Translator: Makisima from w.a.n.gmamaread

Proofreader: Hieu

A young girl turned her gaze towards the far away gate of the capital.

Her pink blond hair danced in the wind against the grey sky. That girl was the princess of Oriana Kingdom, Clara Oriana.

“The capital has been surrounded by our army. Other lords who plead their loyalty to you are on their way. Once the army has a.s.sembled, we will launch a full-scale attack.”

Said a man in his forties standing behind Clara.

“I express my grat.i.tude for a.s.sembling the army, Marquis Grant..”

Said Clara as she was gazing at the gate from afar..

“That's all thanks to you your highness. They wouldn't unite like this if it was only me.”

“Because of me…”

Clara whispered.

“What are you worried about?”

“I'm a royal in name only. I didn't do anything and I know nothing…”

"Are you concerned about the mysterious organization that helped you escape from the Concentration Camp?"

"It's actually about my sister who can actually lead the Oriana Kingdom."

“Rose-sama? It's better not to mention her.”

“Why? Since the day my sister killed father, things have changed. Although everyone speaks ill of my sister, father was acting really weird. My sister must have known some inside stories.”

“Rose-sama killed your father the majesty. Whatever reason she had, this fact cannot be changed.”

“If we don't know the reason behind all of this, then we can't understand all the other things. Why did my father become so strange, why did my sister kill him, how did the Doem Faction gain so much power, why was I rescued from Concentration Camp, why did the army a.s.semble so easily, how was the capital surrounded so easily without any large battles happening? There are so many answers, but we don't have any answers, do we?”

“Well…”

“Marquis Grant, don't you think that this is some sort of grand scheme that someone has plotted against us ?”

Marquis Grant looked up at the gray sky with a serious look.

“… Back when I was determined to go into politics, my grandfather gave me a word of warning. There is hidden darkness lurking in this world that we must avoid at all costs.”

He said in a low voice.

“Darkness…”

“This darkness has been in existence for a long, long time. I don't know what this darkness is or what it represents, and I've never gone out of my way to explore it, because I listened to my grandfather's words. Though in the many years of working in politics, I've encountered this darkness several times, and the pressure it released was suffocating. Abnormal judgements, demotions, manipulations, missing family members, and eventually death by accidents, is the same fate for all of those who searched for the truth of the darkness.”

“What is the darkness then?”

“I don't know, but I'm scared. My colleague died the day after by a carriage accident. And his family members' house was burned to the ground by some accidents, leaving no trace. I love my wife and children, so I pretended… to know nothing.”

His tone was full of remorse.

“After Rose-sama killed the king, I felt a lot of pressure from the darkness as the event went on, the severity of which I have never felt before, so I went back to my territory to live in seclusion earlier than anyone.”

“But Marquis Grant a.s.sembled the army for me and came here in person.”

“There is not only one darkness, but two. One of which is the power behind Doem, while the other…”

Grant turned round, and so did Clara.

However, there was only the grey sky stretching beyond the horizon.

“I'm also a p.a.w.n. In the war between the two darkness, one of them made me move, and that's about it. But a p.a.w.n also has its own ambitions. I still remember the mistakes I made in the past, and the death of friends and family…”

“Marquis Grant…”

Clara looked up at Grant who's clenching his fist.

“The only thing that can destroy the darkness is darkness itself, which will not appear in places where there is light.”

“In the distant past, it is said that only light can illuminate the darkness. I want to know all the truth of this world and the masterminds behind this war.”

Clara stared intensely at Marquis Grant.

“The light I can bring is but too small.”

Marquis Grant smiled.

“Your light has a.s.sembled the army. I heard that the division that was chosen by [Black Rose] is also included. Countless lights have gathered for you.”

“The so-called [Black Rose] is…”

“That is a group of young knights lead by Goldoh Kinmekki. If we cultivate the light from now on… All darkness will be destroyed someday, the day might be far away, but we can still hope.”

Marquis Grant escorted Clara to their camp.

"First we should strive for the best result on this stage that was prepared by others. There should be an answer ahead."

“Yes… my sister must be waiting for me there.”

Then they walked over side by side.