Chapter 480

"I didn't fail to persuade them. I even tried to persuade them with lies. But even if it's sent to Edina, they will eventually find out the truth. I don't know what you two are thinking. People hate the demon king more than we imagine. They hate him to the point of wanting to kill him. They hate him to the point of wanting to die. Hedyot and Charlotte knew that people hated the demon king to the point of wanting to kill him. But they could also hate him to the point of wanting to die. Doing something to save someone was causing someone else's death. Killing someone to save someone. Killing someone to protect something. I had to kill those I had saved with my own hands. Rianna had been hiding this story for a very long time, about a year ago. As a result of sending those who would become impure to Edina, there were numerous attempts to assassinate the demon king. If the extreme opposition to the demon king continues to grow, Edina could be overturned in the long run. Since realizing that information about Fort Mocna and Edina was spreading, Rianna actually killed those who said they would rather die than enter the demon king's rule. There was a strong determination that could not be broken or scratched on Rianna's firm expression. There was no despair or hopelessness. She knew that if she started to be bound by such things, she would only struggle in endless despair. It seemed that she had decided not to think about such things. "Whatever you wanted to know, this is the truth." Rianna says to Charlotte. "So what are we going to do now?" Charlotte looks at Rianna quietly. "Why didn't you tell Reinhardt about this problem?" Rianna puts her arms around her. "Do you know how Reinhardt's been for the past two years?" "I don't know." Charlotte's calm answer makes Rianna narrow her eyes and look out the window. "He never showed any signs of difficulty, not even once. He just kept going forward, thinking only about what he had to do, and never rested." Rianna looks at Charlotte quietly. "I think it's because of him that this happened. But since he didn't say anything, I understood it even more. That he was so difficult that he couldn't even speak." "If you save people, you end up killing people." "If Reinhardt knew about this, he would have just sent us to Edina and said he would take care of the assassination threats and diplomatic issues himself." "I don't want Reinhardt to suffer anymore." "I won't say this is the best choice." "But." "I don't think this was the worst choice." "Do you think I don't know that there are only dog-like choices no matter how I try to solve this problem? That's why I decided as the demon king's changeback and commander-in-chief of the front line. I won't let Reinhardt know about this problem. I don't want to burden him with even greater pressure and agony by letting him know about this problem, which would have been revealed anyway to someone who was already rotten." Rianna didn't want to burden the already struggling demon king with another worry. She didn't want Reinhardt or Edina to be in danger. So she killed those who hated the demon king enough to want to die after she saved them. The rumors of the massacre didn't spread to Edina because Rianna handled it secretly, so the survivors who went to Edina didn't know who disappeared around them. Rianna made the decision to keep this information from Reinhardt as the demon king's changeback and commander-in-chief of the front line. She didn't want him to suffer anymore. Charlotte listens quietly and understands Rianna's decision. The chapter highlights the difficult choices that come with leadership and the weight of responsibility that leaders carry. "Regardless of your intentions, you acted unilaterally without discussing a major issue with the lord. For a very long time."

"Reinhardt trusted you, but you doubted that Reinhardt might collapse."

"In the end, you betrayed Reinhardt's trust."

"I have no intention of discussing whether your handling of this matter was wrong."

"But you should have talked to Reinhardt about this issue, definitely."

"That's your mistake and your fault."

Regardless of your intentions, there may be two or three times when you start deceiving the lord.

If Rianna herself deceived the lord, she cannot say anything to others who deceive the lord for similar reasons.

That's right.

Assuming that there are one or two things that everyone who follows Reinhardt hides for Reinhardt.

Reinhardt is an incompetent lord who doesn't know anything that he should know. Charlotte listens quietly and understands Rianna's decision.

The lord needs your loyalty, not your consideration.

You can make someone not know what they should know by considering your friend.

However, making the lord not know what he should know by considering the lord is nothing but an act of rebellion.

"Issues and responsibilities related to good and evil arising from the country are taken by the lord. You cannot decide on your own after judging from below, and you cannot decide to bear it yourself."

"......"

Charlotte's words that ultimately make Reinhardt an incompetent lord.

Regardless of the intention, the only thing that happens if such things accumulate is that Reinhardt becomes an incompetent lord in terms of the relationship between the military and the gods.

Rianna couldn't find anything to say to that.

She had to admit that her choice, regardless of good and evil, was a mistake that made Reinhardt's ability as a lord precarious.

"So, what do you want to say in the end? Do you want to dismiss me from my position? Or do you want to tell Reinhardt that I committed a crime and need to be punished?"

Although there is animosity, Charlotte quietly responds to Rianna's words that admit her mistake.

"I didn't know specifically, but I thought there might be something similar. What I want to say is that there should be no more secrets of this kind under any pretext."

Rianna did not mention the fact that she had been slaughtering survivors until now.

The important thing is that she proceeded unilaterally without discussing with the lord.

She only points out the problems that this will cause.

"I will report this matter to Reinhardt. However, knowing Reinhardt's personality, he will not punish you or dismiss you from your position."

"......"

"And this is my judgment as a sub-commander."

Charlotte looks around.

"It's better to stop searching for survivors in Fort Mocna until Reinhardt comes back and gives orders."

The possibility of securing survivors has not completely disappeared.

However, securing survivors inevitably leads to the slaughter of some of them. "There may be an option to continue searching for survivors, as some can be saved. However, there may also be an option to not save anyone, as innocent people may have to be killed. There is no completely right decision, only a decision. Therefore, from now on, all activities except for base defense will be stopped until Reinhardt makes a new decision. This was Charlotte de Gradia's new decision. Do you understand my decision?" Rianna had to admit her mistake and accept the decision. Charlotte also emphasized the importance of loyalty to the lord and the consequences of acting unilaterally without discussing major issues. Rianna confesses to Charlotte that she hates her and the empire for what they did to her father, but now realizes that her hatred has lost its legitimacy as she has killed innocent people in the name of protecting Edina and avoiding war with the empire." "Like Reinhardt, who did not express despair, Rianna was also struggling with despair as she carried out such terrible deeds with her own hands. 'Well...,' she said. 'Do I need qualifications to hate? To resent?' Even if the basis is weak, hatred and resentment arise. In reality, people's hatred and resentment towards the Demon King may just be a misunderstanding. 'So even if you continue to hate me, hate the empire, it's inevitable. Whether you have the qualifications to do so...' Charlotte stared at Rianna quietly. 'Just thinking about the moral purity of hatred and resentment... What should I say? Isn't it too arrogant?' Previous hatred and resentment may have been morally pure, but now it may not be justified. Rianna bit her lip at Charlotte's words, questioning whether thinking about it was arrogant. 'You still don't like me, do you?' Charlotte chuckled at Rianna's reaction. 'It's not good for you to get along too well with the important people of the king. For me, for you, and for Reinhardt.' So it's better to accept me as someone who is unlucky and uncomfortable, but cannot be ignored. 'But, no matter what, you guys are still better than me.' The people who believed in Reinhardt. Herself, who did not believe. Charlotte knew that the gap could never be overcome. With those words, Charlotte left Fort Mocna's headquarters."