By Zephyria Unlike Kenneth’s concerns, Leonardo did not show any particular reaction and listened quietly to Alec’s words.
But in fact, his inner self was very embarrassed.
It was like Alec Siles, who had been locked in a solid glass wall for observation, suddenly looked straight at him and threw a stone at the glass. It was a shock not of ideological shock, but of the fact that there was someone who said these words openly.
Similarly, Alec, who was glancing back and observing his reaction, suddenly threw a question that could be called blatant.
“Do you know what methods later Monarchs in this situation usually use to strengthen their power and prove their legitimacy?”
At Alec’s words, Kenneth only rolled his eyes around. He would have answered well earlier, but he seemed to be uncomfortable and afraid of even joining in this kind of conversation.
Because of that, it was Leonardo who answered Alec’s question that was about to float in the air, without making a sound.
“War. And concealment.”
At Leonardo’s voice, the eyes of the two were all focused on him. Leonardo continued to speak calmly.
He said that if he only wins in a war with another country, the Monarch’s power will rise vertically and the people’s patriotism will soar. With that momentum, if he even seizes the media, it would be easy to exclude the checking forces or brainwash people.
After that, he said that the Monarch secretly placed loyalists in key positions to manage internal affairs, creating eyes and ears, and instead of dirtying his own hands, he moved his agents like pieces on a chessboard, deifying himself as an untouchable being.
He added that the image of an absolute Monarch, once established in that way, soon becomes the truth, even if it hides or distorts the facts, and makes it ‘justice’ that no one can deny the legitimacy of.
Leonardo knew that Alex was talking about ‘Monarchs in these kinds of situations’ as an example, but as he listened to him, he couldn’t help but think of someone, along with the imperial dynasty of Laina Rogia, which had repeated major and minor wars throughout history.
Kenneth became tight-lipped, and Alex, as if he had intended it from the start, stopped walking for a moment and quietly observed Leonardo. Leonardo also stopped walking and stared at Alex.
It was only a few seconds, but a breathtaking reconnaissance ensued.
Then, Alex, who had been narrowing his eyes, folded his long eyes and said.
“Good answer. This is almost a concrete answer from someone who has either ruled or seen it directly from the side, wouldn’t you say?”
He deliberately probed with meaningful words, but Leonardo did not give any further answers.
“As you said, the power of a Monarch who has won a war is incredibly strong. War was also the means that the imperial family of this empire has chosen to seize power for generations.”
“…….”
“With that immense power, they appropriately distort facts that do not help strengthen their position, and cover up the achievements or records of the Monarch who had legitimacy before, thereby granting the Monarch of the new era an even more solidified legitimacy. They fabricate the weakness of the previous Monarch with the story of a hero who ran away without killing the witch, and hide the original facts―.”
―Beep!
At that moment, a sound came from the Coordinate System that Alex was holding. The eyes of the three people turned to it at the same time.
Alex’s narrow eyes, which had been looking at the Coordinate System with the sensor blinking, gradually widened. The pupils, which had been hidden by his always-smiling eyelids, slowly revealed themselves.
In those pupils that Leonardo saw, there was a hint of madness and joy.
Alex suddenly took out a map from his backpack. Then, he changed direction and began to walk away urgently. It seemed like some new information was about to come out, but Leonardo and Kenneth hurriedly followed him as he suddenly cut off his words and moved.
He was smiling.
He couldn’t help but let out a chuckle as he hurried along with the map and Coordinate System, and continued to speak to those who were following him.
“I have been researching the empty spaces of that hidden history.”
As Alex walked, the dense trees in front of him became sparse, and the light that had been obscured by the leaves shone down strongly from above. At the same time, old structures began to be seen beyond the tree trunks standing in front of them, but only the area around them was almost devoid of trees, giving it a rather artificial and alien feel.
Leonardo instinctively knew that the place Alex was trying to find was right there.
As if to meet that expectation, Alex said in a voice filled with joy.
“And the reason I came to this Eldermilli Peninsula is because it is one of those empty spaces in history.”
The Coordinate System in his hand indicated that they were gradually getting closer to the coordinates marked on the map with each step they took. As he watched it, Leonardo once again stared at Alex’s profile, which was visible diagonally.
When the shadows of the trees that had been lingering on his face gradually disappeared and complete light began to pour down, the Coordinate System made a sound again.
―Beep, beep!
The three stopped walking, and Leonardo turned his head to face forward. Then, he realized that they were standing at the boundary between an open space in the middle of the forest and the forest.
In front of them, there was a wide expanse of structures that were much more elaborate and complex than what they had seen elsewhere, and the red sunset flowed thickly over them, heightening the tranquil and bizarre atmosphere.
Among the structures, there was one that particularly caught the eye. It was the huge monument that stood tall in the center, which appeared when following the curved path between the structures and walls aligned to the left and right.
Alex approached the monument without hesitation. It was not a long distance, but it felt like an eternity for him to reach it.
The monument was covered in moss and vines, so it looked like an ordinary wall that could easily be passed by, but it was somehow strange.
The fact that it was located in the center of the structure, the fact that pillars and statues were erected on both sides, and the fact that Alex Siles could not take his eyes off it gave the impression that something was unusual.
Thanks to this, when he reached right in front of the huge monument, Leonardo, who was also looking at where Alex’s gaze was directed, was able to discover the strange characters visible through the vines.
‘Ancient Language?’
Leonardo raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at it, his eyes rolling to Alex next to him. Alex Siles was looking up at the monument with his eyes wider than ever and a face full of joy. Then, with his gaze fixed, he asked the two people on either side of him.
“Have you ever wondered, even once, while coming to subjugate the peninsula?”
At his question, Kenneth, who was on the right side of Alex, also shifted his gaze to him. When the eyes of the two people turned to him, Alex took four large steps back, moving away from the monument. Then, when the monument in the center and the pillars on either side of it came into full view, he said.
“The southern citizens of the empire are suffering so much from the demon beast appearances on the peninsula, and the military and the Council have been passing the buck to each other for so long, and those guys have been growing more and more numerous. Have you never wondered why the emperors of the past have only been neglecting it until the situation became like this and didn’t enforce subjugation earlier?”
Kenneth swallowed hard at Alex’s words, and Leonardo’s lips, who had a confused expression, parted slightly.
Neglect?
He had never once thought that this place had been neglected.
He had only thought that the monsters had bred to the point where it was difficult to deal with them, and that the cycle was repeating, and that everyone avoided it, but he had never thought that it was being intentionally neglected by someone’s will.
Therefore, Alex Siles’s words were like striking the existing viewpoint with a stone. That act soon created a subtle crack, shattering the existing viewpoint and widening the field of vision while presenting a new viewpoint.
And at that moment, Leonardo suddenly remembered Cordelia, who had complained about the military and the Emperor for not sending support even when she requested it before entering the peninsula.
Her determined but pitiful face as she suppressed her sadness and the words she had said quickly flashed through his mind.
‘After His Majesty disbanded the nobles’ private soldiers, it seems that he doesn’t even see the territory citizens of the territories with royal guards as imperial citizens.’
‘Otherwise, even while the imperial citizens are suffering from the demon beasts and dying day by day, he wouldn’t just order my family to protect the territory and the border on our own.’
“…….”
He tried to untangle the many tangled threads in his head, carefully stepping through the situation with a slightly dazed expression. It felt like too much had suddenly been poured out.
Eventually, when his confused eyes turned to Alex, Alex smiled and opened his mouth once again.
“You asked me how I could be so sure of the Queen’s existence.”
He stretched out his arm towards the huge monument in front of him and said.
“The answer to your question is right here.”