Chapter 114: In Truth, They Knew (8)
Chapter 114: In Truth, They Knew (8)
Was that sincere advice, or bait to guide my actions?
Cruel would know just as well that I wouldn't obediently follow his words. So then, was it manipulation?
'When we were young, Cruel and I often played chess.'
Because I was too weak to leave the mansion, we played all sorts of board games. Chess was the best of them.
On the board, bait using the chess pieces; off the board, psychological warfare using words.
'If it were me, I wouldn't go that way,' 'Is that really the better choice?', 'That surprised me a little.', 'An excellent choice.'
Which was sincere, and which was false? Were the words placed before me truly bait, or a feint?
We'd played countless games of chess, trading wins and losses, so we could read each other's thoughts to some degree in these matters. There was no way Cruel thought I wouldn't consider the possibility of 'manipulation'. Then was it heartfelt advice?
'...What does it matter, then. Whether it's worry or bait, it feels shitty either way.'
So my choice was made.
'If I'm going to follow Cruel's words anyway, it's better to move even if it's bait.'
Thanks to that, I forgot my exhaustion. I'd long been ignoring the pain, so I headed out to the streets.
I donned the robe I was holding, boldly turned my steps away from the mansion, and headed toward the nearby streets.
* * *
Noisy.
"Just how long do you intend to delay the uprising?!"
"Do you even intend to carry it out?"
Truly noisy.
People who couldn't see an inch ahead, blinded by greed, squawking. To think that these were the leadership. As if a headache was coming on, Daniel quietly frowned, then smoothed his expression as if nothing had happened.
In this situation, raising voices together would only turn it into a fight of emotions. A calm voice aimed at persuasion flowed out.
"The timing is not good. Soon, war between the Demon Realm and the Human World seems likely to break out. To topple the Empire, which constitutes the Human World's greatest military power..."
"Is the leader of the Revolutionary Army now siding with the Emperor?!"
"At one time you said to prepare to behead the Emperor soon, and now you keep repeating the timing isn't good...! What is this?! Are you deliberately postponing the uprising?"
Bam!
Silence descended. Daniel, who had slammed the table roughly to shut them up, slowly exhaled with his head bowed.
The stress and irritation that had surged to the top of his head slowly subsided with each breath. After steadying his breathing a few times, he broke the silence.
"...In the past, there were those who rashly rushed out, saying they would kill the Emperor."
Foolish individuals who had been so thoroughly annihilated by the Emperor's hand that their brave charge became laughable.
"Because of them, the forces we barely replenished went back to square one."
"......."
"Did you think that merely eliminating the Imperial Army would be enough? If there is anyone who truly thinks that, I would advise them to step down from the leadership."
A few flinched as if stung.
"The Imperial Army is not the only problem. The Emperor himself is strong. Very strong! No— before even discussing his martial prowess, in order to legitimately make the revolution succeed, we must enter through the main gate of the Imperial Palace!"
The previous ones were wrong from the very method.
How could attacking the Emperor while he was alone, in a cowardly manner, be called a revolution? That is simply assassination, attempted regicide, and treason by reactionaries.
No matter how many have gathered to kill the Emperor, ultimately the cause they championed is a 'revolution' to create a world without class systems. Actions that contradict that could not be tolerated.
"Must we... absolutely enter from the front?"
"You ask the obvious. Acting like rats will only yield the bad image that befits it."
Image was important. Entering through the main gate was likewise one of the performances for that.
Whether a spy opened the gate for us, or we smashed our way in, entering through the main gate itself became a symbol.
The masses were easily swayed by what they saw.
So, however we acted in the shadows, let us act boldly under the sun. We have done nothing wrong. Even if we have done wrong, it was only for the cause.
"What do you think our actions so far have been for? To whittle down the Emperor's forces? Of course, that is also correct, but that is only a secondary objective. The core is to gain the support of the Empire's people and lower the Emperor's support."
As a result, they had achieved that goal to some extent.
They punished wicked lords and arrogant nobles who looked down on the Empire's people, gaining public support. In the process, there were clashes with the Murderer Knight Order, and a bomb went off by mistake, causing damage to civilian homes, but all the resentment was directed entirely at the Murderer Knight Order.
It was an unexpected gain that arose from the Revolutionary Army's ideology gaining the favor of the Empire's people and the Murderer Knight Order's bad image.
"Our reason for existence and the legitimacy of our actions come from the Empire's people. Without their support, we would not be a revolutionary army, but merely a gathering of traitors."
So they had to persuade the Empire's people. Persuade them, and kill the imperial family boldly before their eyes to have their legitimacy acknowledged.
After pausing briefly to compose his breathing, Daniel spread one arm out.
"To reach the Emperor through the main gate of the Imperial Palace, we need considerable force. To kill those who possess Hero's fragments, we also need considerable force."
Who was it that had acted on their own and eaten away at the Revolutionary Army's forces?
It was those, just like the ones before him now, who had urged for the uprising.
Therefore, you no longer have the right to speak. Having explained this much, even the thickest-skinned would not dare to push their own opinion.
'—I'd won.'
"We lack forces, and the timing is not good. So I will ask: is there anyone who still believes we must force the uprising?"
"......."
