The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

ELLIS once again recalled a part of her conversation with Olivia last night.

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"What kind of help do you need from me?" Ellis asked with an almost resigned expression.

Honestly, she felt very complicated about all of this. She didn't know whether to sympathize with Olivia or to get angry at her for being so selfish. But she must admit, a small part of her felt admiration for the other's dedication to her cause. If Ellis was in her shoes, she probably couldn't persist that long.

Still, the fact that she had to use innocent people to reach that goal was not something worth admiring. Especially when the one who would receive the blunt of the consequences of her action was none other than her own son.

"I won't ask much. I- I just want you to- to give these two letters to Ben and Livi," Olivia said, almost stuttering as if she couldn't properly get out the words she wanted to say because of the emotions she was trying to hold in. Then, she took out two letters from the space ring she was wearing.

Ellis looked at the two letters blankly. In this age where everything was digital, seeing paper was very rare. Not to mention a hand-written letter. Those letters probably contained Olivia's real feelings about her husband and son.

"But please give it to them 10 years from now," Olivia added with a trembling voice. "Not soon. But 10 years. Please."

Ellis brows furrowed. The only reason why the other would ask her this was because she no longer had to do it herself.

She already knew that one of Olivia's demands to Aegis Army was for them to give her a new identity. To do that, they would have to faked her death first. Which, from what Ellis had understood from their conversation, they were just waiting to execute.

"I think there are establishments that you could give these letters to and they would deliver it on the time you wanted. Or better yet, you can ask the Aegis Army to do it for you," she said. "There's really no need for you to go to me for help."

"But there is. These letters... I can't trust them to just anyone. I couldn't risk the chance of these letters not reaching them. Please, Ellie... you're the only one I can trust with this," Olivia said with a voice full of pleading and an expression that seemed like she was ready to kneel down if Ellis rejected her.

Ellis let out a dry laugh. "You really are one selfish—"

"Bitch? Yes, I know," Olivia finished what Ellis was trying to say. "But this will be the last selfishness I will have. Then, I will spend the rest of my life making up for it."

"Don't you realize how ironic you sounded just now?" Ellis couldn't stop the sarcasm leaking from her voice. "You plan to make up for it and yet you will leave the person you needed to make amends the most. Your son."

Olivia seemed to be completely taken aback by what Ellis just said. Which made her even more infuriated. And yes, angry.

"Letting your son think that your dead, is that how you plan to make up for this 'selfishness' you're talking about?" Ellis asked, her voice in a higher pitch than normal. "No, this is just not it, Via." At the end, she didn't expect her voice to crack. "In this quest for revenge, the one you wronged the most is your son. Do you really think that a letter from you in ten years would make up for all the wounds your son would receive after your 'death'? Then, you'll be making the same mistake all over again."

Olivia's gazed down, her shoulders were shaking uncontrollably. Then, Ellis heard a suppressed sob. She closed her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh. She wanted to shout that this was not the time for her to cry. But she also knew that Olivia must be very emotional right now.

After one last sigh, she stood up and walked towards Olivia. Then, she crouched down and hugged the other. Olivia seemed to see a lifeline and clutched at her tightly. Then the other just cried her heart out.

However, what's needed to be said still had to be said.

"Via, you can request anything from the Aegis. It didn't have to be a fake death. It could be something that could remove you from the Thornley family while patching your relationship with your son at the same time. There's not only one answer in this situation. Use that resourcefulness of yours to think of a way. A way that wouldn't hurt the child that unwittingly became part of your revenge."

Ellis felt a weak nod.

And that's how their conversation ended.

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"So, did you convince her to change her mind?" Astrid asked after hearing Ellis say what Olivia asked her for help.

"I'm not sure if a nod was enough for an answer," Ellis said with a helpless tone. "Well, if we heard of her death in the news, then she'd probably not taken my advice."

"Or she could have faked her death and at the same time mend her relationship with Livi," Astrid said. "I think there could be a scenario where that's possible."

"For both their sakes, I also hope that's the case."

Astrid was also hoping the same. For Livi's sake, he truly hoped that it wouldn't reach a point where the kid had to experience losing his mother.

"You did amazing convincing her, Sister Ellis," he said in admiration.

"We're still not sure if she would even follow through."

"I think she will," Astrid said, his instinct was telling him that. "So, does Sister Ellis know when the news about the Thornleys will blow up?"

"Sometime this weekend. Probably just after [Baby's Day-Off] is released."

Astrid raised his brow at that. After that episode of [Baby's Day-Off], the general public would definitely have sympathy on Livi's situation. Then once the news about the Thornleys were out...

Oh, now he had an idea why Olivia Crane let Livi appeared on that show.