In the office of the mansion, a man looks up to the heavens with a look of anguish on his face.
　How much time had he spent in this state without the slightest movement since he returned home from the castle?
　Enough, twenty minutes, thirty minutes. Or has it already been more than an hour?
　The man's heart was filled with inexplicable conflicts and regrets, and a sense of helplessness towards himself.
　Never in his life has a man felt so weak and empty as he does now.
(What was wrong with me? We had a little bit of time now by our estimation we misjudged the time or there was no way to save the country from the beginning).
　Even as a young man, when he had to retire to his estate as a result of his foster father's defeat in a power struggle with Duke Gerhardt, he was never so devastated as this.　
　That's how much of a gamble this plan was for the man.

'Excuse me. Mr. Zeref is here to see you. May I show him in here?

　There was a light tap on the door of the room, and the old butler's voice roused the man's consciousness to reality.

'Oh, no matter. Let me through.

　The conflicting thoughts of wanting to see him and not wanting to see him cross the man's mind for a moment.
　Out of the corner of my eye, I see a stack of papers on the desk.
　Just a few hours ago, it was a trump card to change this Roselia Kingdom, but now it's a piece of trash that has no use other than to be used for burning. But how much effort and sacrifice was made to prepare this pile of garbage? When he thought about it, the man didn't dare to look at his brother-in-law's face properly, who trusted him wholeheartedly.
　Even if he understands that his brother-in-law is not the kind of person to blame a man.

''You don't have an unflattering look on your face. ''Brother-in-law, your brother-in-law.''

　Count Zeref, who opened the door to reveal himself, looked at Count Bergston's face at the opening and hid his eyebrows.
　His face must have shown a great deal of heartache.

''It can't be helped. Under the circumstances........''

　When Count Zeref sank his obese body into the sofa opposite him, Count Bergston replied with a deep sigh.

I overheard a little while ago that Her Majesty was in a meeting when she fell ill upon hearing the urgent news?

　At Count Zeref's words, Count Bergston couldn't help but stare piercingly at his brother-in-law's face.

'Ah, he suddenly fainted as soon as he heard the report of the rebellion. He is resting in his bedroom today. It seems that he had his heart set on you in his own way. But you know that well. I gave a gag order to the people in the castle.

　To Count Bergston's words, Count Zeref replied with a shrug of his shoulders.
　It's easy to order them to remain silent, but how difficult it is to do so. It is obvious to Count Zeref, who is good at espionage, that it is difficult to do so.

''There's no point in imposing a gag order. It is difficult for even a god to completely shut a man's mouth in the first place.
I don't like it. Especially now that everyone is worried about what's going on in this country...

By nature, humans are creatures that love to gossip. And it spreads like a ripple from person to person. Truth and lies are mixed in.
　It's difficult to suppress what should be called a person's instincts with force.

So it's inevitable...?

It was inevitable.

　Count Bergston's question is answered by Count Zeref with the same words.
　The two men look at each other.
　After a long silence, Count Bergston slowly opens his mouth. Now is not the time to worry about Lupis's health condition for any length of time.

''This which you arranged for me has also gone to waste.......I'm really sorry that I asked you to play a damaging role and it turned out like this.

　Count Bergston bowed deeply to Count Zeref, who sat face to face with him.
　However, Count Zeref's face only wore the same calm smile as usual.

''Don't mind that, brother-in-law.

But!

It's no use. It was a bad bet to begin with.

