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Ever since Emilia left her in charge of Blue Dawn, Crystal had been trying her best to keep the empire prosperous and happy, waiting for her to return.
Of course, although this should have been an easy task given the solid foundation they'd already established, the fact that they also had to secretly focus a lot of resources on preparing for an upcoming war made it much more difficult.
She understood that it was because of the other side's hostility that things had to be this way, but that didn't stop the blonde girl from feeling conflicted.
Crystal never expected that such a day would come when she would actually be the one 'in charge' of such a thing. She'd always hated that kind of source of misery. No one ever seemed happy on either side after a war, after all.
Or at least that was true for the general public, given that they had little to do with the spoils of war even if their side won.
Naturally, the actual responsibilities of the preparations were left to those who were better suitable for such things, but the fact that Crystal felt that she could stop it all if she really wanted to weighed a little on her mind.
Emilia would listen to her if she pleaded. No, she didn't even have to plead. She knew that much... but Crystal simply couldn't bring herself to do it.
"Am I really doing the right thing?"
She didn't mind walking through burning embers for Emilia's sake, but Crystal still felt guilty when she thought of plunging such a happy and peaceful empire into chaos when it could be probably avoided.
She understood that Emilia wanted to accomplish her goals faster, and for that to happen she needed to fulfill certain conditions, but... was it really so bad to just... wait?
Emilia might be eager to leave their world, but that wasn't really true for Crystal. After all, compared to the unknown in the future, weren't the days of bliss she spent with the crimson-haired beauty now much more beautiful?
Of course, there could be circumstances that she just didn't understand, and Crystal was keenly aware of certain wounds in Emilia's psyche that she simply wasn't ready to open yet. So the blonde girl decided to simply do her best to help her instead.
Fortunately, knowing that the people of Blue Dawn would be more than eager to jump into a fire pit for Emilia's sake lightened the burden on Crystal's mind quite a bit. But she still hoped that things would work out exactly as her lover planned, and that there won't be many casualties on their side.
Suddenly, a knock on the door startled Crystal out of her thoughts, and after hearing her assent, a short brown-haired girl wearing a maid uniform entered her 'office' with a smile.
Although she tried to appear calm, Crystal couldn't help but raise a brow at the obvious excitement in her eyes. "I'm assuming it's something good, Michelle?"
The short-haired girl nodded enthusiastically. "I just received a message that told me to start preparing for her arrival!"
Of course, just from the tone of her voice, Crystal didn't need to second guess who she was referring to with 'her', though she was surprised at the timing.
She'd naturally been trying her best to keep up with the news from the other side, but things were kept quite tightly sealed by Carmen's government, and there was little hope of any outsider being able to figure out what was really going on at this point.
If not for Dixie and Emilia continuously keeping in touch through their pre-established secure channels, she wouldn't even know most of what she did now, though those two obviously wouldn't tell her all the details, especially any that might cause her to worry.
Still, Crystal could pretty much tell that things were steadily heading in the direction Emilia wanted. Based on Michelle's report, however, the pacing had clearly exceeded her expectations.
Were they even ready for the war yet, or could there be a change of plans?
It was impossible for her not to worry.
After all, while her mother and many of their friends might be safe in the capital of Blue Dawn, the same couldn't be said for the likes of Noelle, Dixie, and even Emilia.
Knowing them as she did, Crystal knew that not only would she not be allowed to head into the thick of it herself, but she also couldn't prevent Emilia and the others from heading into the danger zones.
She understood that it was the fastest way to end it all, but that didn't stop her heart from beating erratically in terror from just imagining what could go wrong.
"... Are you okay? I thought you would be happy."
Looking at Michelle's furrowed brows, Crystal didn't dare to let the girl know too much about her thoughts, and just smiled reluctantly. "Until it's all over and Emilia is back with us, I can't just put my heart at ease and celebrate, can I? Anyway, just go and continue with the preparations."
The girl looked a little hesitant, but she still followed Crystal's orders. "Then, let me know if you need anything, alright? I won't be far."
Crystal just waved as the girl left, and after staring worriedly out of the window at the seemingly calm horizon for a while, the blonde girl bit her lip nervously.
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Of course, for such a message to be sent to Blue Dawn, things in Carmen must have already reached a boiling point.
"Y-You--! H-How could you do such a thing?!" The president pointed his finger in disbelief at his most trusted ministers shakily, but none of them dared to look him in the eye and reply. Instead, they all averted their gaze.
A young man's brazen laugh shattered the chilling atmosphere, and the president's ashen face immediately turned red in fury. "How dare you laugh after betraying your home to foreigners?! Do you not feel ashamed, you traitor?! Where's your father?!"
Jasper smirked, finding it quite funny that the president would mention his father now of all times. "What do you think? Would I be able to do half the things that I have if not for his support?"
Although the president also realized that it must be true, he still refused to believe it. "I-Impossible!"
Jasper shrugged. "Believe it or not, I can let just you meet him if you want, and the two of you can talk it out... After you're done signing that and giving your speech, of course."
Just as he was about to bark back in rage, however, the president froze when the door opened and another group of people walked into the meeting room confidently.
How many years had it been since someone actually dared to be so brazen as to come in unannounced in his presence?
Moreover, this group included not only Ginny Gray, but also someone who clearly should never have been allowed within Carmen's borders.
"Y-You--?! I-It's you!!!" The president's face turned red and blue in a mixture of fury and fear as he realized how bad the situation must be for things to turn out this way.
If the empress of Blue Dawn could just waltz right in despite his strict orders of keeping the borders sealed tight, was anything in this country really under his control anymore?!
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