Chapter 458: Sacrifice and endurance
After Nero left the office to enjoy his last two days of the regular schedule that most cadets take, Isabella was left in her office, contemplating the exchange that she had just had. Nero’s resolve was admirable, but it was not realistic. She did not want to destroy a promising cadet in her hands, which is why regular counselling sessions for him would become even more important.
While she had told him that if he failed, or burnt out, his candidacy would be canceled, that was not true. The academy’s expectations of an untrained cadet were not nearly so severe. As long as he had the necessary qualities, that was fine. Moulding him into a valuable asset to the country was their job - if they expected them to come prepared, then what was even the point of them being there?
Despite all that, there were a couple of reasons why she had pressed him so. First off, she could see that Nero was a promising student, and more than anything Isabella loved to teach students who valued what she had to teach. That was also the reason she was irritated by Vilhelm. It didn’t matter to her that he got perfect scores - the sheer disregard he displayed in class for her lessons infuriated her.
In contrast, though he was slightly mischievous - at least in her opinion - his drive to learn was real, and more than anything else, she appreciated that, and wanted to reward it as much as possible.
Secondly, based on her understanding of Nero from the file she read, she genuinely believed that he would make an incredible soldier and asset for the country. She could see that he and his family had some private interests, but then again, who didn’t? She could also see how he was being targeted by various powers, and could tell that he would definitely retaliate if he came into power.
However, her response was the same. Whoever came into power would, inevitably, use it. They would have conflicts. Could she target Nero, preventing him from doing the same when so many were using that very power to target him? That would be hypocritical.
No, what she truly focused on was the fact that in her opinion, the contributions he could make to the country far outweighed any personal interests he had.
After all, she’d read his psychological evaluation. He was not greedy for wealth, nor did he relish taking advantage of people. When he was given a mission, he did his best to complete it, and he valued the lives of his subordinates. In her opinion, that already made Nero far better than most.
If that was the case, and he was someone who could genuinely benefit the country and the people, then she would do her best to ensure that he truly achieved the best of what he was capable of.