　Count Zeref doesn't have any indignation on his face. He sincerely dismisses this time's result as inevitable.
(This guy........or does that mean I'm still naive?)
　At such an attitude of his brother-in-law, the Earl of Bergston turned his gaze to the desk once more.
　This thick bundle of paper on the desk was filled with information regarding the tax collection that was currently taking place within Roselia.
　How much money was collected, by whom, at what time, in which village, and by what means? And how much of the money collected as taxes went into their own pockets. All of this is clearly documented.
　Based on this information, Count Bergston was thinking about purging the people who joined the noble faction.　
　This is because many of the problems that are happening within the Roselia Kingdom right now are caused by the aristocrats who have gathered again under Viscount Gerhardt.
　They are fomenting discontent against Lupis, meddling in the defense of the country, and putting pressure on the bureaucrats to stall the political affairs.
　While each of these actions are not fatal, they are not something that can be ignored. And malicious non-cooperation is far worse and more difficult to deal with than outright hostility.
　No, to be precise, Lupis Roselian's position and character made it difficult to deal with.
　The easiest solution to break the current situation would be to purge the clan by selecting two or three of those uncooperative noble families with less political power from among those uncooperative nobles.
　Crush the house. This is what the aristocrats who consider themselves special fear and abhor, and this fear will always bind their hearts and blunt their opposition.
　All that is left is to tame the aristocrats, little by little, with a mixture of hard and soft.
　The reasons for the purge are not so troubling.
　It's only natural that when you're in charge of politics, it can't just be a pretty face. It's natural that every family has a sin or two behind them, and at worst, they can probably make up a crime or two. It's not impossible for Lupis, who is the absolute power behind the king, to put up with a little bit of self-inflicted injury.
　But Lupis, whose character tends to choose a gentle and moderate approach and who has no achievements since becoming king, couldn't choose to use his power to forcefully purge the aristocrats.
　That's why the Earl of Bergston continued to sit idly by without taking any measures against the aristocrats.
　Until the time when the aristocrats let down their guard and exposed their tyrannical fangs and ugly nature to the light of day.

'I honestly thought I would be lucky if it worked. It was originally too difficult a measure to be on terms with.

　At this point, Zeref cuts off his words once and exhales lightly.
　This measure of deliberately freeing the aristocrats and grabbing the evidence of their tyranny and eliminating them all at once is a legitimate one that is both legitimate and in accordance with the law of the country, but the timing was difficult for that reason.
　In particular, the biggest problem is that the aristocrats, using Lupis' order against him, were taking actions that deliberately inflamed the commoners' discontent.
　The aim of these aristocrats is the revolt of the commoners.
　Even though they are inferior to the armed forces, the oppressed and the weak can't stay at the mercy of the weak for long.
They don't live, they don't kill, they squeeze the tax.
　You don't have to love your people, but if the people rebel against you, you are not a good ruler. This is knowledge that should naturally be suppressed in order to maintain the territory. The fact that the aristocrats are ignoring it and doing whatever they want is itself a true indication of their aim.
　There are two ways to prevent this from happening: either we are prepared to face some stigma and take a hard-line approach, or we keep track of their movements and judge the aristocrats by national law before the commoners' discontent erupts.
　But all of those measures have come to nothing.
　There are only two arrows. When they stole the life of a tax collector who visited a village.

''Even for me, I'm just a vassal of the Roserian Kingdom. I have loyalty to Her Majesty the Queen. That's why I obeyed your brother-in-law's request and devised a plan, and that's why I supported him to the best of my ability, but there's no point in going any further.

Zeref you.

　The Earl of Bergston gulped as he realized Zeref's intentions, which were unspoken and blurred.

You can't be unaware of this. You can't be unaware of this.

　The usual gentle smile disappeared, and Count Zeref's eyes emitted a suspicious light.
　It was like the pronouncement of the Grim Reaper visiting a terminally ill man.

''Stop it, Zeref. That's as a subject........''

An obvious point. The words that would come out of Zeref's mouth after this would break Bergston's heart as he tried to turn his back on reality. It was not Bergston who did not understand that.
　But Bergston did not want to hear those words from his most trusted brother-in-law.
　If he listened, he would have to choose whether to join the brother-in-law whom he trusted most or to part with him.
　But Zeref had not come to this moment with a half-hearted heart.
　Even though he understood Bergston's feelings, Zeref spun his words slowly.　

''Brother-in-law, let's get real. We have done our duty to our country more than enough. From now on, shouldn't we find a way for us to survive?

But then....

　Are you going to abandon Lupis? Yes, Bergston's eyes asked.
　But Zeref would not pull back. It is obvious that if he pulls back here, great misfortune will befall him and his family.
　In the worst case, even his brother-in-law, Bergston, would be cut off. With that much resolve, Zeref is here.