There was no rebuttal.
Having broken the leadership's spirit for the moment, Daniel left the meeting room, taking Paul, who had been watching the situation beside him the entire time.
Walking through the dark secret passage in quiet silence, Paul quietly raised his head to check on Daniel. As expected, deep fatigue was etched on his face, as if he'd suffered a great deal of stress from the meeting.
At times like this, he would go see his mother.
Having thought that far, Paul stopped abruptly at the fork in the path. Daniel, who had been heading absentmindedly toward the passage leading back to his quarters, turned back to him belatedly.
"Go see her."
"Huh?"
"You don't need to escort me on a path I know. I'll just go back to the quarters like this, so hyung, you go straight to your mother."
Daniel, who had been standing blankly as if struck by the unexpected words, grinned and placed his hand on Paul's head.
"All grown up."
"I've been all grown up since we first met."
"Yeah, yeah."
The laughter full of mischief soon turned into a warm smile.
"...Thank you."
He'd thought he'd become quite accustomed to the warmth of others, but it seemed he still had no immunity to such situations.
Paul, who had been frozen stiff, stammered out various nonsense, then ultimately, unable to overcome his embarrassment, fled back to his quarters as if escaping. Daniel chuckled and turned his steps.
That laughter didn't last long.
'.......'
Daniel wandered the streets blankly. According to the original plan, he should still have been with his mother, but he had been chased out and couldn't help it.
His head spun. Even though he'd just thrown a fit of anger at the comrades attending his mother, his emotions refused to subside.
That was how shocking the scene he had witnessed was.
'Mother... coughed up blood...'
She had coughed up blood. That alone was shocking, but it had been ongoing for a long time. The comrades knew, yet hid it under the pretext of his mother's request.
He understood it intellectually. His life revolved around his mother. Even the reason he created the Revolutionary Army was because of his mother, so what could he say? So if his mother's health developed a problem, it was clear he too would lose his footing and wander this way and that.
They wanted him, the son, not to be hurt. The mental health of the Revolutionary Army leader was important. So it was worth hiding.
'But.'
Understanding and emotions were separate. He had dedicated his life to his mother to that extent; how could it be that he didn't know about this?
He drifted thoughtlessly through the festival streets. They said it was held to show off the Empire's strength even while waging war with other kingdoms. In the past, he would have clicked his tongue at the Empire's wastefulness and pretension, but right now, he couldn't think anything at all.
Perhaps because he had already let out his anger, his mood was calm as if the earlier excitement had been a lie. No, rather than calm, it would be more accurate to say he was spaced out.
"...Uh."
After wandering the streets for a long while, just letting his feet carry him, he collided hard with someone pushed by the crowd.
The smell of alcohol hit him. A drunk? It was a little unpleasant, but with so many people, it couldn't be helped—just as he was about to brush it off.
"Cough."
"...?!"
The other person suddenly spat blood. Because the person wore a hood, Daniel realized it half a beat late and his eyes widened.
His face, already pale from not having recovered from the shock of the truth he'd just faced, turned even whiter.
"H-hey. Are you okay?"
"......."
"H-hold on... Ah, a doctor. I need to get you to a doctor..."
His hands trembled. Daniel strengthened his grip supporting the other.
Calm down. This person isn't my mother. So there's no need to panic that much.
I just need to calmly take him to a nearby doctor. But...
'Is there a doctor nearby? If there is, where? Won't I waste a lot of time looking for a doctor? What if this person dies in the meantime?'
...Damn it!
He scooped up the unidentified patient.
He knew he was reacting too emotionally. But what could he do? If someone showing the same symptoms as his mother died today, he felt he wouldn't be able to sleep peacefully.
'There's only one doctor I know.'
That was the only doctor nearby whose location he clearly knew.
He knew it was something the leader of the Revolutionary Army shouldn't do, but before reason could think and restrain him, Daniel was already moving, consumed by emotion.
* * *
What is this.
I'd just gone because passersby were talking about the festival and mentioned a certain street, when someone shoved me with a strong impact on my back, and because of that, I spat blood on another person's clothes.
And then that person picked me up and ran?!
And the further we went, the more deserted the area became... Huh? The alley wall split open, the ground opened, and even some secret passage appeared?
'What the hell is this?!'
From under the hood that half-covered my face, I rolled just my eyes around wildly, and when I felt the other's gaze land on me, I quickly shut my eyes.
...Let's just pretend to be unconscious for now.
* * *
In the end, he'd done it.
If others found out, they would question his qualifications as leader. They were greedy, so it was obvious they'd try to tear into him somehow.
But it wasn't known yet, and in the end, he'd saved the person before him, so he had no regrets. Having put off dealing with the aftermath, Daniel anxiously waited for the doctor's words.
"There is no danger to his life. He merely needs plenty of rest; no special measures are required."
"B-but the blood..."
"He was already a frail person to begin with. On top of that, he seems to have been under severe stress. There are signs of other physical trauma, but... they've either been treated already or require no treatment."
"Ah..."
That was a relief.
Strength drained from his legs and he slumped down. As he swept his hands over his face and let out a deep sigh, the old doctor asked, as if in passing.
"More importantly, did you bring him here knowing?"