novelnext Chapter 161 : Workers of the World, Fight (1)
Chapter 161 : Workers of the World, Fight (1)
Chapter 161: Workers of the World, Fight (1)
After returning to the conference room, we quickly wrapped up the discussion.
I also heard the detailed exposure plan and their goals afterward.
“Starting this Wednesday, we’ll begin exposing everything through two media outlets.”
The grace period was one week.
“If they acknowledge all charges during that time and accept our demands, we intend to settle for the minimum level of legal punishment.”
The “demands” Maximilian presented as the representative of Greenwhistle were as follows.
First, the Bernhardt Family must acknowledge all the atrocities they had committed against workers and servants and publicly announce them through official documents.
Second, they must return all technologies and patents that Bernhardt had forcibly stolen during the process.
Third, ninety percent of their assets must be returned to society. To prevent unfair distribution, half of it would be operated in the form of a civic foundation.
Fourth, the 944 servants currently continuing exploitative labor under Bernhardt must be freed, and if the individuals wished, they would be rehired as official employees.
Fifth, Edgar Bernhardt and Mikhail Bernhardt must be stripped of their authority as Head and Vice Head of the family, and those rights delegated to someone else. The next Head of the family would be decided through a vote by all members of Bernhardt.
“…Hmm.”
There wasn’t much difference from the proposal I had once suggested to Robert in Karbenna.
“There’s no chance Bernhardt will accept this. Naturally, we’ll proceed to the next stage.”
“And the next stage is…?”
“Yes. Revolution.”
“…….”
I had expected it would eventually lead in this direction.
I touched the corner of my mouth before cautiously asking,
“…Are you saying this as citizens of the Ribenia Empire as well?”
“…Who knows.”
“I fully agree with punishing Bernhardt. But if that goes beyond Bernhardt’s collapse and leads to the collapse of the aristocratic system itself… I don’t think I can agree with that.”
At that, Maximilian tilted his head as though surprised.
“The current system has done nothing but shackle you, Eugene Carter.”
“That’s true.”
An arrogant genius reformer from a fallen house.
That was the simplest way to define the past Eugene Carter.
The reason he cried out for reform was because he disliked the current system that much.
In fact, most of Eugene’s adolescence had been spent fighting the system.
Afterward, he moved his stage onto the battlefield and continued distinguishing himself there.
But individual struggle had its limits.
No matter how brilliant one’s ideas were, without sufficient scale, they could never lead to social transformation.
Ironically… that was precisely why I had survived until now while merely being treated as an eccentric.
If I had gone beyond dissatisfaction with the system and genuinely tried organizing a movement for large-scale change, the Eugene Carter of today would never have existed.
And I knew very well.
The revolution they spoke of would never reach a better conclusion than the current system.
“Does it really have to happen now? In this era where everything is already overflowing with chaos, that so-called ‘Citizen Revolution’ you’re talking about?”
“…It’s surprising hearing you say that.”
Maximilian alternated his gaze between us before abruptly rising from his seat and passionately speaking.
“In peaceful times, heroes cannot exist. It’s only in an age of chaos that heroes are born.”
That applied not only to individuals, but organizations as well.
“Our organization was born because the era itself desires change. Inevitably so.”
“And within that transformation, countless people will die. Including the workers you care about so deeply.”
“That too is inevitable.”
“Do the ones being sacrificed feel the same way?”
“If it’s a sacrifice for the future, they’ll gladly accept it.”
“…….”
This conversation was going nowhere.
The Platinum Dawn Society, the Resistance, Greenwhistle.
At their core, all of them denied the Empire’s very existence.
Their specific stances differed, but to them, the Imperial Household and the nobility were merely obstacles hindering national progress.
There was no way persuasion from an elite born into nobility would work on people like them.
As I stared at him speechlessly, he waved his hand as though unable to understand my reaction and asked,
“Then let me ask you the opposite. When you decided to fight Dellowell… didn’t you expect there would be casualties because of it?”
“I did.”
“Then why did you proceed? It’s not as though you obtained consent from every single person involved.”
“Because I was certain we’d gain something greater than those sacrifices.”
“That’s our reason as well. This is something we can only do now, so we’re staking our lives on it.”
“Even if… only destruction awaits at the end?”
“…Then the completion of the revolution will simply have to be left to future generations. That’s not such a bad bargain either.”
The answer of someone who had already made up his mind did not change.
‘Just moments ago, he was saying I should kill him if he turned out to be wrong.’
Well, for this man, that was probably his final line of defense.
I let out a deep sigh and nodded.
“I understand your position.”
“…Ah, so you’ll join us?”
“No. We’ll continue acting on our own.”
For a while, it would probably look like we were maintaining a united front.
During Bernhardt’s downfall, we would benefit from each other.
Afterward, we might suddenly become enemies… but that couldn’t be helped.
This was an ideological issue. When people looked upon entirely different landscapes, how could they possibly speak of the same future?
Still, through this contact, I had confirmed a considerable amount regarding the stance of the organizations under the Platinum Dawn Society, so as a short-term result, this was more than enough.
