Something was terribly wrong.
What was happening now was simply too bizarre.
Standing at the center of everyone's gaze, Honest could no longer hide the panic and fear in his heart—they crept across his bloated face like a plague.
Why was Makoto probing him?
Why was the [Omni-Vision: Observer], which had been stolen by Night Raid, in Makoto hands?
Why had the leader of the Purge Faction, who should be far in the south of the capital, appeared in the palace with his subordinates?
The mind that had always been filled with schemes and conspiracies was now completely frozen, like a computer that had crashed.
Countless questions flooded his mind, tangling his thoughts into a chaotic mess, making it impossible to understand how things had come to this.
A man who once wielded immense power in the Empire now felt as if invisible hands were pulling all the strings, causing him to fall from his high position straight into the mud, disgraced and miserable.
And as Makoto delivered his final verdict, Honest body shuddered violently.
He knew there was no point in begging.
Since Makoto had just been using the [Omni-Vision: Observer], it meant that every thought in Honest heart had been overheard with no filter.
Every inner voice had become irrefutable evidence, leaving no room for defense.
In Makoto eyes, he was already a dead man.
Grinding his teeth, Honest suddenly turned to look at Esdeath, who stood beside Budo, and urgently shouted, "General! Now's the time!"
Esdeath—she was his protégé.
Honest controlled the civil officials, but Budo stood atop the military. To fully control the court, Honest also needed influence over the military.
Thus, he promoted Esdeath and even helped her qualify to consume the [Demon Manifestation: Essence of the Devil], placing her within the military to check Budo's power.
Their relationship could be described as mutually exploitative.
If one were to fall, the other wouldn't fare any better.
They had long since agreed that if the day came when an unexpected crisis forced their hand, Esdeath would assist Honest in seizing the imperial throne.
While the consequences were dire, when all options were exhausted, there was no other choice.
And now—that time had come.
However, in response to Honest cry, Esdeath remained motionless.
She even turned her gaze away, pretending not to hear him.
Meanwhile, the senior members of the Purge Faction behind Honest were already approaching with ill intent.
"Esdeath! Why are you just watching!?"
Getting no response from his ally, Honest quickly succumbed to rage and fear. A furious thought struck him, and he couldn't help but shout in disbelief, "Have you betrayed me?!"
"I am a subject of His Majesty and naturally only follow His Majesty's will," Esdeath replied coldly, still showing no signs of action. "Minister, stop struggling. Accept your fate with dignity."
"Accept my fate?!" Honest let out a bitter laugh of anger. "Do you really think I won't expose everything you've done over the years?!"
"Go ahead," Esdeath chuckled indifferently. "I don't care."
Compared to what Honest had done, her mass killings seemed trivial.
After all, no matter how many she slaughtered, they were enemies from other nations—soldiers and civilians alike.
But Honest had truly corrupted and devastated every layer of the Empire from within.
Even if Makoto decided to punish her, it would only be symbolic. Execution? Impossible. At most, a demotion.
Her strength was too valuable. Killing her would be equivalent to cutting off one of the Empire's arms.
As long as she had no intention of rebellion, even the most foolish ruler wouldn't execute her.
"If I die, don't think you'll have it easy afterward!"
Honest barked with desperation. "You'll never again enjoy the freedom you had in the military! No one in the court will clean up your messes anymore!"
But Esdeath remained unmoved, not even bothering to reply.
Her attitude only deepened Honest fear and rage.
"I won't die here!"
Just as the Purge Faction's generals moved in to seize him, Honest expression twisted with fury.
Perhaps sensing the approach of death, madness erupted on his face. He clenched his fists and struck at the surrounding generals.
"Urgh!"
Though the dozen or so generals who approached were all strong warriors in the army, many were sent flying by just one punch from him.
"Rumors say Honest is a grandmaster of the Royal Fist Temple's martial arts. Seems the rumors were true."
Watching her subordinates get beaten with no chance to retaliate, Najenda smiled calmly. "Take him down."
