Words Are Contagious
Words Are Contagious
At Daniel's declaration of total war, the crowd froze, speechless.
Everyone remained rooted in their seats, merely exchanging glances, their eyes seeming to ask, 'What on earth is he talking about?'
The anti-war activists, too, wore expressions of blank bewilderment, having forgotten even to protest or condemn.
In contrast, Hans, the public affairs officer watching the speech from behind the stage, let out a silent scream.
'What the hell are you doing!?'
This speech, delivered alongside the bond issuance, was, without exaggeration, a moment of national gravity.
On top of that, it was the first order Selvia, the future empress, had proactively given to the Propaganda Department.
Because of that, not only the public but also the politicians in the National Assembly building and countless nobles had their attention fixed on this speech.
It was only natural that all eyes were riveted to it, as it was Selvia's first public undertaking.
'Which means...'
With all eyes on him, if Daniel ruined the speech, the Propaganda Department would likewise be unable to escape Selvia's wrath.
Thinking that in the worst case he could be dismissed from his post, Hans hurriedly turned his gaze to a subordinate.
"Hey! Contact the station director right now! We have to stop the radio broadcast!"
"Ah, yes! Understood!"
Once Daniel's total war speech began spreading across the Empire, the Propaganda Department would have no excuse for the error.
So he intended to offset the risk as much as possible by at least blocking the radio transmission.
While Hans's subordinate was contacting the station director via telephone, Daniel faced the ten-thousand-strong crowd and began to speak with a resolute air.
"My fellow countrymen, you must be wondering why I am declaring total war. But in truth, you already know. You know why the Empire must commit to total war!"
The murmuring of the crowd grew louder.
Daniel paid it no mind.
Because he intended to ruin the speech anyway.
"Currently, the Allied Nations slander and defame the Empire daily, urging the Federal State and the Republic to join the war! Everyone here knows that the Federal State and the Republic are also showing friendly attitudes toward the Allied Nations!"
The murmuring subsided.
It was because there was nothing incorrect in Daniel's words.
"Regrettably! It is now only a matter of time before the Federal State and the Republic, played by the cunning tongues of the Allied Nations, turn their backs on the Empire! Then we must make a choice! Negotiation or resistance!"
The resolve brimming in Daniel's eyes flickered like a fierce flame.
At least, that was how it appeared in the eyes of the crowd.
"The anti-war activists say this! That the Empire can survive through negotiation! That we must take the hand extended by the Allied Nations and establish lasting peace! In that case, I wish to ask."
Daniel turned his gaze toward the faction of anti-war activists occupying a section of the seating.
"Can you be certain? Can you have blind faith? That joining hands with the Allied Nations will truly bring peace?"
The anti-war activists did not answer.
No, it would be more accurate to say they could not answer.
Overwhelmed by Daniel's dominating presence, they merely remained silent, their spirits deflated.
After staring at their silence for a while, Daniel turned his gaze forward.
"Fellow countrymen! I have gone to the battlefield and witnessed the reality of the Allied Nations! They are vile, self-righteous, arrogant, and impulsive! The peace they desire is never equality! The Allied Nations want the Empire's subjugation!"
The murmuring that had been drifting through the air vanished completely.
The crowd now focused on Daniel's speech in utter silence.
"The Allied Nations, approaching us with claims of wanting negotiations, will first take away our guns! After taking our guns, they will take our food, and after food, our farming tools, after farming tools, our children, and finally, they will attempt to clutch the Empire in their grasp!"
Several among the crowd, enraged by Daniel's words, let out howls of anger.
"We now know! The fact that the Allied Nations must not be trusted! That we must by all means resist and drive a stake into their insidious true intentions! So, citizens of the great Empire! Do not hesitate! Do not be afraid!"
Daniel once again raised his right arm high.
"The Empire of today has accomplished what no other nation has! Countrymen! Lift your heads and look to the north! Before even a single season had passed, the Empire achieved a historic victory in the midst of the fiercest war! Could this be mere coincidence!"
A roar of 'No!' erupted from within the crowd.
As the roar began to flow like a wave, Hans, who was behind the stage, murmured to himself, mouth agape.
