[The situation in Brahma Province remains turbulent. Alliance Foreign Minister Cheng Yan calls on both sides of the conflict to exercise restraint and resolve issues through peaceful means.
Audo, Mayor of the Bugra Free State, issued an 'anti-monopoly' declaration, stating that he will stand with the citizens of the Free State! Flint Group refuted the evidence presented by Audo, simultaneously publicized evidence of Audo accepting bribes, and urged citizens not to believe rumors!
—Survivor Daily, Dawn City Edition]
[The Free State falls into chaos! Are 'Hound' special forces clashing with the corporations?! Salen entered the morning meeting left foot first today—could this hint that Alliance radicals are the masterminds behind the scenes?!
West Sail Port hosts a winter swimming competition; harbor residents queue up to plunge into the sea! General MacLaren, garrison commander of New West Sail Port, phoned General Grove to express his displeasure, claiming that calling barbers and harlots retainers and mistresses of the Wilantes is naked slander and framing, as the true retainers and mistresses are all aboard the ships!
Of course, General MacLaren also emphasized that he has no mistresses—not even temporary ones.
—Survivor Daily, New West Sail Port Edition]
[The great Mahatma Zayed enters his loyal Tiandu! The wise and martial General Gopal leads the sacred Gray Wolves to surround the Legislative Council; the Economic Commissioner commits suicide to escape punishment! Sava states that imposing an excise tax on grain is barefaced robbery, proof of corruption, and the first pillar the Family Association must utterly smash!
—Survivor Daily, Tiandu Edition]
[Appalling! Tiandu's Legislative Council dissolved by the Gray Wolf Army; over a thousand council members and their families lynched by members of the Family Association!
Mendes, head of the Golden Gallon Port branch of the Family Association, and Shreya, wife of the vice head, were found drowned in their own bathtub.
Vice Head Rajat declined interviews on the matter, but stated that the relationship between his wife and Mendes was entirely pure—they were spiritual comrades-in-arms, partners standing shoulder to shoulder, and by no means what outsiders imagined.
The cause of death for both victims remains under investigation. Out of respect for their privacy, police have withheld further details. Mendes had previously garnered radical support for his aggressive rhetoric and was viewed as a strong contender against Mayor Yodu; outside observers speculate this may be an act of revenge against the Family Association by remnants of Rasi's faction.
—Survivor Daily, Golden Gallon Port Edition]
[Migration wave returns! Baiyue Strait population nears the one-million mark! New arrivals are primarily Moon Clan members and Wilantes, mostly hailing from regions west of Evernight Port and the eastern coast of Brahma Province. Experts from the Alliance Academy of Social Sciences analyze that due to the Baiyue Strait's unique ecological environment, absorbing the surging influx immediately is difficult, and the migration wave may shift toward the Death Coast!
—Survivor Daily, Port French Fries Edition]
[Property prices on Wilante Street hit record highs! Self-made magnate Henk created a financial miracle in just one year! Not only that, this billionaire endowed with compassion and social responsibility plans to erect a statue of a Rat Clan member named Isher in the core district of Wilante Street—honoring him as a shared hero of both peoples!
The initiative has met with protests from some Brahma residents, who view it as an attack by the Wilantes against the Brahma people. In their eyes, Isher ultimately betrayed the State of Brahma, making it questionable whether he can be called a hero; if a statue must be built, they argue, the honor should be given to the truly wise and martial Mr. Zayed.
Unlike past instances, however, other Brahma residents in Settlement No. 1 did not stand idly by this time; they stepped up boldly and engaged in fisticuffs with Zayed's followers.
These people will likely keep fighting for a while, though the survivors of Settlement No. 1 seem quite accustomed to such scenes, whether they be Haiya Province wastelanders or Wilantes.
In addition, local representative Suka from Brahma Province has submitted a proposal urging Alliance authorities to designate the Family Association as a cult organization and prohibit its spread within Alliance territory. As this reporter would like to say: aside from overflowing with their usual misplaced sympathy, our radicals are finally willing to do something meaningful.
—Goblin Observer, Dawn City Edition]
...
A few more days went by.
Returning to Dawn City on business, Lao Bai passed through the Ravinka Industrial Zone and happened to spot Rasi's sidearm in Fang Chang's office.