The first thing that comes to mind is the fact that there is no way for His Majesty to win. If the rebellion is not put down, the commoners will not keep His Majesty, who can be said to be a grudge-bearer, alive, and even if the rebellion were to be put down,''

'Gerhardt pushes Princess Ladine to crush His Majesty Lupis........ Using the cause of abolishing the incompetent king as a shield.

　At Bergston's words, Zeref nodded slowly.
　There's nothing more important than a cause or legitimacy that depends on the situation and the competence of the wielder.
　Sometimes they are the strongest swords and cut through the enemy, but sometimes they are also poisonous to one's self.
　In the last civil war, these causes were the greatest weapons for Lupis. However, her position and responsibilities as king have turned into a poisonous force that has her on the edge.

''Then the idea of negotiating with the commoners is...''

　A peaceful resolution through negotiations, not by force of arms, but by subduing the situation. This would certainly minimize the injuries Lupis would receive. However, Zeref dismissed such a proposal from Bergston without a second thought.

''It's useless. There's no way the commoners will honestly believe our words, and the nobles won't approve of any decision to concede to the commoners.''

　The secret to national stability, not just in the earth world, is how much fear can be maintained.
　By force of arms, by money, by power, or by law. People obey the state because the state is strong and fearful.
　For better or worse, I suppose they say that force is absolutely necessary for peace.
　And now Lupis does not have that power. Because she has no power, she has no trust, and because she has no trust, her words have no meaning.

''Causes aside, many people are now questioning His Majesty Lupis' ability to govern. This rebellion in this situation is a fatal wound. The nobles in the country will support Gerhardt with all hands.''

Even if we were to make a move on you, would you be able to?

''It's impossible. Originally, Gerhardt's influence reached nearly 40 percent of the country's nobility. And on top of that, this is the situation. Unless you have a strong personal grudge, the neutral aristocrats will probably flow to Gerhardt's side.

　The only advantage Lupis had was the status of a legitimate king.
　However, in the current situation, even if he went around preaching that to the nobles, it would be hazy in front of the cause of defeating the foolish king that Gerhardt would be raising in the future. Moreover, if Radine is placed at the head of the banner, there is nothing to complain about from the perspective of legitimacy.

''There is no way to do it........''

If you had at least done something about Lady Ladine, we could have still done something about it, but...

　If only Ladine hadn't been there, no matter how much of a cause Gerhardt had, he couldn't shake the impression of usurping the throne against the move to get rid of Lupis.
　I'm sure there are some noblemen who don't like that kind of dark image and choose to follow Lupis, and would have listened to Bergston and the others, but that's hard to do under the current circumstances.

''Is it all too late? In the end, the decision at that time was fatal........

　Bergston looks up to the heavens and sighs loudly.
(After all, he should have crushed Gerhardt completely during the last civil war.)
　Even though I understand that there is no point in regretting the past, I can't help but regret it. Because the dawn of the glorious Roselia Kingdom had indeed come once in that moment.
(But all is too late now.) The glorious and glorious future has spilled out of the palm of my hand. And with this rebellion, His Majesty's reign is completely over. Then.........)
　Should he perish with Lupis Roserian or explore his own way of life?
　I have a sense of duty as a vassal of the Roserian Kingdom, and as a nobleman, I have a responsibility to my people and vassals. Both of these are big things that can't be discarded.
　But right now I have to choose one or the other.
　A long, long silence dominates the room. Zeref just waited silently for Bergston's decision.
　And the time for a decision would come.

'All right. I want to hear your opinion. How can I protect the house?

　Lupis' decision. That's not to say that he was never wrong as a human being. Also, it is not wrong as a person in charge of national politics. But that's all.
　She's not right just because she's not wrong. To be more precise, the right choice for politics is the result. It doesn't matter how wrong a choice is if the result is bad.
(Your Majesty I'm sorry.)　
　Bergston cried tears of blood in his heart. He never disliked the person called Lupis.
　Although Lupis was sometimes foolish and childish in his judgments, he was not a bad person and was worthy of service.
　At least, Bergston had served the person called Lupis Roselianus sincerely since the last civil war.
　But under the circumstances, he already has no choice.
　Bergston has a family to protect and the fate of his vassals, who have been with him for years.

'A wise decision, sir. My brother-in-law.

　Bergston nodded at Zeref's words, biting his lip.