Chung: Barkat... was quite righteous, huh?
Lu: Yes. Even after bringing down Bifron, she diligently served me even during my rule.
Lu: That's why I'm saying Barkat is out of her mind.
Lu: How could Barkat, once a subject so bright and righteous, turn into a traitor playing with these androids?
Ciel: ......
Lu: ... That is all I have to say. I doubt it helped at all.
Raven: Hmm... Listening to that, Barkat might have appeared to have had a change of heart.
Raven: ... I have some other questions. The weapons you gave to the prisoners. Did Barkat prepare all that?
Lu: No, I just thought of it on the spot. I couldn't guarantee safety for the prisoners.
Lu: I asked if I could get weapons, and she led me to the armory.
Raven: I see... could you relay the details of confronting the tyrant?
Lu: He wasn't much of a fight, contrary to my expectations. I think Bifron did not even expect Barkat to betray him.
Lu: Shocked from seeing Barkat behind me, Bifron gave an opening that led to his demise.
Raven: Did Barkat participate in the battle against the tyrant?
Lu: No. I'd say it again, but Barkat is not that strong. Barkat's position as Army Commander was assigned as my subject.
Raven: What about the prisoners you released?
Lu: They helped pave the way, but they didn't participate in the battle against Bifron either.
Raven: Hmm...
Add: She seems to be good in politics.
Elsword: What can you learn about her from that...?
Raven: While I was studying in the military academy, I had heard a word of advice...
Raven: A friend of mine would often tell me to widen my vision.
Rena: Raven, your eyesight is quite good, isn't it?
Raven: Not in terms of directly looking at an object, but rather in a strategic sense.
Raven: So... going back to Barkat standing up to the tyrant... It looks virtuous at first sight.
Raven: But if Barkat really aimed to save the prisoners, Barkat would have gone directly to strike at the tyrant straightaway.
Ciel: Why so? Isn't it better to rescue faster?
Raven: Think about it. If Lu failed to defeat the tyrant, all the prisoners would have been executed.
Ara: I haven't given that a thought. But hearing that, that does sound odd.
Rose: Getting the prisoners out before attack... it's often a tactic to cause chaos.
Rose: To create a diversion, which leads to an opening to strike at the head.
Add: And they would also serve to buy time for her to flee if things didn't go as planned.
Raven: I also doubt Barkat really had a genuinely good will to save the prisoners.
Raven: I feel like Barkat took much longer in getting to Bifron as well.
Raven: If I was someone planning to overthrow someone I serve, I would not have wasted any time.
Elesis: Anyone would have done so. Failure would result in death.
Noah: Uh, sorry. I kind of understand the situation, but I don't get what you're trying to say.
Noah: Why did Barkat do something that could increase her chances of failure?
Raven: I'm sorry. I'm not that good with words.
Raven: To make it simple... We're not sure exactly what Barkat is after, but her actions were for the best interest for herself.
Ain: You have to look at this in another perspective, not just from Ms. Demon's.
Raven: Bifron created many enemies and displayed many signs of weakness, leading to the imprisonment of the innocent.
Raven: It was clear that his end would not have been pretty, even if it weren't for Lu.
Chung: Yes... I'm sure Barkat, as the subject of the tyrant, would see this as well.
Add: It's not that difficult to see that you're on a sinking ship.
Add: But there aren't that many who'd take the initiative to abandon ship. Especially those that have been protected on the ship for a long time.
Add: Usually, such hesitation would lead to their demise.
Chung: Barkat took that initiative then.
Raven: It seems that she was cunning enough to pick her best option, too. She's not an easy enemy.
Rena: I can see that Barkat was smart. But in the end... Barkat did nothing, no?
Aisha: Yes. Lu was the one who released the prisoners and defeated the tyrant.
Noah: Oh, I see! Barkat had nothing to lose!
Raven: Lu, the prisoners, and Bifron all staked their lives at this. The losing side paid a terrible price.
Raven: But Barkat? She put nothing on the line and maintained her position of power.
Lithia: Things just fell in her lap, huh?
Ain: And she kept her position as the Army Commander. What a cunning fox she is.
Ain: I can't really make fun of Ms. Demon for falling for that.
Elesis: What kind of person is she? The more we talk about it, the more I fail to understand her.
Raven: A lot of all this is speculation, but one thing is for certain.
Raven: Barkat has a lot of ambition and always looks for an opportunity to strike.
Elesis: ......
Raven: (I don't know how far she has planned...)
Raven: (but we may be facing the toughest enemy that we ever faced.)
- (Crackle, crackle)
Rose: We got communications. Could everyone stay quiet for a moment?
- (Crackle, Bzz-)
Rose: Yes, call received. how's the situ...
