The Genen Autonomous Region was still surrounded by layers by tanks. The Department Chiefs of the Governor-General's Office drafted a letter to be sent to the Imperial royal family. [......As the suppression of the riot that broke out in Genen has been successfully concluded, we hereby request that the military forces and tanks be withdrawn. Furthermore, this incident stemmed from the Governor-General's Office’s lack of authority and manpower, as well as the absence of inspection, and in order to prevent such unfortunate events in the future, we respectfully ask that the Governor-General's Office’s control authority be further strengthened......] Erio, the Department Chief of Internal Affairs, had his secretary send a courier. A single vehicle left the Governor-General's Office and sped down the road. However, it did not get far before they came to a stop. It was because of the military barricades set up at every junction. “Stop.” Soldiers stepped in front of the car. The secretary rolled down the window and spoke in an irritated tone. “Ah, yes. We’re couriers from the Governor-General's Office. We’re on our way to deliver a confidential letter to the Imperial family, so please open the way.” “.......” The soldiers did not respond for a moment. Instead, they stared intently into the car. "Hello?" "No passage allowed." “No, what do you mean? We’re from the Governor-General's Office. With the Mana Barrier completely blocking communications right now, that’s why we’re going in person. Move aside.” “.......” Despite the secretary’s urging, the soldier silently entered the guard post and transmitted a message somewhere. It was a ‘wide-band resonance communicator’, the only device that still functioned even when the Mana Barrier had rendered all radio waves and Mana Waves across Genen useless. By finely crushing Mana Stones whose frequencies and Mana wavelengths had been perfectly synchronized from the manufacturing stage and embedding them inside, it was a short-range military communicator designed to resonate only between mutually designated devices. After a short while, the soldier came back out. “Hey? Can you hear me? We have to go quickly!” The secretary shouted, tapping his wristwatch repeatedly. The soldier gestured somewhere, and nearby troops came rushing in. Bang! They flung the car doors open without warning. “Get out.” “No, what is this? I told you, we’re people from the Governor-General's Office! Do you have any idea how important this letter is─” “Get out!” A soldier grabbed the secretary by the collar and roughly dragged him out. “Urgh, hey, you bastard, what’s your name! I’m a secretary of the Governor-General's Office! How dare you lay hands on─!” “Drag him out─!” After subduing the secretary and the driver, the soldiers confiscated their letter. ....... On the outskirts of the Genen Autonomous Region, inside a shabby private house. Alphonse was sitting at the dining table with the family who lived there. They were kind people who had allowed them to stay for several days and nights. “Thank you. For taking such good care of us.” However, it was now time to leave. Alphonse took out an envelope he had prepared in advance from his bosom and slid it to the corner of the table. "No, no. That's not necessary-" “We’ll be going now!” Hoping that this small amount of money would help their household, Alphonse hurriedly stood up from his seat before the family could even finish refusing. “Let’s go.” Alphonse looked at his companion. He was a Genen man who had acted as their guide from the Empire. “Ugh, it’s cold.” He wrapped his coat tightly. Deep in the inner pocket, the film canister at the position touching his heart gave a heavy sensation. Roads crushed under tank treads, bleeding students, an interview with Adeline’s father, photographs taken during her lifetime, the situation in Genen that the Imperial media was trying to hide, and everything about that shooting incident, all of it was contained within this small roll of film. “......As when we came, please take care of us on the way back as well.” Alphonse bowed his head slightly to the man. “Yes. Let’s go quickly.” They got into a truck. The engine noise felt unusually loud, but fortunately there were no people on the streets. The truck sped through the darkness where not even streetlights were lit. A winding path along a mountainside, bypassing the city center. It was a rough route known only to locals of Genen. Clunk. Clunk. Each time the vehicle shook, Alphonse tightly clutched the camera in his arms. How many hours passed as he broke out in cold sweat from the tension. “......We’re almost there. Once we get over that ridge-” At the moment the driver smiled in relief. Fwaaaaaak──! A powerful searchlight burst forth. A wave of white light struck the truck’s front windshield. Screeeech! The driver hurriedly slammed on the brakes. “Stop.” Solid silhouettes walked out from beyond the light. Imperial regular army troops, wearing steel helmets and armed with rifles. Step. Step. One of the soldiers approached and knocked on the truck’s window. Knock knock. "This is an inspection." Alphonse swallowed dryly. His heart pounded wildly, but he forced himself to hide his trembling hands and rolled down the window. “Please present your identification.” In a businesslike tone. His emotionless gaze calmly swept through the interior of the truck. “Sir. Your identification.” “Ah, y-yes.” Alphonse slowly slipped his hand into