Probably skipped it. I don't pay much attention to non-story posts, especially since this thread is prone to go on tangents that I find uninteresting. Similarly, in the hypothetical case that I just found this story, you can't really expect me to read through more than a hundred pages when Reader Mode is right there asking to be used.
I suggest using the search function next time. When I was reading, that was what I did - searched for all posts by
@EarthScorpion in the thread. Thus I had the story pots and the added benefit of all the background info and issues that had already been discussed and
@EarthScorpion clarified.
... No... The Gauntlet nurtured her Evil by letting her actually use magic, Evil magic at that. It led to her getting fame, and respect, and companionship she couldn't get no matter how hard she tried when she was being a Good girl. *Maybe* it subtly nudged her the same sort of way it's now hamfistedly bashing at Eleanore's psyche, but that's all it took for her.
Louise could use Evil magic before she gained the Gauntlet - she used it to cleanse the Tower, only then getting the Gauntlet. Even after, she had no problems using her staff to cast magic. It was only later that she came to solely rely on the Gauntlet. And if you think Louise isn't being directly influenced by the Gauntlet, I don't know what you're reading:
The Gauntlet had started whispering to her when she studied magic
Her gauntlet whispered to her, saying words which were right on the edge of comprehension.
She felt… good. Quiet. Peaceful. Like she'd been listening to the background roar of a crowned city for a very long time and for the first time she knew what true silence of the countryside sounded like.
Not to mention the rather recent experiences at Goicang, with constant feelings of warmth from the gauntlet, as well as actual visions and dreams. And that's just what Louise is
aware of.
And considering that normal horses don't give a damn if you're Evil or Good I'm pretty sure that particular part is a coincidence. Also, given that she's not actually pure Good now...
This support for my theory that we're also not reading the same story continues to accrue:
The pony retaliated by biting down on her sleeve. She managed to twist her arm out of the way – she was used to the cunning ways of such beasts – but it still managed to lock onto her sleeve. And refused to let go, no matter how much she shouted at it.
So Louise punched it in the face with her armoured fist.
As one, the other ponies turned to face her.
"Nice ponies?" Louise tried.
The beasts disagreed.
Also, it's not 'harder' doing it the Good way. If anything it's not actually possible at all unless she somehow develops the ability to go full Karin and basically just mauls the regency council. Reason why? They control what is and isn't legal. She has no way of proving they've done anything wrong since everything they've done is 'in service to the crown'.
Nevermind that doing it the Evil way is *not* the easy way. First, it's as you said against what she was raised. Second, she has to deal with the potential of her own Mother trying to take her head. Third it's not like it's going to be easy to do *anyway* even without those two complications.
I refer you to the quote in my signature. "There is nothing impossible to him who will try." Louise has learned a lot from her time as the Overlady. As Eleanore thinks in this chapter, a member of the Regency Council possessed an Evil Artifact that allowed her to be possessed by a Dark Angel. Another member of the Regency Council (Wardes) has been sleeping with her, which is reasonable grounds for suspicion. Not only that, but Wardes has clearly committed adultery - sleeping with Marzipan when his fiance was still alive. That's far worse than Henrietta's adultery, which was only on paper and against someone she was not yet betrothed to. Eleanore has been unlawfully imprisoned for six months, by the above-mentioned possessed Regency Council Member. There are ways to fight the Regency Council that don't require violence. Political and legal maneuvering that wound end in them being deposed is not impossible. It's just not as easy as blasting them with a fireball.
Yes, the Evil way isn't 'easy' in general, just easy in comparison to the Good way. That doesn't make it better. It's likely to result in far more collateral damage, far more mortality, and far more potential for moral corruption. These things come with a price tag attached. Until now, Louise did not possess free choice, because she was being subconsciously affected by the Gauntlet. Remember how originally, her goal was just to become proficient in magic and then leave? Somehow, that never happened. After killing Velvet, she then wanted to cleanse the world of 'wrong'. But once she put on the Gauntlet... well, convenient, isn't it, how 'wrong' is her enemies and eradicating them gains her more power, isn't it?
Now, she possesses free choice. She still doesn't recognize 'Evil' as a force on its own - she tried using Evil spells before she succeeded with Lightning. It's just that she's once again completely aware of the difference between right and wrong, and so knows leaving Marzipan out in the snow would be wrong. Louise hasn't has a sudden Heel Face Turn. Rather, the force than has been trying to brainwash her and cloud her moral perception has disappeared. That you find this boring does not invalidate it being meaningful development for Louise's character. It offers her a true choice - to try to forge on without the Evil crutch to support her, or rely on it despite possible awareness of the moral consequences.
This is ES saying that Louise *is* one of the most Evil people to ever walk Halkeginia in raw potential. She doesn't necessarily want to be, but that's who she *is*. The Gauntlet didn't make that the case.
Yes, Louise has immense Evil
potential. That means 'currently unrealized ability'. Remind me, how exactly did she actualize this Evil potential until she became Overlady? By occasionally shouting in anger at people who were teasing her? After becoming Overlady, before the Gauntlet, what was the worst she did? Kick the Jester once, and cast Evil magic to kill vampires/skeletons/zombies?
