Chapter 26
Chapter 26
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Modern Man's Constitution Improvement (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
‘What is he going to say now...’
Daniel felt a bit uneasy seeing Lucas's eyes start to gleam. The guy had always enjoyed dropping bombshells, after all, both back then and now.
No, at least during the days when he praised the Leader with all sorts of colorful topics, there was some consistency to it. But now that his one and only ideological foundation had crumbled, it was honestly hard to predict what he might say.
Still, since Lucas had been blatantly hinting for days that he had something to say, Daniel decided to let him be.
“What’s our goal?”
He hadn’t expected him to ask something like that in such a suddenly subdued voice.
“What do you mean?”
“Now that I’ve been accepted and we’re all united, we can discuss this much, right? What’s our goal? What’s the White Crow Unit’s identity? Are we just raising our voices against Krüger?”
Perhaps because Lucas had suddenly adopted a firm, aggressive attitude, the conversation's momentum began to shift toward him.
“You’re asking because you don’t know? We gathered because we want to pull Krüger down.”
Lucas responded to Erika’s sharp retort with a nonchalant question.
“Do you really think that’s possible?”
“What?”
“I’m asking if you believe we can topple Krüger just by handing out flyers and making lists. Do you seriously think he’ll crumble from something like this?”
As the atmosphere stirred at Lucas’s blunt words, Daniel hurriedly tried to smooth things over.
“Lucas, it’s only been three years since I started the White Crow Unit. We’re still short on numbers and strength, but things will change with time.”
But Lucas just scoffed as if that was absurd.
“When? And how? One slip-up, and we’re all dead. How exactly do you plan to grow our forces and build up enough to challenge the Leader?”
At this point, a strange thought flashed through Daniel’s mind.
‘Why is he provoking us like this? What’s he scheming now, Lucas?’
He’d been busy cozying up to the members and charming Erika and Richard lately, but seeing this sudden change in attitude, it seemed like he had a new goal.
“Take me, for instance—I got caught sneaking in. What if I’d been an Ossel agent or informant?”
“So what do you want, then? It’s dangerous either way.”
“Yeah, we’re not exactly in high positions where slowly gathering comrades and persuading people is the best option?”
Georg pressed him, and Oscar chimed in. Lucas let out a smirk.
“You should’ve killed me.”
“What... what do you mean by that?”
Daniel frowned, suddenly feeling a sense of déjà vu. He’d heard those exact words before.
“Not killing me is what led to recruiting me successfully, right?”
“That’s true. But what if I declare right now that I’m turning you all in? What if I actually run to the Ossel?”
“We’d kill you.”
Richard smiled brightly but answered with real emotion, as if he genuinely wanted to.
“Exactly, you’d have to kill me. But none of us could actually do it.”
His eyes gleamed brighter and brighter, his voice somehow chilling.
Daniel recalled that summer night a few months ago.
He hadn’t been able to kill Lucas that day. It was as simple as pulling the trigger, but his resolve had weakened.
Lucas had prodded at that weakness multiple times since.
‘Ah, I get it now.’
He looked at him with a faint smile.
“Lucas, stop biting your lip.”
“Huh?”
Lucas, who had been unconsciously gnawing at his already torn lip until it bled, blankly turned his gaze.
Daniel thought to himself.
Ever since Lucas had changed, he’d gained this aura that captivated people.
It wasn’t the kind of charm that appealed to reason.
His face was decent enough, but his short stature, hollow eyes, and gloomy vibe were more off-putting than attractive.
Yet, strangely, talking to Lucas left you feeling satisfied, almost entranced.
His eloquence or chameleon-like ability to shift personalities were secondary.
There was something precarious about him that made it impossible to look away.
That’s why Daniel still harbored this odd suspicion toward Lucas...
And because he’d kept observing him, he had a rough idea of what this “new” Lucas was like.
Always hurried, as if chased by something, anxious, forcing himself to stay composed every day. Somehow obsessed with the idea that he might die.
“You’ve been biting your lip when you’re tense since way back. We all know you’re smart, so instead of trying to take control, just say what you really want to.”
“What are you talking about? I don’t have that habit—”
Lucas stopped mid-sentence as he unconsciously went to bite his lip again, letting out an awkward laugh and dropping his hand.
“No, you mean we need to be resolved enough to kill.”
“You’ve kept saying stuff like that. You really seem to like talking about killing people.”
“...”
Lucas let out a small sigh.
“Ah, sorry. Let me talk properly.”
All eyes focused on him.
“I want to survive. I’d like it if none of us—you guys or me—died. It’d be great if we could successfully topple Krüger. To do that, we all need to drop the half-hearted attitudes.”
Lucas’s eyes burned brighter and more overwhelmingly than ever.
‘It’s because he’s sincere.’
Daniel found himself feeling both an inexplicable fear and anticipation.
The Leader suddenly came to mind.
They called him a genius orator, didn’t they?
The other three stared at Lucas as if entranced—or perhaps exhausted.
“...Alright, friend. You’re right. Yeah, it stings, but you’ve hit on what we’ve all been worrying about. So, give us your secret to not being half-hearted.”
Oscar was the first to snap out of the silence, grabbing Lucas’s hand and shouting. But Lucas had already reverted to his usual sullen expression, shrugging.
“We’ll have to think about that together from now on.”
