Ch.152For Elise (6)

“Balkaros Lantana von Staufen.”

He never appeared in the original work.

There was never a perspective that focused on the Emperor, nor were there any special side episodes about him.

Players could only make inferences based on the princesses’ stories.

Perhaps that was why.

The opinions about Balkaros were not favorable.

[Category: Free Board]

[Title: No matter how you look at it, the Emperor is the root of all evil in the Rose storyline]

This bastard is truly despicable

He neglected his daughters, his only flesh and blood, from a young age

Never showed his face easily

And if that wasn’t enough, when the 2nd Princess fell ill, he immediately exiled an 8-year-old child to Albano

In the end, the family was ruined

The once-good relationship between sisters was destroyed

Elise spent over 10 years battling illness alone, fell into various mental illnesses and self-harm addiction, and eventually chose to end her life before her time

Charlotte was left traumatized by this, resulting in decreased social skills

In the story

If the Headmaster is the pinnacle of incompetence

This Emperor bastard is the pinnacle of vileness

[He really is the definition of a bastard]

-> Even animals care for their offspring

-> Watching the Rose side story makes my hatred for the Emperor boil over

[Headmaster vs Emperor]

-> A battle of unlikable characters where it’s impossible to determine who’s worse

-> Trash versus waste material, seriously

Everyone threw stones at him.

I was no different.

At the time, there was barely any information available.

Our eyes were already biased, making it difficult to notice something strange.

Hypotheses pieced together from fragments hardened into a single proposition.

It wasn’t particularly surprising.

“That’s just how it is.”

Understanding.

It is something that can only be achieved after sufficient truth.

Without any guiding light, steps are bound to go astray.

Misunderstanding, misconception, distortion… these are what we call the missteps of understanding.

And we live among such words.

“But.”

This time was different.

We could finally understand each other.

Reports about the illness, knowledge of the original work, actions discovered through inquiries…

The clues we uncovered intertwine into a single thread, revealing the truth.

At the end of this long process, the situation told the opposite story.

A story about a certain possibility.

“Everything.”

Those eyes that revealed no emotion.

That voice devoid of even a hint of warmth.

That attitude of indifference toward everything.

The coldness with which he personally exiled his daughter, and those strangely frigid times.

I realize now that all that winter was love to you.

I understand that it was your utmost devotion.

[Category: Question Board]

[Title: So why did the Emperor die in the story?]

In the game, he suddenly dies when you enter the final chapter

There’s no proper explanation, you just get the news of his death out of nowhere while playing

The timing is right before the cathedral collapse, so it’s at the beginning of the final chapter… what happened to the Emperor?

Did the cultists take down the imperial family while destroying the church?

Does anyone know what happened?

[That hasn’t been properly revealed yet]

-> There’s nothing official about it

-> It’s still an unresolved plot point like the Headmaster (Prophet)

-> Why is this game full of unresolved plot points?

[There are several theories though]

-> One theory is that he was assassinated by cultists

-> Another is that some nobles who started rebellions, like the Venatti ducal family, had something to do with it

-> Or that an existing illness worsened

-> But these are all just hypotheses, nothing has been clearly revealed yet

-> You’re really beating around the bush just to say you don’t know

[Honestly, it’s good riddance that the trash Emperor died]

-> I found it disappointing from a gameplay perspective. He was good at sending support when asked

-> In terms of helper tier, he would have been at least tier 2

-> Compared to the Headmaster, the Emperor was an angel

-> The Emperor was really awesome

-> Charlotte, turn off your Wi-Fi

-> Performance fanboys immediately jumping to defend the Emperor

-> The usual WWE match

A mysterious death.

Balkaros would always die off-screen around the final chapter in every route.

He quietly exited the story without even a clear cause of death being revealed.

At the time, it remained an unresolved plot point, but now I could face the truth beyond it.

The Emperor’s cause of death was none other than illness.

“Mana Stone Disease.”

He died embracing that curse completely.

This would happen about half a year from now.

Elise had already taken her own life, but for Balkaros who had taken on the disease, there was no turning back.

Thus, the Emperor had to die without being able to save his daughter.

The imperial family’s end was that tragic.

-What… do I have to live for now?

-When I couldn’t protect anything.

After the consecutive deaths of the two.

Charlotte, left alone, wandered.

Because the imperial family collapsed in an instant.

The Rose she had made her life’s goal died, and the Emperor who supported the empire passed away.

Charlotte had to shoulder responsibilities before she could even shake off her grief and confusion.

Because she was the only successor.

-Is this what being an adult means?

-I can’t even cry anymore.

Charlotte ascended to the throne.

The tears that flowed endlessly at first dried up as time passed.

