Chapter 117: Their Respective Moves (1)
Chapter 117: Their Respective Moves (1)
"......I understand your impatience, but I think it would be best to calm down first. You know full well that the timing isn't right to start such things, don't you?"
"That's why I only considered this much. If it weren't for that, I would have incited rather than merely stirring public sentiment."
"Even that much disturbance is a major threat to the Empire right now. With the war against the Demon Realm ahead of us, you know there's no good in shaking public sentiment."
"......The leadership is calling for action every day. If we don't do at least this much, it's difficult. Just what exactly do you have in mind, Your Excellency? Are you hoping we won't move at all?"
"Yes."
"......What?"
"For now, it would be best not to move. It would be best to stop all your current activities and rest. The war against the Demon Realm requires the Empire's military strength above all. Internal division is poison."
Overlooking the sudden informal speech with magnanimity, the Duke spoke.
"In this opportunity, you should cool your head as well. Do you realize you're being too impatient right now?"
"......."
"Your answer?"
Oh dear, due to dealing with Cruel earlier, I'd spoken in a high-handed manner.
He glanced cautiously to see if the perceptive man before him had noticed anything, but fortunately, Daniel, who had kept his mouth firmly shut, didn't seem to care; he slowly nodded without any particular sign.
"......Understood."
That was a relief. At least he seemed to have been suppressed for now.
But his mother's health would worsen day by day, and the revolutionary commander's mind would waver accordingly. The Duke didn't know how long this temporary suppression would last.
Watching Daniel's retreating figure as he excused himself and left, the Duke closed his eyes and let out a soundless sigh.
* * *
It wasn't that he had been suppressed. He had let himself be suppressed.
As Daniel closed the door and returned to the Revolutionary Army base, he slowly began to turn things over in his mind. His eyes had long since grown cold.
No matter how out of his mind he had been, he wasn't so dull as not to feel something off at hearing 'those words.' You were careless, Duke.
'I should be grateful that I came to my senses thanks to that.'
It was true that his haste had clouded his vision. He had almost become rigid-minded and charged blindly toward the goal. If not for the Duke, all his patience until now would have clearly been in vain.
However, that line.
[For now, it would be best not to move. It would be best to stop all your current activities and rest.]
And.
[Your answer?]
Thanks to that, his head cooled and he grasped the situation to some extent.
The Duke didn't wish for the Empire to fall. Not just now, but before as well, and likely in the future.
The source of the sense of incongruity he'd been feeling all along seemed to be gradually revealing itself.
'Of course. Where would you find someone who would voluntarily throw away the high position of 'Duke'?'
The reason he had contacted the Revolutionary Army was probably to keep them in check too.
'That's why you have to be careful about joining hands with power.'
It might be beneficial in the short term, but not in the long run. It was time to cut ties gradually.
But how? To shake off the Duke's hand now would lose too much. The Duke himself would suffer no loss, and only the Revolutionary Army would take heavy damage. That was problematic.
"......Daniel, hyung?"
"Ah, Paul."
"What are you doing there......?"
"One should avoid joining hands with power as much as possible. You'll get tripped up later."
"......Are you drunk?"
Without a word, Daniel gently stroked Paul's head.
Paul, who had been looking up at him in silence, confirmed that no one else was around and quietly opened his mouth.
"......I saw Deon Hart."
"......How did you recognize him? Wasn't he wearing a robe?"
"He wasn't wearing one. His clothes were quite splendid."
"......."
"Ah, but he was wearing an eyepatch. Still, with those clothes, and that hair and skin being so uniquely unusual, don't you think? It wasn't hard to recognize him."
Oh, that doctor.
I told him not to forget the eyepatch, and he literally only remembered that. What's he thinking, forgetting to put a robe on him?
They said his forgetfulness had gotten worse, and he really proved it like this.
"The doctor secretly brought him outside, so you brought him here, right? Why didn't you kill him? No, why did you just let him go?"
Come to think of it, Paul had a grudge against Deon Hart.
Eyes full of anger looked up at Daniel. Daniel quietly looked into his eyes, stroked his head slowly, and answered.
"Because he seemed like he would die even if I didn't kill him."
"I can't accept that."
You could have gotten information, or at least used him as a hostage, couldn't you?
Daniel's hand paused. The hand that had been resting on Paul's head slid down smoothly.
A hollow laugh, faint like smoke, scattered into the air.
"......You really have grown up."
"I was already grown up when we first met, you know."
"Yeah, yeah."
......Right. It was time for me to prepare as well.
Even to get out of the Duke's grasp, it was right to prepare.
"It's natural you can't accept it. It's because I dealt with it weakly."
"Why did you do that?"
"I told you, didn't I? I was weak. There's no perfect person in the world."
So, Paul.
He quietly called his name and met his eyes. A silence as tranquil as a moonlit forest settled.
Daniel willingly shattered that silence, which seemed almost comforting, and softly curled his lips upward.
"You'll see many strengths and weaknesses in me from now on. As you do now, absorb the strengths, filter out what you can't accept, or use them as a lesson. Right now, you're doing very well."
"......I don't understand."
"What?"
"Why do you take me around with you? Some of the places you've taken me aren't places I should be going. It was to teach me, right? Why are you trying to teach me?"
"Because you're a child I brought here, it's my responsibility. Education naturally falls under that responsibility."
The lower class, busy just trying to survive, often neglect the importance of education.
