Third Arc (Fallen Heart) - 399. Fear Can be a Foundation

Back at the castle, Rose mentioned this once—just once—to Claire while they walked through the east wing.

"I don't know if it's terrifying or brilliant," she said, not looking at her assistant.

Claire had glanced at her. "Both. Maybe that's why it works."

Rose didn't respond to that. She couldn't. Because deep down, she agreed.

Later that week, while reviewing city plans with Chancellor Allan again, she brought it up.

"I've been studying the development reports," she said, running her fingers over the edge of the parchment. "This system... it's massive. Delicate. The oversight required to keep corruption this low—"

"Is enormous," Allan finished, nodding. "Yes. But the King made it clear from the beginning. One crack leads to many. So there are no cracks."

"You really think fear is enough to keep people in line?" she asked.

He smiled faintly. "Fear can be a foundation. But respect builds the rest. The King doesn't just punish. He rewards. Promotes. Listens."

Rose looked down at the paper again. "Still. No one implements something this ambitious without chaos."

"There was chaos," Allan said. "At first. When His Majesty took the throne, the nobles tried to push back. Thought they could sway him. Play games. A few tried to keep old systems in place."

Rose looked up, her expression steady. "What happened to them?"

"They're buried," Allan said without flinching. "And their successors are far more efficient."

Claire, who was quiet, finally said, "Asteria would've never allowed a system like this. Not from what I heard."

Rose glanced at her. "How do you know about that?"

"The king," Claire replied, her tone thoughtful. "He tried to implement something like this back then. When he was the prince of Asteria. But his uncle shut it down. He told me once. Said they laughed at him. Called him too idealistic." She exhaled. "And now? He made it real. Without needing anyone's permission."

Allan gave a slow, polite nod. "With all due respect, Your Majesty... that's why Euphorion have outlasted them."

Rose didn't argue.

Her thoughts were quieter than usual. Focused.

Angel hadn't built all this overnight. This structure—these cities, these patrols, this social order that looked simple on the surface but ran like a meticulously designed engine—it was years of effort. Ruthless precision. Countless hard decisions. And zero tolerance for anyone who tried to break it from within.

And now she understood why he worked the way he did.

It wasn't pride. It wasn't ego.

It was because he knew what would happen if he didn't.

He knew what collapse looked like.

He'd seen it.

Lived through it.

Rose imagined a much younger Angel, maybe just seventeen or eighteen, standing in some freezing Asterian outpost with a scroll of reforms in one hand and rejection in the other. Back then, no one took him seriously. They smiled at him like he was just a boy with too many ideas. And now? He was the king whose system ran so clean it made other nations twitch.

She exhaled quietly, hands folded in front of her as they passed a few saluting guards. Her own boots barely made a sound as they walked.

"You seem thoughtful, Your Majesty," Allan said gently beside her.

"I'm just... thinking how efficient he is," Rose murmured. "And how much of himself he's poured into this place. I knew he worked hard. I didn't realize how much it cost him."

Allan nodded. "He built this kingdom like a fortress. Not just of stone and men, but of systems and discipline. He's made enemies for it, but he's also made something lasting."

"Yes," Rose said, voice softer. "He really has."

Then Allan cleared his throat, not rudely, but with that practiced chancellor's pause that warned something more formal was coming.

"There is one last thing I must speak of, Your Majesty."

Rose turned her head slightly. "Go on."

Allan kept his voice steady, even kind, but there was steel beneath it. "Euphorion is prosperous because of the King. There is no denying that. His policies, his reforms, his leadership—they are the foundation of what we've built here. But foundations can only hold so long without successors."

She stopped walking.

He did too.

Claire said nothing, but Rose could feel her assistant watching them.

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