It was a classic Centurion pistol, mounted alongside its holster inside a custom frame set upon the office bookshelf.
In truth, Lao Bai had already learned of Rasi's death from the news several days ago.
He had not been as close to Rasi as Fang Chang, so beyond lamenting the man's tragic fate, he felt little overwhelming grief.
Yet seeing that familiar sidearm again now, he suddenly realized how much had happened since the day they first landed at Golden Gallon Port.
"You knew it would end this way all along."
Fang Chang shook his head.
"Never mind me. Didn't he know it himself?"
In fact, long ago, Fang Chang had harbored a premonition that the man who shouted out his name with veins bulging on his neck, holding high the pistol Fang Chang had tossed to him, might meet such an end.
When Fang Chang appointed Rasi head of the Civil Defense Office, everyone accused him of stripping military power over drinks, of promoting him in name while demoting him in practice, of ostensibly praising him while undermining him. Not a single person understood Fang Chang's intentions. He had harbored no sinister schemes at all; he had simply wanted Rasi to learn a bit of political finesse.
Even Rasi himself had not understood at the time. For a long stretch, he drank heavily every day, living like a ruined shell of a man.
Later, he had seemingly experienced an epiphany, not only quitting alcohol but also starting to read books and newspapers.
Yet what a pity.
At that time, Rasi had been bent solely on national salvation, determined to resign and head north. He failed to realize that their true enemy was not the empire that would crumble with a single kick; lurked in the unseen shadows was another force quietly expanding, no less formidable than themselves.
If only he had waited a bit longer, perhaps there might have been a better outcome.
Lao Bai was silent for a moment.
"Yet he went anyway."
Fang Chang nodded, casting his gaze out the window toward the bustling industrial zone.
"He probably stopped caring about living or dying long ago... ever since he first met us."
"We can plant seeds, but we can't guarantee every seed will sprout at the right time. Perhaps it isn't a question of right or wrong, but simply that the time has not yet come..."
Not only had Rasi's time not arrived, but the time for all Brahma people to 'awaken from slumber' had not come either.
Only when every last person snapped awake from the nightmare, carrying the image of a true hero in their hearts, and stopped waiting around to actively strive to become that hero—only then would the nightmare truly end.
Now was not that time.
"Are you going to help them?" Lao Bai asked, looking at him.
Fang Chang pondered for a moment, then shook his head.
"Better not. I even feel... I might have harmed them. Perhaps the Administrator was right. If you do everything right, you have to be prepared for the people who follow you to mess everything up, or else spend your whole life holding up the building blocks so they don't topple. I've been keeping an eye on reports from the rear these past few days. Zayed might well be the most fitting person for that rat hole."
They had moved into a dungeon built with their own hands. Was this ending not a choice they had made themselves?
Lao Bai looked at him in surprise.
"I didn't expect you to be so philosophical about it."
Fang Chang offered a wry smile.
"Things have come to this; what else can I be? Should we turn back around and march in?"
Lao Bai grinned.
"That really isn't realistic."
Though bitter to admit, Zayed had indeed read them correctly.
Brahma Province was the most populous region in the wasteland. The Alliance could not leave it entirely ignored, but neither could it remain stationed there forever.
Still, being read like an open book by a tiny earthworm was no earth-shattering affair.
Kill him?
Hardly.
Since they loved the cesspool so much, they could wallow in it until they died.
That applied equally to Zayed and to those who chose him.
Once an entire generation passed away, their descendants would head to a new examination hall, facing completely new classrooms and questions.
Their future might be bright, or dark, or merely repeat the same cycle anew.
But that was a matter for another day.
Fang Chang let out a sigh and said, "Fortunately, Mammoth State slammed on the brakes in time and returned to the track of military governance."
Even if they developed poorly, they could at worst become another Free State—and now, the Free State's nightmare appeared to be nearing its end as well.
They had never been cut from the same cloth anyway, so there was no need to force them along the Alliance's path, nor had the Alliance ever demanded it of them.
In short: 'Sociology +3.'
Considering how severely technology had regressed across that land, no one should be able to whip up a 'new Red Soil,' right?
Probably.
