Chapter 117
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 117
Chapter Title: The Typhoon Caused by a Butterfly
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My brain short-circuited for a moment from the barrage of nonsensical drivel, and by the time I came to, the debate among the United States congressmen had already ended.
That Adams fellow didn't say a single word about this when he came to Britain before. Did he eat something strange?
What's with this sudden talk of Eastern royalty?
Finding it odd, I discreetly asked him after the schedule was over, and as expected, I received a preposterous answer.
"…Pardon? Are you not of Eastern royalty? I was under the impression that this was already confirmed information."
Well, well. It seems that without my knowledge, I've been promoted from an Eastern slave to royalty.
But why was I, the person in question, completely unaware?
"My apologies, but may I ask the source of that information?"
"It was clearly stated in a report sent by the ambassador in the British Empire three days ago. It said it was a recently confirmed official fact."
"…Three days ago?"
What is going on?
If it was information officially confirmed and sent by the U.S. Embassy, it couldn't be an outright lie. I can't understand how this happened.
Could it be that I just didn't know because I was in the United States, and a report has already been sent to Canada as well?
I can't make a move without knowing the situation. I need to go to the British Embassy in the U.S. and get a report on what's happening.
"By the way, Minister, you are truly humble. I heard you suffered a great deal for being of mixed Eastern heritage. If you had revealed you were royalty, your path would have been much easier."
"Hmm…"
"Still, in the end, it seems your judgment was correct, Minister. You ascended to the position of the youngest minister in history purely on your own merit. Had you revealed your royal status, your abilities might not have been fairly evaluated due to your background."
"Haha, hahaha."
If I truly had royal blood, I wouldn't have put on such a show, hiding behind others just to get ahead.
I'm not some pervert who enjoys suffering. Why would I grovel when I had the means to climb?
"You are a national hero in Ireland, you've successfully concluded your duties as Plenipotentiary to Canada, and once you return to your home country, you will soar even higher. In the future, how Europe and the United States navigate trade with Asia will be a key issue, and no one will be able to challenge your dominance, Minister."
"Well… Asia is my specialty, after all."
"Hoo. That is why the United States must quickly cast off relics of the past like slavery and actively turn its gaze outward. But it is frustrating to have the southern congressmen, who cannot see the signs of the times, holding us back. The President is also from the South, so he coddles them…"
"Everyone prioritizes their own interests. Who would listen if you told them to make a sacrifice for the distant future?"
To be honest, I'd have no greater wish than for the esteemed southern congressmen to stand even more firm and unyielding, so that the United States suffers from internal strife for longer.
Otherwise, no matter how I calculate it, it would be difficult for Canada to challenge America's dominance through conventional means.
No, forget challenging them; it would be nearly impossible to take even a small piece of the pie that the United States held in the original history.
Even if we managed to strike first and take something, a furious United States would declare war to get it back, and we would have no choice but to spit it right back out.
They would undoubtedly spout nonsense about Manifest Destiny. Going to war with the United States over the southwestern part of North America is too great a burden.
Anyone from the modern era who knows the immense value of that land would think it must be taken now, no matter the cost. Unfortunately, this is not the 21st century.
Even the Crimean War, which will happen in a few years, is famously recorded as having poor public opinion in Britain despite the victory.
No matter how powerful a nation is, it cannot wage war against multiple countries simultaneously.
Therefore, I must do my best to coax and placate the United States into listening to us, while creating a situation where they are divided and fighting amongst themselves.
In that gap, if I expand into the southwest as much as possible and then instigate Mexico, I could buy at least several decades.
The problem is that even if I go that far, the United States will still have superior overall national power.
There's a reason the land these guys occupy is called the most blessed region in the world.
So, I need to handle things as tightly as possible without wasting a single moment… but what is this sudden bolt from the blue?
Could it be that these guys are all in on it together, filming some kind of hidden camera prank?
After bidding Adams farewell as naturally as possible, I rushed straight to the British Embassy to find out what was going on.
And to my surprise, there wasn't a single lie in what Adams had said.
"Minister! A letter sent personally by the Prime Minister just arrived this morning. He said he sent one to Canada as well, just in case. Here it is."
I took the letter without a word, tore open the envelope on the spot, and began to read Wellesley's familiar handwriting….
-...And so, not just the government but Parliament as well is abuzz with this news. It seems you will have to decide on a course of action yourself, so please send me a reply as soon as you read this letter.
