The snow fell endlessly.
The wind wrapped around Bronya, as bone-chilling as the stares of the crowd.
Thick snowflakes landed on her, mixing with Cocolia's rebuke and the gazes of the guards. The crushing pressure left her breathless.
Bronya possessed all the excellent qualities a Supreme Guardian should have, but she lacked confidence.
Cocolia's control permeated every aspect of her life, gradually trapping her in a cage of her own mother's making.
To be able to refute her mother's orders in front of the entire army and calmly explain her reasoning had already taken every ounce of Bronya's strength.
But the wind and snow were cold and merciless, and Cocolia's words and the guards' gazes were colder still—
Not only did her mother scoff at her opinion, but not a single person in the entire army spoke up for her. No one supported her idea.
I really can't become a worthy Supreme Guardian...
Bronya pulled her greatcoat tighter around herself. Her once-proud grey eyes dimmed, becoming like a pool of stagnant water, devoid of spirit.
She turned to walk off the training grounds, but her legs felt weak, her head spun, and she was about to collapse.
She was, after all, still just a teenage girl.
She couldn't bear this kind of pressure.
"Are you all right?"
A steady voice came from behind her. Bronya felt herself fall into a cold embrace. The steel armor was painfully hard against her—
—but she found the embrace incredibly warm. The moment she fell into Ron's arms, her pride completely crumbled.
Bronya's mask of haughty composure was torn away, revealing the vulnerability of a young girl beneath.
Her mother's misunderstanding, her confusion about the future, the shame of being rebuked... all the pressure flowed out from her silver-grey eyes in a torrent of tears.
But Bronya stubbornly buried her face in the shadows, her back to everyone, letting the tears fall in silence.
"Don't cry, Bronya... Stand firm. You are not the one who should be leaving here today."
Ron's gentle voice reached her, but Bronya only replied with a trembling, obstinate tone.
"I'm not crying."
She suppressed a sob and spoke softly.
"...It's just the snow. It melted and ran down from my hair."
"The Supreme Guardian protects Belobog. The Supreme Guardian does not cry."
"But the Supreme Guardian isn't an automaton, and it's not engine oil flowing through her body."
Ron stated the fact in a calm tone. "Whether it's snow or tears... the emotion you're so stubbornly trying to cast aside is, in my eyes, an indispensable part of you."
"I am your personal guard, Bronya. Until you relieve me of my duty, I am your guardian."
"Would you want to see Belobog broken and in tears?"
Bronya was silent for a moment before slowly shaking her head.
"So, neither do I."
Ron helped Bronya to her feet and guided her to a nearby armory chest to sit down.
After making sure she was settled, he carefully pinned on the Architect's badge she had given him, then turned and walked towards the training grounds, which had fallen into some confusion due to his disregard for military orders.
Under the interwoven gazes of shock and bewilderment, he strode firmly onto the viewing platform.
"Cocolia, have you ever been to the markets in Belobog? Do you know how much one bottle of Roger's Bread-Flavored Soda costs right now?"
"How dare you—?! Guards, take him..."
Cocolia's face darkened. She was about to reprimand Ron but was cut off by his booming voice.
He held up five fingers.
"A full 5200 credits! 5200! That's a number that only fits easily inside one of those ancient personal terminals!"
The guards who had been about to drag Ron off the platform slowed to a halt.
Ron's words were deafening, pulling everyone from their ethereal fantasies and back to reality—to the 3200-credit red sausages, the 5200-credit soda, and the 500-credit instant meals.
Compared to those fantasies, this was their life.
Ron paused for a moment, and when his voice rang out again, it carried a mournful sigh.
"I once thought that the greatest enemy of Belobog was the endless winter."
"But after we weathered the cold with the Geo-Marrow, I found the Fragmentum corroding our city, turning our familiar world into an illusory bubble. The Fragmentum became Belobog's greatest affliction."
"I led the army to repel the Fragmentum forces, disperse its corrosion, and reclaim the Commercial District. It should have been a total victory, but the Silvermane Guards must still bleed and fight."
"Now, I'm beginning to understand more and more. Belobog's greatest affliction isn't outside. It's right here in Belobog, right here in Qlipoth Fort!"
As he spoke, Ron pointed a finger at Cocolia—
"It's the Supreme Guardian, Cocolia!"
"If the Supreme Guardian's policies are just a little bit rotten, a part of our Belobog will rot with them!"
"And if the Supreme Guardian's policies are completely rotten, then Belobog will fall to the wind and snow, and we'll all die without a place to be buried!"
"Think about it! How many years has it been since Supreme Guardian Cyrille died in that old armory chest? Have you all forgotten?!"
"That old armory chest is still watching you from the bottom of the cliff outside the city!"
The image on the screen faded.
Two notification boxes popped up in front of Bronya:
[Your personal guard, Ron, has comforted you. Your Stress has decreased. Your Affection for Ron has greatly increased.]
[Your current Affection for Ron is—82]
Then, the two boxes faded, and a new story update appeared:
[Your personal guard, Ron, has refuted all of Cocolia Rand's military orders.]
[In his words, Cocolia's orders disregard human life and are akin to the ramblings of a dream.]
[He furiously denounces Supreme Guardian Cocolia Rand for her inhumanity and condemns her for inciting the guards with ill intent.]
[He praises the proposal you put forth, believing it to be ten thousand times superior to Cocolia's orders.]
[On the training grounds, Ron provided a more profound analysis, giving everyone a deeper understanding of your proposal.]
[Many guards have gradually awakened from Cocolia's incitement, seemingly coming to their senses.]
[Due to Ron's influence, Cocolia's military orders cannot be carried out for the time being.]
[Cocolia is enraged. She furiously rebukes your personal guard, Ron, for his insubordination and defiance of military orders.]
[Ron has been escorted to the front-line military prison to await processing.]
[According to procedure, the Belobog military tribunal will prosecute Ron and put him on trial.]
Reading the text, Bronya's expression was complex.
No one understood her better than herself.
She knew her own pride better than anyone, which was why she was so obsessed with whether she could become a worthy Supreme Guardian and ensure the Preservation of Belobog.
Thinking about it, if she had encountered the same situation in reality, speaking her mind in front of the army and her mother, only to be scolded and met with cold silence...
She probably would have lost all hope for the future, never able to piece together her shattered confidence again, right?
Thankfully... Ron was there.
He thinks of himself as the guardian who guards the guardian...
Mulling over those words, Bronya's heart was a mix of emotions as she watched a new choice appear on the screen:
[Because Ron has been thrown into the front-line military prison, you are unable to sleep, your mind racing with thoughts.]
[Please choose—]
[1. Go to Qlipoth Fort. Find your mother, Cocolia Rand, and request Ron's release. Due to Cocolia's hatred for Ron, the probability of her agreeing is 25%.]
[2. Go to the Military Tribunal. Wait for Ron to be brought to court, where you will act as his lawyer and argue for his acquittal. Because Ron clearly violated Belobog military law, the probability of you securing his acquittal is 0%.]
[3. Go to the front-line prison. You will disregard all rules and regulations to free your personal guard, Ron. Due to your reputation among the Silvermane Guards and Ron's influence, the probability of you successfully freeing him by force is 100%.]
As the princess of Belobog, the heir to the Supreme Guardian, and the acting commander of the Silvermane Guards, Bronya had always followed the rules with stubborn precision.
When faced with lawless madmen, she had always been impartial, without exception.
She would certainly choose option two, or at worst, option one. At the very least, she could not violate the laws of Belobog...
Looking at the choices on the screen, Bronya felt no hesitation at all.
She tapped on option three.
This was the first exception Bronya had ever made.