"Don't back yourself into a corner either. As the saying goes, haste makes waste, and good intentions often pave the way to bad results. Take it easy. Treat it like a game. Maybe when we look back one day, we'll find things aren't as terrible as we thought, and where we walked has already grown into a forest."
Lao Bai chuckled and clapped Fang Chang on the shoulder, then gave him a mischievous wink. "Someone insisted on tagging along with me, and I couldn't talk her out of it. Guess who's here?"
Fang Chang blinked in surprise.
In the brief moment he hesitated, light, brisk footsteps sounded outside the door, followed by a lovely figure in emerald green slipping through the opened crack.
Seeing that familiar, pretty face, Fang Chang's expression filled with astonishment.
"Dolly?! What are you doing here?"
"I'm guessing she's here to keep tabs on you,"
Lao Bai raised a hand with a chuckle, then looked at Dolly and continued in a conversational tone, "I can vouch for him. While my brother Fang Chang faces plenty of temptations, he maintains very solid moral integrity when it comes to relationships."
"Well... I can't quite agree on the moral integrity part, but I do trust this guy."
Dolly raised an eyebrow at Fang Chang with a cocky grin, her eyes shimmering as she looked at him. "Of course, business is business. The Workers' Union reviewed its failures in the Brahma Province region and decided to send out a stronger candidate... Hmph! This time, I'll be your rival!"
*Pfft—!*
Fang Chang nearly choked on his own spit.
Seeing her boyfriend break into coughs, Dolly giggled and skipped over to his side, patting him on the back.
"All right, all right, just kidding! The Workers' Union representative is someone else. I'm here on behalf of the Survivor Daily headquarters to launch our operations! As you've seen, all those bizarre spin-off editions of Survivor Daily are about to eat up our entire market share! Our boss took a terrible tongue-lashing from the Administrator. So now, we plan to personally pioneer operations along the Great Desert coast and across Batoya Province."
"So they dumped this headache on you?" Fang Chang massaged his brow, caught between laughter and tears.
Dolly arched her brows, visibly displeased.
"What do you mean headache? I'm very capable, okay! I fought for this assignment myself!"
"Yes, yes, yes... you're extraordinarily capable." Unwilling to argue the point, Fang Chang raised both hands in defeat. "I surrender."
Dolly huffed in triumph, her expression softening.
"Naturally, newspaper work is only part of it. The truth is... I just missed you."
Fang Chang gazed at her tenderly.
"Dolly..."
The atmosphere in the office gradually turned sappy.
While the two lovers were oblivious to it, Lao Bai, standing to the side, was stuffed to the brim with sweet nonsense, curling his toes so hard in second-hand embarrassment that he could have gouged through the floorboards.
"...I've got a flight to catch to the front lines, so I won't disturb you lovebirds."
Scratching the back of his head, he let out a hasty cough and beat a swift retreat, thoughtfully pulling the door shut behind him as he left.
Only the two of them remained in the office, gazing deeply into each other's eyes.
As their breathing drew closer, the temperature in the room climbed steadily.
Suddenly, as if snapping back to reality, Dolly blushed crimson and pulled away from the embarrassing mood.
"Y-You... watch yourself! Th-This is an office! There are plenty of people right outside; it counts as a public space, after all..."
Watching Dolly's voice grow smaller and her words increasingly incoherent, Fang Chang could not help but smile faintly, putting on a completely innocent face.
"Am I doing anything that can't be done in public?"
On anyone else, such an expression might carry a shred of credibility, but on this old fox, it could only mean pure mischief.
"I... I mean, in case you were going to say something weird again! Not that I know what you were going to say..."
"Such as?"
"L-Like..."
Dolly's face grew so hot steam seemed ready to vent from her ears. The more she babbled her explanation, the worse it sounded, until in the end she was reduced to flustered stammering, unable to form coherent words.
Charmed by her adorable display, Fang Chang found it hard not to laugh. He had intended to quit while he was ahead, but Dolly, thoroughly embarrassed and angry, suddenly bared her little canines and pounced, grabbing his arm and biting down hard.
"Such as my foot!"
The tussle lasted half an hour, clattering noises ringing out nonstop through the office.
Neither of them had expected that at their age, they would still have the chance to romp around like children.
Looking at the row of teeth marks on his arm, Fang Chang feigned agony, wincing and grimacing for quite some time.
