Father!

　The scream that was heard as soon as the great door was opened was Sufilia's.
　In front of the throne, Zeke and the others were gathered in front of the throne, with the figure of the sometime king on his buttocks.

　The area was littered with the corpses of the people involved, believed to have been killed by Zeke and the others.
　This is what it means to be a dead man.
　Blood splatter is splattered everywhere.
　He stepped over the blood puddle and advanced to the throne.

''You guys are the heart of a dragon....
Frederick Artemias. Everyday embezzlement, murder and rape. And for the crime of mass murder, he shall be put to death.

　Zeke put his blade to the king's neck and replied nonchalantly
　I didn't know he was that bad.
　What the hell is going on in this country, wasn't it a developed country?

'Nonsense, really nonsense. This country is mine and I'm free to do what I want with it.

　The argument was typical.

"It doesn't matter what you think. You're dead for now, that's all.
"You will die, ha ha ha, but what is the difference between you and me, you are guilty of murder at your own discretion.
It's a matter of principle.
It's a creed..... It's not worth the trouble of getting yourself killed. The definition of sin is...
The definition is that we're here.
....
We decided to kill him, that's all.
"...you're going to kill my daughter and Sufilia as well!　Wait, she's not, she's not! --

　Before he could say more, the king's head was cut off by Zeke's sword.
　Blood sprang erratically from the severed surface.

'That too is at our discretion.

　Zeke muttered to the headless corpse.
　There was nothing but coldness in it.

'You're next.'
Yeah.

　Zeke demanded that I kill Sufilia.

　The tears in Sufilia's eyes were silly, she didn't even feel sadness.
　I don't know if this is the reaction of someone whose parents were murdered in front of me, but it's all over me, and I feel like I'm lacking in some kind of emotion.

'I need to ask you one thing, Your Highness.

　The princess turned her gaze only to me.

'Is it true that you have ordered genocide against your people?

　I can't believe it.
　She bemoans her helplessness and wants to help but can't.
　I could feel her disappointment in herself and her apology to her people at that time.
　But now I see the princess standing before me and I don't feel anything.
　She's a different person.

''I'm going to take my mask off for a moment.

　I tell them and Zeke and the others distance themselves from me and Sufilia.
　Turning my back on them, I remove my face.

"Sufilia.
...Master Nito?

　Apparently, he remembered me.
　But I'm not happy about it.

'Answer my question, did you give him instructions?　Did you order them to kill the people who were gathered there at that time?
'Why are you here................. You were the heart of a dragon, weren't you?
Was that a lie?
'No? ....No, I'm not lying.
So the story about ordering the massacre is bullshit, or can we believe it?
No, I ordered that.

　Sufilia replied with an expression too easily.

''That can't be... then why were you bemoaning it, weren't you frustrated that you were helpless?''
Because you all love a princess who cares for her country, don't you?

　So this is Sufilia........

　There seemed to be no longer any love for the people in her expression.
　That guard was right, she was crazy.
　Maybe it was her father's influence, but if so, it didn't change the truth that she was a ruthless madman.

'You ordered the slaughter.'
I ordered it. I ordered him to kill me, but his father didn't listen to me at that time. I had asked him to set fire to the castle, but he made me kill him with arrows and a sword because he didn't want the fire to spread to the castle. If I was going to die anyway, I wanted to see it at least once. To see a crowd, a crowd of that size, burning at once...

　What is the truth?
　She in front of me is the truth and the princess at that time was a fake....
　But my heart wants to believe her, and I still do.
　Something has always stuck with me.

'You lied to me.'
No, I didn't lie to you. I saw it the way you wanted to see it, is that not all?
....
I don't know why you have such a sad look on your face, sir.
....
I have been wearing these two masks for most of my life: the princess and the Sufiria. I'm a princess in front of the people and at important meetings, and a Sufiria in the castle. That's what I mean by "living". But that is true for everyone, isn't it, and it is true for Master Nito as well?　You have two masks, Nitto the Adventurer and Nitto the Dragon's Heart, so what makes you different from me?
It's not a matter of difference. It's the fact that you ordered the murder.