Her characteristically innocent demeanor could no longer be found.

[EP41. Emperor of the Old Empire]

-As she becomes an adult, the no-longer-young girl-

The Young Prince.

The nickname that described her could no longer be preceded by the modifier “young.”

The girl who stepped into the adult world sits on the imperial throne.

Thus, Charlotte’s narrative was about inheriting the throne in a world on the brink of destruction and facing the coming calamity.

This narrative received praise for its elegant expression of psychological conflict and gloom.

But in other words, it was a story filled with anguish and misfortune.

-Answer me, Elise.

-Can I really lead the empire… when I couldn’t even save you?

-I’m afraid I won’t be able to save anyone this time either.

-I’m just so small.

The guilt of not protecting her sister.

The burden of the crown on her head.

The loneliness and confusion of a girl who suddenly became an adult.

That’s why I didn’t like Charlotte’s story.

It was too gloomy.

“If there was a reason for the pity.”

The imperial family’s misfortune stemmed from misunderstanding.

The absence of communication gave birth to misfortune.

Perhaps.

They might have had a different ending.

Elise might not have given up on life.

Balkaros might have found a way to survive.

Charlotte might have had a chance not to despair.

If only. If there had been a brief opportunity to understand each other.

That gap, as thin as a sheet of paper, made the story all the more heartbreaking.

Such is the nature of tragedy.

“This time is different.”

An opportunity to understand each other.

Something that didn’t exist in the original work now existed.

As I mentioned earlier, if ignorance is the starting point of misunderstanding, the remedy for it is none other than knowledge.

I was volunteering to be the knowledge in their story mixed with misunderstandings.

Just through a few words of conversation.

“……”

The children were silent.

In their hands was a thick book.

It was a manual written in the Emperor’s own hand.

When I asked about the past, he said it would be faster to read it directly and tossed the book over.

It contained detailed records of Balkaros’s past actions and goals.

The neatly arranged text was supplementing our “knowledge.”

The scent of ink spreading elegantly along the turning pages.

The princesses still seemed unable to process the situation.

“……”

However.

Even if confusing, the truth before their eyes remains unblemished.

If the aesthetics of falsehood is ever-changing, the aesthetics of truth is eternally unchanging.

Truth never contains falsehood.

It just takes time to accept it.

I waited for the children’s confusion to soften.

“My mind can’t keep up.”

“……”

“If what’s written in this book is true, it means that everything His Majesty has done was all for Elise…”

“You’ve seen correctly. The First Princess is right.”

Charlotte mutters in a daze.

Hearing her quiet voice, Balkaros casually throws an answer.

His eyes still showed cold and indifferent colors.

Almost like a machine.

“Of course, the current me cannot understand, but it seems the me of that time thought differently.”

An expression that said this had become troublesome.

“To weigh the empire against the Second Princess and choose the latter. It was not at all a rational choice. When sacrificing just one could bring peace to all. If it were the current me, I would have personally beheaded the Second Princess. On the charge of harboring a vulgar curse in a royal body.”

Sentences spat out casually.

Words without a heart were that sharp.

But no one was hurt by them.

Because they now knew what process had led to the heart being removed from that voice.

Even that mercilessly cruel tongue was proof of days gone by.

“……”

Elise was silent.

The emotion reflected in her green eyes was difficult to discern.

She was sinking into the confusing situation.

To think that the resentment, hatred, and loneliness of nearly 10 years were actually based on falsehoods.

It was as if all the time she had lived until now had been invalidated.

Her delicate fingers tightly gripped the manual.

[Guidelines Regarding the Second Princess]

-Everything is for my beloved daughter.

-For Elise.

Such sentences were written on the open page.

Elise couldn’t turn to the next page.

It seemed she would need quite some time to accept the confusion.

It would be difficult to overturn 10 years of resentment with just an hour of devotion.

Now that she knew the truth, she had no reason to oppose Balkaros, but humans don’t live solely based on reason.

The deep groove of emotion that had developed over time was not easily resolved.

I spoke with the Emperor, leaving the princesses behind.

“It seems the princesses need time.”

“Yes. Let’s give them some space.”

The Emperor was still looking at me, not at his daughters.

He was giving his attention to whatever interested him at the moment.

He says:

“I’m surprised, though. I didn’t expect you to figure out even the part about the spell.”

“I have quite capable people by my side.”

“You really are interesting.”

“You flatter me.”

“But it’s already too late.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing will change.”

Extinguished pupils.

The man’s eyes were like withered leaves.

“The spell is almost complete. In about two weeks, I will have taken all of the Second Princess’s curse. I will end my life within a year.”

The predetermined fate remained unchanged.