Chapter 32: Eisenburg (12)

Mili was speechless.

“You think I didn’t invite her?” Seraphina’s voice rose sharply, her silver hair trembling in the dim light filtering through the window:

“If she really wanted to protect more people, why not set aside her so-called pride and accept my rule?”

“She could’ve been my deputy, continuing her precious idealism!”

“—But she refused.”

“Because she wouldn’t admit my way is right.”

“She’d rather watch Oasis burn than bow to reality.”

“That’s her end.”

A scornful smirk curled Seraphina’s lips.

“These walls didn’t appear from thin air.”

“My standing army doesn’t survive on nothing.”

“Do you know how much energy the perimeter defenses consume daily?”

“How much effort it takes to train a single qualified soldier?”

“How many of my soldiers die on patrols each year, protecting these fools you see—and don’t see?”

“—That’s not even counting those I personally lead into battle, who die fighting!”

“Her so-called equality and mutual aid—can it cover that cost?”

Her breathing quickened, her shirt rising and falling heavily.

Mili could even hear her grinding her teeth…

Seraphina yanked off her seatbelt, leaning close, her silver hair falling, nearly blocking Mili’s view.

The space felt smaller, more oppressive…

“The world isn’t a fairy tale, Mili…”

“Kindness doesn’t feed you. Ideals don’t stop bullets.”

“Without my military strength, those outside would’ve torn this place apart.”

“You think Oasis fell just because of the Purification Church and Golden Wanderers’ attacks?”

“No!”

“It was doomed the day it was built!”

“It was too rich, too weak, too perfect—a fat sheep in a wolf pack!”

“Even if it survived this time, another would’ve come!”

“Its very existence defied this world’s survival laws!”

“That’s the truth!”

“Do you understand?”

Mili was struck mute.

She wanted to argue…

To use her memories of Oasis—the genuine smiles, the warmth of mutual help—to change Seraphina’s view…

“B-but… the people there… they were happy…”

“Happy?” Seraphina scoffed:

“Dead people don’t feel happiness.”

“It was a sandcastle on a beach! One tide wipes it flat!”

“Do you know why Oasis was destroyed?”

Mili tried to shrink back but was pinned against the seat, nowhere to go, watching Seraphina’s sharp face draw closer…

“It was a trap orchestrated by the Church and Wanderers—”

“They sent spies into Oasis, spreading rumors of an imminent Eisenburg attack, while sabotaging its defenses and stirring internal conflict…”

“Lin Lan was forced to send most of her forces north, facing a nonexistent threat!”

“Then, the Wanderers’ main force circled around from the southeast, striking with inside help!”

“By the time she realized the trap, it was too late!”

“In less than three days, a settlement of over ten thousand was gone!”

“I know more about Oasis’s surrounding intel network than you do! What’s left to say?”

“She thought everyone was as kind as her! That all conflicts could be solved with words!”

“But the Church wouldn’t listen to her nonsense!”

“The Wanderers wouldn’t spare Oasis’s wealth for her mercy!”

“—She was too naive.”

“She couldn’t protect her people!”

“She couldn’t stop invaders!”

“She can’t bring the dead back!”

“Only strength preserves everything.”

“Only the strong can afford kindness.”

“The kindness of the weak is just self-deception…”

“That’s why she and I are irreconcilable.”

Seraphina’s words were final, heavy with disappointment.

“But you’re different,” her tone softened, her hand brushing Mili’s cheek, the cold touch making her flinch.

“You should focus on serving me wholeheartedly…”

“With your abilities and my forces…”

“Eisenburg’s reach could expand to vast lands!”

“More people could be sheltered! More children spared from wandering the wastes!”

“—Isn’t that what you want?”

“I could even rebuild an Oasis for you—one that’s yours, and answers only to me…”

Mili’s eyes glistened, silent.

The logic was undeniable; she couldn’t refute Seraphina.

“People think they could do my job, or even better!” Seraphina continued. “They criticize my cruelty, my tyranny, yet can’t control their own desires or stupidity!”

“What makes them think they can manage a city of hundreds of thousands?”

“What gives them the right to shelter others in this chaos?”

“Do you know how hard it was to build Eisenburg?”

“I had to kill until everyone feared me! Until they revered, obeyed, and dared not defy me!”

“A soft-hearted person could never do that…”

“You saw the slums’ people?”

“I gave them chances, rules, paths upward! But most choose to stagnate!”

“Only a few truly strive to change their fate and others’…”

“—That’s reality!”

The car moved through the night, scenery shifting.

From the decrepit slums to the tidier outer district…

To the brightly lit central zone.

Seraphina glared down at Mili’s fearful eyes, her nose nearly touching the girl’s.

“I admit, Lin Lan was a respectable foe.”

“She was naive, but she had conviction and gave everything for it, even her life…”

“—And she did.”

“We clashed in ideology, but I respected her will and character.” A rare sincerity flickered in her eyes. “If everyone were as cold and pragmatic as me…”

“The world would be too bleak…”

“So, even if I walk the path of tyranny, I hope some hold to different roads.”

“Regardless of stance, I admire those who stick to their course.”

“Living their beliefs is far better than fools preaching loyalty while chasing self-interest…”

“Mili, I want you fully on my side…” Her gaze deepened, almost spilling into Mili’s eyes:

“But I also want you to hold to your heart, even against me…”

“It sounds contradictory, but it’s my true thought.”

“A worthy foe is better than a foolish ally.”

“That’s one reason I didn’t attack Oasis outright.”

Mili froze.

She hadn’t expected such words from Seraphina.

The cabin fell into a long silence.

Slowly, Mili understood…

Seraphina knew Oasis would be attacked…

She chose not to intervene.

She wanted to see how far Lin Lan’s idealism could go…

Watching it crumble was her greatest mercy and respect…

Creak—

The car stopped at the palace gates.

Seraphina rose, stepping onto the running board, looking back at the dazed Mili.

“Come.” She extended a hand. “Home.”

Mili hesitated, taking it.

“…”

Home…

The night breeze carried the scent of roses and lavender from the garden—planted by Mili just days ago, now lush and fragrant.

But colder than the breeze was her longing for freedom, and her resignation to reality.