Sighs and awkward chuckles erupted here and there.
“Kidding. Actually, there is one urgent task. Our hideout.”
“Ah! That. It’s important, but...”
“We’re broke, though.”
Oscar and Georg said.
“Erika, don’t you have money?”
“That’s not mine.”
As her voice turned icy in an instant, Daniel waved his hands hurriedly.
“Lucas, of course we’d love a place where we can meet comfortably. Meeting regularly at one shop makes it easy to get watched. But using someone’s house invites suspicion from neighbors just the same.
The place where you first tailed us was an ordinary tavern, but there’s no guarantee the owner isn’t a Leader supporter. He’s got a kind heart, giving free beer to heartbroken Richard, though.”
“What about a ruin?”
“We only go there for big things like initiation ceremonies, very rarely. It’s not ours, and being remote makes it easy to access, but if we’re spotted, it’d raise ten times the suspicion.”
“You guys really have no plan.”
Daniel almost thought, You’re one to talk, but just shook his head at Lucas’s brazen attitude.
“Anyway, let’s set the hideout aside for now. Second, we need to set a proper goal.”
Lucas scanned the members seriously again.
“I said it earlier. Our goal is to—”
“Pull down Krüger. We know. That’s why I asked if we really can.”
Oscar tried to argue but was cut off.
“Why is this conversation going in circles?”
“Hear me out. What does ‘pulling down’ even mean? Politically ousting him? Or straight-up killing him?
And how? Rally the masses to our side and spark another uprising? Link up with the military for a coup? Or hire assassins to slip through layers of security and slit his throat?
Or maybe seduce the Ossel or bureaucrats sucking up the benefits under him, push them forward to slowly steal power, then turn Krüger into a rubber stamp for policies?”
The words flowed smoothly without hesitation. Daniel looked at him with a mix of absurdity.
‘When did he think this far ahead?’
He could even believe if Lucas had calculated scenarios for Krüger’s downfall out of burning loyalty to protect him.
“Ultimately, what do you all want?”
“We’ve discussed it before.”
Oscar, who had been listening earnestly for once, spoke up.
“Not as deeply as you, but one thing’s clear. Krüger has to die.”
“He does.”
Richard nodded.
“But he has to face the people’s judgment first.”
“Everyone needs to recognize his wrongs.”
Erika and Georg added. Lucas finally looked at Daniel.
“Yeah, we all agree. Krüger must die. But it has to be in the name of the people’s verdict. No quiet political deals or other factions taking his life out of power lust. That would just breed another tragedy.”
Daniel stated firmly.
Lucas met his eyes. It was the clearest, most transparent gaze Daniel had ever seen from him, as if asking if he truly believed it.
Daniel nodded vigorously, and Lucas grinned.
“I see. We need to draw out the people’s will... That’s a tough goal. Ordinary folks don’t even know what they want. Gauging the ‘people’s will’ in that situation isn’t something anyone can do easily. And to go beyond that, make the people follow what the White Crow Unit wants? It’s an overwhelmingly ambitious dream.”
“Are you mocking us right now?”
Lucas nodded lightly at Erika’s scolding question.
“Yeah, I am.”
“Hey...!”
“Sorry. No malice. Final goals should always be big.”
Lucas spun his fork absently, lost in thought.
“Topple the Leader with the people’s will. To do that, we need to gather the people’s will. How do we do that?”
“Aren’t we doing it now?”
Oscar drew a square in the air with his index fingers.
“Propaganda? Yeah, good. We need to sway public opinion. But that’s not enough. No, the foundation’s lacking to begin with. We don’t even know what people think of the Leader right now. We need to start there to do anything.”
“We said we’re classifying supporters.”
“Five people gossiping casually won’t cut it. So, here’s my proposal: Let’s expand our informants.”
A brief silence fell.
“...May I ask what kind of informants you mean? It’s actually hard to discern people’s true thoughts. The more, the harder. That’s why we’ve only classified the most extreme fanatics so far.”
Richard stated calmly, and Lucas shook his head lightly.
“Not precise political leanings—well, is that what you call it? Anyway, we don’t need exact individual tendencies. We need evidence to gauge the overall trend.
Rumors on the streets, crime rates, Ossel movements, shops where people unusually gather. Newspapers are a must too. Even in censored articles, you can find slivers of truth.
Anyway, more information is always better. Even seemingly worthless stuff piles up and helps read the currents eventually.”
Lucas’s words rang with sincerity, like someone who’d handled intelligence before.
‘He keeps giving off this unfamiliar vibe.’
Daniel looked around at the members.
“What do you all think? I see it as pretty useful advice.”
“It is, but...”
Erika was critical, as expected.
“So what specifically? Sounds good, but it boils down to ‘gather info, more is better.’ How?”
“Smart people should figure it out.”
“Who?”
“You.”
Erika’s brow furrowed instantly.
“Kidding, kidding. Record whatever you know. Secretly, of course. Even trivial stuff. I’ll handle newspaper clippings. Suspicious if others do it, but I’ve been collecting every Leader article anyway.”
“That’s creepy.”
“I think so too.”
Lucas agreed readily.
“And recruiting someone in a good spot to hear street rumors would be great...”
As Lucas zoned out again, tapping the table with his fork, Georg shot his hand up.
“I know someone like that.”