Burn was never a gentle man.

  His approach to ruling was simple: practical, pragmatid cold. You could call him a tyrant, or if you're feeling particurly poetic, the Absolute Emperor.

  Yes, a title dripping with enough dread to make even the most hardened vilin pause and nod appreciatively.

  Burn was a vilin through and through, a man whose heart might have been aued off at a yard sale for vilins, assuming he ever had oo begin with.

  And his soul? Well, if you believe his middle name, ‘No Soul’, he probably bur at the stake a long time ago for a bit of extra warmth. After all, why bother with pesky things like emotions when you rule with an iron fist and a frozen smirk?

  More than once, Burn volunteered to roll up his sleeves and dive into the dirty work himself.

  Burn seemed like a man who simply couldn't stand the thought of missing out on a good bloodbath. Why delegate the fun of chaos when you be the life and soul of the party? After all, no ohrows a coup quite like the emperor himself.

  But, the people who knew him personally would know that it was all about atability, not wanting his loyal minions to shoulder the grim sequences of his ands.

  Before leaving with Yvain, Man Le Fay asked him with a singur request: "sider the future. We've been through more than enough to realize—not to notice the obvious."

  Then, she ed Yvain beside her in an embrace, as if to tell Burn her iions.

  "Do the right thing," her hug seemed to whisper, as if she expected Burn to py the role of a benevolent guardian, rather than a self-serving protagonist.

  Do something good, not something effective—beneficial only for himself. She wanted him to do good for the future.

  Man had a knaaniputing time to craft the best oute for herself and her dear panion. Now that she entrusted Burn with the responsibility of saving the world, Burn could only see it as it was her own gamble.

  He didn’t want to have anything to do with that.

  But she was right about ohing, pointing out the pesky butterfly effect. One wrong step, one misstep in the dance of destiny, and—apocalypse.

  The White Dwarf, for example, crashed the party earlier than expected. It was meant to make its grarance before the Battle of Wintersin, not now.

  And the reason for that was, mainly, the early death of Benjamin Veryon.

  Wait, okay. Maybe not directly that.

  In his previous loops, the White Dwarf made its debut after Burn proved to be a threat to the Alliahe outsiders, fearing that Burn would gain more power over the years of his march, agreed upon the use of the cataclysmic on.

  Well, who wouldn't be ed about a power-hungry tyrant gaining more influence over time?

  tally, at the same time, Burn had just killed two of the outsider's VIP ers; one of them was Veryon, who had volunteered himself as the ruler of Edensor under Soulnaught.

  However, Veryon was doing sloppy work and siding himself more with the outsiders, providing them with intel.

  In this loop, Burn might have proven himself a problem soohan expected, branding him a great threat.

  It was still ued.

  He didn't know the price of Veryon's head was this expensive. Or maybe there were other siderations behind the ses that he was oblivious to.

  For that matter, Momo could be right about 'doing the right thing.' Or she could be entirely wrong, and everything would be downhill from now on, no matter what he did. Worse, 'doing the right thing' might be bad for them.

  Yet...

  Man Le Fay's face, as she pushed him away from dahat day, saving him from death's trajectory, still haunted his mind.

  Whether she was right , Burn had firmed that it was in his best i. She wasn't merely using him for her own be—to ge her owiny.

  "I don't want you to die, it's different if it's me. I... Caliburn... I..."

  Or those watercolor eyes had started to get to him.

  The air ient was thick with tension and anticipation as the strategic meeting led by Burn s end. Maps were scattered across the table, dotted with little figurines representing their troops and enemy strongholds.

  The flickering dlelight danced upon the faces of the anders, highlighting their furrowed brows and ched jaws.

  Burn stood at the head of the table, his voice, anding and ced with cold, echoed through the room.

  The anders nodded solemnly, their minds swimming with thoughts of the impending csh. Some scribbled furiously on part, trying to capture every detail of the pn.

  Others exged gheir eyes refleg a grim apprehension.

  "Something like that... exists?" Gahad pondered, pting the meaning of life and questioning his life choices.

  The mention of the White Dwarf by the man he had pledged to follow to the ends of the earth had thrown him into a whirlwind of introspe. Oh, the joys of existential crises.

  Burn took a seat and nontly expined his grand pn. "That's why we opt for this strategy. Defeat, Gather, Evacuate, Run, and the again."

  "Just follow the predetermined route, mar a delightful circle, and keep a safe distance. Easy, right?"

  Gahad couldn't hide his . "And Your Majesty, you io face this formidable on yourself?"

  Burn shrugged. "I'll be fine."

  But the generals weren't buying it. They crossed the line.

  "Your Majesty, our empress isn't here to be pcated. You drop the ad tell us the truth."

  "Please, think about our empress. You're not even married yet... Think of all the fun you'll be missing out on!"

  "I just imagine her now, begging you to resider this madness if she were here."

  "Your Majesty... Her Majesty awaits your return at home. Remember that cozy castle and warm bed?"

  Oh, the subtle sarcasm and not-so-subtle hints. The generals were ying it on thick, desperately trying to viheir leader to ge his mind.

  But Burn—"Why does everyone keep shippih that cursed bi—witch?!"

  "Well, isn't it just gringly obvious that she's the only one who match your illustrious imperial blood?" Gahad muttered with a hint of exasperation. "Once we're done here, Sir, please do sider making her our empress."

  Burn scoffed, uo fathom the idea. "Do you realize how ahat witch is? She's practically immortal—"

  "Which means she's perpetually ageless, Sir, if I may respectfully interject," Gahad tered.

  ‘That is actually a goument,’ the ued logic gave Burn pause. A shiver ran down his spine as he recalled the moments when Vd had treated him like a baby. "She doesn’t see me as a child, does she?"

  ‘Sir, you kissed her multiple times in front of us…’ was what crossed the minds of the generals, including Gahad, but they failed to voice it, fearing Burn's wrath.

  “Fet that. Do what I say and you’ll be good. Nossip.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  The early debut of the White Dwarf, huh? Well, bring it on.

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