Chapter 587: Extermination(4)
Chapter 587: Extermination(4)
Most readers were already aware that Hitler and Nazi Germany were gradually descending into madness.
From the laws that categorized humans into 'grades' to the war that plunged the entire world into chaos—all of these were atrocities unleashed by Nazi Germany.
In truth, given the political climate of the story, many felt that what was bound to happen had finally happened. Even so, Nazi Germany crossed the line as habitually as one might eat a meal.
In particular, Operation T4—the systematic euthanasia of the disabled—sent shockwaves of horror through the world. Naturally, the strongest backlash came from religious circles.
Nazi Germany had already been steadily building up its 'infamy meter' before letting it explode with the war, but the most recently published volume showcased deeds that could only be described as 'diabolical.'
[Musk Publisher. 'Extermination' is a word that appropriately blends extinction and massacre. Everyone likely understands what this implies.]
The 'Final Solution' introduced at the Wannsee Conference: the extermination of the Jews.
Since the word 'Extermination' didn't originally exist in their vocabulary, people were initially puzzled. However, upon reading the footnotes, they checked and rechecked the text in disbelief.
It was a project to not just treat Jews like animals, but to slaughter them as if they were livestock. It was a concept that required the total loss of humanity, even before considering morality.
[Xenon has finally crossed the line.]
[Is this really something a thinking human being could come up with?]
[What kind of drugs were you on to think of this?]
[I can understand the gods destroying the world as divine punishment. But I cannot understand one human being trying to drive another race to extinction.]
Perhaps because the story was so shocking and cruel, a significant number of people criticized Isaac.
However, even that criticism was bound to vanish before long.
[The Demons were once treated exactly like the Jews. The Demons were only safe because they had a nation called Helium; the Jews don't even have a country to protect them.]
[Remember when humans massacred the Beastkin during the Race War 300 years ago.]
[In the distant past, Savior branded the Demons as devils and declared a Holy War.]
This was because similar histories existed in their own world. The relatively recent Beastkin massacre was brought up as a comparison.
At that time, the Beastkin had no nation to protect their race, and due to the unique circumstances of war, they were slaughtered by the Human Alliance.
Among them were Beastkin who were captured as slaves and lived lives worse than death. In the aftermath, relations between Animus and the human nations remain strained.
However, even the Beastkin were not 'slaughtered' like the Jews. It was a massacre fueled by the madness of war, nothing more.
Furthermore, because they had not yet established a civilization, the Beastkin population was pitifully small. It was only after Hik founded Animus that their numbers literally exploded.
[When Savior fell into fanaticism and began massacring Demons, Luminous issued a warning.]
[Though the Demons were discriminated against by other races, only Lady Mora hid them in the darkness.]
[Because the existence of God is uncertain in 'Blood and Iron,' the humans there can go to any extreme. Unless they stop themselves, they can never be stopped.]
Through the Wannsee Conference, the existence of 'God' was highlighted once again.
When Savior ran rampant in their fanaticism, it was a god who restrained them. It was also a god who protected the discriminated Demons and Dark Elves.
Although the gods failed to protect the Beastkin during their massacre, the general consensus was that even then, they hadn't crossed 'the line.'
However, in Blood and Iron, the existence of God is ambiguous. Even if the state loses its collective humanity, there is no entity to restrain them.
[A god can stop massive violence. But the world of 'Blood and Iron' requires an even greater violence to stop it.]
[Nazi Germany has already lost its ability to self-regulate. Following the invasion of France, the German people view Hitler and his regime as gods.]
[Massacres are steadily occurring in Nazi-occupied territories, including Poland.]
From the readers' perspective, it felt like the puzzle pieces were clicking perfectly into place.
Starting from Hitler's rise to power, the policy used to unite the Germans as one was the oppression of the Jews.
Then Goebbels, with his brilliant agitation skills, provided the perfect assist, and the invasion of France brought it to a crescendo.
No one would doubt Hitler now, and with Operation T4 carried out under the surface, the extermination project was being implemented.
[If the extermination project had been implemented without any buildup, many people would have cursed Xenon.]
[It's chilling. How can someone portray human madness to this extent?]
[A development that is impossible to accept, yet one has no choice but to accept.]
The narrative plausibility was flawless. While the real World War II is famous for throwing plausibility out the window, the book captured the essence of human madness perfectly.
Of course, for Isaac, who was just eating bread at home, it was a situation where he might have wondered, 'Wait, I did that?' in confusion.
From Isaac's perspective, Blood and Iron was simply a blend of Earth's history.
He had been writing with the mindset of 'to hell with plausibility,' but paradoxically, he was explaining the descent into madness all too well.
[So far, it's only a matter of document approval. We should wait and see...]
