Chapter 85: The Tail End of Winter The Progen Republic, located in the west. Separated from the Empire by three other nations, it stood as a center of art and culture.
Jean Pierre, a professor in the Department of Political Science and Sociology at Progen National University, pointed to a photograph projected onto the silver screen.
"The Adeline Murder Case. A secretary from the Governor-General's office had picked a fight with an ordinary university student from Genen on the street. Perhaps the secretary had made an unwanted advance, and Adeline rejected him. Regardless of the specifics, a clash broke out between their groups, and the secretary drew a pistol from his waist."
Bang.
He mimicked the sound of a gunshot with his mouth.
"That single shot pulled the trigger on the armed protests."
The theme of this lecture was the 'Genen Suppression Incident,' an event that had become a major issue across the continent.
Hundreds of students filling the tiered lecture hall listened in breathless silence.
"Genen flared up with intense chaos in a very short amount of time."
The professor drew a circle in the air with the tip of his pen.
"As I always say, mana is 'human power'—more dangerous than any firearm. While the nature and attributes of mana vary from person to person, they share one commonality: mana ungoverned by emotion always spreads like wildfire."
Whoosh. Mana flowed from the professor's fingertips.
"University students in Genen, mages living in hiding, and others who sought the depths of mana rose up against the garrison. The city fell into instant turmoil."
The mana moved like a living thing, forming numbers.
59 and 187.
"According to the Empire's official announcement, 59 military and police personnel died during the initial suppression, while 187 people, including protesters and civilians, were killed. These numbers might be downplayed, but for now, we take them as they are."
It was a significant number. The students of the Republic frowned, imagining the scene of that day.
"If things had continued at that pace, Genen surely would have burned until nothing but ash remained. The garrison's incompetent response essentially placed the Autonomous Region into a furnace. However, immediately after that..."
The professor's gaze sharpened.
"Tanks."
This time, his mana carved out a single word in bold.
"A tank unit of several hundred vehicles, a mix of new and old models, suddenly deployed and entered the Genen region."
The students began to murmur.
"Usually, a force of this magnitude could easily annihilate an entire Autonomous Region. It's a scale capable of conducting full-scale warfare."
Tanks were not mere carriages; even those capable of manipulating mana had no choice but to fear them. They fired high-performance shells packed with concentrated mana and mana stones.
"If this many tanks had descended upon the city streets, thousands would have died easily. Dozens of bodies would have been torn apart by a single shell."
The students shared that expectation. The Empire would surely crush Genen to make an example of it following the Gigantes terror attack, regardless of how many died or how they perished.
"However, another strange thing happened here."
Jean Pierre flipped to the next slide. They were photographs taken by the Imperial reporter, Alphonse. There were many structures and buildings destroyed here and there, but notably, there were no scenes of mutilated human bodies.
"The result: zero civilian deaths caused by tank fire. However, 23 military and police personnel were summarily executed for rogue behavior. Among the protesters, 103 were also summarily executed."
The professor circled the figure [0 Civilian Deaths].
"The Empire claimed the summary executions were due to protesters wielding excessive force, outside agitators, or individuals whose identities could not be verified. Well, that is the typical Imperial style of announcement, so we can set that aside for a moment..."
But the fact of zero civilian deaths seemed to be true. Even the reporters inside Genen went as far as to say, 'The tanks did not touch the civilians.'
"While one could say hundreds died in the incident itself, the result was that Genen, which was on the verge of boiling over, cooled down instantly. An incident where it wouldn't have been strange for thousands or tens of thousands to die was settled like this."
The professor flipped the screen once more.
"Therefore, we must look into the individual who led this suppression."
[ Maximilian von Albrecht Ebenholtz ]
"The heir of the Great House Ebenholtz."
No photograph clearly showing his face had been released outside the Empire. Perhaps as a precaution against assassination or other threats, most were shots of his back.
Well, his face was so famous within the Empire that portraits were said to be circulating through word of mouth.
"He moved this massive army with the precision and efficiency of a single machine. He controlled hundreds of tanks and tens of thousands of troops with extreme meticulousness to suppress the fires of the Autonomous Region early, and he exercised only the most strictly disciplined force. He crushed only the core of the protests and riots."