"...Were you born in the year of the dog?"
Catching her breath, Dolly shot him a glare of bashful indignation and turned her head away.
Just then, she noticed the distinctive frame on the nearby bookshelf.
"Is that your sidearm?"
"No. It belonged to a friend of mine."
"A friend?" Dolly tilted her head, curiosity in her eyes.
"Yes. His name was Rasi."
Looking at the frame preserving so many memories, Fang Chang sat in his office chair and gently stroked Dolly's emerald hair, recounting the story of that friend.
It was truly a tale of drifting through trials and tribulations.
A band of hot-blooded youths had resolved to become people rather than slaves, risking their lives to do what everyone else dared only imagine.
They had triumphed over the empire, triumphed over the Wilantes, and very nearly triumphed over themselves.
The legendary journey sounded just like a novel, and Dolly soon found herself completely entranced.
By the time Fang Chang took notice, tears already brimmed in her sentimental eyes.
Wiping her eyes with her sleeve, Dolly stared straight at Fang Chang and said earnestly, "I want to write a novel about him... or rather, a biography, serialized in the Great Desert West Coast edition of Survivor Daily."
Long ago, she had worked as Sberg's editor, contributing her own effort to the tale of *Bole the Awakener*.
Now, that fierce urge welled up within her once more, and she could hardly wait for the story brewing in her mind to be born into the world!
If no one else was willing to write this story, she would take up the pen herself!
Fang Chang teased with a laugh, "You haven't even launched the main edition yet, and you're already scheming a serialized spin-off?"
Dolly curled her lips in confident amusement.
"What's wrong with that? In the early days at Boulder City, Survivor Daily made its name precisely through the novels serialized in the Mercenary Gazette and the Workers' Newspaper! Oh, right, I'll need to consult you on some of the finer details. You'll help Miss Dolly, won't you, Mr. Fang Chang?"
Fang Chang smiled warmly.
"Gladly."
Someone in Golden Gallon Port had seemingly already written a biography of Rasi, but those accounts were mostly fabricated. They read more like looking up at a cloud-shrouded peak from the foot of a mountain—lacking insider knowledge and sketchy on details.
Those authors either subjectively painted him as a power-hungry tyrant, or heaped excessive expectations upon him, portraying him as a self-sacrificing idealist.
In truth, neither was accurate.
That man had never been anyone but himself—
A slave who stood beneath a thousand totem poles, let loose a deafening roar, shook off his chains, and straightened his knees.
Fang Chang had entertained thoughts of writing a book for Rasi these past few days. Since Dolly wanted to do it, letting her take the reins was perfect; he could supply details through oral accounts.
Come to think of it, what should the book be called?
*The Rise of Rasi*?
Or perhaps...
*A Decisive and Benevolent Monarch*?
*Bole the Awakener* had once influenced countless Brahma people in Golden Gallon Port and West Sail Port. One could only wonder what kind of chemical reaction this novel would spark across the Great Desert.
Looking at those sparkling eyes, Fang Chang suddenly felt an ever-growing anticipation in his heart.
...
Mammoth City.
As the Great Purge progressed, the flames of turmoil ultimately scorched their way into the campuses.
Gail, who just days ago had bragged about his father's 'foresight,' was now scared out of his wits. He hid in his dormitory all day, not daring to step outside, relying entirely on his 'number-one lackey' and roommate Nayak to bring him meals.
Placing the meal box brought from the cafeteria onto the table, Nayak could not help but laugh at the sight of Gail curled up in a ball on the bed.
"You really don't need to be this terrified. No matter how crazy they get, they won't touch people who didn't take part in the riots."
Gail stammered in terror, "...H-Have you heard about Document 1500?"
He now thoroughly regretted bragging and letting slip to Nayak that his father was a high-ranking official in the Family Association.
If this guy leaked so much as a single word, Gail would likely follow in the footsteps of those low-level 'family members.'
"...I heard about it. I even heard the judge in court wet his pants in fear." Looking at the terrified Gail, Nayak merely offered a calm smile.
Naturally, he would not sell the guy out.
After all, he was still counting on this fellow to accomplish great things.
Looking at his little lackey with immense gratitude, Gail crawled out from under his quilt, sat at the table, and wolfed down the boxed meal.
