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Step by step, she ascends the staircase until she reaches the throne. Instead of sitting on it, she sits on the steps before it.

The lion doesn't seem to open his eyes. His gentle breath brushes through its mane, sending up faint specks of dust.

He is displeased.

I'm sorry, Gawain. I had another sleepless night. There are still so many thorny issues left unresolved...

She feels the warmth at her back. The golden lion has moved closer, and his massive body is now supporting her.

Just like it had when she was a child. Vina catches a whiff of sunlight.

Gawain, how nice it would be to fall asleep leaning against you like this.

Walking all the way back here from outside the city feels like... a dream...

But it's been so long since I've had a good night's sleep, let alone a deep, satisfying dream.

The lion lifts his head slightly, brushing against Vina's golden hair, tickling her just enough to make her smile faintly.

The chill in the air sends a shiver through her, jolting her back to clarity.

...Has it always been this cold here? It's not time to rest yet, is it?

What we're doing now still falls far short. There's not enough medicine, not enough food, and endless arguments—

Sometimes I wish I could just rip off this uniform and knock those idiots down one by one. Maybe things would be much simpler that way, huh?

'Defeat the Victoria of the past'...

If only it were as simple as a match in the ring.

The golden lion closes his eyes, drifting off to sleep, though his tail is still lazily swatting against Vina's arm.

Teacher, I'm sorry for complaining to you again.

There are some things I don't know how to explain to Morgan and the others. They wouldn't understand, and I don't want to make them worry.

As for Delphine... I don't want to show too much doubt or vulnerability in front of her. She's already taken on so much for me and pinned so many expectations on me.

There are already so many people counting on me, Gawain.

I don't want to let them down.

She shuts her eyes and grips the crown.

'King', 'Speaker', these titles mean nothing to her.

She just wants—

Vina, I knew I'd find you here!

Wait… were you just asleep, or?

No, I was just thinking about something. Gawain, he—

She instinctively turns her head to the side, but there's no one there. Yet that warmth remains, unmistakable.

He's gone.

(...Thank you for being here with me, Gawain.)

Morgan, what are you doing here?

Delphine convinced the provisional court to hold the crown thief in the Defense Forces' detention quarters, for now.

The full report on her is out now. I didn't want to waste time, so I came straight to you. Here, this is the report.

Her name is Diane Weber.

Morgan pauses, watching Vina closely for a reaction. But Vina simply looks at her with curiosity, waiting for her to continue.

She didn't just decide to steal the crown out of the blue.

She has been working with a pharmaceutical rep from Columbia for a while now, helping spread awareness about Oripathy infection protection methods.

That's how she learned when the guards patrolling outside the Palace of Westhaleg would change shifts. Once she got inside, she waited until your speech and slipped into the throne room.

And then, she stayed there for quite a while—at least half an hour.

What did she do in there?

I don't know, and she won't say. Maybe she was hesitating, or maybe she just got lost in thought. In any case, she managed to make off with the crown without alerting anyone.

Wait, something doesn't add up here. She stayed in the throne chamber for so long. She didn't run into the patrols after the shift change?

No, she didn't. Even she was surprised by how easily she escaped. She thought for sure the patrols would catch her.

So someone must have helped her. Was it one of the guests?

Unclear, but if she had help, she didn't know about it. She came up with this whole plan herself.

But... why? Just to bring the crown to me and goad me into—

Her name is Diane Weber.

I know—

You don't remember her. I kept thinking she looked familiar, and when I saw the report, I realized—it's her.

Remember that day when the alliance surrounded us on our doorstep? The first soldier to defy orders and escort us forward?

Vina recalled the sky that day, filled with steam, the lingering smell of smoke and gunpowder.

And the soldier whose face had become a blur in her memory.

'This is Lieutenant Diane Weber of the Sixth Column, Tenth Infantry Regiment. Lower your weapons, soldiers, and escort the Exemplars in their advance.'

'Before I was a soldier, I was a Londinier. This is my home too.'

'Go, Siege. The fight is not yet over.'

'We will take back what is ours!'

Diane Weber, the soldier who defied the Duke of Caster's orders... She contracted an acute infection in the final battle against the Nachzehrer King.

That rings a bell? She was the one who took the Sighs of Kings from you and charged towards the Nachzehrers.

She doesn't have much time left.

We are short of Oripathy suppressants, and she never got enough medicine to slow her condition. We took a look at her, but—

The crown lets out a faint metallic creak as Vina's hand tightens around it. It looks so fragile, yet its resilience is undeniable.

She really loved our home, and she loved Victoria as well.

That's why she volunteered to join the ducal forces, only to defy their orders and end up forced into retirement.

She trusted you, even though I don't agree with some of her ideas. Vina, maybe we could...

<i>I never finished asking for mercy on Diane's behalf. Vina knew what I wanted to say, and I knew how she'd respond...</i>

<i>No, I knew what Speaker Vina Victoria would say.</i>

<i>Even now, I can't imagine what must've been going through Diane Weber's head when she made that crazy decision, but I admire her.</i>

<i>...Even though she stole the crown, she did it out of love for Victoria.</i>

<i>I don't understand. Since coming back to the city, so many things have changed—changed in ways I can't fathom and don't want to understand.</i>

<i>And on that day, I finally made up my mind—</i>

<i>From the end of that final battle outside the Palace of Westhaleg until now... I've lingered here far too long.</i>

<i>Maybe it's time to go home, back to the boxing gym.</i>