But he had learned that they shouldn't.
Who sparks a revolution? Those who know the state of affairs and recognize injustice do. In short, those who know a lot do.
If the country is running strangely, one must know how to recognize and point it out. And if those above do not listen, one must overturn it, his mother had said.
Therefore, his mother had said, education was important.
"Well, up until now it was for that reason."
"Then does that mean it's not anymore?"
"Yeah, I need to have a successor soon. I plan to teach you a great many things in a short time. I hope you absorb them well......."
"W-wait a moment! Successor? Me?"
"Is there a problem?"
At the perfectly nonchalant expression, Paul lost his words and just gaped.
After a few seconds, a voice that was almost a sense of duty to argue crawled out.
"Why me of all people?! I'm young......."
"Wasn't it just a moment ago you insisted you were all grown up."
"No......! Hah... really......."
Rarely, Paul burst out in frustration and pounded his chest. Watching that, Daniel burst into loud laughter.
Normally he would have gotten even angrier, but this time Paul's face brightened.
"It was a joke after all, right?"
"No. I'm serious."
"Why?!"
"Well......."
He wiped the tears gathering at the corners of his eyes with his fingertips.
He was still giggling, but continuing his words came first.
"Because you're young."
"......What?"
"Ah, did I throw it out too casually? I'll explain from the beginning."
Finally the laughter stopped.
Daniel paused for a moment to gather his thoughts.
"You're from the Empire, but you have no affection for it."
Nor did he love any other country, and there was no reason to.
"Here, where people from each kingdom that fell by the Empire's hand have gathered, having no country you love will bolster confidence in your fairness."
"......And?"
"And like I said, you're young. Thanks to that, flexible thinking is possible. Have you ever heard that the only thing that grows with age is stubbornness? In reality, older people don't listen well to others' advice. At the base of it is a thought like, 'This young thing dares to give me advice?' And old folks don't favor change."
"But what about the elders who joined the Revolutionary Army? Isn't 'revolution' itself change?"
"They joined out of a desire for revenge. 'My country fell, so the Empire must fall too,' something like that. They won't care much about policies after the Empire falls, or they'll stick to the old ways."
A revolution is, above all, a powerful change. It stands at the complete opposite pole of stability.
Naturally, the leader of the Revolutionary Army must also pay great attention to the policies after a successful revolution, but he couldn't hand that position to someone who prefers the familiar.
If there is no change in policy after the revolution, how could it be called a revolution?
"The older people hope not to increase what they don't know, and they love stability. They're too exhausted to take adventures."
Perhaps because of that, change has almost always been accomplished by the hands of the young, to the point where it's no exaggeration to say it's always been that way.
Therefore, it is right for the leader of the Revolutionary Army to be young.
"Of course, that doesn't mean you should look down on the elderly. They were once young people who pursued change, and by living long lives, they've gained much experience. Such experience can become a kind of knowledge, so it's right to respect it."
"What....... Then what am I supposed to do? Should I listen to the elderly? Or not?"
"Is there really a need to divide it so extremely? You've been doing well so far. Judge for yourself, filter out what to discard, and absorb only what's necessary. 'Education' exists to help you with that judgment."
Because he couldn't tell someone to choose blindly without any information.
"......Alright. So that's why you chose me as your successor?"
"Right. Ah, there's one more thing."
"There's more......."
Ignoring the flabbergasted muttering, he smiled brightly.
"You know how to love people."
"I don't have a lover......."
"Love isn't just between lovers. Love between friends, love between family... there are many kinds. Doesn't anything come to mind?"
"......Siia."
Correct.
As if he couldn't accept it, Paul furrowed his brow.
"But doesn't that become a weakness? Just like with you......."
He trailed off, but it wasn't hard to guess the rest.
Well, he had reason. Just a moment ago, Daniel had lost his mind for the sole reason that his mother had coughed up blood.
The existence of a loved one is an undeniable weakness. But.
"What is the ideology of the Revolutionary Army?"
"A world where everyone is equal, without a class system."
As Paul gave his answer, his face changed as if he understood.
That ideology itself was created based on a heart that cares for others.
The one who must bear that ideology and pioneer a new path is none other than the leader of the Revolutionary Army.
"Knowing how to love someone means you can also consider and understand others."
Someone who doesn't know how to love people would inevitably be disqualified from sitting in that position.
"......Is that really true? You could just abandon everyone around you and only care for the one person you love."
"Even if not right now, it means that possibility is open. And so that kind of situation doesn't arise......."
"'Education' exists for that, you mean? I get it."
As if conceding, Paul shook his head.
"It's funny that a still-young man is already talking about a successor, but......."
"Paul......?"
"First, I'll do my best to listen to what you teach me."
A rare bright smile was aimed at Daniel.
For a moment, Daniel wore a blank expression, then gently placed his hand on Paul's head.
"......Yeah."
For some reason, a mischievous smile rose to his face.
"Then shall we start right now?"
"Gah."
"There's too much to teach. Just related to 'words' alone, it's divided into how to persuade or suppress an opponent, how to incite the masses, and so on. Beyond that, there are policies and laws to implement after the revolution, how to deal with an economy that will shake as the regime changes......."
"......Can I just... not do it?"
"Yeah, no."
What should he teach first?
Those were important too, but the start was definitely this.
Turning away from the direction of the lodging, he guided the child's steps toward the office and spoke leisurely.
"Shall we start by simply talking about natural rights?"