Satiated, he let out a burp. Seeing that Nayak had already opened a book to study, he could not resist asking, "Why aren't you afraid...?"
"Because I have a clean conscience. Why fear ghosts knocking at the door?" Nayak replied impassively, turning a page of his physics textbook.
Gail watched him nervously, unable to stop himself from whispering, "Nayak... I..."
Nayak said patiently, "I know. I won't sell you out. Just stop dwelling on it all day and slipping up with your own mouth; if you do that, no one will be able to save you. If you ask me, rather than wasting your time on that, you'd be better off thinking about something else. You're a man destined for great things... Remember what I told you?"
Gail nodded hastily.
"I know. I'll take good care of your parents... I swear..."
"And what else?"
"Wh-What else?"
"When you get back, keep your head down. Cower as much as you can. If someone wants to beat you, drop straight to the ground and imagine yourself as a squishy maggot..."
Cold sweat broke out across Gail's forehead. Looking at Nayak, who was casually flipping pages, he said sheepishly, "Can I not go back?"
Living so wretchedly sounded worse than dying.
Nayak let out a soft chuckle.
"Of course you can. As long as you want your father, the respected General Pickli, to become the next Isher, you certainly don't have to go back. I'm sure that with how much he dotes on you, he wouldn't blame you. So... do you want to choose that path?"
Nayak's own father was merely a peasant, thousands of miles removed from the core of power in Tiandu, and endowed with a peasant's cunning. At worst, life ahead would be a little harsher; he would not end up dead.
But Gail's father was entirely different. That man had half a foot planted squarely inside the inner circle of power.
After hearing Nayak's words, Gail fell silent for a long time.
He could not bear to lose his father, nor could he bear to part with power that seemed within arm's reach.
After a long while, he spoke.
"...You said I'll become Emperor?"
Nayak turned another page and stated with absolute certainty, "Your turn will come. Mark my words."
Gail suddenly broke into a breezy smile, returned to sit on his bed, and wrapped the quilt around his shoulders.
"Then there's nothing to be afraid of... At worst, when I take power in the future, I'll slaughter every last one of their households."
Seeing this cheerful, sunny youth utter such bloodthirsty words, Nayak nodded with a smile.
"That will be your own business."
Night fell, and a commotion broke out beneath the international students' dormitory. Soldiers carrying rifles suddenly surrounded the building.
Gail, who had just fallen asleep, was yanked from his bed by a soldier. His ruddy complexion instantly drained to ash.
"It wasn't me—"
Nayak, held by another soldier, shot him a frantic wink, hinting at him to shut his mouth and keep his head down.
Gail immediately ceased begging, letting the soldier drag him from the bed with a pale face.
The two soldiers who entered to round them up did not interrogate them. They simply hauled them downstairs with murderous scowls, herding them alongside the other international students from the State of Brahma.
A crowd of half-grown youths in pajamas stood shivering in the biting wind.
Though this was a subtropical region, the winter wind still carried a bitter chill.
The officer leading the detachment wasted no words. Looking at Meng Jie standing nearby, he said with a frosty expression, "All the students from the State of Brahma are here. Take whoever you want; the rest will be shipped back to wherever they crawled out from."
Jokale's 11th Myriad had already opened fire across the Tasang River, and both sides had severed all official and civilian exchanges.
That included the joint educational program.
Spotting Principal Meng standing amid the soldiers, the children's eyes reddened instantly, and they cried out pitifully.
"Save us, Principal!"
"Principal Meng!"
"Please save us!"
Looking at these young faces, Meng Jie felt a pang of heartache. These children represented all the blood and sweat he and Niyang had poured into the school.
"All of you, come with me. I'll take you to Dawn City to study... Don't touch these muddy waters!"
Several students ran over.
Seeing that the soldiers did not open fire, another dozen or so trickled over, but about a hundred still remained where they stood.
Among them were undergraduate and preparatory students. Either their fathers held official posts in Tiandu like Gail's, leaving them no choice but to return, or they were like Nayak, whose parents hoped they would return to take up official positions, or who held too many attachments back home to walk away.
Nayak seemed to have anticipated this day; without the slightest surprise, he embraced Gail beside him and patted his 'good brother's' shoulder.
