Chapter 70
“This is how we discovered that merpeople can invade different sea regions by crossing through land. This means that if we leave the Northern Sea merpeople alone, tragedy might begin again. My son Alcita Maxim and our beloved family beside us might vanish meaninglessly beneath the sea again!! This is why we cannot safely cross the sea once more. Only by driving out the Northern Sea merpeople and claiming the sea can we see a way to survive.”
Dante Maxim said this and slammed the podium with a bang!
Noel was about to mutter, “…Then just don’t cross the sea,” but Van stopped him, preventing him from speaking. Meanwhile, Dante’s entire body trembled.
“The moment merpeople who have lost their seas come to land, terrorism begins. If I am elected president, all military forces will shine the last beacon of hope toward the Northern Sea.”
“My will is the will of all land-dwellers, so the sea has no need for the likes of merpeople.”
Previously, Dante Maxim had said this to Delta with a kind face and a smile. His uncle truly intended to exterminate all the merpeople.
“Commander-in-Chief Ender McGuire, words of comfort and encouragement for everyone.”
After Dante Maxim finished speaking, the microphone went to Ender, who was standing rigidly behind him.
Ender McGuire raised his red eyes and scanned the audience but did not speak, instead passing the microphone to the Naval Corps Commander waiting beside him.
The commander’s face turned red and blue with anger at having his position as Commander-in-Chief taken by Ender, who was much lower in rank. He squawked loudly for quite some time, as if venting his frustration.
Dante Maxim smiled kindly as he patted Ender’s back and stroked his waist. He looked so caring that people watching the scene smiled warmly.
Looking down at Dante’s affectionate smile that was like one addressing a nephew, Ender whispered, barely moving his lips.
“What happened to those two merpeople?”
“Is that what you’re curious about? I killed them.”
Dante let out a mischievous laugh, speaking as if he were annoyed that a dog had defecated during a walk. Ender raised his head.
“You’ve killed hundreds or thousands of merpeople yourself, and you feel guilty over just two?”
“……”
“And even now.”
Ender stared intently at Dante’s gentle eyes before raising his head. Then they faced each other and laughed together.
Laugh now, old man.
*Â *Â *
Anschel stared at the TV screen, dumbfounded. It was already maddening to see intimidating soldiers gathered at the dock, but to make matters worse, the number of warships had already exceeded five hundred.
It was astounding where they had gathered such massive warships from. At this rate, one would believe they were going not just to conquer the Northern Sea, but the entire world.
Moreover, Anschel couldn’t even scream at the sight of Ender, who appeared midway as if he were Dante Maxim’s attendant.
Beside him, the Northern Sea merpeople huddled together, watching the TV screen with serious expressions. At first, they seemed startled by the existence of the TV, but their expressions hardened when they realized that all the humans on the screen had gathered to invade the Northern Sea.
They too had seen warships before. And the humans on them fiercely attacking merpeople.
“War… why……”
Lime muttered, her lips trembling.
The warships looked like they would head to the Northern Sea at any moment, but fortunately, the invasion didn’t begin immediately. This was because the presidential signature line was still blank.
Although Dante was currently the president, it was only temporary. This was because a candidate named Anschel Lee had emerged. If it weren’t for him, those warships would have all headed to the Northern Sea by now.
Anschel bit his lip hard. He sensed why Dante had deliberately shown that video. The public, now aware that merpeople could move from one sea to another, would be gripped by fear. It was natural, given past precedents.
In their minds, merpeople could become rulers of the sea at any time and pass judgment on humans who crossed the sea without permission. And humans always resented that judgment.
“What should we do?”
Anschel anxiously chewed his lips as he looked at Harriet.
He merely stared blankly at the screen with disheveled hair. Harriet checked Ender McGuire’s appearance on the TV screen several times. Ender had disappeared the next day without saying he was leaving. And now he was standing next to Dante on TV.
With a puzzling feeling of whether he was shocked or not, Harriet couldn’t take his eyes off Ender’s face. He couldn’t understand the meaning of this emotion. He clearly thought that Ender’s actions were natural since military orders were absolute.
