The day the cherry petals dyed the lake.
At the Redgrave Duke family’s villa, gentlemen and ladies who loved arts and culture gathered by the lakeside, enjoying an art auction.
The current auction piece was a painting drawn by the late artist, Blossom Craft, during her school days. It depicted the cherry blossom tree that bloomed within the Craft family estate.
“Damn it, who cares! One platinum coin!”
Duke Nastasha Redgrave raised her bidding paddle. Her brown eyes stared down the other bidders who were aggressively raising the price.
“I’ll put up with this much, but if anyone dares to bid higher, I’ll deal with them later! Seriously, just because it’s Blossom doesn’t mean something she drew for fun should be priced this high, right?”
As the competitors smiled to signal their withdrawal, the auction was quickly finalized.
“About time!”
Duke Nastasha clenched her fists in excitement.
Upon receiving the auctioned painting, she pulled out another similar painting she had prepared in advance. It was the cherry blossom tree of the Craft family estate painted by young Nastasha Redgrave herself during her school days.
The two cherry trees stood side by side.
The paintings created during the same period, in the same place, and for the same reason harmonized beautifully when displayed together.
As Duchess Nastasha enjoyed the match, her smile slowly faded. The auction’s ruckus receded, and her brown eyes grew calm.
“There’s no going back to those days…”
Footsteps approached.
“How did Viscount Craft fare?”
Turning around, she saw a gentleman in a formal suit—a demon.
Duke Nastasha redirected her gaze towards the cherry blossom painting done by Blossom.
“She was like a cherry blossom. She withered before spring could return.”
The demon looked baffled at the cryptic response.
“Ah, I misspoke. I was referring to the current situation with Craft.”
Duke Nastasha shifted her eyes away from the painting.
She reminisced about the radiant girl, recalling the darkness concealed beneath her innocent demeanor.
—”To truly communicate our republicanism, I had the president of the Academy selected by a noble vote, but was my sincerity lacking? Or was my expression not clear enough?”
Viscountess Pastel had appointed a temporary Academy president through an unnecessary noble voting following the Academy’s collapse.
In this statement, sincerity meant offering an election experience to the next generation and advancing field development through social experiments.
The cost was an unfavorable reputation flowing within the staunch monarchists, which was enough to embarrass the emperor through his absence at banquets.
And as for expression…
Viscountess Pastel refrained from overstepping her bounds regarding the presidency position. This wasn’t just about the title; she refrained from interfering with the president’s rights or duties after President Horace’s election, maintaining her line as a student.
Even if the student council had significant and unchecked power, it was crucial that she refrained from using it.
It’s unlikely she was thinking with the pure mindset of respecting the president as a student.
It’s simpler to understand with another comparison.
Viscountess Pastel acted as a kingmaker and, as payment for victory, gained limitless power instead of the throne. Then she refrained from interfering with the emperor while pursuing private gains.
Heaven above, Earth below, none but me exists; beneath the sky, among the myriad beings, I alone am the highest.
If an ambitious competitor came bowing with such a pitch, trust would be hard to grant unless they backed it with real action.
Not to mention…
—”I don’t know many things from my youth! Given the generational gap between us, expecting us to reach the same level feels quite troublesome, doesn’t it?”
There truly was a generational gap.
Objectively, they were in a pushing and pulling relationship, not a competing one.
Of course, Duke Nastasha wasn’t naive enough to accept all this at face value. A pristine and desire-free appearance raises suspicion, especially when wielded by someone with significant power.
Yet, the fact that the viscountess revealed her true intentions made her more trustworthy.
—”Should not the highest one be the one who is chosen, loved, and leads the way?”
It’s obvious what the self-proclaimed populist Viscountess Pastel’s statement implies.
Still, if Viscountess Pastel broke her promise and pursued hasty overreach, leading national operations wasn’t something talent alone could shoulder.
One needed to have held multiple high offices for a long time to understand the entire structure and functioning system. It was equally essential to form relationships with talents in necessary fields.
So, it’s plausible that she thought of accumulating experience as the second-in-command before smoothly transferring power in an appropriate generation, rather than hastily becoming the emperor and failing at governing.
However, there was a problem.