The professor continued.
"Furthermore, he did not hesitate to execute his own military and police. On the battlefield, the greatest enemy is a stupid ally. If some crazed soldier had fired a machine gun, or if a tank crew had turned their turret, there would have been far more victims in Genen."
Maximilian had cut such men down with a single stroke.
"He used the terror of the tanks as a tool. But he handled them with immense rigor. One could even feel a sense of order in the way the tanks were maneuvered."
Therefore—if one were to describe this suppression of Genen in a single phrase:
"It was very Imperial, yet in some ways, very aristocratic."
A knight of a breed rarely seen in the present day, an era where both the words 'Empire' and 'Aristocrat' were losing their original, brilliant meaning.
Maximilian was a very interesting figure.
"Oh, is it 3 o'clock already?"
In the meantime, the lecture hour had ended. Professor Jean Pierre tapped the lectern.
"Today's assignment. Describe the cause, development, and suppression process of this Genen incident, and its impact on the continental situation in 10,000 words or more."
Ugh. Groans erupted. Jean Pierre waved his hand with a smile, and the students gathered their bags and filed out of the lecture hall.
"...Hmm."
The lecture hall was suddenly empty.
Professor Jean Pierre quietly looked at the screen. He stared at the back of Maximilian standing there.
Rumor had it he was a knight of exceptional beauty, with blonde hair and golden eyes.
But he had never seen him in person.
However, as a professor who expanded from the 'point' of an individual to the 'plane' of history, Jean Pierre knew Zebestian.
"Zebestian's son."
Zebestian, the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Military, was already old. Once a man who commanded the continent and left a powerful impression, he had now become a sword solely for the Emperor. A loyal subject who did not defy the Emperor's will, but merely executed it.
That, too, was a form of decline.
Though the Ebenholtz family had always been like that, a man who was predictable was academically uninteresting.
Could his son be different?
"Whew."
Jean Pierre let out a soft sigh.
He knew from this Genen incident.
War is a foregone conclusion.
Therefore, the Progen Republic—and even I, a professor lecturing on 'figures' while believing the Empire is far away from this university—
Might one day come face-to-face with the golden eyes of the knight named Maximilian.
...Unless he gets assassinated first, that is.
* * *
The New Year.
The streets of the Empire were painted in the colors of the festival. Fireworks embroidered the night sky, and the subjects prayed for each other's well-being as they welcomed the New Year's breeze.
During that time when everyone was high-spirited, I received news that the body of Yukia's father—Eric—had been recovered.
I flew immediately to the western border.
"...This way, sir."
It was less a morgue and more a cold storage room where mana stones kept the temperature low.
My attendants and the guides who assisted them were gathered there.
"The body is skeletal, but the personal effects are intact."
An attendant held out a tray. From among the odds and ends, I picked up a certain accessory.
A necklace made of thinly carved wood. It was a distinctive artifact of the Yaken race.
"..."
This one item was enough.
I tucked the necklace into my coat and instructed the attendant.
"Recover the rest and bury him in the sunniest spot in the Empire."
"Yes, sir."
...And so, I took a plane back home, and just as I was about to get some rest.
An unexpected guest came to see me.
"Ah. Good evening, Sir Knight. I apologize for the intrusion at such a late hour."
It was Officer Josef from the Imperial Central Police Bureau. He entered with a face full of tension.
Perhaps because rumors of the Genen incident had spread, there were quite a few people lately who were excessively afraid of me.
"What is it?"
"Well... a bizarre killer has been appearing in our jurisdiction lately."
Josef handed over a case file.
"It's too personal to be called terrorism, and to call it simple murder... the culprit is marking his victims."
I opened the file. They were photographs of the crime scenes.
The victims' bodies all had their chests opened in the shape of a cross, and a vivid mark [†] was left in the center of their foreheads with blood.
A serial killer who leaves his own mark—in other words, one who asserts his identity.
"There are residual mana traces, but they are so subtle... I'm sorry, but with our abilities, we haven't been able to get a lead at all."
