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...Theresis.

I've been thinking about this for a while, W. You may not like what I'm about to say, but I still have to say it.

Hah, throwing cold water on me before the fight?

Pretty much.

We can't kill Theresis, at least not right here or now, it can't be the Sarkaz executing him.

Ines was right, those illusions did scramble your brains.

Killing him means no Kazdel.

Whether now or for a good long while after the war, he has to be recorded as the Regent... and even be praised by some.

Are you out of your mind?

I really don't feel like joking about this.

We still need to stop the war, and I haven't changed my mind.

But Theresis has taken his place as a cornerstone of the Sarkaz future.

Kazdel won't survive another split, and this war... it can't end with another Sarkaz betrayal, with another Sarkaz civil war.

Remember the plan I was talking about before? We need the Sarkaz here to pull out of Victoria before everyone hears about his death.

Once everyone knows the Sarkaz have failed, and the threat of Theresis is gone, what happens then?

The dukes will slaughter every last Sarkaz in Victoria without mercy. The revenge killings will spread to other countries in centrum, and all civilization will have a justifiable excuse... to exterminate the Sarkaz.

They'll put together a coalition, just and reasonable, swift and decisive... to divide up all of Theresa's and Theresis's legacies.

Can't you picture that?

To be honest, I don't give a shit about any consequences of Theresis dying. All I'm here for is the part where he dies.

Coalitions? Slaughtering Sarkaz? Weren't they doing that already?

Does Theresis dying mean all the devils are just gonna lose their will to fight back?

Hah, no way. I don't buy that.

He sent the assassins to kill Theresa, declared himself king, and dragged all of us into the mess we're in today.

We don't need to sacrifice ourselves for his Kazdel, for his—

Don't think you can keep yourself out of it, W.

I thought I was gonna really let her have it, really tear into W, this... sad woman.

Do you think of yourself as nothing more than a merc?

How many people have you brought? From Reunion to where we stand now, how many Sarkaz have you gathered?

You're carrying their lives on your shoulders.

I don't fucking care!

But W is wavering.

I know her too well. It's not like she hasn't thought about it, she isn't an uncaring leader at all.

Looking at it objectively, a whole lot of mercs have stepped up to follow this madwoman.

You have to care.

You think you can just keep on killing people, keep on burying bombs in the dirt?

You're leading those Sarkaz now. You have to think about how to deal with their hopes and dreams.

You have to think through what their lives mean to you.

But I—

It's not just Theresis—

Don't forget, there's Theresa too.

So, from all perspectives we're... all we can be is their successors, the inheritors of their ideals.

The two of them, they're the reason the Sarkaz could come together in the first place.

That's not the real Theresa.

That's a fake Theresis has cooked up. He can't fool me.

W.

Look at yourself.

Who do you think you are—

You couldn't accept Theresa's death, you're stuck in the shadow of Babel.

Like...

Shut up.

You think Amiya's walking ahead of you. You think she's Theresa's handpicked successor, that the King of Sarkaz should be thinking about this stuff.

You look at her and see another Theresa, you think all you need to do is follow the King.

Shut up! Are you trying to gross me out?!

You think you don't deserve to inherit anything.

What kind of joke is this? You think you get me? You're my mentor now, you're gonna raise me, teach me, huh Hoederer?

You're just a merc, not much higher on the ladder than me. But you're so deluded you can stand up and call yourself a successor or whatever of whatever?

Ugh, it's so gross! The little bunny? I'm gonna follow her?

She was in the right place at the right time to be chosen—

—Chosen by Theresa, to become the leader of Rhodes Island who stopped Reunion and Talulah, who broke her way into Londinium today.

So what about you, W?

What exactly does Theresa mean to you?

Some distant ethereal symbol who once gave you a place to stay, one specific flesh-and-blood royal, or—the path she stood for?

...I...

'For this land to... fall into peaceful slumber.'

...Ugh.

So... that's why I say she's a fake.

Ines... how have you managed to hold back from killing him this long?

Because I'm not deluding myself, most of the time.

Ugh. Spare me.

Whatever, Hoederer.

I know what I have to do. And I'm not going to kill you to shake up morale this time, you should be kissing my feet.

Polish that sword of yours good, we've got a war tomorrow.

Sigh... she ran off again.

Do you really think she could be a decent leader?

She's organized a whole lot of mercs.

Heh, are they really 'mercs' though?

How much money does W have to hire them? And how much does she earn for them with the things she does?

Alright then, why are they following her?

No matter what she says, whether it's revenge for Theresa, hunting down the assassins, or just randomly bombing her way across the land—

She's definitely... walked her path.

The ones who follow her really are sad.

But people forget how young she is. She's got lots of... room for improvement.

We can hope.

Also, the startup capital for your shop, not a joke.

...I know.

The Exemplars is fully equipped.

Some of the Londinium Self-Salvation Corps volunteered to join our team.

Yes, tallying up the remnants of the various ducal forces we've gathered, refugees who want to join the fight, and these militiamen from the Self-Salvation Corps, we have the strength of roughly six or seven platoons.

Siege, we'd best formally establish the military structure of the Exemplars. Appointing officers such that our chain of command can...

Lieutenant Shearer, this team is not a true military unit. It is not the Victorian Army.

True, we have some soldiers...

But aside from you and the remnants of Duke Windermere's forces led by Delphine, the rest are ordinary folk who want to fight. Workers, farmers, merchants, and of course, street ruffians.

Should we forcibly incorporate them into one or two combat units, arm them, and subordinate them to officers, then what is the difference between us and the dukes?

The Exemplars is a fine name, but I believe it should bring the people nothing but hope.

Or to speak less grandly, it should bring the people something intangible, the likes of which the dukes' high-speed battleships can't bring.

Which is to say...

The Exemplars should not be a heroic force captained by the heir to the throne wielding the Realmblade. I'm rather repulsed by such titles.

But then, how are we to organize our combat operations?

Speaking of combat operations, a considerable portion of our team has not undergone any regular military training.

When in Londinium, do as the Londiniers do, eh?