Who Corrupted Whom Is Really Up for Debate!

The Bear's problems had never emerged later—they had existed from the moment it was born.

The Red Bear fell, and the Bear of today was born.

Born lame, forced to walk on one leg, rotten from within—these problems had been carved into the Bear's bones from the instant it was born.

As always, revolutions required bloodshed.

But whose blood was being spilled in this revolution?

At its core, the Emperor's rise to power had been a transaction of interests. Otherwise, why would he have been able to take power?

Don't be ridiculous.

Ability? The Emperor was indeed capable, but plenty of capable people existed. How many of them ever got to realize their ambitions?

In the end, it had merely been an exchange of interests—the local oligarchs of the Bear joining forces with the Emperor to purge the foreign oligarchs.

The Emperor gained popular support, while the local oligarchs gained profits. Everyone had a bright future.

But the Emperor understood as well.

The purpose of those oligarchs supporting him was simple: they had pushed him out as their blade while they made profits behind the scenes.

But he had no choice. Without him, someone else would have risen to power. It would all have been the same.

Over the years, the Emperor had understood that while purging the foreign oligarchs had been a good thing, the growth of the domestic oligarchs was the real trouble.

They were the Bear's greatest problem, but he no longer had any way to remove these festering sores.

The Bear had been born crippled in one leg. If he moved against these oligarchs as well, then real disaster would strike.

It was not that he did not know, nor that he did not want to. He simply could not do it. It was that simple.