No One Dares Call It Sin

Just as Kyle and his party had made a decision, there was another person who made a huge decision.

It was none other than Persis.

Although his life and only blood relative had been held hostage by them, what he had been doing until now was clearly an act of eating away at the Empire.

“Persis-gyeong, is all of this… true?”

“…I have no face to show, Your Majesty. Please, strike my head off right now. However, I beg your forgiveness for saying this, but my child is innocent. So, at least this child….”

“No, Your Majesty! I am also guilty. So, if you are going to strike my father’s head off, please strike mine off as well!”

That’s why he visited the Imperial Palace with Kyle and his party, knelt before the Emperor, and revealed his crimes one by one.

Vermillion initially opposed this vehemently, but after seeing that Persis’s mind was firm, he followed him and confessed his own sins as well.

When it came to sins, there was something ambiguous, as he had done almost nothing as a subordinate of the Eyes of Dawn.

And Anise had to show a sorrowful look, watching this scene from afar.

“…Anise, don’t worry. It will definitely work out.”

“But, Sylvia, at this rate….”

The crime of rebelling against the Empire is heavier than anything else.

That’s why Anise expected that her lover and his father would surely be held accountable and killed.

She doesn’t know how much she cried and begged on the way here.

Saying it wouldn’t be too late to confess after everything was over.

If they succeeded in defeating Erze, she tried to persuade them somehow, saying that they might turn a blind eye in light of their achievements.

However, the two were more stubborn than she had imagined, and eventually, it had come to this point.

In fact, the situation was left to Emperor Oswell’s choice alone.

“Your Majesty! You must strike their heads off right now!”

“That’s right! Even as an example, we must show what happens to those who rebel against the Empire!”

“No matter how much the Drake family has illuminated the Empire, we must not let this go this time!”

As the vassals’ advice continued here, the air gradually turned cold.

Oswell also knew that he had to cut off their heads, but he couldn’t bring himself to make a decision.

It wasn’t just because the Drake family had been eating the Empire’s salary for a long time, and as such, it was a prestigious family that had worked hard for the glory of the Empire.

It was just that the inside story that Persis revealed was so pitiful and regrettable.

However, if they are truly rebels, then even their testimony cannot be fully believed.

It was the moment when the pendulum of his heart was about to lean to one side.

“Your Majesty, may I offer just one piece of advice for a moment?”

“…Speak.”

Kyle, who had been watching the situation quietly, stepped forward and raised his hand to request the right to speak, and Oswell nodded.

In a situation where everyone’s attention was focused, he continued to speak very calmly.

“First of all, the inside story that Drake-gyeong mentioned earlier is all clearly true.”

“Is that really true?”

“Yes. In the first place, it was I who suspected the relationship between them and the Eyes of Dawn, contacted Vermillion-gongja, and tried to uncover the inside story.”

“Indeed. So that’s how it was…! You foresaw this from the beginning!”

Oswell was amazed, but the reaction around him was cold.

In particular, among the senior vassals who had been pouring out advice to Oswell from a while ago, a sharp-looking brown-haired man even raised his voice and pointed his finger at Kyle.

“Your Majesty! This is not the time to be impressed! If that statement is true, then that man has been turning a blind eye to the Empire’s rebels until now!”

“No. That is incorrect, Bord-gyeong.”

“What!?”

However, Kyle denied his words at once with his unique indifferent tone, and continued his speech while fixing his gaze only on the Emperor.

“The reason I started investigating the inside story about the Drake family and the Eyes of Dawn was, after all, because of a rumor.”

“A rumor?”

“Yes. It was a story that spread from Ruben, which can be said to be the sacred place of the Order of the Moon.”

Ruben. At that word, there was another buzz among the crowd.

“There, there was already a rumor that someone from the Drake family was secretly contacting outsiders and distributing supplies. But that person had already died a long time ago. I also found out about the rumor through an informant.”

“…I see. You also kept silent on purpose to avoid experiencing the same end.”

“Yes, that’s right. At least until I found the existence colluding with the Drake family, and that existence fully revealed itself to the world, no one would have believed me.”

‘You don’t know where the enemy might be inside,’ Kyle said, looking around with a meaningful tone, and several people coughed and avoided his gaze.

Kyle had all their faces firmly engraved in his head.