The police officers watched my reaction.
"Since you are the knight who solved the Head-Eater case, and rumors are widespread that you are among the best in the Empire at analyzing residual mana traces..."
"Am I widespread?"
"Ah, yes! Of course! You're an authority, an authority!"
It seemed that simply processing the backlog of work had earned me a fairly good reputation. It was thanks to the Virus.
"If you are busy with many affairs—"
"No."
I shook my head as I closed the file.
"I'll take it."
Josef's face brightened. I tapped the date of the incident written on the cover of the file.
The killer who draws crosses.
It was an incident from before my regression, and I remembered it.
It was a mission well worth taking.
* * *
One day in mid-January.
The new appointments for Genen were announced without delay. I personally handpicked people to fill the vacancies left by the executed department heads.
The criteria were clear.
Commoner or noble—it didn't matter. Lineage and family background were not considerations.
Drawing on my memories from before the regression, I selected working-level officials who had been particularly capable in the New Cabinet, or talents who were outstanding but had failed to shine because they were blocked by their superiors. For the financial aspects, I took recommendations from Dieter.
"Now, we will begin the appointment ceremony for the new officials of the Genen Autonomous Region."
In the grand auditorium of the Governor-General's office. In this place filled with people, Governor-General Fabian stood on the podium.
I stood two or three steps behind him, at an angle.
"New Head of Internal Affairs. Hermann Kraus."
When his name was called, a man of slight build walked up with trembling steps.
An administrator who had graduated second in his class from the Imperial University's Department of Public Administration, yet had remained a low-level official in the 30s Districts simply because he hailed from a lower-class area. Coincidentally, he was someone who had finished his studies with a scholarship sponsored by the Ebenholtz Foundation in the past.
He had the skill to restore Genen's administrative network.
"I appoint you as the Head of Internal Affairs for the Genen Governor-General's Office."
The Governor-General offered his hand. Hermann shook it.
After receiving his appointment letter and inauguration plaque, he approached me.
I gave him a small nod. I could see his legs shaking.
"I-I am Hermann Kraus."
"I know. I see you received support from Ebenholtz."
"Y-yes. Thanks to that, I was able to... graduate from university safely."
I patted his shoulder a few times, and he stepped down from the podium with a face that looked like it was about to melt from relief.
"New Head of Land. Erika Giono."
Next was Erika Giono. She was recommended by Dieter. It meant she was an employee Dieter trusted quite a bit.
"New Head of Industry. Harman Hein..."
One by one, the key positions were filled.
The atmosphere among the audience was strange. The expressions of the reporters, in particular, were filled with bewilderment.
The reason was simple.
They didn't know who these people were.
However, the appointments continued in that manner, and finally.
"Second Secretary."
Second Secretary. The position held by the man who had murdered Adeline, the catalyst for this incident. A title for a close aide to the Governor-General, positioned just below the department heads.
"..."
The Governor-General paused for a moment. It was because he knew the name written on that paper. It was an appointment that would likely cause quite a controversy.
However, he soon opened his mouth and—
"Elias Walter."
At that moment, the room erupted in a stir.
The president of the student council during the Genen protests. The man who had ordered the peaceful dispersal of the assembly, only to be shot and collapsed by a radical ideological criminal.
Elias had returned, dressed in a perfect suit.
Step. Step.
He walked with dignity. The bandages on his chest stood out beneath his shirt, and there was no hesitation in his stride.
Looking at him as he stood on the podium, the Governor-General said:
"Elias Walter. I appoint you as the Second Secretary of the Genen Governor-General's Office."
A dry handshake. After receiving the appointment letter and inauguration plaque, he walked a few more steps and stood before me.
Elias looked at me. I looked at him.
The eyes of a man who had faced reality, cold and refined.
I liked them quite a bit.
"You got out of prison sooner than expected."
"...It was thanks to you."
The meaning contained in his short sentence was deep.
"Keep that necklace. It's not a one-time use item."
"Yes."
I smiled and extended my hand to Elias, who bowed his head.
"Congratulations. Secretary of Genen, Elias Walter."
He readily took my hand.
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