"The greatest illusion in the world: I think I can win?"
Hoshino finally understood what was going on.
Logically, this should never have happened. Ten thousand Titans of every color were marching across the wasteland. No sane person would even entertain the thought of matching them. Unless Ursus had some secret weapon hidden away.
She had miscalculated.
This world was more complicated than she had imagined.
"Don't assign too much meaning to their actions, or you'll fall into a vicious cycle of self-doubt." Wei Yenwu was not surprised. "Sometimes, they're simply too arrogant, which is why they do things that outsiders find baffling."
"Arrogance, huh."
"Weakness and ignorance have never been obstacles to survival. Arrogance is."
Hoshino understood what he meant.
But there was clearly another turn of events. The divide between Ursus's local powers and central government was more severe than she had imagined. While the duke refused to allow her entry, the Central Parliament extended an olive branch, inviting the shrine maiden to discuss the matter.
"This..."
"This is their first written contact with us. How should I put it... the wording is astonishingly elegant. It doesn't quite fit the usual impression of Ursus."
"That's what doves are like."
Hoshino shook her head dismissively. She could not even be bothered to read it before knowing what those centralists intended to do.
Curb the feudal lords.
And in this manner, too—borrowing an unknowable power. They called themselves doves, but they were still full of adventurous spirit. At their core, they were Ursus through and through.
"Are you going to make a move?"
"Of course I am, but I hope they pay a sufficient price." Hoshino's expression turned solemn. "I don't want this to happen again. The world must remember. There's a saying in the Yan Kingdom: punish one as