Dante had no intention of losing this election. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say he hadn’t even considered the possibility of losing. He would become president and eventually sign the order. The Northern Sea merpeople would simply die.
The election was next week, but no solution was forthcoming. Anschel sat down helplessly, wringing his brain.
What am I capable of doing? Without the Colonel, I end up collapsing and accomplishing nothing.
As Anschel was breathing heavily, caught in self-loathing, someone gently grasped his shoulder.
“……”
“Don’t worry.”
“……”
“That’s just a show to intimidate, right? Nothing has been decided yet, right?”
“……”
Ann smiled gently as he grabbed and lifted Anschel’s wrist, which was pounding the floor after he had slumped down. But Anschel couldn’t think of a way to stop Dante.
Having controlled the center for 20 years, Dante could manipulate the military like kneading dough. In reality, since he had declared it, the war had essentially begun.
At that moment, Anschel’s phone rang with a “beep.” It was an excruciatingly tacky default ringtone.
“…Yes.”
“Hello, Candidate Anschel Lee. Is now a good time to talk?”
“Who is this?”
He didn’t want to exchange jokes at such a serious time. When Anschel responded sharply, the other person laughed softly.
This voice seemed familiar. It was the voice of an elderly man, deep and mature. If Dante Maxim was described as gentle, this man was younger and more weighty.
“You’re watching the news now, right? Let’s join hands.”
“Who are you to say such things?”
Anschel replied cautiously. The man burst into chuckles. Anschel’s hand stiffened at the tension felt through the receiver.
“I’ve sent an email, so check it and if you decide to trust me, come to the location written there.”
The man hung up after saying what he needed to say. Such a suspicious call in this desperate situation. He knelt for a long time, staring blankly at the floor, then used the strength from Ann’s supporting hand to stand up. He staggered back to his seat.
“……”
When he turned on his laptop, Harriet’s gaze, which had been blankly watching the TV screen, shifted. Anschel clicked the mouse and entered his personal email.
He used only two email accounts: one for military use and one for personal use. The military one would send a separate notification when an email arrived, but no notification had come.
With uncertainty, Anschel clicked on his personal email and stared at the laptop screen for a long time with a tired expression. Then he raised his head with a rigid face.
“What’s wrong?”
Ann approached. While everyone’s gaze was filled with curiosity, Anschel turned the laptop screen toward Ann with a weak hand so he could see well. What had arrived in the email was a single video.
Lime, Dotrum, and Leirum gathered to look. Harriet also turned his head to watch the video with them.
The video showed the footage that Dante had played on TV earlier. Two merpeople were trying to escape. The merpeople jumped into the sea and raised their heads above the surface. The footage seen on TV ended there.
But the video playing on the laptop didn’t end there. The merpeople embraced each other, trembling and crying. A voice not visible on the screen was heard.
“Try to run further, it’s not fun to hunt… you filthy monsters.”
It was the voice of a very gentle old man. Dante Maxim’s voice. Dante Maxim was a power holder but had no killing ability. A wrinkled hand, presumed to be Dante Maxim’s, appeared in the frame. The hand was holding a gun.
The two merpeople, crying and trembling, swam away under the sea as if escaping. But a sharp “BANG!!” was heard in the video. Simultaneously, Lime screamed and rose from her seat.
“No!!!”
The sea quickly turned red with blood. Bang! Bang! Several gunshots were heard mercilessly, and soon the video ended.
Anschel turned the laptop back with a stiff expression. Everywhere was quiet. Lime was covering both ears, trembling violently.
Dotrum, who was supporting her, didn’t look too good either. His face was pale, and he was chewing his lips until they were ragged. Red blood trickled down between the merman’s lips.
Dante Maxim was a more terrifying old man than expected. Anschel trembled at his cruelty and heartlessness.
Could they defeat someone like that?
Dante was a frightening person who had abandoned even his humanity. With a complicated and fearful heart, Anschel squinted at the laptop. After the video ended and moved on to the next, text appeared briefly and then disappeared. Then the email itself malfunctioned.
BANG-!
“Ugh!”
With a slight warning sound, the laptop exploded.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