Most of them were the people who had been shouting for the eradication of the Drake family until just a moment ago.

“What happened after that is as you can see. The Eyes of Dawn bastards were not just rumors, but actually existed, and they were planning to devour the Empire at any time. And it has also been clearly revealed that there is an internal enemy colluding with them.”

“I see. Does the existence of the Drake family rather prove that fact?”

“Yes. That’s why I have been hiding their existence until now. At least until clear evidence is revealed.”

Of course, Kyle initially did not think that there would be such an inside story, so he simply intended to prepare a stepping stone to eradicate the internal enemy by finding evidence that the Drake family was a traitor.

However, there was a deeper story than he thought, and after Vermillion also completely turned to the Empire’s side in the process, he had to reconsider.

If their crimes were revealed, the very existence of the Drake family would be in danger, and as a result, Vermillion’s life, and furthermore, even those who accompanied him could be in danger.

However, if he overlooked this, the Eyes of Dawn would detonate it first, or if it was revealed by others in the future, it could cause even greater misunderstandings.

While hesitating between the two options, Persis made a decision first.

And watching that choice, Kyle also made a decision.

With the intention of throwing a dice here altogether.

“In the process, this friend helped me defeat the Eyes of Dawn, and originally, he was planning to find Erze Goddess right away and ask for her sins.”

“…….”

“If he was really just a human being who was nothing more than their henchman, he would have tried to abandon his father while trying to save his life by using that as an excuse. But what was the result, Your Majesty?”

“That’s right. You are right.”

Oswell understood what Kyle was trying to say and nodded.

If Vermillion had really changed his mind belatedly and relied on Kyle in order to save his own life, he should not have followed Persis.

No, in the worst case, he would have tried to bury this fact even if he had to kill his father with his own hands.

But he didn’t.

He also felt ashamed of the past related to himself and his family, thought of it as a sin, and had no intention of making excuses for it.

“Of course, I will not say that they are innocent. Whatever the reason, it is true that they rebelled against the Empire, and that is a truth that can never be overlooked.”

“But, Your Majesty, please remember this one thing as well. Drake-gyeong did not lack affection for the Empire. He just had a love for his child that surpassed it.”

“…….”

Love for his child, huh.

The moment Oswell heard those words, he felt the story intertwined between the first Emperor and his wife come to mind.

Although she valued this country more than her husband’s life, she killed her husband with her own hands.

According to what I heard, even right before her death, she didn’t think it was the right thing to do.

And conversely, she said that even if she had taken her husband’s side and given up the Empire, she would not have regretted it.

In other words, Persis simply chose the former between the two choices of child and country.

From the perspective of the residents of this country who were not chosen, that is a clear sin.

Then, conversely, if he abandoned his child and chose this country, wouldn’t that be a sin against his child?

It’s a really difficult story.

However, there was one thing that Oswell could say for sure.

“…I see. Persis-gyeong, you didn’t abandon the country, but chose your family.”

I don’t know whether to call this feeling a sense of futility or what.

I have no intention of completely forgiving his wrongdoings.

Oswell was an Emperor who loved this country more than anyone else, and that’s why he has been mercilessly beheading those who rebelled against the Empire.

Their purpose was mostly power or wealth.

But nowhere did he see anyone who chose to betray the country for the sake of their child.

That’s why he’s hesitating.

Whether to pardon this person’s sins, or to let go of his hand as it is.

“Or, Your Majesty, how about this?”

“What is it?”

“From tomorrow, my party, including me and this friend, will leave to ask for the sins of Erze Goddess. After that, it would be one way to see the results and choose what to do with the Drake family’s sins.”

“That’s a reasonable point.”

Oswell stroked his chin at Kyle’s ingenious idea.

Whatever their sins may be, it is true that both of them were counted as valuable talents of the Empire.

In that case, even if he uses them as much as he can and then discusses their sins, it is not a very unreasonable measure.

Besides, this was also a justification to give Oswell more time to think.

That’s why the moment Oswell heard those words, he made a decision right away.

“Okay. The treatment of the Drake family will be discussed later. First of all, the punishment of Erze Goddess and the safety of the Empire come first. I will personally hold accountable those who arbitrarily discuss or refute this decision!”

Everyone bowed their waists at the majestic Emperor’s threat.