Deep inside, admiration was welling up.
'This... is working!'
The charisma and flawless vocal delivery of the man named Daniel united the room as one.
With eloquence added on top, the crowd was gradually being swayed by Daniel's opinion.
Hans, who noticed that, called out to the subordinate who was speaking with the station director.
"Hey! Tell the station director. Keep the radio broadcast going!"
The subordinate, who like Hans had been listening to the speech, nodded without objection.
Unaware that the reception behind the stage had turned so positive, Daniel looked around at the crowd and cried out confidently.
"We have won, and we will continue to win! Even if the enemy presses the Empire and launches an all-out attack, we will by all means overcome it! And thus I promise that we will spread the greatness of the Empire to the opposite side of the globe!"
A cheer arose among the crowd.
However, the anti-war activists still remained silent.
Seizing on that very silence, Daniel continued his speech.
"Despite our resolve, some anti-war activists still ask: aren't you afraid of war? To give you an honest answer before my fellow countrymen, I am afraid. Every time I go into combat on the battlefield, the fear of death sends a chill across my skin."
Daniel gripped the podium.
"However!"
At Daniel's powerful cry, the crowd could not help but focus.
"Losing the nation under a submissive negotiation frightens me more than losing my life! That is why I go to the battlefield! Because losing my life is losing one thing, but losing the nation is losing everything!"
As if responding to Daniel's voice, cheers erupted from the crowd.
Some were even waving the imperial flags they had brought over their heads.
Now, the only ones here not responding to Daniel's words were the anti-war activists.
They merely exchanged words among themselves, placards reading 'No War' lowered, their faces etched with deep contemplation.
Thinking that he only needed to provoke them a little more, Daniel struck the podium with a kung.
"If you are not afraid, rise; if you know, act! And in doing so, we shall proclaim that the Empire is the greatest nation in the world!"
Once more, a cheer arose.
Now a sort of exhilaration was spreading across the faces of the crowd.
Under the gaze of ten thousand people, Daniel took a deep breath.
After a brief pause for effect, Daniel opened his mouth.
"Lastly, I shall speak on behalf of the nation and its people under the protection of His Majesty the Emperor."
Through the large speakers, Daniel's sonorous voice rang out.
Because of that, the cheers diminished slightly as everyone listened intently to Daniel's words.
"I, Daniel Steiner... No!"
Lifting his head and facing forward, Daniel cried out amid the countless camera flashes.
"We want total war!"
No sooner had Daniel's words ended than a storm of applause and acclaim poured down.
Amid a raucous mixture of shouts and cheers, only the anti-war activists remained silent.
That delighted Daniel.
'Good.'
The majority of the Empire's citizens were anti-war activists.
If they opposed the assertion that total war must be waged, Daniel's plan would be complete.
'What are they doing? Throw the tomatoes you're holding, for fuck's sake.'
As he waited briefly, the anti-war activists stood up from their seats one by one.
Thinking the time had finally come, Daniel prepared himself to be pelted with tomatoes and make a ridiculous exit.
And as he was straightening his tie, the anti-war activists began to applaud.
'...What?'
In that moment of bewilderment, the crowd, including the anti-war activists, rose to their feet in unison.
The crowd, springing up from their seats in an instant, shouted amidst the applause and acclaim.
─ We want total war!
─ Inevitable war over submissive negotiation!
─ For His Majesty the Emperor! For the great Empire!
The combined roar of voices made his ears ring.
As Daniel, drenched in cold sweat, stood speechless, the anti-war activists discarded their placards one by one.
They, too, rose from their seats like everyone else and shouted at the top of their lungs.
─ And lastly, for our hero Daniel Steiner!
The cry raised by the anti-war activists spread like a contagion in an instant, passing through the lips of all.
─ Daniel Steiner! Daniel Steiner! Daniel Steiner!
As he gazed at the countless masses chanting his name, Daniel's hand trembled faintly.
In the space where the cheers resounded loudly enough to be deafening, Daniel swallowed hard and came to realize.
'It's gone to shit...'
That the matter had spiraled to a point beyond all control.