　I realize now.
　Sufirians are far less guilty of murder than we are.
　That's why they think I'm accusing them of lying, not murder.
　We feel too differently....
　That's why Zeke told you to kill him.

'You don't understand and that's why you say you're going to kill him?　So you are like me, aren't you? I couldn't understand, either, the people who unilaterally adore me...
Didn't you understand?
They adore me, don't they?　Then it's not up to me what I do with them. Lord Nito, you just don't know, but they are all selfish, right?　I realized one day, "Why do they love me so much? Why do they adore me?

　I know what I'm talking about.
　I know that people are selfish.
　Saeki had the nerve to come up with something better for me.
　That's what made him tormenting me.

But he wasn't wrong. It wasn't me they admired. It was the princess. They didn't adore me, they adored the princess. They didn't even adore me. They didn't understand me. So they just made up for it with the act of "adoring". You see, Nito, they are the same as you are now. They are seeing things the way they want to see them.

　We all live for convenience.
　Everything we do can be explained by this "convenience".
　If this is the case, then I understand what the princess meant when she said it was selfish.
　But how does that lead to the murder.....
　I know the same thing.

"They didn't understand, but they chose to adore. I chose to murder by accident. No, it wasn't a choice. It was more like it was happening right before my eyes. There is no good or evil in there, as you might think, there is no good or evil.

　Good and evil are abstract concepts, Zeke said.
　We're just acting according to what we believe, he said.
　But what do I believe in then?
　What exactly do I believe in?

　What do I believe and what am I doing now with this sword pointed at her neck?

''See, isn't it the same for you? People reject what they don't understand, and if they can't understand it, they will abuse it. And by doing so, they make up for it in their minds.

　Yes, I've been oppressed.
　She's not wrong.
　People reject and oppress what they don't understand, just like Saeki abandoned me and Aries abandoned me.
　But what about the people, did they really adore her for that reason?
　No, I don't know about that.
　There must be a view that only the princess can see.

''Why shouldn't I be the only one to ask for it?''

　Why am I the only one who has to go through this........

Isn't it unreasonable?

　Oh, that's so unreasonable.

Why did I have to be a princess?

　I'm a tormentor for a reason.
　It could have been anyone.　

Then it doesn't matter if I kill you.

　Well I'm going to kill them, Saeki.
　Right.

"Nitto, it's time to kill--

　No.

"-- she's not going to kill you.
What... what?

　Killing her.
　That means denying yourself.

'Nito, do you know what you're talking about?
She shouldn't have been killed.
"They're not just guilty of murder. This country is selling weapons to other countries. It's a trifurcated magic tool. It's fueling the war and causing more damage. And most of all, she's a senior alchemist, one of the makers.
Manufacturer?
She was the one who managed the production of Trifal in this country.
If you kill a Sufiria.
We can eradicate tryfalls.
".....
The Trifaal is made by a few mages with senior positions. The others have been killed; she is the only one left. She is the only alchemist in the country. Once she is killed, no more weapons will be created in the future.

　So you're going to kill him.
　No, that's for Zeke's convenience, too.

　Sufilia is meditating and waiting to die.
　She's accepting that this is her end.

'What about the rest of the trifails already made?
'We'll clean out the factory after this. There's no way around it if it's already been leaked. But grimoires aren't meant to be used permanently, and they will eventually come to an end.
'I see. Does that mean she won't be born again unless she makes it?
That's what I'm talking about.
Okay. Then let me have her.
'I'm telling you now, we can't let her live!

　Zeke's angry voice echoed through the hall.

'She won't be making any more trifails,'
'In her case, existence itself is a sin. We can't let her live.
'Zeke, I've told you before that you should follow the path you believe in. This is the path I believe in. Sufiria should not die here, the source of all evil is the king, not Sufiria.
"...what are you going to do with her alive, now you're going to build Artemias!
'I will add you to the party. From now on, you will live as an adventurer, not a princess.

　I ask the meditating Sufiria-- "Is that all right?

'That's all right with you, isn't it?'
I will give my life to Master Nito.

　I took Sufilia's hand.