Leon's expression shifted, his composure curdling into a simmer of suppressed rage. He sank back into the velvet depths of the sofa, his eyes narrowing.
"So?" he challenged, his voice laced with a dark fascination.
"You knew it was tainted, yet you drank it anyway? And Matthias has the audacity to deny it when I tell him we are a family of lunatics. Why, Emilia? Why swallow the bite you knew would kill you?"
"Do not answer a question with another," she countered, her voice steady despite the toxin already coursing through her. "Why are you plotting to end my life in the first place?"
"Firstly, I am not plotting to kill you," Leon stated coldly. "I will provide the antidote in a few hours. But the explanation... that requires time."
Emilia leaned forward, her gaze piercing his. "Is it for Layla? You mentioned her name only moments ago."
"Yes," he replied simply. "It is."
