Chapter 219: Westphalia 9

Seated before her was Princess Senel Polena Dragona, who could end Hestia’s life at any moment if she so willed, yet she requested a conversation first. Hestia could not help but feel puzzled.

‘Why…? It’s not like Senel to give a traitor a second chance…’

Once betrayed, there is no law against betraying again.

Well aware of this, Senel had always maintained an uncompromising stance when dealing with traitors.

And that extended to Hestia, despite their long friendship.

Yet despite that, Senel had requested this conversation with her.

Meaning she would at least hear Hestia’s story first.

Her reasons for betrayal.

It told Hestia that she should not abandon hope for life just yet.

Thus, she took her seat as requested and gazed upon her former superior with a fearful expression.

“A conversation, you say? What would you like to hear?”

Hestia asked with a trembling voice.

Seeing her state, Senel spoke in a stern tone:

“First, do not harbor any unrealistic expectations. I simply wish to confirm a few things before executing you, that is all.”

“…”

Setting that boundary, Senel began speaking.

However, Hestia could tell this was not her true intent, but chose not to reveal that for now.

After all, the preordained future of certain death if she misspoke had not changed.

“Then speak. Why did you betray me and the Dragonian Empire to side with the Holy Roman Empire? You know full well we never mistreated you.”

Senel’s words dripped with resentment.

A bitter smile on her lips, Hestia replied:

“…Yes, you are right. At that time, I lacked for nothing. If anything, I was overwhelmed with generous grace.”

“Then why!”

“But!… No matter the circumstances, I could not simply stand by… This storm that has unfolded, this scene of madness barely halted through a convergence of coincidences and miracles… I could never just leave it be.”

“…”

Senel fell silent at Hestia’s words.

Then, with a voice tinged with bitterness, Hestia began revealing the story she had concealed until now.

Hestia Flamer.

While serving as an official in the Dragonian Empire, she became aware of an ominous sign.

The looming catastrophe about to engulf their longtime rival, the neighboring Holy Roman Empire.

She was the first to recognize the explicit religious conflicts and signs of an imminent eruption that had rendered the Holy Roman Empire like a powder keg, liable to explode at any moment.

When that explosion occurred, thousands, tens of thousands of innocents would perish, and its shockwaves would spread far beyond the Holy Roman Empire to engulf the entire continent.

Countless souls from diverse nations would be shackled by the illusion of faith, slaughtering each other, undoubtedly sowing a whirlwind of blood across the lands.

And such a situation was one of the things Hestia despised most.

Innocents spilling blood due to hollow ideals and power struggles unrelated to them.

Setting aside the notion of an enemy nation, as a human being, this was not a future she could accept. Thus, she began devising ways to prevent that tragedy…

Or rather, to minimize the inevitable repercussions of that tragedy.

However, she could not reveal this to the Dragonian Empire, the very foundation of her power and influence, nor seek their aid.

The Dragonian Empire currently maintained an implicit peace with the Holy Roman Empire and permitted basic trade relations.

But if the Holy Roman Empire showed signs of serious internal turmoil and fragmentation, the Dragonian Empire, which had long focused solely on the east, would almost certainly react in some manner regarding the western situation.

They might initially adhere to a policy of non-interference in western affairs, but given their longtime rival and foe was crumbling from within, they would likely eventually seize this golden opportunity.

In fact, with the Holy Roman Empire’s war affecting the Kingdom of France, Lorraine, the Kalmar Union, the Kingdom of Briton, and even smaller neighboring nations…

Nearly every country on the continent had already jumped in to pursue their own interests, proving Hestia’s perspective quite accurate.

And those nations entangled in the Holy Roman Empire’s conflict would undoubtedly complicate the situation rather than prevent war, sacrificing countless citizens and spilling more innocent blood along the way.

Whether it led to national interests or losses was irrelevant.

Whichever way it went, the fact remained that tremendous sacrifices would occur.

And against this backdrop, to minimize the war’s repercussions as much as possible…

Or at the very least, to prevent the Dragonian Empire from involving itself in western affairs and exacerbating the sacrifices on both sides, Hestia devised a plan.

It involved exploiting her close friend and superior, the one who could decisively sway the Emperor’s will as his daughter…

Princess Senel.

Despite her status as a princess, Senel was known for her playful, lighthearted personality and friendly demeanor with everyone.

However, she showed absolutely no mercy toward traitors, personally punishing them – a character trait Hestia intended to utilize for her scheme.

And that scheme began with Hestia betraying Senel, provoking her ire.

After backstabbing her politically, Hestia defected to the Holy Roman Empire.

Enraged by this blatant betrayal from a trusted friend and subordinate, Senel, as expected, concealed her identity and entered the Holy Roman Empire to personally deal with Hestia.

Thus began a cat-and-mouse game between Hestia and Senel across the vast Holy Roman Empire…

A situation that naturally caused Emperor Rosewitha of the Dragonian Empire to abandon any intention of intervening in the Holy Roman Empire’s affairs from the outset.

Though a strong empress ruling the empire, when it came to her family, especially her daughter, she was an excessively doting mother.

With her personality, sacrificing any visible national interests was unthinkable if it might impede her daughter’s endeavors.

This was the background behind the Dragonian Empire’s almost frustratingly singular focus on the east throughout the war period and until today.

By branding herself a traitor, Hestia had succeeded in averting the worst-case scenario. Her sights then turned to the one being capable of swiftly ending this insane spectacle – the one who could depose the mad emperor and bring peace.

As a result, Hestia, who had started as a minor noble but swiftly risen through her abilities and some luck, chose to join the forces of Wallenstein.

And with his aid, she had arrived at this very moment she had sought.

The moment to put an end to the war she so desired.