Night.
The beautiful royal capital slept in silence. Countless soldiers patrolled outside. Their patrols made no sound; to Uchiha Madara's ears, they were no more than a faint rustling.
The moon was especially beautiful tonight.
Standing before the window, Uchiha Madara sighed. "Estelle, tell me—beneath such a beautiful sky, why must people still commit such foolish crimes? They clearly know that committing crimes like these will weigh down their hearts. They will lose this beautiful scenery, and may even gain nothing at all... So why do they refuse to stop?"
Estelle sighed as well. "How would I know what they're thinking...? To them, is power really that important? More important than this beautiful country itself? It reminds me of that stage play Kloe and the others performed, White Flower Love Poem. In that era of Liberl Kingdom, the war between nobles and commoners ended with an innocent princess losing her life... This time, whose innocent life will be sacrificed...?"
Uchiha Madara stood by the window, his hands resting on the sill. Watching the guards patrol below, he softly said to Estelle, "Is this a peaceful night? Perhaps it is not peaceful at all. I can vaguely sense a power stirring beneath the surface. That power is deeply hidden—perhaps something we have never managed to understand until now. Estelle, even when facing such an unknown and powerful opponent, would you still have the courage to stand against them?"
Estelle had not expected Uchiha Madara to ask such a profound question tonight. At a loss, she shook her head. "I don't know whether I would have the courage to stand against them. But I do know that my father may have been taken by them. If I can't investigate this matter thoroughly, I absolutely, absolutely won't be able to rest easy... Besides,