Chapter 45: To Keep Unwithered That Which Was Nurtured With Care

"Ugh, damn it all..."

Lined up before Mia and her friends were the tightly-bound forms of the White Crow members, though it was likely that the only one for whom the rope was necessary was Jem, who continued to glare with hateful defiance at them. Mia regarded him silently for some time before turning to Abel.

"Abel... and Sion too. I have a request. Could you... spare the lives of these people?"

Abel was hardly surprised to hear her plea. If anything, he was almost expecting it.

I had a feeling that's what she'd ask for.

The White Crows had conspired to overthrow an entire monarchy. Unlike the rest of the Wind Crows, who limited their activities to gathering intelligence, these radicals had mounted a direct attack. Sentencing them to death would be an act of mercy. Were they not foreign actors, all their family and kin might very well be killed as punishment.

Despite this, Mia pleaded for their lives. Under normal circumstances, there was no way he could grant her request. It should be impossible, and yet... he couldn't help but ponder.

If it was the Princess of Tearmoon who asked, might Father listen?

He was aware that the King of Remno had a soft spot for girls who asked him for things.

As for the intelligence agents... It'll take some convincing, but the best concession I can wrangle out of him will probably be immediate banishment from the kingdom. In fact, the bigger problem is the locals who got involved in the revolutionary activities. The ones who just got caught up in the fever might get away with a good lashing, but there's no way Lynsha and Lambert will come out of this in one piece...

He glanced at Mia, wondering what she thought about the siblings' circumstances. He wasn't sure what could be done, but he didn't feel particularly concerned either. Mia, he knew, had undoubtedly considered such issues already.

Sion was of the same opinion. Having recently been lectured by Mia, he saw this as an extension of her ideals. She was trying to give these people a chance to make amends — to redeem themselves. Her actions thus far, in fact, were clear proof of this intention. Had the White Crows' actions led to a bloody melee that claimed the lives of countless victims, it would be impossible to spare the lives of any of these people. Furthermore, tensions would have flared between Remno and Sunkland, and war would be inevitable. Once it reached that point, there would be no turning back.

But it didn't. There was only limited damage done, and the fallout should be minimal. At the very least, it shouldn't be bad enough to push Remno to declare war on an opponent the size of Sunkland. It would depend on how negotiations went, but they'd probably managed to, albeit barely, keep the pot from boiling over. Mia's request could be the final course of this long, harrowing meal, the culmination of all her efforts.

I have no choice... There's nothing I can do... These are words befitting only the lips of those who'd made every attempt to effect change.

Mia made those attempts. She did her utmost. Then...

It's up to me to utilize every resource within my power to see her words turned into actions.

As a fellow beneficiary of her redemptive mercy, it was the very least he could do, but in order to accomplish that he would have to juggle a whole lot of very fragile interests.

Assuming Remno settles for the more lenient penalty of banishment, Sunkland would find it difficult to put them to death for fear of the optics; it would reek of a cover-up. If Prince Abel handles the persuading in Remno, the question is how I should deal with the Wind Crows upon their return...

"Hah, did I just hear you say you're not going to execute us? Am I losing my mind or are you all losing yours? Or what? Are you planning to torture us or something?" Jem let out a wailing bout of laughter. "Go ahead. Do your worst. You won't get a word out of me."

Sion scowled. Something about the man's shrill, disdainful voice grated on his nerves.

Torture, huh... I see the princess thinks he's still hiding something from us.

Dion alone was thinking in a completely different direction. Having been briefed on certain topics before coming here, he had a unique take on the situation. Something about the Wind Crows didn't sit right with him — specifically, their change into White Crows. What was once a passive agency had morphed into a considerably more aggressive one, and the man behind this metamorphosis was right there in front of him.

This Jem guy... There's definitely something fishy about him.

He didn't seem to fear torture. In fact, he'd dared them to do their worst. This wouldn't be a very surprising stance if they were dealing with someone who'd sworn his loyalty to his nation. Spies, in particular, had to have a firm compass of allegiance in their hearts. What Dion heard in Jem's voice, however, wasn't mere loyalty. It was something else. If he had to put it into words, it would be...

Fanaticism. The kind of mad passion only true believers of some greater cause can muster.

He glanced at Mia, forming his own hypothesis. Why was she asking for these men to be spared? It had to be because she'd sniffed out the toxin under the rot. The Wind Crows had gone rogue, but they hadn't done so alone. There was intent behind their corruption; a hand in the shadows pushing them along.

That girl can be uncannily sharp sometimes. Still, he said so himself, this guy's gonna be a tough nut to crack. I wonder what's brewing in that noggin of hers... Or, heh, maybe the big twist is that there's nothing brewing up there at all...

Dion was right. About the last part, at least. And all of you should have seen that coming. Mia had a wish, she made it, and that was as far as she got. She hadn't thought about how it was supposed to actually happen. Not to mention, even said wish was the result of her unwavering dedication to her Mia First policy...

That's right. While Abel and Sion both believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that Mia was benevolence incarnate, they were dead wrong. It obviously wasn't compassion that drove her to ask for the culprits to be spared. Mia was no saint, and she didn't exactly have a big heart either. If anything, it was on the small side and had an embarrassing tendency to squawk. Like anyone else, she got angry when wronged, and right now, she was staring at a bunch of people who'd wronged her very badly. These were the very men whose actions had sent her to the guillotine the first time around. The last thing she wanted was to help them. Unlike Dion, however, she didn't suspect them of withholding information. So why, you're probably asking, did she make that request? Well, it's because there was one particular concern that kept gnawing at her, and said concern happened to be...

