-1538- The most important stage

The First Artificial Sky Island, the Underground City, Aries Palace, the Audience Hall.

Seated upon the throne, Annerose looked down at Rozen standing below her, her voice cold and distant.

"Do you have nothing to say for yourself, Mr. Rorelei?" Annerose spoke these words to Rozen.

Nearby, River, Cris, and Emilie were all present, but they could only watch from the sidelines.

Rozen bore everyone's gaze, yet remained unmoved.

"What do you think I should say, Your Holiness?" Rozen responded with a playful tone.

This made Annerose's face show a hint of anger.

"You heavily injured former councilor Dambelcrew, leaving him crippled, forced to spend the rest of his life bedridden. The sky soldiers guarding him were severely injured too, and who knows if they will have lasting damage. Do you not wish to admit any of this?" Annerose scolded Rozen.

But Annerose was mistaken in her expectations.

"I admit it," Rozen said calmly. "So what now? Will Your Holiness punish me?"

"Hmph." Annerose snorted. "Do you think you shouldn't be punished?"

Rozen's response was direct.

"No, I shouldn't."

One sentence almost made Annerose fall from her throne.

But no matter how many times she asked, Rozen would give the same answer.

"That former councilor surrounded me with his private soldiers and intended to harm me without reason, planning to break my arms and legs, and crush my mouth. I was merely exercising my right to self-defense. What crime is that?" Rozen spoke openly and confidently.

"But… but he was a former councilor. Don't you think your self-defense was excessive?" Annerose pressed further.

But using this argument to convict Rozen?

Too naive.

"You said it yourself; he was just a former councilor. Yet, he used his personal troops from the frontlines to surround me, exposing this place without permission, and paraded around trying to harm me under false charges. Shouldn't the one being punished be that pig?" Rozen said indifferently. "Besides, I'm the alchemist who advanced magical technology by fifty years. A former councilor trying to harm me is equivalent to threatening humanity as a whole. Do you think I should have let him break my arms and legs and crush my mouth?"

"This..." Annerose was rendered speechless.

It was indeed a valid argument.

In terms of importance to humanity, Rozen was undoubtedly the more crucial individual.

By comparison, Dambelcrew was merely a former councilor. Even if a current councilor were to attack Rozen, it would still be a massive loss for all humanity.

Therefore, both logically and emotionally, Rozen had no reason to be condemned, except for perhaps excessive force.

However, Dambelcrew's intentions toward Rozen, not to mention his plans for Emilie, also constituted imminent excessive harm.

Thus, Annerose had no valid grounds to punish Rozen.

Furthermore...

"I've done you a favor by eliminating a major problem, Your Holiness," Rozen said casually. "It's not that I'm complaining, but keeping someone like him around is unwise. He only talks a big game, and the more dangerous part is that even though he's all talk, he insists on implementing his own strategies. He disregards your authority as humanity's highest leader. If you don't remove such a person early, he'll eventually be a disaster that drags everyone down. Don't tell me you, as the Pope, can't see this?"

At this point, Annerose was completely unable to respond.

The others, observing from the side, finally stepped forward.

"I think little Rozen has a good point?" Emilie said with a smile toward Annerose. "I also don't want to cooperate with someone who's always eyeing the children I protect. If he harms the ones I'm protecting, I won't have any reason to remain in the human faction. Your Holiness wouldn't want to see that, right?"

Annerose fell silent.

"...I also believe Mr. Rorelai should not be punished. He's the victim here."

Cris hesitated for a moment, then expressed her opinion.

"Ahem..."

River, sensing the opportunity, cleared his throat dramatically, also intending to speak. However, a glare from Annerose silenced him.

"Fine, I won't pursue this matter further." Annerose sighed, sounding bored. "Former councilor Dambelcrew incited his subordinates to attack, his behavior was excessive, and his thoughts extreme. He is hereby sentenced to house arrest. River, please pass down the order later."

"Yes." River agreed, though he inwardly thought, "With Dambelcrew's injuries, he'll spend the rest of his life in something akin to house arrest anyway, right?"

This punishment was no punishment at all.

Rozen, unaware of River's thoughts, waved dismissively.

"Now that the matter is resolved, I'll take my leave."

With that, Rozen turned to go.

The others were stunned.

"Where do you think you're going?" Annerose hastily called out.

"Where else?" Rozen looked at Annerose strangely. "I'm heading back to the surface."

"Back to the surface?" Everyone's faces changed.

But this was only natural.

"It's almost dawn. I should return to the inn and prepare for the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival." Rozen glanced deeply at Annerose and said, "Even though the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival is just a pretext for Your Holiness to gather forces, if I'm not mistaken, the tournament itself is quite important, isn't it?"

Annerose narrowed her eyes, remaining silent.

But her silence only confirmed that Rozen's assumptions were correct.

"You gathered Sky Wizard squads from floating academies all over the world to prepare for a decisive battle against Zeth. But if you recklessly start a war, and the Pope attacks the current council chairman, won't Zeth use that as a pretext to act against you?"

Rozen directly revealed Annerose's concerns.

"Zeth holds high status and power in human society. He made significant contributions in the past battles against the Armored Beetles and enjoys the trust of the populace. Unlike you, who were born into high status, Zeth has garnered incredible support from many, including some Sky Wizards. If you, as the Pope, rashly move against Zeth, not only will his humanoid Armored Beetles retaliate, but even his followers among the human race will attempt to overthrow the Pope."

Compared to the symbolic figure of the Pope, a man like Zeth, who has achieved real feats in battle, would gain the respect of many. His prestige and trust among the citizens, particularly Sky Wizards, ran deep.

"Because of this, you can't reveal Zeth's true identity as a humanoid Armored Beetle. Not everyone would believe you, and if it leads to conflict between those loyal to the Pope and those who support Zeth, humanity will be embroiled in civil war. In such a scenario, Zeth could sit back and watch humanity tear itself apart, then swoop in to claim victory."

Therefore,

Annerose wanted to take action against Zeth, either covertly or on a particular stage.

Covert action was impossible, as Annerose needed the support of uninformed human Sky Wizards, who wouldn't fight for her without understanding the situation.

As for the latter, there was indeed a stage now.

That stage was — the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival.