Chapter 273

Where a speaker catches Tara's attention and Logan shows his true colors....

This chapter is dedicated to MagzO! Thank you for your support and comment!

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Episode 273. About Six Months (3)

The room, which had been buzzing earlier, was filled with the speaker's voice. It was clear, and moderately paced, with a controlled and compelling intonation.

When he got to a long sentence, he’d suddenly stomp his foot or let out a surprisingly loud exclamation to get the room's attention.

I watched him without blinking.

I took a good long look because I wasn't sure. But no matter how much I thought about it, it was him. This high-pitched somewhat creepy voice that sounded like nails on a chalkboard. How could I ever forget it?

I decided to double check.

"Do you happen to... Do you know who that speaker is?"

"Only the executives know, and I am one of them, so, of course I do. Why?"

"Because I think I've heard that voice before...."

"Really? Who do you think it is?" Logan asked with an interested glance.

"Isn't he a secretary in the Treasury? Hans Button, who took the test with me."

And so, it was. The last speaker at Logan's gathering, the Enlightened Young Lords Society, was Hans Button.

".... I can't believe you recognized him just by listening to his voice."

Logan's voice was the most surprised I'd ever heard it, so I purposefully played it off, like it was no big deal.

"He took first place in the exam, so I remember."

"Yes, he’s a brilliant man. Besides, he's rumored to be good at his job, so I thought you might know.... Hmm. Still keep this to yourself. He isn't wearing a mask for no reason."

Logan's tone hardened somewhat.

"Yes. I'll do that...."

Hans was being treated like a very important person by the club, but what was his purpose?

Why did I keep seeing him in the most unexpected places? My mind was a tangle of threads.

I took a thirsty sip of my beer. One thing was certain, he was speaking under a mask, hiding his identity.

The fact that Logan was putting up with it wasn't a good sign.

The intuition that it would most likely be Logan who would bring down the House in six months' time, either with or because of Hans, hit me like a ton of bricks.

I blinked hard a couple of times, my mind going blank.

Get a grip! At times like these, I needed to focus!

I immediately concentrated on Hans's speech.

And my brow furrowed as his words began to make sense.

What kind of crazy sophistry was this?

"Come on. Have a drink everyone and make yourselves comfortable. Ladies and Gentlemen of the great imperial nobility, members of the Enlightened Young Lord Society and their families.

“The people of Oceria are great people, and the bloodline of the Divine Founding Empire of Heia, which forms the backbone of the Imperial Aristocracy, is of such ethnic excellence that there are no words to describe it.

“Countless thinkers and artists have written nostalgically about the Heian era, leaving innumerable stories for posterity. Although the Divine Empire of Heia fell to foreign invasions, we are fortunate that its bloodline has been passed down through the nobility who form the core of the Ocerian Empire. What I'm about to tell you today about these remarkable people is for the sake of the prosperous future of our Ocerian Empire.

“Three thousand years ago, the Heian Empire was inspired by noble ideas and philosophies that embraced those different from them, laughing at the barbarism of the heathens. The just Heian nobles had faith they could reform those savages, a faith that soon became the spark of their destruction. In truth, I wish I could travel back in time and speak to the ruler of the Divine Empire. I would beg him to quickly abandon that pure faith, ladies and gentlemen. Hahahaha."

‘What's so funny?’

But somewhere inside, I laughed along with Hans, joining in.

Button paused for a moment then suddenly began to speak so forcefully that my ears rang.

The crowd was so intensely focused they seemed to have forgotten the beer in their hands.

“The Enlightened Young Lords and their families here today are all descendants of that noble bloodline. Although, technically, some blood may have been tainted by the Amurites, but as descendants of the Heian Empire we've accepted this graciously. Up until now, the Empire has been ruled by the Amure Imperial Family, who swallowed up the Heian Divine Empire in a single gulp. That’s fine, since it was done by the grace of the Heian nobility, our ancestors.

“But gentlemen, this power was put in their hands by our benevolence. From the moment they mistakenly thought that the seat of power they possess was theirs originally, they became arrogant and brazen, shamelessly thinking it is their birthright. So it is our duty, as Enlightened Young Lords, to collectively advise them for the sake of the Empire's future. The ignorant citizens follow blindly, unaware of what is going on, and we must enlighten them alongside the greedy foreigners who steal the Empire’s resources, so they know who the righteous owners of the Empire truly are.

“An Empire is not built alone, my friends. We, the Chosen People of the Divine State, are the Empire, and the Empire is us. The time to enlighten the ignorant citizenry and rehabilitate the arrogant Amure dynasty is now. As one plus one is two, and two more are four, and four plus another four is eight, when like minded people come together, we will soon be an Empire, the Sun of the Future, ALL OF US!”

"Woooooaahh!"

A thunderous roar accompanied the applause.

Goosebumps broke all over my body and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. A cold sweat raced down my spine. I stumbled backwards without realizing it.

He was mad. Totally crazy.

He was inciting a very dangerous idea, wrapped in a very convincing package!

Saying that 'only our blood and race are superior'.

‘He won’t stop there, he’ll try to ‘enlighten’ the entire world’... Damn. He was just like that war criminal!

Bernard grabbed my shoulder as I stumbled, and when I looked up at him, he looked around the roaring room, with a more serious expression than I’d ever seen on him.

I put down my beer and saw Logan among the smiling and clapping people.

He was nodding and clapping as well.

That was when I was filled with absolute certainty.

Damn it. It was Logan. Logan was part of the nobles who associated with Hans in the conspiracy to assassinate the Second Prince. We would be all dragged to the gallows and, in the end....

"Why do you look so serious?" Logan asked.

I had to stop him somehow. Logan must have felt my stare because he looked right down at me.

"Huh? Oh, no. It's probably because it's a little stuffy in here, I don't feel too good."

I quickly changed my stern expression, and Logan asked me in a slightly beer-slurred voice, "What did you think of the speech?"

I tried my best to keep my voice steady but couldn't help the slight tremble at the end.

"Well. I don't know, it was a little abstract. The way he talks makes him sound like a trailblazer."

"I can't believe he's thinking like that at his age."

"You think it's great?"

"Of course. No noble has ever spoken so bluntly against the Amure Imperial Family before. Everyone is trying to look good in front of them, and, as you know, most of the Empire's nobles are of Heian blood. Besides, that gentleman doesn't just talk the talk."

The story of the Divine Heian Empire was a complete myth. Myths are surreal stories passed down through generations. Button was using them to incite people into believing in things that were never true.

Besides 'that gentleman'? Had Hans already wound-up Logan around his finger? *

OK 저분 means he, that man, that gentleman in a very polite form, so it is a mark of respect coming from Logan who has little respect for most people. I'll put a note.

"And?"

"I heard he's given back all his fortune to the community. Especially to help many noble families who have fallen on hard times and the younger members of our club, eager and ambitious but lacking in capital. He's built several orphanages in the provinces, doing what the Empire should have done. He's a man of action, truly. There's a lot to learn from him."

‘Madness. Is this how he hooks people?’

"Have you ever met him personally?"

"He's a busy man, so I don't get to see him very often. Only during events like these."

He was nearly worshipping him. The good news was that they hadn’t interacted personally yet.

***

May 15th.

For the first time in a long time, I was making my way to the Central Military Department conference room for mid-level officers after being assigned to record the meeting minutes.

"I've been to many other departments lately, but it’s been quite a while since I've been to the Military Administration."

Any hope of seeing Kyle had long since faded as I had been told he was constantly travelling.

Two months and twenty days had passed since Kyle had met me in my room and I hadn't seen him since we crossed paths in the Central Palace hallway.

Honestly, I didn't want to see him again. Not with that nonchalant expression on his face.

I was already trying to figure out how to get Logan away from Hans and how to find the map. The last thing I needed was to face Kyle's indifference.

"Even though I know his indifference is just a facade... I don't like it."

***

Inside the conference room in the Central Military Department. Afternoon.

My hands were cramping while I took meeting minutes in a conference room filled with 20 mid-level military officers.

As I was sweating over an officer who spoke in a muddled way, the door suddenly opened, and the room was shocked into silence. Then I heard a chair being pulled out.

Naturally, I looked up.

"....!"

Second Prince Kyle. My boyfriend, looking more handsome than ever, walked into the meeting room.

As the officers started to stand in salute, Kyle stopped them.

"Don't mind me and keep going."

Editor's Note -

*Here Tara's comment protains to polite formulations. 저분 means 'he, that man, that gentleman' in a very polite form, so it is a mark of respect coming from Logan who has little respect for most people, thus Tara's surprise.

On a personal note, this chapter has been hell to edit for various reasons.

The subject matter isn't easy, and Hans suffers from verbal diarrheoa. The original text from the second part of his speech looked like this: "지금 이곳에 오신 깨어 있는 젊 은 영식들과 그의 가족들은 모두 그 고귀한 핏줄을 이어받은 분들이십니 다. 물론 엄밀히 따지자면 안이한 마 음으로 혼탁해진 핏줄이 있을 수 있 으나 우리는 헤이아 신국의 후손답 게 너그러이 받아들였습니다. 지금껏 제국은 헤이아 신국을 단 숨에 집어삼킨 아무르 황가에 의해 좌지우지되어 왔습니다. 뭐. 그거야 괜찮습니다. 그 또한 우리 헤이아 신국의 후손들인 제국 귀족들의 너 그러움이었습니다. 그러나! 여러분. 우리가 저들의 손 에 쥐어 준 권좌가 우리의 배려인 줄 모르고 어느 순간부터 저들은 그 권좌가 자신들의 태곳적 권리인 줄 착각하여 교만하고, 오만하며 뻔뻔 하기 이를 데 없습니다. 하여 우리는, 이 깨어 있는 제국 의 귀족들은 다 함께 제국의 앞날을 위해 그들을 깨우쳐 주어야 합니다. 무지한 시민들은 이러한 속사정을 모르고 맹목적으로 따라가니 그들을 깨우쳐야 하며 탐욕스러운 외지인들 은 이 제국의 진정한 주인이 누구인 줄 모르고 제국의 물자를 앗아가니 그들 탐욕의 목을 졸라야 합니다. 여러분, 제국은 홀로 만들어지는 것이 아닙니다. 신국으로부터 선택받은 민족인 우 리가 곧 제국이며 제국이 곧 우리입 니다. 이 무지몽매한 시민들을 깨우치고 오만한 아무르를 갱생할 수 있는 시 기는 바로 지금입니다. 하나가 모이면 둘이 되고 둘이 더 모이면 넷이 되고, 넷이 더 모이면 여덟이 되듯 뜻을 함께하는 우리가 한자리에 모이면 곧 우리는 제국이 되고 미래의 태양이 될 것입니다, 여러부우우운!”

Thanks to @Rina we made it more palatable and readable, but I still wanted to show you all the original so you can understand, not the editing hell I've been through, but the feeling of daze that Hans's speech enticed in the crowd and its consequences.

Also does Hans ever breathe?

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