I had wondered if the U.S. ambassador might have sent a report based on incorrect information, but this letter completely eliminated that possibility.
I composed myself and decided to analyze the current situation by slowly reading the letter once more.
No… why is this real?
***
Turning back time, to around when Killian had just been appointed Plenipotentiary to Canada.
The chaos brought about by the Qing Dynasty's great defeat had a significant impact on all nations in Asia.
Even nations like Joseon, which had been closing their eyes and ears to the world, were no exception.
Many had already visited the Qing Dynasty as envoys. Because of this, rumors about the Joseon-born British minister, Killian Gore, had spread far and wide.
Kim Jwa-geun, who had suddenly been appointed head of the task force for dealing with the British, found his sighs growing deeper by the day.
'How did I end up in such a dog of a position?'
His superiors didn't grasp the gravity of the situation, and his subordinates wouldn't listen. It was no exaggeration to call it a total mess.
Still, when he first heard the story about the mixed-blood slave Yuseok from Yi Ha-eung, he had a feeling that everything would work out.
However, the investigation revealed that the boy named Yuseok had died of a strange illness in his childhood.
Seeing as the slaves of that household all gave consistent testimonies, it must be an indisputable fact.
Then who in the world was Killian Gore?
For a full year, they had scoured every record and sent investigators not just to Hanseong but to all eight provinces of the nation, yet there was nothing to show for it.
Could Killian Gore have lied just to mess with them?
Had his Korean, which they'd heard firsthand, been even slightly less fluent, they might have entertained such a suspicion.
Given the circumstances, there was only one possible conclusion.
Someone, fearing the truth would be revealed, must have erased all records and traces of Killian Gore.
Otherwise, it made no sense that such a thorough search had yielded no proper information.
On the off chance the Vice Minister of Personnel was trying to hide the truth about the boy Yuseok, he had even investigated him.
But the boy Yuseok had died so long ago that uncovering the truth was a challenge.
Even Yi Ha-eung himself couldn't properly remember the boy he had met long ago, so how could the investigation possibly progress?
The problem was, with the situation at a standstill, people were beginning to doubt his abilities.
"Brother, is there still nothing more to report?"
"My apologies. We have searched the eight provinces as if combing for lice, but it is as if he vanished into thin air. We have found nothing."
"Whispers are starting to circulate in the Border Defense Council as well. That you might be deliberately dragging your feet, brother."
"Then please, seat the one who says such things in my place instead."
The most powerful person in Joseon, ruling as regent for the young king.
Queen Sunwon of the Kim clan sighed in frustration.
Watching her, Kim Jwa-geun felt his own stomach churn.
Who would want to waste time dragging this out?
What was he supposed to do if nothing turned up no matter how hard he searched?
To make matters worse, the Japanese dogs had recently started acting up over this issue as if they'd eaten something foul, making his blood boil even more.
"Brother, I am not trying to reprimand you. But as you know, Japan is now claiming that Killian Gore has their blood in his veins. I do not know their motive, but because of this, very harsh words are being exchanged within the court."
"Of course, I am aware."
Wasn't it the wicked habit of the Japanese pirates to snatch away anything that seemed even remotely good?
He could roughly guess their reasons.
One of the leaders of the military power that brought the Qing Dynasty to its knees was supposedly from their lands, so they were likely trying to get a piece of the action out of jealousy.
The problem was that Joseon had no evidence to refute their claim.
If only they knew who Killian Gore was, they could offer a firm rebuttal. But since they couldn't confirm any of his activities in Joseon, they were powerless against such absurd fabrications.
"But Your Majesty, the claims of the Japanese are not worth listening to. They say an ancestor of Killian Gore was a mixed-blood child with Tokugawa lineage from the time of the Japanese invasions. Does that even make sense?"
"But did Japan not send an official envoy and even reveal a family registry?"
"It is obviously a forgery. A family registry is something that can be created at a moment's notice if one sets their mind to it."
He was astounded by their meticulousness in forging even a family registry to achieve their goal, but the ministers of Joseon had collectively decided not to acknowledge it.
Even those who had initially questioned why they should expend such effort on a Westerner of mixed blood did a complete one-eighty when the Japanese got involved. It was like watching a Chinese opera.
Leaving aside the question of whether Joseon should embrace Killian Gore, the fact that the Japanese were meddling was simply too unpleasant to bear. Frankly, he agreed.
