"...."

Far to the north, a lone figure walked through the endless snow.

The woman kept her hood pulled low over her head. Beneath it, her eyes glowed with a faint golden light as she moved across the frozen expanse.

The northern fortress that once belonged to the Glades was nearly abandoned.

After the death of its Head, the Glade elders had turned against one another in a vicious struggle for power. Their conflict soon spread beyond their halls, dragging the entire region into chaos.

What began as a dispute among elders eventually ignited a northern civil war.

Astrid could not ignore it.

The people of the north were the only ones she could still consider family. After all, her grandparents were quite literally here and alive.

And so she intervened. One by one, the tyrannical Glade elders who had seized control were brought down by her hand.

Peace had not returned yet, but the worst of them were gone.

"Astrid... are you leaving now?"

The traveler standing in the snow was none other than Astrid Barielle Aetherion.

She turned when she heard her grandmother’s voice.

"Yes," she said with a gentle smile. "I believe it’s time for my departure."

"I see."

"Do you have to leave so soon? The people are very grateful to you. They would like the chance to send you off properly."

"It’s fine, Grandmother."

Astrid shook her head.

Perhaps in the past, she would have welcomed that kind of attention. As one of Aetherion’s two princesses, she had spent most of her life surrounded by admiration from both her peers and adults.

Back then, she had indulged in it without much thought.

But not anymore.

Aetherion was likely going to fall soon.

Astrid had already reached that conclusion. She had seen too much to believe otherwise.

Through the metallic bird Becky, she had been able to observe the world from afar. By following Vanitas Astrea’s movements, Astrid had witnessed far more than most people ever would.

Because of that, she was always aware of the world’s recent events.

And because of that, Astrid had been able to prepare herself for what was to come.

"Thank you for taking care of me all this time, Grandmother."

When her whole world had fallen apart, it was these people who had taken her in.

They, who had been abandoned by their own in-laws long ago, had still welcomed her with open arms. The same people who were the biological parents of the tyrant known as Julia Barielle had given Astrid a place to stand when she had nowhere else to go.

During the time when her mind had been at its most fragile, they were the ones who kept her anchored.

Whoosh——

The northern frost swept through the air, carrying snow across the open expanse.

"When I return, Grandmother, the Empire will welcome you with open arms."

Astrid’s voice remained calm.

"So until then... please stay alive."

"Astrid—"

Whoosh——

Another cold gust rushed through the snowfield. The wind lifted the snow and briefly obscured her grandmother’s vision in a white fog.

"...."

By the time it cleared, Astrid was already gone.

* * *

"Ah, go away already! I said I’m not interested!"

"Think about the people, kid! Your testimony will definitely convince the elders!"

Ezra Kaelus slammed the door shut.

These so-called revolutionaries had been pestering him without end. Day after day, they showed up, trying to drag him into their cause. They wanted him to join their movement and testify in favor of impeaching Vanitas Astrea from his position at the Scholars Institute.

To them, Ezra Kaelus was the perfect pawn.

He had been one of Vanitas Astrea’s closest students and someone who had worked closely with the Astrea name. They believed that someone in his position would be the easiest to turn.

After all, the Astrea name had already been dragged through the mud. Every asset connected to the Astrea household had long since been seized by the common people.

"Sigh."

Ezra let out a long sigh.

What those people outside the door did not know was a truth far stranger than any conspiracy they believed in.

Two of the most infamous figures leading their so-called revolution, Jack the Ripper and James Moriarty, who had been hunting down corrupt nobles in the name of justice, were both the same person.

Vanitas Astrea. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"I don’t understand what it is you’re trying to accomplish... Professor..."

They did not realize that even now, they were still moving within the palm of Vanitas’s hand.

But according to the Professor’s instructions, Ezra was not to entertain them under any circumstances. His role was simply to remain on standby and assist Silas.

"Dude, look at this."

"...?"

Silas, who had been sitting behind him, leaned forward and held out a newspaper.

Ezra glanced down at it.

The headline covered this year’s graduating class from the Amethyst University Tower. The page displayed a commemorative photograph of the students who were about to graduate.

Both of them immediately recognized several familiar faces. They were people they had met during the previous Summit Festival. People they had formed brief connections with during those few days.

"Should’ve been us too..." Ezra muttered.

Unfortunately, the Silver University Tower had been placed on a closed period following the recent events.

With Headmaster Elsa Hesse missing in action, the remaining faculty were still struggling to recover while continuing their search for her whereabouts.

And beyond that, the growing undercurrents of the civil war had made it impossible for many students to attend even if they wanted to.

At this point, that was hardly surprising.

These were times when nobles were being hunted, and common people who wanted nothing to do with it were caught in between. Just yesterday, Ezra witnessed a Viscount suspected of drug trafficking being dragged from their estates and executed in the streets.

Aetherion was declining faster than anyone had expected.

The empire had always relied on the balance between noble authority and the labor of the common folk. Now that the balance was gone. Every region was beginning to fall into smaller conflicts.

