??"What?!" Aurelia was deeply shocked that her eyes were wide open. "I... I..." she slowly looked at Serena.
??
??"You wanted my help, so I gave you soone who aligned with your wish," Rasmus said as he looked at the priestess pouring tea into his cup. "But before that, I believe Lady Astrea should tell Aurelia about the hidden truth," he pointed out and looked at Astrea.
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??Astrea nodded, and then Rasmus excused himself since he knew it would be best to let those three have so privacy.
??
??After Aurelia got her lesson from Rasmus, she didn't expect that he would recomnd Serena to help her. It was Rasmus's plan all along, to put soone in the Holy Nation other than Daryus.
??
??The ones who stayed behind were Daryus, Serena, and Videl who acted as Serena's paladin. Those three played a huge role in protecting Astrea and Aurelia while Rasmus and the rest gathered information about Nemu and the other emissaries that might be hiding in Central Neva.
??
??Rasmus approached Isador who was standing next to the window, staring out at the peaceful garden.
??
??"Tell
about Arandil D'Armond, Crown Prince," Rasmus said as he looked out the window. "The man who beheaded both my parents," he slowly turned his head and stared at Isador.
??
??Isador felt cold ice going up from his lower back to his nape. He was anxious, especially when Rasmus went straight to the question. He realized that he would get into the sa situation as Aurelia, but he didn't expect it to be this soon.
??
??"He's my father—the Imperial Highness's closest aid. He beca a Swordmaster when he was still 12 then climbed to the top when he was 15. The Imperial Highness offered a Commander position in the Imperial knight order," Isador answered as he glanced at Aurelia who seed to be anxious near Serena.
??
??"Long story short, Lord Arandil played a huge role in helping the South Neva Union to unite South Neva. His Imperial Highness granted him a title, Count title and beca his personal imperial guard ever since," Isador continued and looked at Rasmus nervously.
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??"How old was he when he killed my parents, Crown Prince?" Rasmus asked with a stoic expression.
??
??"He was 27 at that ti, Count," Isador answered.
??
??Rasmus glanced at Aris, who was staring at Isador with a sharp and cold gaze. She had listened to the whole conversation, and found out that a 27 year old man could kill an Aristoria. It didn't make things better, even Aurelia and Isador noticed the change of atmosphere in the room.
??
??"Do you want to kill Lord Arandil D'Armond, Aris?" Rasmus asked as he glanced at Aris.
??
??That question made everyone fall silent, their eyes were pointed at Aris.
??
??"Yes, I'll kill him in the most painful way that a human can bear before death," Aris answered coldly, her eyes kept staring at Isador. "His death will be by my hand," she added.
??
??"You heard her, so what are you going to do now, Crown Prince?" Rasmus asked.
??
??Isador knew he was being tested just like Rasmus tested Aurelia earlier. He knew he couldn't make a single mistake that might lead him to his defeat. He thought really hard and looked for an answer that Rasmus couldn't argue.
??
??"The Blackheart... your parents killed the whole royal family during the rebellion, Count. Justice needs to be upheld or the world will be in chaos because there are no orders. What he did was nothing but to protect the innocent, and if Lady Aristoria decided to kill him, nothing good would co out of it for either of us," Isador answered as he tried to look at Aris but his eyes and body refused.
??
??"You think she cares about that, Crown Prince?" Rasmus tilted his head. "She despises humans, and whatever happens to them, she won't even bat an eye," he continued.
??
??Isador forgot the one who wanted to kill Arandil was an ancient race who got betrayed by humans. He forgot that it wasn't Rasmus that he was against since logic would work on Rasmus. He tried to fix the mistake he made and tried to deal with soone who didn't use both logic and morale.
??
??The mont Isador thought about dealing with such an opponent, he realized there was no point in arguing. Whatever reason he had, when the opponent didn't care about logic and morale, it was pointless.
??
??Isador suddenly thought of a carrot and a donkey, giving what the donkey wanted after the donkey brought him to where he wanted to be. However, he didn't want to use that thod because it was wrong, and he didn't have the courage to do sothing like that to Aris.