his bosom. Past the film canister brushing his fingertips, he pulled out a leather wallet. “Here.......” The identification card of Imperial noble Alphonse von Stauffen was handed to the soldier. The soldier’s eyes narrowed slightly as he checked it. “......Just a moment. S-sir, please come over here!” The soldier called another soldier. One of slightly higher rank. They alternated between comparing the ID and Alphonse’s face, murmuring in low voices. ─Seems like the right one? ─Yes. It looks that way. The appearance matches too. ─Hmm. Then....... Those sounds were ominous. Alphonse secretly took out the film canister and subtly slid it toward the driver’s thigh. “Hey. If we get held up, I’ll draw their attention. You know what to do, right?” If he caused a commotion, the soldiers’ attention would focus on him. In that gap, at least the film had to be sent away safely. Thump. Thump. Hoo. He took a deep breath and warmed up his Mana. It had been so long that the sensation felt unfamiliar. His heart pounded. Thump. Thump. In the meantime, the soldiers who had adjusted their rifles stepped right up in front of the truck and...... Knock knock. They knocked on the front door of the truck. Thump. Thump. Alphonse prepared himself to fling the door open and bolt at any moment. For a noble, Mana was a basic skill. At the very least, he can run at a very fast pace using it. "Yes. You're good to go." Just as they were about to return Alphonse’s identification. Slam! "You may pass." Alphonse swung the door wide open. But, go ahead? The timing between what he heard and his own action went awry, and his entire body bounced across the ground like a skipping stone. “......Kuhuk!” Roll. Roll. He tumbled about four or five times. “Khuheok! Hukkeeeok!” “What are you doing?” “Kyaaaak!” “.......” The soldiers stared at Alphonse as if dumbfounded. Alphonse chuckled awkwardly and quickly scrambled to his feet. “Ahem. I, uh, missed my footing. So, um, what did you say? You’re letting us go?” “Yes.” It did not seem like a joke. The soldiers actually opened the barricade. “Go. But why would an Imperial noble come to a place like this?” “Well, you see...... I had some business. There was someone I needed to meet.” “Ah~ yes. As it happens, we received a radio transmission about you from the garrison base.” “......About me?” Alphonse tilted his head and asked back. “Yes. He said it’s cold at night, so why hurry so much, and told us to pass along that you should go comfortably.” At that moment, Alphonse’s expression stiffened. He did not need to ask who that person was. A familiar voice replayed in his ears. ─It’s cold at night, why the hurry. Go comfortably....... The knight of Ebenholtz, Maximilian von Ebenholtz. ....... Before the Department Chiefs of the Governor-General's Office could even begin to question the lack of a reply, the suppression forces requested a meeting first. However, the location was not the Governor’s residence, but the garrison base. “The garrison base.......” “Well. I suppose their security would be more reliable.” Seeing no particular reason to refuse, the high-ranking officials of the Governor-General's Office moved there. “Welcome.” Genen garrison base. The Department Chiefs who entered the conference room were greeted by Maximilian, seated at the place of honor. Around him sat generals, including Major General Maut, the commander of the suppression forces. “Please, have a seat.” The Department Chiefs smiled leisurely and took their seats. Maximilian spoke first. "It seems the suppression is now in its final stages." "Haha. Yes. Thanks to your tank unit, Knight." Kalz, the Department Chief of Finance, replied. A noble who had embezzled taxes through shell corporations during a term obtained by bribery, and exploited loopholes in the law to prey upon the real estate of the common people. “You really swept them away thoroughly.” Molt, the Department Chief of Land. A villain who drove Genen’s residents out under the pretext of redevelopment and privatized the land at dirt-cheap prices. ──Hahahaha. The Department Chiefs laughed, but the soldiers did not. The gazes of the generals were instead bleak. “......?” A chill suddenly ran down their spines. Before they knew it, the laughter died down, and a heavy silence filled the conference room. “Then.” Maximilian’s golden eyes were devoid of emotion. That gaze, resembling scorching sand, quietly fixed itself upon the officials. “One final matter remains.” Having built up justification, now it was time to swing the sword. ──Bang! The conference room doors closed. The sound of locks clicking shut rang out unusually loud. The flustered Department Chiefs glanced around the room. “Now, you must take responsibility for the conclusion of this riot.” The silence sank heavily. The Department Chiefs twitched their eyes, noses, and mouths as if trying to comprehend the voice they had just heard. Yet, as though the thought itself was unacceptable, hollow, almost laughing smiles spread across the lips of everyone except Erio. “......Haha. Sir Knight, you certainly have a sense of humor. Haha.” Even in the face of someone’s words denying reality, Maximilian remained calm. The generals remained frozen, not moving an inch. This was not a situation for exchanging jokes or maintaining an atmosphere. Realizing the situation, the Department Chiefs’ complexions gradually turned ashen. “You are taking this joke too far, Sir Knight. Responsibility for