"Don't be too nervous. Principal Meng probably brought people from the Alliance to receive us this time. Shawa will definitely let you cross the border safely; you can take my word on that."
Gail shuddered involuntarily.
"Take care of yourself... Come back whenever you miss home."
Nayak smiled and nodded.
"You too. Take care!"
Parting from the reluctant Gail, Nayak bid hasty farewells to other familiar classmates, then strode briskly toward Principal Meng Jie.
There was not a shred of hesitation in his heart; he could already foresee the fates of the vast majority among them—
This would likely be the last time they ever saw each other, with no chance of meeting again in the future.
...
[Wasteland Era, January 2, Year 215: The First Human Congress concluded. Absaik returned to Brahma Province, secluded himself behind closed doors at the State of Brahma Embassy in Golden Gallon Port upon landing.]
[Night of January 4: Gopal led the Gray Wolf Army to escort Commissioner Shahrukh into Tiandu. Myriarch Pickli the 'Butcher' led Tiandu's soldiers and citizens in lining the streets to welcome them!]
[Morning of January 8: Zayed entered Tiandu and delivered a victory speech regarding the counteroffensive against the Southern Legion. On the same day, the Gray Wolf Army surrounded the Legislative Council. Sava, second-in-command of the Family Association, addressed the assembly, declaring the abolition of the grain excise tax and issuing a cat ban, calling on family members to mobilize and cull all domestic and stray cats across the city.]
[Noon of January 10: The Commission officially announced the resolution to remove Absaik. Shahrukh delivered an inaugural address, assuming the positions of Supreme Commissioner and Grand Marshall.]
[Noon of January 11: Gopal, Commander-in-Chief of the Gray Wolf Army, was appointed First Marshal of the State of Brahma by Shahrukh!]
[January 13: An unexpected incident unfolded during the decoration ceremony! Gopal brushed aside Shahrukh's hand and pinned the medal onto his own chest!]
[Morning of January 17: Shahrukh, Grand Marshall and Supreme Commissioner of the State of Brahma, was arrested by the Tiandu Guards! Rumors allege his illicit dealings with the Southern Legion during his time in Snake State, as well as involvement in snake grass trafficking!]
[January 18: The Commission released its latest research report, reconfirming that the grain excise tax was an unreasonable extortion, but arguing that reforms should not swing too far; instead, the tax could be extended to non-essential goods such as cloth, livestock, spices, and fuel, framing it as a benevolent measure to 'turn the rich man's hair oil into cooking oil for the poor man's pot.']
[January 20: Grand Marshall Shahrukh pleaded guilty! He confessed to colluding with the Southern Legion! Sava, second-in-command of the Family Association, convened another meeting, reiterating that the Family Association was merely a disaster-relief organization that only represented family members in overseeing the Tiandu Union, and invited Absaik to return to Tiandu to preside over the broader situation!]
Golden Gallon Port, State of Brahma Embassy.
Looking at the scrapbook of newspaper clippings he had assembled himself, Absaik's face was painted with deep emotion.
"How times have changed... Not even a few days have passed, and they already want me back to take charge."
Having nothing to do over these past days, he sat in this study drinking tea and reading newspapers from morning to night. Finding himself truly at loose ends, he asked for a notebook, clipped the major news from each day's papers, and pasted them inside, intending to compile them into memoirs for publication when he grew old.
Sitting opposite him, Anwo wore an ambiguous smile.
"Why don't you go, then?"
Absaik cursed with a laugh, "I may not be clever, but I'm no fool either. And you, you slippery rascal—I thought I'd never see you again, yet here I am under your roof, depending on your hospitality."
Anwo smiled faintly and said, "The Grand Marshall jokes... Had I actually followed your orders back then and purged that church, would you still be sitting here chatting and laughing with me now?"
Absaik fell silent, turning his gaze toward the window, and mumbled, "Sins, sins... That was never my order; let no wandering ghosts come looking for me. Truth be told, that matter can't be blamed on me anyway—it was all Janusz's command. I handed it to you precisely because I believed your smooth handling would resolve it properly—"
"No matter how much nonsense you spout, dead men can't pry open their coffin lids and climb back out." Glancing at the superstitious fellow, Anwo remarked drily, "It's fine for you to wash your hands and walk away, but the rest will have to stay behind and suffer."