??
??"(What can I do...)" Isador thought really hard with a troubled expression on his face.
??
??"You're struggling about morality, Crown Prince?" Rasmus asked.
??
??Isador snapped back to reality, and he was petrified when Rasmus seed to read his thoughts. He was speechless and his mind went blank.
??
??"Is one life worth more than thousands, Crown Prince? If we are talking about context, if it was your mother, you would choose your mother's life over the thousands. However, Arandil is nobody to you, you don't have any attachnts to him. One life for a greater good, it doesn't sound bad at all, doesn't it?" Rasmus smiled coldly at Isador.
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??Everyone in the room listened to them, and they thought if they got asked the sa question, they would agree with Rasmus. However, it was their minds that made the decision, not their hearts.
??
??"Nothing is all black or all white. I taught all of you back then, and choice is one of the many forms of manipulation. It doesn't matter if you're righteous or evil, because when both sides clash, the innocents are the ones who suffer. Who is to bla? Both of them. One doesn't care and the other suffers from guilt, but that's how it is, always has been," Rasmus said as he walked toward the couch to be with Aris.
??
??"So, Crown Prince. One life..." Rasmus clenched his left hand. "Or the thousands? Your choice," he clenched his right hand and offered both hands to Isador.
??
??Astrea who was a Saint would have prevented those two from continuing. However, even her found it impossible to look away from it or pretended that it never happened or would never happen.
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??"Count, I can't decide soone else's life..." Isador shook his head as he closed his eyes.
??
??"That's interesting, Crown Prince. Because your father, the emperor, Great Sage Lenin, Lady Astrea, and many more decided to end my parents' lives along with all the bodies with Blackheart's blood in them, publicly," Rasmus raised his brows. "You want to be morally right to not decide soone else's life, and yet, it's called justice when they killed all Blackhearts in public, in front of my eyes?" He tilted his head with his brows furrowed.
??
??Isador got completely defeated, he lost for words and he found hypocrisy within his morals and logic. Once again, he was completely broken, losing sight of his ideal that he had just rebuilt and forged. Even after everything he learned from Rasmus, he realized he was still naive.
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??Rasmus was about to open his mouth to say his finishing line, but suddenly he felt a chill down his spine. He didn't know what happened to him until Aris suddenly jolted from the couch and hurriedly walked toward the window.
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??The tension imdiately shattered and all eyes were on Aris. She looked at the sky in the distance for a few seconds when suddenly everyone heard a faint sound of the bell being rang.
??
??"It's a warning signal..." Astrea said with a worried expression. "Lady Astrea, what's going on out there?" She asked.
??
??"Wyverns..." Aris answered as she narrowed her eyes. "They're coming, and they're angry..." she pointed out.
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??Everyone hurriedly left the room to look at the sky from outside the temple, except for Rasmus and Astrea. He stayed behind because he was powerless and extrely vulnerable. He couldn't use his magic and he couldn't even stand up without his cane.
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??"Count, I think you were a bit too harsh on Isador and my daughter," Astrea said, the room felt empty the mont everyone left, it felt like a dead space. "You're breaking their morale compass, and that's not what I wanted from you. You promised
that you would take care of Aurelia when I'm gone, but I don't want her to be like you," she continued with a frown on her face.
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??"I'm not breaking their morale compass, or I'm trying to turn them into puppets. I just want them to be brave enough to make a decisive move and bear all the consequences without hesitation," Rasmus responded as he stared out the window. "The age of peace is long gone, Lady Astrea. They will see deaths more than they see people's smiles," he continued and glanced at Astrea.
??
??"Can you promise
another thing, Count? Can you promise
that you won't turn Aurelia to be like you?" Astrea asked.
??
??"Not even once I gave them my solutions to their problems, Lady Astrea. I made them think, not to follow," Rasmus answered. "The last thing I want is to have soone like
around. So I can promise you that," he nodded.
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