Sera remained seated in Edmund’s office, her ears ready to listen to the entire story Edmund was about to tell.

She still could not understand why all of this had happened. She was certain it had to be connected to something much bigger.

The man sitting before Sera explained how the conflict began, without telling her the true reason behind why he saved Leonor.

He started with his marriage arrangement with Lara. Sera’s expression immediately soured, realizing there was another woman trying to win Edmund’s heart.

Then Edmund shifted the discussion toward another matter, the implications of his failed marriage arrangement with Lara.

The peak of the problem was Marcus Siegfried’s decision to sever ties with the Aschwin Family.

Sera listened in disbelief. At first, she thought Edmund was always calculated and organized, letting everything proceed exactly as planned.

However, Sera also realized Edmund was only human and could not plan for everything. There would always be moments when a plan strayed from its original course.

The woman never expected this deviation in Edmund’s plans to have such a massive impact on noble society within the Archie Territory.

"I don’t understand how things became this complicated," Sera complained as she sighed and took a sip of the wine in her hand.

"And let me make this clear... I cannot use mind manipulation magic."

"I don’t think any mage would want to use it. The Gaelion Magic Institute already categorized that type of magic as forbidden magic," Sera complained, displeased that people accused her of such a thing.

Edmund nodded, took another sip of wine, and drank slowly. "I know. But they aren’t mages, so their opinions are understandable."

"I understand." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"So, what are you going to do? Are you going to bring Clara and Madam Oleander back?" Sera asked.

"I don’t know. It feels impossible to convince them. They’ll only come back if I abandon Leonor."

"How about this? Leonor can stay at my house in Ulrich. That way, they can come back here. Problem solved, right?" Sera suggested.

"I already explained that Leonor would leave and stay in the student dormitory at Livden Academy, but they still refused. I’m sure they would still refuse even if I suggested that," Edmund answered.

"The problem isn’t Leonor’s existence... it’s my attitude toward supporting her too much."

Sera nodded in understanding. She had to admit Edmund was overly attached to Leonor, or perhaps sacrificed himself too often for her.

The latest incident was when Leonor cried at the orphanage and caused chaos throughout the city.

Sera was not stupid. She realized something about Edmund had changed ever since he met Leonor.

Yet even now, Sera still could not open the Pandora’s box hidden inside Edmund’s heart regarding why he continued protecting Leonor.

If the reason was merely that Leonor’s power benefited humanity, Edmund should not have been so emotionally invested in the matter.

"Listen, Edmund. You are the future heir of the Aschwin Family, the ruler of Archester City and the Archie Territory. If you cannot control this issue, I’m worried the news will spread to the public and cause them to lose trust in you."

"You failed to protect your own family. They’ll start wondering how you’re supposed to protect an even larger territory."

"I’ll help you," Sera said.

Edmund smiled, lifted his glass again, and drank the last of the wine. He did not need advice or lectures. What he truly needed was support from people who did not condemn his actions.

No matter what, Edmund believed this was the best choice. Protecting Leonor, the Villainess, so she would not become evil and bring destruction upon the Aschwin Family.

If only they knew that reason, they would not leave so easily and hate Edmund.

"Thank you, Sera."

"I’ll find a solution to this problem. For now, can you make sure Leonor doesn’t hear these rumors?"

Sera nodded, set down her wine glass, and stood gracefully. "I’ll try talking with Nisya about this. She probably has a solution for the girl."

Edmund quietly cleared his throat, allowing Sera to leave him alone in the room. The atmosphere became silent and empty. Edmund stood up and walked to the back of the room, stopping right before the glass wall of his office.

"One day, they’ll understand why I have to protect and support Leonor."

***

Two days later.

A system panel appeared as a warning for Edmund that morning while he sat at his office desk.

[Public trust level: 81%] [-1%]

Every day, the public trust level continued to decline because the promised reduction in production prices from the business owners had not yet shown effective results.

Today, public trust dropped by another 1%.

Sebastian arrived and opened the door, entering together with Rachel. The female staff member from the Trade Department came carrying documents regarding incoming trade shipments to the city.

Edmund lifted his head and looked straight ahead, clearly seeing the two of them approach his desk.

"What is it, Sebastian?" Edmund asked flatly.

"I came with Rachel. She brought documents regarding the follow-up actions from the business owners’ decisions during yesterday’s meeting," Sebastian explained.

Rachel placed the documents on Edmund’s desk. The man accepted them and carefully read through the contents. A small smile appeared on his face as he looked through the report.

"The wheat trade has begun. They reported that shipments will arrive in Archester City within one or two days," Rachel explained.

"Chairman Lucas already searched for another alternative and successfully found one," Rachel added.

"That’s good. Hopefully tomorrow they’ll truly lower their production prices," Edmund replied.

"I want you to continue coming here and reporting every development detail to me, Rachel."

"I’ll gladly do so, Viscount Edmund."

"Sebastian," Edmund called. Sebastian stepped closer to Edmund’s desk.

"Go see Annie. I’m planning to hold a discount market in front of the Aschwin Mansion gates," Edmund stated firmly.

"I understand."

Edmund nodded with satisfaction and told them they could leave. However, only Rachel walked out. Sebastian remained inside Edmund’s office.

"Lord Edmund."

Without taking his eyes off the documents in his hands, Edmund spoke, "I know what you want to say."

"What’s done is done," Edmund answered coldly.

"But I’m worried the city’s residents will lose trust in you," Sebastian admitted.

Edmund smiled, placed the papers on the desk, and stared ahead. He had also been thinking about the same concern Sebastian had.

However, fundamentally, the city residents were not truly concerned about that matter. They did not have time to care about conflicts within noble families.

There were stomachs that needed food. Minds that needed to work in order to earn money. They did not have much time to discuss Oleander and Clara.

"That’s exactly why there needs to be a discount market," Edmund answered.

"You’re trying to restore public trust by giving them cheap commodities?" Sebastian asked.

"Yes."

"Tell me, what percentage of Archester City’s population lives in poverty?" Edmund asked.

Sebastian fell silent for a moment, trying to remember the information he had learned before. "Around 41% of the total population."

"That’s right. And that’s already a half of the city’s total population. The wealthy do not care much about noble affairs. Their minds are only occupied with making money and spending it."

"The middle class can be troublesome, but they are not too dangerous because they live more comfortably than the poor."

"The ones we should worry about... are the poor."

"They’re poor, they have no money, their stomachs are hungry, and they constantly curse the government. Once they hear about incidents like this, they’ll take advantage of them."

Edmund returned to reading the documents in his hand. "That’s why nearly every rebellion in history started with poor people."

Sebastian stood there in stunned silence. Edmund was speaking about a taboo truth that could no longer be avoided.

Unlike the middle and upper classes, poor people generally had lower levels of education.

Some of them were even illiterate. How could someone think logically if they could not understand basic literacy and comprehension?

Even so, Sebastian felt Edmund’s explanation was somewhat... cruel. A taboo truth, but cruel to say out loud.

"I understand."

"Let the rumors spread. There should be no repressive actions whatsoever. I don’t want the news to continue growing larger."

Edmund stood and placed the documents back onto his desk. "Let time erase that news from their heads."