Hearing those prickly words, Absaik felt a pang in his chest. After struggling for a while, he let out a long sigh.
"Regarding Isher... I am truly sorry. That fellow was a good man. When I heard of his death, I was as heartbroken as you. But you must have realized by now: he was bent on dying. What could either of us have done?"
Anwo fell silent as well.
That man could certainly have escaped had he wanted to.
Then again, if he had simply turned and walked away, he would no longer have been himself.
Absaik remained quiet too.
It had been a checkmate from the start.
Even if he had not given Zayed that letter of appointment back then, the final outcome would not have differed in the least.
Shahrukh would not have abandoned his backstabbing schemes just because he lacked Zayed's support; the Eastern Empire would still have entered the fray. In the end, it would simply have been Absaik fighting Shahrukh, or fighting others, seeing how long he could hold out with that stubborn obsession in his heart.
A single remark from the Chief of the Great Ravine had enlightened him, allowing him to let go of everything he previously could not surrender and climb out of the dried well that had once trapped him.
Having led the Brahma people to halt the Southern Legion's invasion, his historic mission was complete.
No one could accompany them to the end of history.
To brush the dust from one's clothes and vanish into obscurity—that was what he ought to do.
"...Still, I never imagined that with all of Shahrukh's scheming, he would be taken down so easily."
Looking at the wistful Absaik, Anwo took a sip of black tea and said, "Nothing surprising about that. Wasn't Janusz shot dead on his throne by a nobody like me? Strip away the power struggles behind the scenes and tell the story on its own, and hardly anyone would believe it either."
"True enough," Absaik sighed softly. "Still, that fellow was too clever for his own good. He actually fantasized about becoming my successor, treating me like a dying Janusz while failing to realize that from beginning to end, our treacherous pack of rats was all in the same boat. None of us could manage without the others, and none of us could truly finish off the rest."
Together, they had made up Janusz.
As for now, they were nothing.
The poisonous snake had slithered into Tiandu and the cage had dropped shut; not a single gluttonous rat would escape.
Looking at the photographs on the newspaper clippings and the miserable expressions of several old acquaintances, Absaik was overwhelmed by sentiment.
He felt no pity for that sly fox Shahrukh; whatever death befell that man was well deserved, and it would be best if he did not die easily.
The only one he truly felt for was Sir Kabaha.
That man had nearly been put to the sword by Janusz, and Absaik had managed to spare the old fellow from the blade only with great difficulty.
Though Kabaha had cursed him harshly and lacked political tact, keeping the bowl overly balanced, anyone could see that the old man genuinely loved this land from the bottom of his heart.
Now that 'Janusz' had returned, who knew how that madman would torment him.
Seeing Absaik still lost in reminiscence, Anwo cleared his throat softly.
"...Stop living in the past. Since you can't return to Tiandu, what are your plans for the future?"
He had heard that the Golden Gallon Port Union wanted to recruit Absaik to reclaim Tiandu from the Family Association.
If Absaik intended to pursue that path and remain in politics, Anwo would not need to fret over his own future either.
He could simply follow the man.
Absaik pondered for a moment, then uttered words entirely contrary to Anwo's expectations.
"I met quite a few people at the Human Congress. When it comes to cleverness... not to brag, but they really aren't a match for you and me."
Before Anwo could process that, Absaik continued, "Brahma Province has no shortage of clever people anymore; what it needs are some un-clever fools. I won't wade into these muddy waters again. Let the younger generation finish this half-played game of chess."
"You're just washing your hands of it?" Anwo stared at him in disbelief, looking at this former Grand Marshall.
Absaik merely offered an easygoing grin.
"I'm done with it! Speaking of which, I made plans with Si Wen, the representative from the South Sea Alliance, to visit their territory and share a few drinks before long."
Moreover, while attending the conference, he had heard the great figures mention that once the New Era arrived, aerospace would soon become a booming enterprise.
The new track was already laid out in plain sight, and having participated in the Human Congress, he was fortunate enough to have glimpsed 'heaven's secrets.'
Perhaps he could establish a company and lead the clever people of Brahma Province to pursue something far more meaningful.
As for the name of the company, let's call it 'Abu Aerospace'!
Chapter 962