"So that's how it is." Ember listened to Kujou Masahito's meticulous analysis, appearing thoughtful.
Then he shook his head and said, "I don't understand."
What Ember understood least was politics and similar matters. So, while Kujou Masahito spoke with enthusiasm, Ember genuinely didn't understand a single word.
He had pondered it, but if it was useless, he couldn't be blamed. Ember only knew two things: first, fists were very useful; second, fists hitting bad people were even more useful.
Fortunately, Ember perfectly put these two points into practice, which was why he was able to become King.
Although The Lands Between's King title itself didn't hold much weight; any muscular man could become one.
But to surpass everyone in The Lands Between and become the strongest, wasn't that a capability in itself?
Seeing Kujou Masahito and Kujou Sara's shocked expressions, Ember waved his hand dismissively and said, "Don't bother with all that. It's best if you have official positions, but it's fine if you don't. The more people, the more strength!"
He couldn't imagine what significant role Kujou Sara and Kujou Masahito could play after being reinstated to their official positions.
Directly raise an army to rebel? That was impossible. Such an act would instantly make the two of them targets of condemnation for everyone in Inazuma, and the soldiers below wouldn't listen to them either.
Provide intelligence? Ember looked around. His gaze penetrated the thick tent fabric, taking in everything in the entire camp.
Besides ordinary soldiers in the camp, Ember also noticed quite a few "special individuals."
They were either hiding motionless in secret places or mingling with the ranks, looking left and right. Without a doubt, these were spies inserted from somewhere.
Judging by the attire of the secret individuals hiding in nooks and crannies, Ember guessed they were probably ninjas from plays and novels.
Case closed, these were actually people from the Shuumatsuban.
Taking in everything in the camp, Ember felt that even if Kujou Masahito and Kujou Sara joined, it wouldn't make much difference.
"Tell me, what do you plan to do?" Taking a deep breath, Kujou Masahito, filled with excitement, cautiously asked Ember.
"This… this…" Ember scratched his head. It seemed there was no place for these two in Kamisato Ayato and Yae Miko's plans.
He had taken it upon himself to pull the two into the plan.
"You don't have a plan, do you? In that case, I'm afraid I cannot participate." Kujou Sara saw Ember's hesitation, her eyelid twitched, and she immediately wanted to withdraw from the 'den of thieves'.
"Who said that?! The plan is massive. For now, act expediently and stabilize the situation before I notify you."
"Fighting all day long, how are people supposed to live?" Ember's eyes darted around. He thought of a good idea.
Why did he have to follow Kamisato Ayato's plan? He could clearly come up with an even better one himself.
For example, the part in Kamisato Ayato's plan about "making Raiden Shogun realize the resistance of the Inazuma people"—Ember felt that a mere resistance couldn't represent the will of all people's resistance.
At the very least, shouldn't the villagers of Higi Village be included? They had more right to speak than anyone else.
"You two stay here and control the situation well. I'm going to call people!" Ember, thinking of an idea, acted on it. He slapped the table and immediately turned to run off to Higi Village.
However, before leaving the main tent, he suddenly turned back.
Quickly approaching Kujou Masahito and Kujou Sara, Ember stood on his tiptoes, looking down at the two.
"I suddenly thought of a question: you two seem to be from the Kujou Clan, right? So, will you report to Kujou Takayuki?"
As Ember spoke, the shadows around him grew thicker, as if he had just climbed out of an inkwell.
The darkness even blurred his body, making it impossible to discern the specific details on him.
"Of… of course not! Do I look like that kind of scoundrel?!" The shadow crept onto Kujou Masahito's face. He quickly moved his body, stepping out of the shadow.
"Haha, I don't think you're that kind of person either. See you later!" No sooner had Kujou Masahito finished speaking than he saw Ember's body suddenly brighten.
After waving goodbye to Kujou Masahito and Kujou Sara, Ember vanished before their eyes.
Kujou Masahito and Kujou Sara, seeing this, couldn't help but widen their eyes. Directly invisible? Even the Shuumatsuban ninjas couldn't do that, could they?
After Ember left, silence fell in the main tent. And it was a silence even quieter than before.
Kujou Masahito and Kujou Sara sat cross-legged on either side of the table, both looking down at the ground, their thoughts unknown.
After an unknown amount of time, Kujou Sara was the first to break the silence.
"Big brother… did he leave?"
Hearing Kujou Sara's words, Kujou Masahito no longer stared at the floor. He looked up and said, "Sara, why are you so nervous? Could it be that you really had the idea of informing?"
"This…" Kujou Sara pondered for a moment, then shook her head. "Not for now."
"Then that's that. What does it matter to us whether Ember is here or not? Why act like we have a guilty conscience?"
Kujou Masahito shook his head and chuckled a few times, then got up to brew a pot of tea, pouring a cup for himself and Kujou Sara.
"From what you're saying, it seems you've taken my words to heart?" Kujou Masahito pushed the tea towards Kujou Sara.
Earlier, he had told Kujou Sara not to be solely engrossed in military affairs, but to also understand what various factions were doing.
Even if Kujou Sara truly wanted to be unconditionally loyal to Inazuma, she should at least understand what she was fighting for, shouldn't she?
If she were used as a pawn by others, and only discovered it later, it would be too late for regret.
Hearing this, Kujou Sara unconsciously tightened her grip on the teacup. She lowered her head, her voice extremely heavy,
"Big brother, why do you think father became like this?"
"Accepting bribes from the Fatui, concealing the news of the tatarigami outbreak, and sinking the people of Yashiori Island into the sea…"
"Crack!"
Unbeknownst to her, Kujou Sara had crushed the teacup in her hand.
The sound of the teacup shattering not only pulled Kujou Sara back from her confusion and anger but also brought Kujou Masahito back from his daze.
"The things Father did… were… there so many?"
Kujou Masahito repeated Kujou Sara's words, syllable by syllable, appearing incredibly shocked.
The Shogunate army was not entirely in his and Kujou Sara's hands; Kujou Takayuki also held a significant portion of the army.
Whether for the sake of checks and balances or simply to ensure the head of the family's position, this was necessary.
Kujou Masahito had no objection to this, and he could clearly foresee that his father would definitely do something with his power during the war.
But he never expected that his father had secretly committed so many heinous acts.
"Yes, these are just the biggest ones, and the easiest for me to investigate. The smaller, more hidden ones have probably been wiped clean by the family's powerful hand, leaving no trace."
Kujou Sara nodded. After saying these words, a sense of despondency permeated her entire being.
She suddenly felt that the titles of Kujou Clan's eldest daughter and Shogunate general were no longer honors, but rather a disgrace, an indelible shame.
"Big brother… what do you think we should do?" After despair, one must face reality.
Kujou Sara looked up, asking Kujou Masahito with a bitter expression.
Reason told her that she should immediately present the evidence to the Tenshukaku and bring Kujou Takayuki to justice.
But reason was reason; Kujou Takayuki was not only Kujou Sara's superior but also her father.
Although this father was both autocratic and strict with his children, it was he who had saved her and raised her to adulthood.
Loyalty and filial piety could not be perfectly reconciled; Kujou Sara was clearly experiencing this.
"You ask me?" Kujou Masahito's brows were furrowed into a knot, his face no less twisted than Kujou Sara's.
"What else can I do? Just do this!"
"To be honest, I don't want to deal with any of this. If I do nothing, whatever happens to Father later is entirely up to fate!"
Kujou Masahito looked up at the sky. He knew he was avoiding it. They always said avoidance was shameful, but it was effective, wasn't it?
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