What if the same thing happens to them? I mean, I got a second chance at life. Is it possible for them to get a second chance too?

Having leapt through time herself, she couldn't deny that there was a chance other people might do so as well.

If so, then what are the conditions necessary for that to happen?

It wasn't clear, and since she didn't know for sure, she'd have to make assumptions based on her own experiences. For example, being killed on the same day at the same time in the same place might result in the same occurrence. Or perhaps it had something to do with dying by guillotine, or even dying with regrets.

If the people involved in this conspiracy are executed... could it happen to them too?

Thinking further ahead, if killing these men in the same fashion as she had been gave them a second chance at life, what would happen? Everything she'd done might be for naught. All the hard work she'd put in to change the course of history could very well be overturned.

N-No way. I am not going back to the guillotine! I refuse!

It was a sentiment that had stuck with her since her time leap, as vivid now as it had been then. However, she was aware that something else had bloomed within her — something stronger, which she felt even more passionately about.

That's not the only reason though... I don't want to go back... because I like it here. This timeline. This... now.

She looked around. At the people. At the scene. She tried to take it all in. It was a little overwhelming. There was her former enemy, Sion. There was his attendant, Keithwood. There was even the man who'd personally chopped off her head, Dion... Next to him, Abel, who'd been little more than a stranger... Tiona, whose help had allowed her to come this far... Chloe and Rafina...

Whereas once she'd had no one by her side but Anne and Ludwig, she was now surrounded by an entire circle of friends. It was as if she'd stepped into an alternate world — one that welcomed her with open arms. She liked it here. She liked it a lot more than she'd thought possible. And that gave her pause. She realized that, deep down, she was actually hoping that even Sion and Tiona would continue to stay by her side, and she wasn't sure how she felt about that.

D-Don't get the wrong idea, okay? I-It's not like I'm starting to like you people or anything! Just so we're clear!

Whenever Mia wasn't comfortable with her own emotions, she turned to her tried-and-true coping mechanism — a tsundere outburst in her own head.

Also, it should be mentioned that Dion was the one person for whom her opinion hadn't changed.

I-I'd rather not get any closer to him than necessary, to be honest...

There was one platform Mia stuck to, and it was Anti-Dionism.

"Abel, I know this will cause a great deal of trouble for you, but..." she said, trailing off hesitantly.

Abel showed her a weary smile and shook his head.

"It sure will. But it's fine. Without you, this crisis would never have been resolved so peacefully. You did your part. Now, let me do mine. I'll figure out a way to convince my father."

"But..." Sion gave Mia an inquisitive look. "If their lives are spared, what do you plan to do with them?"

It was a very good question — one that Mia had no answer for. She gave Sion a clueless look and blinked a few times.

"Hm... What am I going to do with them?"

Honestly, she didn't really care as long as they were left alive.

Imprison them in Remno and they'll probably get killed. Assassins or something. Imprison them in Sunkland and Remno will probably make a fuss. I guess I can take them with me to Tearmoon, but...

That was when Jem snickered.

"Oh man, are you kids seriously going to let us live? You sure are a bunch of regular saints, aren't you?"

Mia scowled. His grin almost made her want to kick him again.

This guy's starting to get under my skin.

Unlike Sion, her annoyance resulted in a flash of inspiration. A brilliantly devious plan dawned on her. She was going to get some payback, and she knew exactly how she would go about it!

"Yes we are. In fact, we're so saintly that we're going to leave you in the care of the Holy Lady herself. You can spend three whole years being lectured by Miss Rafina herself every single day. Now doesn't that sound marvelous?"

The idea was well-received by Sion and Abel and both of them nodded at her. Objectively speaking, it was actually a decent proposal. Belluga was actually the least contentious place to put these people. Dion muttered something about letting them off too easy, but even he spoke with more humor than hostility.

The White Crows stared at Mia with baffled looks as though she'd just cracked a particularly dense joke. There was only one person whose reaction differed.

"F-Fuck off! You wouldn't dare!"

Jem alone screamed in protest, his eyes wide and his teeth bared. His face seemed a little paler than before. His once vexing confidence was gone, replaced by a fast-growing panic. Mia mirrored the disdainful grin he'd worn back at him.

"My, how odd. Who was the one saying torture wasn't going to work? And who was the one saying I can go ahead and do my worst? Wasn't that you?"

Serves you right!

Despite Mia's triumphant laugh, she did fully understand the true implications of her proposal. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that this decision of hers would shine the first beam of light into the dark closet of history and begin exposing the skeletons that lay hidden in its shadows.

And so, the series of disturbances that shook Remno began heading toward resolution. The cloud of uncertainty that hung over the fates of Lambert and Lynsha cleared as well, as the two siblings — along with all the central members of the revolutionary army — were granted clemency. The credit for this belonged to Ludwig who, having gone through his usual process of deducing Mia's intentions and actually arriving at the correct conclusion, had eagerly made his way to the royal capital to request their pardon. He'd made the case that faulting Remno's own people would, in a way, cast Sunkland in a more sympathetic light. Instead, focusing all the blame on Sunkland would allow them to extract more concessions during the negotiation. His logic had proven persuasive, and the King of Remno had taken his advice.

Thus concluded the incident, allowing the Mia brigade to return home. Upon arriving at the academy, Mia would face the despair that was midterms, but that woeful story will have to be told another time.