Shaddie: Ah, Ah-!! CAN YOU HEAR ME~!! IS THIS HOW YOU DO IT?!
Shaddie: TORTA HERE! LAND OF STEEL! REPORTING EXPEDITION RESULTS!!
Ara: Ugh, if she screams like that...!
- (Beep, bebeep!)
Elesis: Shh, quiet her, quickly!
Shaddie: Can you! Hear! Shaddie?! HOW! LOUD! DO! I! HAVE! TO! BE!!
- (Clunk, clunk, clunk!)
Rena: Ah~! I thought we passed that just fine!
Chung: They're massing! Watch out, everyone!
Add: Hey, turn it off! Off! Just turn it off!
Rose: Uhhhh, we can't talk right now! Hanging up!
Shaddie: What?! Eh, Huh?... (Click!)
Elsword: Pant, pant. We're good, right?
Aisha: I'm so tired, what is all this.
- (Crackle, crackle)
Rose: Oh, the communication. There are no machines nearby, right? I'll take it.
- (Crackle, Bzz-)
Rose: Yes! I'm answering the call.
Ricardo: Hey dog, you gave us faulty equipment, didn't you? They can't hear us.
Ricardo: Broken? I don't know. Mine seems fine.
Ricardo: Huh? Wait, we're connected. Hang up.
Ricardo: HEEEEEEY!! YO! CAN YOU HEAR ME!!!
Rena: It's so loud! You don't have to scream like that, we can hear you!
Ain: We could hear you from the start~.
Ricardo: What, you could have said so. Didn't have to make Shaddie suffer like that.
Shaddie: (Cough, cough Shaddie is all right...!)
Ricardo: Let me explain what's going on here.
Ricardo: So, we went towards the Steel Castle after you have left.
Ricardo: We didn't meet anything but broken mining machines. The land is full of pits like cheese. How boring.
Raven: They should have gone pretty far since they started off quite early...
Ricardo: It was then we decided to take a look at the pit.
Ricardo: So we sent some hounds into the pit.
Elesis: ... You know your subordinates might be the end of you someday.
Ricardo: Hmm~ that might be interesting. Sadly, those that are left here don't have the guts to do so. All those that dared bare teeth at me were slaughtered on the wall.
Aisha: Hey, cut all this cruel talk! Let's go back to the point.
Ricardo: Oh, according to the ones that came back from the pit, the pit seems to lead into a complex maze like an ant colony.
Ricardo: Some areas are roped and have papers and stones with words written across it, but we have no clue what it means.
Chung: I wonder what that could be...
Noah: Hmm... It might be the aftermath of mining. The area may have been sealed away to prevent miners from going down the wrong path.
Ciel: Yeah, the wall and aerial fortress... They'll need a lot of steel.
Ricardo: Hmm? Is that so? I was told it looks really ominous.
Ricardo: Hearing that, I didn't feel good about it... So, I moved away from it.
Elsword: Why, were you scared?
Ricardo: Hearing that, I didn't feel good about it... So, I moved No?...... Hey. Who just said that?
Elsword: Uh, well, I was wondering if that is... the Abyss...
Ricardo: Don't dare try me. Anyhow, I'm going to explore couple more pits on the way to the Steel Castle.
Ricardo: I wasn't exactly sure, but it sounded like the papers that I saw in the Palace of Gold Medovine.
Chung: Really? Maybe they're relics...? Tell us any other abnormalities you see.
Ricardo: Okay. Hey, is the midget queen next to you?
Lu: Quite arrogant, aren't you?
Ricardo: Hey queen, I've gotten quite close to the castle... but I see nothing but pits here.
Ricardo: No cornerstones, no pillars, no buildings. Did you lie to me?
Lu: What do I have to gain from lying to you? Are you sure you went the right way?
Lu: Look well. My castle is big and high. If you went the correct way, there's no way you could miss it.
Ricardo: Tell me honestly, were you worried that we might steal something? You lied to us, didn't you?
Lu: Do you even trust anything? I don't care if you keep some things to yourself.
Lithia: Huh? Can you keep some things?
Lu: Barkat would have run rampant in that castle. My belongings probably don't exist.
Lu: I don't care what you take, except for the throne for me to reclaim.
Lu: Oh, and if you find someone there, make sure you lock them away. It seems that Barkat is here...
Lu: but I will personally make them spit out everything that has happened since then! Ufufu!
Rena: Scary~
Ricardo: Hmm~ that might be some fun. I'll check the roads again. Bye.
- (Bzz, click.)
Lu: I don't like how he does whatever he wants.
Ara: Although Ricardo isn't really diligent, I didn't think he was lying about what he saw.
Lu: That's what I thought as well. It has been centuries since... the castle may be no more.
Lu: I hope my throne is there for me to reclaim.
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