Chapter 21: Part 12: Eisenburg

The girl was speechless.

“Do you think I haven’t invited her?” Seraphina’s voice suddenly rose, her silver hair trembling slightly in the dim light outside the window.

“If she really wanted to protect more people, why wouldn’t she put aside her so-called pride and accept my rule?”

“She could have easily become my deputy! Continued her so-called idealism!”

“But she refused.”

“Because she refuses to admit that my way is right.”

“She’d rather see the Oasis destroyed than bow to reality.”

“So this is her fate.”

A contemptuous, faint curve appeared at the corner of the woman’s mouth.

“This wall of mine didn’t just appear out of nowhere.”

“My standing army didn’t grow up eating thin air.”

“Do you know how much energy it takes to maintain the outer defense network every single day?”

“Do you know how much effort it takes to train a qualified soldier?”

“Do you know how many of my soldiers die on patrol every year to protect these fools inside the walls, visible or invisible to you?”

“And that’s not even counting the ones I personally lead into battle who died defending us!”

“Her so-called equality and mutual aid—can she pay that bill?”

Her breathing grew heavier, her shirt rising and falling heavily over her chest.

Mili could even hear the sound of her grinding her teeth…

Seraphina suddenly tore off her seatbelt, leaned down close to her, silver strands falling down, almost completely blocking the girl’s view.

The space around them grew tighter, heavier…

“The world isn’t a fairy tale, Mili…”

“Kindness doesn’t put food on the table, ideals don’t stop bullets.”

“If it weren’t for my powerful military strength, those guys outside would have torn this place to pieces a long time ago.”

“Do you think the destruction of the Oasis was just because of the Purification Temple and the Golden Wanderers attacks?”

“No!”

“It was doomed to fall from the day it was founded!”

“It was too rich, too weak, too beautiful! Like a fat sheep thrown into a pack of wolves!”

“Even if it wasn’t eaten this time, there will be a next time!”

“Its very existence challenges the survival laws here!”

“That’s the truth!”

“Do you understand?”

Mili was rendered speechless by her words.

She wanted to refute…

To use her memories of life in the Oasis—the sincere smiles on people’s faces, the warmth of mutual aid—to change Seraphina’s view…

“But… but… the people there… they were happy…”

“Happy?” The woman sneered:

“The dead don’t feel happy.”

“That was just a sandcastle built carelessly on the beach! One tide and it’s completely flattened!”

“Do you know why the Oasis was destroyed?”

Mili tried to shrink back, but she was pressed tightly against the seat, nowhere to go, forced to watch as Seraphina’s cold and stern face came closer and closer, pressing down on her…

“That was a carefully planned trap by the Temple and the Wanderers working together—”

“They sent spies into the Oasis, spread rumors that Eisenberg was about to launch an attack, secretly sabotaged Oasis’s defenses, stirred up internal conflicts…”

“Lin Lan was forced to move most of her troops north to deal with a threat that didn’t even exist!”

“At that moment, the alliance’s main forces circled all the way around and launched a surprise attack from the southeast!”

“By the time she realized she was trapped, it was already too late!”

“The whole thing took less than three days! A settlement with over ten thousand people was completely wiped out!”

“I know the intelligence network around the Oasis better than anyone else! What’s there to say?”

“She thought everyone was as kind as her! Thought every conflict could be solved by talking!”

“But the Purification Temple people wouldn’t listen to her nonsense!”

“The Golden Wanderers wouldn’t spare the Oasis’s wealth just because she was merciful!”

“She was too naive.”

“She couldn’t protect her people!”

“She couldn’t stop the enemy invasion!”

“She couldn’t bring the dead back to life!”

“Only strength can protect everything.”

“Only the strong have the right to talk about kindness.”

“The kindness of the weak is nothing but a self-deceiving lie…”

“That’s why she and I are like fire and water.”

Seraphina’s words were firm, full of disappointment.

“But you’re different,” her tone softened a little, she reached out and touched Mili’s cheek, the coldness of her fingertips making the girl tremble slightly, “You should think more about how to wholeheartedly serve me…”

“As long as you’re willing, with your abilities and my troops…”

“The power of Eisenberg could expand over much broader lands!”

“More people could be sheltered! More children wouldn’t have to wander the wasteland!”

“Isn’t that exactly what you want?”

“Then, I can even rebuild an Oasis for you—a place that belongs only to you, and answers only to me…”

Mili’s eyes shimmered, silent.

The truth was clear; she couldn’t argue with Seraphina’s logic.

“People always think that if they were in my position, they could do the same—or even better!”

“They criticize my coldness, my dictatorship, but they can’t even control their own desires and stupidity!”

“So why should they think they can manage a city of hundreds of thousands?”

“Why should they think they can shield others in this chaotic world?”

“Do you know how hard it was to build Eisenberg?”

“I had to kill until everyone was afraid of me! Kill until they admired me, obeyed me, didn’t dare disobey, followed my orders completely with no interference!”

“A soft-hearted person could never do these things…”

“Have you seen the people in the refugee zone?”

“I gave them chances, rules, a way up! But most people still choose to remain complacent!”

“Only a tiny few are truly willing to strive to change their fate and that of others…”

“That’s reality!”

The car sped through the night, the scenery outside constantly changing.

From the dilapidated refugee area, to the relatively tidy outer city…

Then to the brightly lit central district.

Seraphina glared fiercely into Mili’s fearful eyes, her nose almost pressing against the girl’s.

“I admit, Lin Lan is indeed a respectable enemy.”

“She may be naive, but she has her beliefs and is willing to give everything for them, even her life…”

“She actually did achieve that.”

“Though we have different ideals, I respect her will and character,” the woman’s eyes flickered with some sincerity, “If everyone in this world were as cold and realistic as me…”

“Then this world would be utterly hopeless…”

“So, even if I have to walk the path of dictatorship alone, I still hope there are people who can stick to a different path from mine.”

“No matter what side, I admire those who always stand by their own direction.”

“Those who put their words into action are far better than those fools who shout loyalty but only think of their own interests behind the scenes…”

“Mili, of course I hope you will stand completely on my side…” Seraphina’s gaze was deep and intense, as if about to drop into Mili’s eyes at any moment:

“But at the same time, I hope you can hold on to your own heart, even if it’s facing me…”

“That sounds contradictory, but that’s my true feeling.”

“A respectable enemy is far better than a foolish and ridiculous ally.”

“That’s also one of the reasons why I didn’t send troops to directly attack the Oasis at first.”

Mili was stunned.

She hadn’t expected Seraphina to say such things.

A long silence fell inside the car.

After a while, she gradually understood…

Seraphina wasn’t unaware the Oasis would be attacked…

She deliberately did not stop it.

She wanted to see just how far Lin Lan could hold on…

She wanted to witness the shattering of idealism against reality with her own eyes…

Not intervening was her greatest mercy and respect…

Click—

The car stopped in front of the palace.

Seraphina stood up from beside her, stepped onto the footboard, and looked back at Mili, who was still dazed.

“Let’s go.” She reached out her hand. “Home.”

The girl hesitated, then took the hand.

“…”

Home…

The night breeze blew through the backyard, carrying bursts of floral fragrance…

The roses and lavender Mili had planted in the garden bloomed lush and fragrant in just two days.

But colder than the night wind was her yearning for freedom and the helplessness facing reality.