In the next moment, a green figure darted from the crowd—Leone from Night Raid.
She lunged like lightning, slamming Honest to the ground.
In front of a Teigu user—especially one specialized in physical enhancement—a mere martial arts master was no match.
Pinned to the ground, Honest struggled to lift his head, only to see Makoto face, still filled with rage, which plunged him into despair.
How had it come to this?
Everything had been going so well. What had gone wrong to cause his downfall?
Then, in the corner of his vision, he saw a low-profile girl standing beside Makoto —Yoshino.
He froze.
It seemed like everything had started changing from the moment this girl appeared.
As this realization dawned on him, all the unexplained events connected in his mind. Though unbelievable, the conclusion became clear.
Esdeath change. Makoto change. The Revolutionaries' change...
"It was you! You orchestrated all of this!"
Honest eyes nearly burst from their sockets. Finally understanding everything, he roared, "I didn't expect the one who looked the most innocent among us would be the most cunning! I must admit—your acting surpasses mine!"
Faced with his outburst, Yoshino simply tilted her head in confusion, as if she didn't understand a word he was saying.
But Honest, convinced that she was the mastermind, had his fury reignited.
His muscles exploded with power, catching even Leone off guard. The fat old man broke free of her grasp and hurled her away.
Mad with rage, Honest raised his hand, aiming a ring at Esdeath.
It was his Teigu—one that could nullify all other Teigu.
Faced with the ominous glow of the ring, an intense sense of death surged in Esdeath heart.
"My Teigu can destroy other Teigu! Remember, Esdeath! If I die, you die with me!"
Honest laughed maniacally as he activated his Teigu.
This ring was his trump card, not only for self-preservation but to ensure Esdeath never slipped from his control.
Because Esdeath Teigu was unique—it contained the blood of a highly modified Danger Beast.
If [Demon Manifestation: Essence of the Devil] ceased to be a Teigu and reverted to pure Danger Beast blood, the will of the beast inside would be unchained.
Even if Esdeath could suppress it mentally, her human body couldn't endure such violent blood.
In other words—she would explode and die.
As Honest spoke, his Teigu activated. The gem in the ring shattered.
At that critical moment, a green figure stepped in front of Esdeath.
It was Yoshino.
She blocked the fatal strike meant for Esdeath.
Taking advantage of the moment, the thrown-back Leone pounced again, pinning Honest once more.
Everyone let out a sigh of relief.
That was close.
Had Honest succeeded, the Empire would have lost a general worth an entire army—an immeasurable loss.
But Najenda heart suddenly clenched.
Some knew Yoshino was a Teigu user too—but only Najenda knew the truth.
Yoshino Teigu was Similiar to Esdeath—it was directly linked to her life force.
When the Supreme Commander took her rabbit puppet, Yoshino still wielded ice powers, proving this point.
If she took a hit meant to destroy a life-linked Teigu...
"Yoshino! Are you alright?!"
Najenda pushed through the crowd, helping her up.
Her overly concerned behavior drew puzzled looks.
Even Esdeath was confused.
But then she saw Yoshino pale face—and the blood she coughed up.
Esdeath's heart was broken.
Makoto , seated on the throne, was equally shaken. His fury vanished, replaced by confusion and a sudden panic.
"What's going on?"
Even Esdeath voice trembled as she shoved Najenda aside. "Yoshino! Yoshino! Can you speak?!"
"Her Teigu is like yours—it affects her life. If it's destroyed, she dies," Najenda said grimly. "She took that fatal blow for you. I'm afraid she's already..."
Hearing this, Esdeath immediately grabbed the rabbit puppet from Yoshino left hand.
The puppet she believed to be the Teigu remained intact.
The color drained from her face.
"Haha... hahaha... hahahahahaha!"
Originally believing that his revenge had failed and despairing, Honest suddenly burst into mad laughter again after hearing Najenda words:
"Good, good, good! This is even better! Esdeath! This is the price of betraying me! Spend the rest of your life repenting!"