Though rational, it was emotionally difficult.
Most of those who promised to transfer power to the second-in-command broke their promises and favored hereditary succession for their children, a fact repeatedly proven throughout history.
Duke Nastasha’s smile deepened.
For this reason, it pleases me.
History has shown countless times that blood lineage trumps rational judgment. Numerous great rulers have handed over their power to incompetent heirs, not only ruining the nation but also erasing their own accomplishments.
If a peaceful and rational transfer of power, something impossible under the monarchy, could occur in a republic setting, it would directly prove the rationality of the republicanism.
Of course, this would be akin to the disliked “internal inheritance” among scholars—but…
Duke Nastasha wasn’t overly romantic. It was better to settle into a stable system than to endure the confusion of a strange one.
It’s a good proposal.
Good and very good.
But something troubled her.
All this was premised on the fall of the empire.
Duke Nastasha failed to immediately interpret the implication of internal inheritance in the academy election for the same reason. Such an offer would be mere fantasy if the empire didn’t fall.
What certainty does she have?
The empire was not currently robust, but it wasn’t weak enough to fall. Despite a continued military reduction policy, the empire’s military strength was far from being within the reach of the demon realms’ united kingdoms.
The only thing traitors could rely on was the prophecy from the temples.
However…
Had Viscountess Pastel already secured or made trustworthy connections with the Demon King?
Unknown how Craft family had established a deep relationship with the Demon King, this explains everything.
In such a power structure, the emperor would inevitably play into the enemy’s hands.
The emperor judged that if the Demon King wanted the empire’s collapse, the country’s power had to weaken through a civil war or a comparable internal crisis.
The most likely candidate threatening the throne was the powerful Craft family, especially since Blossom, the one they trusted, had maintained her health through sheer will till childbirth on January 1 but eventually succumbed to worsening health after childbirth, transforming into a major variable.
The conclusion was the complete fall of the Craft family estate.
This did provoke strong resistance from the nobility, but it effectively demonstrated the royal family’s power to ruin even the mighty Craft, helping them avoid internal conflicts.
The emperor then strengthened the military reduction policy, weakening the private armies of the nobles and centralizing resources for immediate use once the adversary became clear.
When news of a Demon King sighting quietly reached the emperor, he focused more on internal conflicts and appointed a proxy.
That proxy being the Craft family.
The one family beyond reproach when it came to the demon realms.
But was Viscountess Pastel already connected to the Demon King?
With a shameless expression, she accepted the emperor’s invitation, prepared a scheme to embarrass him during the banquet, and wrested the governorship of Sky Island away from the emperor.
The governorship of Sky Island, a crucial military stronghold connecting the empire to the demon realms.
Duke Nastasha could only let out a hollow laugh.
If this were only due to Viscountess’s miscalculation.
“I treated my guest poorly.”
She intended to teach the offspring of an old friend who had ventured too recklessly into the central political arena a lesson on hardship and reality, advising them to stay in the peripheries until their power grew. However, there was a miscalculation.
The horrors of ruining how much of a carefully crafted plan are unfathomable.
—”Different level than expected, so I’m leaving!”
Nothing to be said.
“How surprising. Was it that bad?”
The demon was amazed.
“It was that bad.”
Duke Nastasha turned to the demon with a smile. Despite the painting auction being a cultural exchange meeting combined with a republican faction’s negotiation, she quickly glanced around to ensure there were no eavesdroppers, then spoke lightly.
“Princess Elisita has proposed a gathering. If you meet Craft at the negotiation, don’t take them lightly.”
“I’ll remember that.”
Duke Nastasha redirected her gaze, her brown eyes once again falling on the cherry tree painted by Blossom.
As the quiet atmosphere continued, the demon bowed and left.
Duke Nastasha’s smile faded. Her vision blurred, and her memories wandered to the past.
—”Everyone says you’ve lost your dignity for money. Stop wasting it on me. Flowers, after all, never see their season again.”
The sickbed was covered with a weak voice.
The scent of medicine stung her nose.
—”Don’t say such things! I will! I will definitely…”
The cherry petals fell, dyeing the lake.
Blood drops formed on her clenched fists.
The monarchy must disappear.
Necessarily.