“Well then, it seems we’ve roughly finished talking… shall we get going?”
As I stood up, Rubia rose with me.
Seeing Michel, who still looked like she had more to say, I grabbed Rubia’s hand and pulled her along.
“…Lord Eugene?”
“They probably still have things left to discuss.”
As I walked outside, I sank into thought.
The countless ideas and plans flooding my mind were stacking together one by one in orderly sequence.
---
“…….”
“…….”
A heavy silence filled the room.
Perhaps because she was bothered by the fact that she had lost her composure and shed tears earlier, Michel merely scratched her forehead with an expression unlike her usual self.
“…Master, are you in the same camp as that young man?”
Unable to endure the silence, Maximilian spoke first after all.
“You deny Bernhardt, but support the aristocratic system?”
“…Yes.”
Michel pondered briefly before firmly shaking her head.
“There’s no need for a class called nobles.”
What mattered was a future where more people could be happy.
But—
“I can’t support the revolution you’re trying to create either.”
Back when the Bernhardt Family was first established, they had been a proper elite group with genuine principles.
They appeared during the Empire’s early days and led its prosperity in cooperation with the Imperial Household.
In recognition of those achievements, they were granted numerous territories and secured a firm position within the assembly.
There were many reasons why they eventually became corrupted, but in the end, the biggest reason was that they no longer had rivals.
“If you drive out all the nobles and distribute their wealth to the citizens… do you think exploiters will disappear too?”
“That’s…”
“To rule and conquer. That’s human instinct, isn’t it? Even if social classes disappear, money will simply take their place. You know that.”
“That’s why we need a new system to prevent—”
“Who knows. I don’t know what kind of system you’re imagining, but before it settles into place, the Beasts will probably wipe humanity out.”
“…….”
Toward the former servant who had fallen silent, Michel continued in a firmer tone.
“It’s fine to risk your life for the future, Maxy.”
It was both a warning and a plea.
“But don’t risk your life just to destroy Bernhardt. There’s no need for that.”
“…You mustn’t think those recordings from before will be enough. They’ll deny everything and try to escape somehow. Just like they always have.”
“Do you really think… that’s the only card I have?”
“……Master?”
Michel pulled out an old paper folded four times from her chest and carefully placed it on the table.
“I’m going to give them one last chance.”
To her, it was a copy more important than the original itself.
“They absolutely won’t accept it.”
It symbolized her will—the single strand of hope she had never let go of despite nearly twenty years of neglect and oppression.
“And because of that, they’ll destroy themselves.”
Suddenly, she recalled the final conversation she had shared with Johann long ago.
That day, she chose the hope she carried within herself rather than her grandfather’s words.
If she was wrong, she thought she could simply die as she was.
Even while dying after being caught in a scheme, Johann only worried about his granddaughter’s future.
Reality is almost always disappointing, Michel.
Hope is both the driving force that keeps us alive and the enemy that drags us into even greater despair.
But I believe this.
If you continue living without losing that hope and keep it within your heart—
Someday, you will surely find the meaning of your birth.
At the very least, the world this old man lived through was like that.
It was both his final words and his final lesson.
The plea of the grandfather who had been the only person within Bernhardt to support her.
“I don’t think I managed to live exactly according to those teachings… but I still made it this far.”
Was the curse placed upon the young girl fate, or was it a trial?
Whichever it was, her story was now heading toward its conclusion.
“When I finally place the period at the end… I wonder what kind of ‘meaning of birth’ I’ll come to accept. Watch over me until then.”
When that time came, she felt she would finally be able to confess sincerely.
To those who abandoned her, to those who protected her, and to those she would protect.
---
While the former master and former servant shared their emotional reunion—
I used the brief intermission to ask Rubia about the miracle back then.
“How did you observe my future self?”
“…….”
“Even if I become a divine being in the future, recognizing that existence in the present and performing Deification are completely different matters.”
Rubia’s answer was surprisingly simple.
“I observed the future through Episode Gazer. The one and only future where you became a divine being.”
“…Out of how many possibilities?”
“I couldn’t see them all due to time constraints… but I’m certain it was one among more than ten thousand.”
As she recalled that moment, she clenched her fist tightly.
“The most important thing for Deification is unwavering faith.”
What I wanted to see wasn’t your future, but rather your past that I didn’t know.
“The achievements you built up in Karbenna and within the Special Task Force, the one fatal mistake and despair. Even so, you stood up again and ultimately seized your life.”
Only after acknowledging every single side of you could I finally revere you.
“As the god named Eugene Carter.”
“…….”
Her expression overflowed with conviction.
Looking at her, I asked one more question.
“The me you encountered in the future… what did the world… look like?”
“…The moment I tell you that, that future will disappear.”
So this is all I can say.
“It looked radiant. Very much so.”
“…That’s the best answer I could’ve hoped for.”
“Is it?”
Seeing her smile so brightly made me smile as well.
For a while, we simply exchanged smiles like that.
And it was precisely then that the conference room door creaked open.
“Let’s head back. To Karbenna.”