King Kessel fell silent for a second, then smiled faintly.
"I?"
The king lowered his dinner knife. He seemed interested, but his words were cold:
"Let me guess. Falkenhaus thought the same way?"
Tales shook his head.
"When the branches rot and the leaves wither, you must ask about the roots."
"If your rule has gone wrong, Your Majesty, the first person in the kingdom to pay the price—and the first person who should reflect and accept responsibility—would absolutely be, and could only be, you."
The king's disdainful laugh rang through the room. He lowered his head again and continued eating.
Tales smiled as well, unfazed:
"Yes, you probably think that if the kingdom's rule is unsatisfactory and Star Kingdom's development has gone wrong, then it must be because officials carried things out incorrectly, governance at the lower levels was ineffective, and some minor adjustments and corrections will solve everything. It has nothing to do with your grand strategy of governing the kingdom, much less with the wisdom of the lords before the throne or the sagacity of the king seated above them?"
"Just like the Sand King. In your eyes, how could it possibly make a mistake?"
"It must be that the people handling things lacked resolve. Something must have gone wrong during execution. The enemy must have been too cunning. Accidents must have happened too frequently and exceeded expectations. It must be... that unlucky prince's problem."
"However..." Tales's smile turned cold.
"Only the simplest and kindest citizens would cling to such a naïve and beautiful fantasy."
"And only the most sinister and vicious villains could utter such malicious slander."
Tales pointed at the king and said solemnly:
"No. The Sand King failed for no other reason than you, Your Majesty."
The only response was the clatter of knife