Do you want Filia to participate in the execution of the July Party leaders, Count Polos and the others?
　Father Gapon said, but what was the point of doing that?

　I looked at the priest warily.
　His face was wrinkled and his eyes were a strange, absorbing brown.

　The Third Department of the Emperor's Secretariat was an organization that acted as a political secret police to expose rebel forces.
　Some of its members are pure bureaucrats, while others are agents who are outside collaborators.

　Many of the proxies of the Third Department worked as spies, infiltrating rebel organizations and other covert activities.
　That's why the people of the Third Department of the Government Secretariat would not normally reveal their identities.

　However, Father Gapon was outspoken in claiming to be an agent of the Third Division.
　That means that the fact that he is the agent of the Third Department has already been exposed and is widely known.

　And if it was Father Gapon's name, I'd heard it too.

'Father was the one who was the leader of the people's side at the time of the July 9th tragedy, wasn't he?

"How.

　My question was answered by Father Gapon in the affirmative.
　Two years ago, on July 9, the people of the Imperial City marched to the Imperial Palace to demand a better life.
　Before they could make a direct appeal to the Emperor, they were shot dead en masse by an army magic attack.

　Gapon must have been at the forefront of that movement, leading the people.
　He had no magic and no power, but he was a clergyman who represented the conscience of the Imperial Church.

　Gapon was worthy of being a hero, as he risked no danger, seeking the salvation of his people and fiercely condemning the government.

　But after the tragedy, he abandoned his people and turned to the side of the government.

'I am now a loyal servant of His Majesty the Emperor,'

Yes, I've heard that.

'Do you think I'm a traitor?　It is true that I would be a traitor from the standpoint of a traitor who challenges His Majesty and his country. But if you truly care about your country and your people, strengthening the imperial government is the path of justice.

　Gapon said in a voice that seemed to sink into the darkness, but without hesitation.

　The people's hero, Father Gapon, is now a dog of the Imperial government.　
　Everyone in the world says so.
　In fact, he would have people arrested and executed without mercy if they stood on the slightest rebel position.

　How he came to be at the forefront of the repression of the rebel group, the Third Department of the Czar's Secretariat, is not known.

　Maybe he gave in to his knots for fear of being executed, or maybe he despaired of his helplessness.
　But in any case, there was no doubt that he was a dangerous man.

''Your Majesty's presence at the execution of Her Imperial Highness Filia is an order from Her Majesty herself. The presence of the imperial family would be a good advertisement that the Empire will not tolerate the rebels.

'But how is it that Filia-sama will see the execution? Even if you're a rebel, you're still going to see the death and blood of a man.

　I stated that I disagreed.
　I didn't want Filia to watch people being killed one by one.
　As a teacher, I want to show Filia only happy scenes.

　But Gapon smiled and said.

'You were the tutor to the Princess, weren't you?

'Yes, but...'

The world is not only made up of beautiful things. In wars with neighboring countries, soldiers die in great numbers, people starve, and rebels kill innocent people. That's the truth about this country and the world.

What do you want to say?　I am aware of that.

Exactly. You've had to kill people, too, haven't you? The world is full of blood, tears and suffering.

It's...

You must teach your highness the truth about the world. You must teach your highness the truth about the world, because even if you try to protect him from such a world, you will not be able to do so.

　I wonder if that's true.
　Does Filia need to know about such a dark world?
　She's only a girl of fourteen.

　If it was a person's death, Filia would have seen enough of it during the July Party attack.
　I don't see how watching people get killed any more would help Filia grow up.

　And if the dark world tries to attack Filia, it should be my job to protect her from it.

　But Gapon spoke of something even more radical.

''As long as I'm witnessing the execution of the death penalty, I'm going to ask Your Highness to execute one or two criminals as well.

　I was frightened.
　You're going to get Filia to kill people.

"Your Highness is a member of the royal family. Therefore, he is obligated to serve his country. If that's the case, it wouldn't hurt to at least learn how to execute those who oppose the Empire.

　They say that Filia is obligated to serve the Empire, but on the other hand, what has the Empire done for Filia?

　Filia had been left alone and neglected in a corner of the Imperial Palace for a long time.

　No one had any affection for her, and neither the emperor, the rest of the royal family, nor the government had any regard for her.
　And yet, it was strange to say that Filia had a duty to serve the empire.

''Such awe-inspiring things, such as staining Filia-sama's hands with blood, I don't agree with it.

　Even after hearing my words, Gapon still had a hollow smile on his face.

''This is an order from His Majesty the Emperor. Magic Swordsman Solon. Do you intend to go against the imperial order?''

　In fact, we don't know how positive the emperor was in voicing his opinion.
　In the first place, it's also clear that the emperor doesn't even care about Filia.

　Then why was Filia appointed to witness the execution site?

　Perhaps Holy Knight Creon is biting the bullet.
　Creon is said to be in contact with the third division of the Emperor's Secretariat.

　In any case, the Third Department of the Secretariat is an organization directly under the emperor's control, and even if it's a formality, it's a sure sign that they are still serving the emperor's word.

　I can't go against them.
　I had no choice but to nod and show Gapon to his guest room.

　Then I bowed and left the room.

　I had to wake Clarice up and ask her to get ready for Filia to go out.
　Fortunately, we have plenty of time to spare, so there's no need to be in such a hurry.

　However, even if I have no choice but to be present at Filia's execution, I don't want to avoid the idea of Filia herself carrying out the execution.
　What should I do?

　With that in mind, I ran upstairs to the second floor of the mansion.
　Then I opened the bedroom door.

　I made a very bad mistake.
　Since it's my bedroom, I accidentally thought it would be fine without knocking.
　But I was naive.

　The two girls in the room, namely Clarice and Sophia, were already up.
　And they were both in their underwear.

　They were probably about to get dressed, but the timing was bad.

　Clarice blushed a little embarrassed when her eyes met mine, but she said happily.

'Oh, Master Solon?　Did you purposely come back at this time to see me and Lady Sophia having s*x?

I swear I didn't do it on purpose.

You're really bold, Master Solon, aren't you?

　Giggling, Clarice laughed in her underwear.