"As long as Japan presents a family registry and claims Killian Gore as one of their own, we must also provide corresponding evidence. Therefore, we must ascertain where he was born and raised as quickly as possible…"
Why should he go to all this trouble because of the damn Japanese and their blasted family registry?
'Wait. A family registry?'
An idea struck Kim Jwa-geun, and forgetting he was before Queen Sunwon, he slapped his knee.
Belatedly realizing his breach of etiquette, he cleared his throat and spoke.
"Ahem, Your Majesty. In my opinion, it is impossible to find information about Killian Gore. And even if we were to ask him, he likely wouldn't know all of his ancestors. The fact that no records have surfaced despite such a thorough search means someone is deliberately concealing the truth."
"But, who would dare to do such a thing…"
"However, if we shift our perspective, this is not necessarily bad for us. The fact that someone has erased all records means the current situation is effectively a blank slate. It may not have been the Japanese's intention, but isn't that why we are currently unable to properly refute their claims?"
"Surely you don't mean…"
Queen Sunwon asked with a look that questioned his sanity, but Kim Jwa-geun was convinced this was the easiest way to solve the problem.
"Yes. Why can't we do what the Japanese are doing? We simply need to create a suitable place for him and insert Killian Gore's name. Then, we can offer a formal apology. Tell him that although he suffered hardships in Joseon, he was in fact descended from a noble Joseon family. That we will help correct the facts now and restore his honor. If we say something along those lines, he won't be able to use his childhood experiences as a pretext to cause trouble for us."
Wasn't this a brilliant move that would kill two birds with one stone, blocking the Japanese's nonsense and assuaging Killian Gore's feelings?
The important thing now was to ensure the guns of the Westerners who had devastated the Qing Dynasty did not turn towards them.
If forging a single family registry could prevent that, there could be no cheaper bargain.
Some might say that as a member of the prestigious Andong Kim clan, even mentioning the forgery of a family registry was unthinkable, but Killian Gore wasn't a Joseon citizen anyway.
Even if they fabricated his lineage, he was a man who would live his entire life in Britain on the other side of the world.
"...This is not a matter I can decide on my own. Brother, you should discuss this directly with the ministers and vice-ministers of the Border Defense Council."
"Yes."
"By the way, if you were to create a registry, which family are you thinking of placing him in? Our family?"
"The Japanese are claiming he is a distant relative of their leader, the Shogun of the Bakufu. In that case, shouldn't we also create a corresponding position? If we carefully adjust the degree of kinship, we can create a position of high status without giving him any rights to claim anything from us."
The remark was so audacious, so irreverent, that Queen Sunwon stared, mouth agape, repeatedly checking to see if her brother was in his right mind.
But pragmatically, this was the best option.
If they made him a member of the Andong Kim clan and he tried to do something as a family member, how would they handle the aftermath?
And crucially, if they offered him some flimsy position, Killian Gore might react as if they were mocking him.
Hadn't the Japanese played their trump card, claiming he was descended from the Seii Taishogun, the head of the Bakufu?
To avoid being looked down upon by them, Joseon also needed to offer a comparable position.
Normally, this was a decision that could not be made even if the heavens were to fall, but surprisingly, once the Japanese became involved, many ministers came to agree with Kim Jwa-geun's opinion.
In the end, Kim Jwa-geun agreed to take full responsibility, and the fake family registry he had crafted with all his soul made its way to Shanghai, currently occupied by the British Empire.
-Killian Gore is not of Japanese but of Joseon royal lineage. Identification was merely delayed because his family was implicated in treason.
-No. Killian Gore is indeed of Joseon blood, but he is also definitely a distant relative of the Bakufu's Seii Taishogun.
Unable to judge the truth in this "World's Greatest Forgery Competition," which had escalated into a battle of pride between Joseon and Japan, Shanghai ultimately accepted both countries' claims as fact.
This astonishing report was stamped with the seal of the British Governor-General of Shanghai and sent to London as confirmed fact.
Honestly, he didn't really know what was what, but since both countries insisted their claims were true, the Governor-General of Shanghai had, in his own way, made the best possible judgment.
Neither Japan, which had started it all, nor Joseon, which had responded in kind, nor even Killian, the man at the center of it all, could have predicted it.
The gentle breeze that began with the light flutter of a butterfly's wings soon became a massive typhoon that turned London completely upside down.