In the South, several noble houses had fortified their territories and declared independence from imperial command.

In the West, revolutionary groups seized estates and redistributed the lands, only for those territories to descend into further violence once the leadership broke.

The northern territories were barely holding together at all.

Communication between provinces had become unreliable. Trade routes were constantly attacked. Entire cities had begun rationing supplies as caravans stopped arriving.

The empire still stood on paper.

But everyone could feel it.

Aetherion was rotting from the inside.

"Do you think the Professor knows where the Headmaster is?" Silas asked.

"I don’t know."

"Do you think he still has it all under control?"

"I don’t know..."

Silas leaned back in his chair and shrugged. "Well, whatever it is you don’t know, we can probably ask her."

"Her?"

"Her."

Silas pointed behind him.

Ezra turned around. The moment he saw who stood there, his expression froze in genuine astonishment.

"...Astrid?"

Standing in the doorway was someone he had not seen in quite a while.

Astrid stepped forward and slowly unfurled her hood. Her golden-blonde hair had grown much longer than he remembered. In fact, she looked far more mature than before.

"Astrid... is that really you?"

"It’s been a while, Ezra. Silas."

"Been a while? Where the hell have you been—"

Ezra’s voice rose, but Astrid raised a hand and cut him off before he could continue.

"Can we not talk about it?" she said. "What matters is that I’m here now, and I’m ready to help."

"...."

"...."

Silas and Ezra exchanged a glance. There were a hundred questions they wanted to ask. Where she had gone. What she had been doing all this time. Why she suddenly returned now of all times.

But the look in Astrid’s eyes made it clear she had no intention of answering any of them.

Ezra let out a slow breath and rubbed the back of his neck.

"You really picked the worst time to come back," he said. "Everything’s a mess."

"I think it’s exactly the perfect time to come back," Astrid said. "Knowing how Aetherion has always been, something like this was bound to happen eventually."

She paused.

"But before anything else..."

Astrid stepped closer to Ezra.

Then she lowered her head.

"On behalf of the Imperial Family... on behalf of the Aetherion name... I’d like to extend my apologies, Ezra. No, I’m deeply sorry, Ezra."

"...What?"

Ezra stared at her in confusion.

Silas tilted his head, trying to piece together the sudden shift in the atmosphere.

Astrid kept her head lowered. She intended to lower it even further if needed.

"You deserve to know the truth."

Ezra frowned. "The truth about what?"

Astrid slowly raised her gaze.

"Years ago there was a village in the outer territories. A small settlement that was accused of harboring a demon."

Ezra swallowed deeply. He felt like he knew where this was going.

"That village was burned to the ground. Imperial forces surrounded it and carried out a purge. Everyone inside was treated as an accomplice."

Ezra’s breathing slowed. His voice dropped when he spoke again.

"...That’s the village I grew up in."

"I know."

Silence fell over the room.

Astrid held his gaze.

"Your parents were caught in that conflict. But they were not the target. They were... just there when the order was carried out..."

Ezra’s hands slowly clenched at his sides. "...What order?"

Astrid did not look away. "That operation was carried out under the authority of the Imperial Crown."

Her voice grew quieter.

"...It was done under my mother’s command."

"...."

"My mother... the Imperial Queen... ordered the purge."

Ezra’s eyes widened. He took a step back, finding all of this way too sudden.

"That is the truth."

Astrid lowered her head once more.

"And that is why I am apologizing to you now."

"...."

For a moment, Ezra could not find the words to respond to this sudden confession. His thoughts struggled to keep up with what he had just heard. His heart rate spiked.

Why now?

What was this supposed to mean?

What the hell was going on?

"...Are you telling me everything I knew... was just collateral damage?"

"No."

Astrid slowly shook her head.

"Everything you knew... was taken from you because of the greed of a wicked woman."

Back then, the Lily of the Valley had shown her the truth.

Astrid had witnessed everything through those visions. She had seen the captives who were taken away in chains. She had seen the underground facilities where people were brought in as if they were nothing more than supplies.

And the number of them had seemed endless.

All of it had been orchestrated by Julia Barielle.

Those people were never executed for harboring demons. That accusation had only been the convenient lie used to justify the purge. In truth, they were abducted. They were taken away and subjected to experiments until their bodies gave out.

And among them... Ezra’s parents had been two of those victims.

"Astrid." Silas suddenly stood and cut in. "I understand your intentions, but this really isn’t the time for this—"

"It’s better that he knows the truth now."

"...."

"Before it’s too late."

"Too late?"

"Perhaps I’m the only living person who knows the full truth about what happened. Though I’m not sure."

"...."

"But that might not remain the case for long."

Astrid knew very well how many people had already died.

At this point, it would not be surprising if she became one of them someday. That was how critical the situation had become.

"Ezra," Astrid said, still keeping her head low. "If you wish for it... you can kill me—"

"Stop talking."

"...."

"Just stop talking for a while."

Ezra turned and began walking toward the door. Neither Astrid nor Silas moved to stop him.

"I need some air."