Dealing with Sanzenin Ochi-once the decision was made, the outcome was already fixed.
For him, it was effectively a death sentence.
The world was in a peculiar phase. It stood at the tail end of the Economic and Light Firepower Era, while only just stepping into the early stages of the Heroic Era. Major factions across the world were beginning their transitions, almost all of them guided directly by their current heads.
Their successors, however, were largely still learning.
Or waiting.
Families like the Sanzenin, with multiple successors competing beneath the surface, had not even formally informed the next generation yet. The family's true authority was still mid-transition, and those heirs had no choice but to wait their turn.
This was the reality of the current era.
Because of that, the defensive strength surrounding Sanzenin Ochi remained firmly rooted in the standards of the Economic and Light Firepower Era. Against that level of resistance, even Muteba alone could have torn straight through it.
With Jaden accompanying him, the outcome was never in doubt.
This was why Sanzenin Ochi couldn't believe it when he was captured.
Just two people.
Only Jaden and Muteba.
And yet they had crushed his defenses completely and taken him alive.
After that-
Sanzenin Nagi's heart was not dark.
Not even close.
But the actual handling of the matter was never done by her.
It was Jaden and Muteba who took care of everything.
They did not kill Sanzenin Ochi. They never planned to. Instead, they forced him to sign the exact same document Eizan Etsuya had been made to sign before him.
With a single stroke, Ochi fell.
From the most highly regarded heir of the Sanzenin family...
To nothing more than a tool in Sanzenin Nagi's hands.
Whether he could accept such a fall, or how long it would take him to do so, was entirely up to him.
Jaden, however, remained consistent.
He had always been gentle.
He even went out of his way to seek out Eizan Etsuya afterward, asking him to speak with Sanzenin Ochi directly. To talk to him. To counsel him.
To help him come to terms with reality.
And just like that, the matter of Sanzenin Ochi came to an end.
As for Sanzenin Mikado-
Jaden decided to wait.
He wanted to see how the old man would react before taking any further steps.
-
Sanzenin Mikado received the news immediately.
"Oh?"
"So Ochi, that kid... was completely defeated?"
He was well aware of the infighting among the family's successors. None of it was hidden from him.
But this?
This was unexpected.
The first piece of news he received was the utter collapse of the family's most popular successor.
"Ochi was crushed... and Nagi was the one who moved?"
The more he read, the stranger his expression became.
Sanzenin Nagi was a legitimate, direct-line successor of the Sanzenin family.
And precisely because of that, Sanzenin Mikado knew her better than anyone.
Lazy.
Uncompetitive.
Content to drift.
And yet-
She had acted.
And in one clean sweep, she had eliminated Ochi.
That alone was enough to spark his interest.
He continued reading with that thought lingering in his mind, until his eyes stopped on a familiar name.
Jaden.
The moment he saw that Jaden had intervened to help Nagi, Sanzenin Mikado paused.
"This..."
His first reaction was genuine confusion.
Because the Sanzenin family-
Strictly speaking-
Was the Royal Family's Minister of Finance.
And not just in name.
They were loyal.
Unquestionably so.
For ten thousand years, the Sanzenin had never forgotten who they were. They earned money for the Royal Family without pause, filling the national treasury, maintaining material reserves, and preparing endlessly for the return of the new King.
They did so through the fragmentation of the Great Kingdom.
They did so through the beginning of the multi-nation era among humanity.
Everything they accumulated had only one purpose.
To be ready for the King.
So if money was needed...
They only had to say the word.
The wealth the Sanzenin family had saved over ten thousand years was never truly theirs to begin with.
It had always belonged to the Royal Family.
After the initial confusion passed, understanding slowly dawned on Sanzenin Mikado.
Although Jaden carried the blood of the Royal Family, he clearly did not yet know the ancient secrets of the Great Kingdom.
And then-
His gaze shifted again.
To the detail that Jaden had stepped in to support Nagi.
A slow smile spread across his face.
Sanzenin Nagi had an engagement partner.
One from the Tennousu family.
And in this generation of the Tennousu family, there were only two direct descendants.
Tennousu Athena.
And Tennousu Jaden.
Athena was female, which eliminated her immediately.
That meant Nagi's fiancé was Jaden.
Originally, Sanzenin Mikado had intended to cancel that engagement once he learned that Jaden already had a romantic partner.
But now...
Perhaps it didn't need to be rushed.
Maybe it could remain for a while longer.
Sanzenin Mikado couldn't quite grasp what his King was thinking.
But he decided not to act recklessly.
Waiting was acceptable.
Even so, as his thoughts drifted, he couldn't help but sigh.
"That little girl from the Tennousu family is far too hesitant..."
"She says the King has already chosen his own life..."
"But by hiding the ancient secrets from him, isn't she denying him a choice entirely...?"
Both the Sanzenin and Tennousu families were vassals of the Royal Family.
Not the kind that came later.
They were families that had endured from ten thousand years ago, back when humanity was still united as a single nation.
Their loyalty was unquestionable.
Yet this time, their views clashed.
Sanzenin Mikado believed that Jaden, as a member of the Royal Family, had the right to know everything first.
Only after that should he be allowed to choose.
Tennousu Athena believed differently.
In her eyes, Jaden had already planned his life. Dragging the past into it served no purpose.
Neither of them believed the other was wrong.
And yet, neither could fully agree with the other.
Still, one thing was certain.
The Sanzenin and Tennousu families would never turn against each other.
That was why Sanzenin Mikado chose negotiation instead of confrontation.
Again and again.
But now-
"Now that the King himself has shown an intention to step into matters concerning our two families..."
"How things proceed next will depend on his will alone."
He spoke softly.
"Whether Sanzenin or Tennousu..."
"Whether ministers or chamberlains..."
"We are nothing more than the King's subjects."
"And subjects do not have the right to decide for their King."
Sanzenin Mikado's eyes were clear.
There was no hesitation in them.
This was the point where he fundamentally disagreed with Tennousu Athena.
In his view, a subject's duty was simple.
Report everything.
Leave nothing hidden.
Let the King decide.
He might be blindly loyal.
But he would never be disloyal.
The Tennousu, on the other hand-
Concealing information.
Failing to report what they knew.
Presumptuously making decisions for the King while he remained unaware of the full picture.
Even if their intentions were good, in Sanzenin Mikado's eyes, that behavior was already walking the edge of betrayal.
Which was why-
He was pleased.
Pleased that Jaden had stepped into this situation on his own.
It wouldn't matter if he died tomorrow.
It wouldn't matter if Nagi inherited the position of Financial Minister.
Because once that happened-
The King would inevitably come to know everything he needed to know.
Through the process itself.
And once that moment arrived, the future path would belong to the King alone.
At that time, whether the family head was Sanzenin Mikado or Sanzenin Nagi...
They would represent the Sanzenin family.
They would stand behind the King.
And they would support him in silence.
This was the Sanzenin family's way.
This was Sanzenin's-
Blind loyalty.