Still lost in madness, Honest was about to continue ranting, but Leone, who couldn't stand it any longer, smashed a fist into the back of his neck and knocked him out cold on the spot.
"Royal physician! Call the royal physician at once!"
Makoto had also panicked. He stood up from the throne and rushed to Yoshino side, tears already welling up in his eyes.
"Hold on, Yoshino! No matter what, I will save you! I will not allow you to die! You must live to witness the rebirth of the Empire with me!"
"I'm sorry... I'm afraid... Yoshino can't hold on... anymore..."
Yoshino struggled to open her eyes, and one could clearly see the fading light within them.
Esdeath eyes flashed with determination, and frost began to spread from her hands.
There was still hope.
As long as she could freeze Yoshino, suspend her in time, she could keep her alive until the royal physician arrived.
If the physician couldn't save her, then she'd find an alchemist. If the alchemist failed, she'd go to Dr. Stylish and have him reconstruct her body.
If even that didn't work, she'd freeze Yoshino until the Empire's technology advanced enough to develop a cure.
"Please don't do that..."
As if she had guessed what Esdeath was thinking, Yoshino used the last of her strength to press down on Esdeath hand and spoke in a weak voice:
"Yoshino knows her own condition... This body will soon vanish... there's no way to save it..."
Hearing Yoshino murmur, Esdeath ultimately couldn't bring herself to act.
She lost her voice as well, simply holding Yoshino hand in silence, just as she once held her dying father's hand so many years ago.
Once again.
Once again, she had failed to protect anyone.
Even though she had become so powerful, she still couldn't protect the one she wanted to protect most.
"Makoto ..."
Yoshino turned her head with effort and looked at the already tear-streaked Makoto .
"Promise Yoshino... that you'll be a good emperor..."
"I promise. I promise." Makoto choked on his words.
"Miss Najenda..."
Yoshino voice grew fainter, but she still held on to her last breath.
"Please tell Tatsumi... I'm sorry I can't return to the village with him... Tell him not to grieve..."
"I will." Najenda pressed her lips together and nodded with a complicated expression.
Now, Tatsumi last fellow villager had also died in the imperial capital. Who knew if Tatsumi would be able to bear the news...
"And... Miss Esdeath..."
A faint smile appeared on Yoshino face as she said softly:
"Thank you for taking care of me all this time... And please... remember your promise to Yoshino..."
"I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry... I broke my promise to protect you again and again."
Esdeath teeth had bitten her lip until it bled.
"But the promise I made to you... I will never break it. I swear... I will never harm the weak again."
"Is that so... Then I'm glad..."
As if having finished delivering all her last words and wishes, Yoshino breath became increasingly faint.
Even though many present didn't know her, they were all moved by the sorrowful atmosphere and their eyes turned red.
Even some of the tough military officers turned their heads away, unwilling to watch any longer.
"Sister..."
A barely audible whisper escaped from Yoshino lips, soft like a dream:
"Yoshino feels cold... Can you hold me...?"
"Mm."
That deeply etched word awakened memories from long ago.
Esdeath held the increasingly cold Yoshino tightly in her arms, unwilling to let go.
But her eyes could no longer hold back the tears, and like melting ice, tears began to fall from her frozen blue eyes.
In the next moment, Yoshino body began to fade.
Her small figure turned into countless points of light and disappeared into the air before everyone's eyes.
Esdeath, Makoto , and Najenda instinctively reached out to catch her.
But the light passed right through their hands, leaving behind only a faint trace of warmth.
The girl had vanished from this world.
But everything she had done for the Empire would not be forgotten.
Years later, the emperor who never married and devoted his life to the Empire would remember her.
Years later, the general who never married and was tasked with guarding the northern region would firmly remember her.
Years later, the people of the Empire would remember her as they walked past statues dressed in bunny-eared coats and wearing bunny-puppet gloves.
As long as the Empire stood, the "Holy Maiden Who Saved the Nation" would live on forever in its memory.