the riot? That lies with the rioters outside─” “─You.” Maximilian coldly cut them off. “You have smeared the Empire’s honor. Your lowly, plebeian desires ran out of control, and your incompetence, stupidity and filthy corruption shook the dignity of the Empire. Therefore, you must be placed upon the judgment stand.” “W-what!” Vango, the Department Chief of Justice, sprang to his feet. His face flushed red, he was the very culprit who had forced a hasty verdict in the Adeline case. “This cannot be! We are Department Chiefs of the Genen Governor-General's Office, appointed by the Imperial family! We did our utmost to contain this situation, but the rioters went beyond control! And yet you say we are to stand trial?!” Maximilian shifted his gaze to Erio, the Department Chief of Internal Affairs. He may have anticipated this to some extent. He must have lost contact with the surrounding Ezenheims. “......You seem to be mistaken. There will be no trial.” Whatever those damned Ezenheim might be thinking, and whatever thoughts these Department Chiefs might harbor, it does not matter. "This place where I stand is the judgment stand itself." Since they wouldn't last long anyway. ──Tick. Time slowed. Maximilian grasped the sword at his back. In a single instant, the blade bloomed and traced an elegant arc. Moonlight shattered like fragments, scattering vivid red streaks in a cascading spray. *** Blood pooled across the conference room. Bodies that had lost their heads lay sprawled across the floor, and severed heads rolled about in the corners. A space reeking of blood. Yet not a single drop of blood stained Maximilian, who stood at its center. He merely surveyed the room upright, mysterious in his calm, immaculately clean. Szzzt. Major General Maut took a cigarette from his pocket and put it in his mouth. Exhaling thick smoke, he asked Maximilian, “Care for one?” “No. I’m fine.” Maximilian shook his head. The generals exchanged glances with one another. Apart from immediate execution in wartime, there was a palpable sense of realistic concern about the aftermath. “However......” Maut spoke up. “These are officials appointed by the Imperial family. Will this be all right?” Maximilian calmly shrugged his shoulders. “Do not worry. An autopsy will produce results.” As he said that, he jerked his chin toward the corpses. “Some will be subspecies.” The corner of Major General Maut’s mouth twisted. Well, if it was Ebenholtz, this would naturally be something he could handle. “Some will be traitors who tried to seize their own interests by using the Revolutionary forces.” Some, no, all of them were simply criminals who deserved to die...... A faint sneer formed on Maximilian’s lips. “This execution is all for the Empire.” Creak. Maximilian opened the window slightly. The night air flowed in, cool and sharp. “His Majesty will also understand our intentions.” Major General Maut watched him while slowly exhaling cigarette smoke. The silhouette of the young knight standing with the moonlight at his back. It was not unfamiliar. Rather, it felt as though he had seen it somewhere before. It overlapped with the back of a certain giant he had encountered when he was very young, long ago. Sebestian. So his son had grown this much already. "Now, let's go." Maximilian stepped over the pooled blood, walked forward, and opened the door of the conference room. “To the place we must go.” ....... By the time morning came, the commanders emerged outside the garrison base. It was a spectacle. Hundreds of tanks occupying the streets of Genen growled as their engines rumbled, and beside them armed soldiers stood in endless formation. Snap! To the generals, the soldiers saluted in unison. Loyalty─! A road formed by tens of thousands of soldiers and hundreds of tanks. Down the exact center of the empty road, which the citizens of Genen would be watching from hiding, Maximilian walked forward. Major General Maut and the other generals followed behind him. Thud. Thud. Thud. The sound of military boots echoed against the asphalt. Advancing through the gaps between the soldiers’ salutes, Major General Maut felt an unknown emotion welling up from deep within his chest. Thud. Thud. Thud. It was not just him. In the eyes of the generals following behind, traces of their youth had also begun to surface. A certain exhilaration long forgotten, or temporarily worn down after being pushed aside by the unfamiliar bastards called the Imperial Guard. Thud. Thud. Thud. They looked at Maximilian’s back as he stood before them. He was clearly a young knight, yet there was not the slightest hesitation in following behind him. Their pride was not wounded. Thud. Thud. Thud. Decisive resolve. The strength to stop at nothing in method or means for the sake of purpose. Above all, a perfect bloodline and dignity, as if the very ideal of the Imperial Aran people had been molded into form. Thud. Thud. Thud. Rather, it would feel strange for them to stand in front of him. Following behind him feels like the natural order, and merely being able to match steps alongside him is regarded as a privilege. And so── they arrived at the Governor’s Office of Genen. There, a single man was standing. The Governor of the Genen Autonomous Region. A high-ranking position equivalent to a vice minister in the Imperial bureaucratic system. To the stiff-faced man, who seemed to have already received the news, Maximilian approached and extended his hand.