Occasionally, a few people advocated for a cautious approach, but...
[Even as you breathe right now, Jews in Poland or the Soviet Union are being shot every five seconds. And while you were reading this, another one was executed.]
Everyone fell silent at the cruel and harsh reality of that statement. The sad fact was that it was true.
In any case, through this, Hitler and Nazi Germany were reborn not just as 'villains,' but as true 'demons.'
They were entities whose charisma as characters or organizations might skyrocket, but whom no one could truly follow in good conscience.
The concerns Isaac had were mostly washed away by the single stroke of the Holocaust.
[The Demon Worshippers vs. Nazi Germany. I'm curious to see who wins.]
[The Demon Worshippers are the bastards that exist in reality. Nazi Germany is the son of a bitch in fiction.]
[I'm just glad Nazi Germany doesn't exist in our world. I'd rather deal with Demon Worshippers.]
Furthermore, because it was such a realistic story (despite being actual history), they were compared to the Demon Worshippers.
Of course, it wasn't that the Demon Worshippers were better. As the evaluation suggested, they were the 'bastards' who actually existed.
The Demon Worshippers had long since lost their humanity, just like Nazi Germany, and committed all sorts of horrific crimes in the shadows.
Simply comparing the two led to a grand debate.
[If Demon Worshippers spread like a plague, bit by bit from the inside, Nazi Germany is a massive tsunami swallowing the world.]
[Perhaps the Demon Worshippers wanted this kind of result. Plunging a nation into madness to throw the world into chaos.]
[At one time, the radical faction of the Demon Tribe was rampant in Helium. All of them were linked to the Demon Worshippers.]
And so, people cursed the Demon Worshippers. They claimed that if it were the Demon Worshippers, they would have done such things and more.
After all, weren't they the ones who habitually performed horrific acts, including human experimentation?
Though their goals had never been clearly revealed, people deduced they were likely similar to those of Nazi Germany.
[Demand for razors has surged significantly since the new volume...]
[Hitler's toothbrush mustache, which had spread like a trend, will now likely only be seen at festivals.]
[A significant number of people are criticizing Xenon, claiming he has created a new form of discrimination...]
As a side effect, the demand for razors exploded. Thanks to this, for a while, the streets were filled with men with clean-shaven upper lips.
Of course, while the majority shaved out of a sense of unease, a small minority still clung to the toothbrush mustache.
No matter how much Nazi Germany had lost its humanity, fantasy was still fantasy.
While sincerely following them was a problem, simply cosplaying was considered nothing more than a story from a novel.
[This might be a warning Xenon is sending us. Though it may never happen, if the gods are ever unable to protect us, we must realize the danger by looking at this book.]
[The demonization of the Demon Tribe is not the problem. We need to worry about the demonization of all humanity.]
[Xenon is saying: anyone can become a demon.]
Finally, people felt a sense of vigilance due to the plausibility that seemed both impossible and inevitable.
The noteworthy part was that the definition of a 'demon' had changed. 'Demon' used to be a word applied only to the Demon Tribe, but that was no longer the case.
A demon isn't just something you're born as; it's something anyone can become. A demon in human skin is still a demon.
[Will Nazi Germany stop at simple massacres? Won't even more cruel things happen?]
At the same time, they trembled with anxiety. Now that the extermination project—the Holocaust—had been activated, they wondered what further tragedies would be revealed.
Nazi Germany had already shown glimpses of its nature through the Baby Factories and Operation T4. Whatever came next, the readers were prepared to be horrified.
And...
"Hah, wow. Is this how he plays it?"
There was someone who was not particularly pleased with this situation.
His face was hidden deep beneath a hood, making it impossible to recognize him, but he was an old man with a distinctive, aged voice.
He clicked his tongue as if the news reaching his ears lately was distasteful.
"The existence of a god is absolutely necessary to prevent this kind of madness? What a load of nonsense."
The old man held the sacrilegious view that gods were unnecessary. It was a statement that could invite divine punishment, but he didn't care.
As one might expect, the old man was a Demon Worshipper. And sitting across from him was another man in a robe.
"Bishop, wasn't Nazi Germany what you wanted?"
At the young man's polite question, the old man replied.
"You think we want to be like these lunatics? Don't talk nonsense. Their direction is completely different from what we pursue. This is nothing more than pure madness."
Even a Demon Worshipper referred to Nazi Germany as lunatics.
"Still, I am envious."
"Envious?"
"Yes. It means they have the power to drive an entire race to extinction, doesn't it? The extinction of a race is something only a god can perform. Even if it's just a glimpse, the fact that they can execute it represents the greatness of humanity."
"..."
Of course, the Demon Worshippers were a different kind of crazy altogether.