It's likely that there's much more to Varis than meets the eye. Most of what we know of him comes from biased sources. He's ruthless, certainly, though he has been shown to be capable of restraint. We can safely assume that the expansion is going to take heavy inspiration from the politics of the Roman Empire...which in itself is a very complicated and nuanced affair. We don't even know if Titus was as pure in motive as is commonly speculated. Let's not forget, Asahi successfully infiltrated the Populares and Regula van Hydrus describes the War of Succession as 'bloody'.

As an aside, here's the passage from Yotsuyu's story related to Titus:

'Yet on the day she was to begin the operation, the garrison's intelligence officer called her back. They had received word that an imperial legatus would shortly be arriving from the capital to assess the situation in Doma. Lord Zenos was his name─one she had heard before.

With Emperor Solus on his deathbed, a clandestine war of succession was already being waged in Garlemald. Solus's eldest being dead, his grandson Varis was next in line to the throne, but the Emperor’s second son Titus had other ideas, and no shortage of support. What he did not have, however, was Varis’s standing with the military, nor less a ready heir─this Zenos.

As a public ally of Titus, the viceroy plainly considered the legatus a threat, Yotsuyu saw. And the fact that they would entrust her with so important a target bespoke how high she had risen in their esteem.'

So, Varis was next in line to the throne and Titus attempted to overthrow him.

Then, of course, there's this passage:

'"Waiting on the storm to cover their approach..." he murmured. "I was curious to hear more of your story, but the evening's true entertainment has arrived."

"What─" Yotsuyu had barely uttered the question when the nearby window exploded inwards. Ears ringing from the noise, she registered several black-clad forms clambering in through the breach.
The intruders drew blades, and surrounded Zenos with appalling swiftness. Yotsuyu, meanwhile, scrambled backwards in a crouch, and took in the unfolding scene. Assassins, she realized coldly, and not terribly discrete ones. They had dressed themselves in the garb of shinobi, but their swords, and the manner in which they held them, were distinctly imperial.

"Bastards!" she screamed, furious at her own gullibility. They sent me here to die!

Not one of the masked killers so much as glanced in her direction. Zenos himself seemed unconcerned, bored even, as he surveyed the naked steel arrayed against him. Making no move to retrieve his own sword, propped out of reach against the wall, the legatus calmly addressed the room.

"'Lord Zenos, slain in the arms of a Doman courtesan.' Yes, such a scandal is worth the ignominy of failing to protect a royal guest." His lips curled into a humorless smile. "And should Doma's fugitive ruler be implicated in the plot, all the better. The viceroy would have his reinforcements within a week."

The assassins remained mute as they edged closer and closer. In the next instant they were upon him, blades flashing in synchrony, their tightening circle obscuring his armored form from Yotsuyu's view.'

So, Imperial Shinobi attempted to assassinate Zenos on Titus' behalf. That seems at odds with the concept of Titus being some peaceful man pushing for reform. Who else would Titus have been willing to kill or condemn in his attempt to secure power? What sort of reform would he have pushed and would it have truly been in Garlemald's best interests?