olivia answered simply.
“Yes.”
Lem studied her for several moments before asking—
“Your own?”
This time Olivia answered differently.
“Max is.”
The words came calm and certain.
Then after a brief pause—
“And Mike is mine too.”
Nur looked toward Olivia immediately.
Lem’s gaze sharpened slightly.
Because Olivia did not say adopted.
Did not say under my protection.
She said mine.
Not possessive.
Not emotional.
Just absolute certainty.
Lem noticed that immediately.
“You share blood with one,” he said quietly.
“But not the other.”
Olivia’s expression remained composed.
“Blood decides very little.”
The room fell silent again.
And strangely— she meant it completely.
Max was her son by blood.
Mike was not.
But the place she had given both boys beside her carried no visible difference.
Lem observed her quietly.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Most nobles protected bloodlines.
Olivia protected belonging.
Lem tapped his fingers lightly against the armrest.
“You are willing to drag the empire’s shadows around yourself for children.”
“Yes.”
“No hesitation?”
“No.”
The answer came instantly again.
Lem watched her carefully.
Not searching for weakness anymore.