Volume 7 Chapter 48 Everyday Battles... It's Not That I Forgot
"I see... So Randolph Victor won, huh?"
Governor Gustav exhaled deeply. Across from him, Dario lowered his head, his voice quiet and apologetic.
"...I'm sorry."
This exchange took place inside Gustav's executive office—a formal, quiet space that now held the weight of defeat. Dario had come to deliver the results of the recently concluded student council president election.
As Gustav let out another soft sigh, Dario shrank even further, his shoulders heavy with regret.
"Those who lose can't complain. I was too naive as well."
Gustav added that last part with a bitter smile, making it clear he wasn't blaming Dario directly.
"I read the speech draft you prepared. Honestly, I didn't expect someone barely scraping by to flip the entire room with just a speech."
He couldn't stop sighing. Again, he muttered under his breath.
"...And he even took second place."
As Gustav said, the beginning and end of a speech tend to leave the strongest impression. The middle usually fades from memory. That's why Edgar's return to the academy had been carefully timed—to land his speech where it would make the biggest impact.
To avoid automatic expulsion, Victor's camp was certain to present a candidate. As soon as someone else entered the race after Dario, Edgar was free to return, ensuring he could close out the speeches with the final word.
Gustav had expected Randy's group to play their move then—but even with his precaution, the momentum had slipped from his grasp. He couldn't stop it, not even with Edgar's carefully calculated finale.
In fact, the tide only swelled further against them.
"Seventy percent approval..."
Dario's voice trembled.
"Shall we expose the traitors?"
But Gustav shook his head.
"Don't bother. Numbers are numbers."
Just as Gustav said, a surprising number of Dario's supporters had ended up voting for Randy. Before the election speeches, the support split roughly 4:4:2—Dario and Randy at 40%, with Edgar behind.
At the campaign's start, it had been 5:3, with 20% undecided. Most had ignored Randy altogether, treating it as a two-way race between Dario and Edgar. Randy's rise had caught both factions off-guard.
Still, Dario's team had hoped to recover ground with the speeches. Their plan was to win back the 10% that had drifted to Randy since the campaign began.
But everything had flipped. The atmosphere turned decisively, to the point where Edgar's speech became meaningless.
Dario still remembered the look on Edgar's face backstage—a twisted grimace, like he'd bitten down on something bitter and couldn't spit it out.
"As expected... Julius, the former prince, and the Braubelg faction are no joke."
The academy's best. Not just Julius and Cedric von Braubelg, but even Cecilia and Catherine. And beyond them, Cory and Annabelle—top students among the second years.
Randy's typical mediocrity had led both Gustav and Dario to believe someone else had orchestrated the speech. It was unthinkable that Randy, who usually lacked focus or drive, had delivered something that powerful without guidance.
"Maybe the Prince of the Silver Peaks lent a hand."
Gustav chuckled to himself. It was a desperate guess—but a tempting one.
Cedric von Braubelg was known throughout the continent. If he had taken part in crafting Randy's speech, then it would've been no surprise that Dario and Chris had been overwhelmed.
Assuming he had helped.
In reality, Cedric wasn't involved at all. At that moment, he was far away in Victor Territory, quietly suppressing his presence and barely catching his breath. He was groaning more than scheming.
Yet Randy's usual incompetence made it easy to assume the speech had come from Cedric or Julius. It was the only explanation that made sense to them.
"Either way... we were too naive."
Gustav sighed, but his expression didn't show despair.
"Still, even if we leave him be, he won't last long at the academy. Or rather... he won't be able to focus."
He smirked and turned his chair toward the window. Dario tilted his head.
"...What do you mean?"
Gustav responded with a faint smile.
"Well, while others are playing peace, he's trying to build something. A new town, within his territory."
He slowly turned his chair away, gazing into the glowing sunset spreading across Victor Territory.
"I figured I might help out... just a little. This time, neither Julius nor Braubelg will be able to interfere."
Gustav's voice, eerily calm, echoed through the office as golden light painted the floor.
"With the waterways finally open, reaching it early gives us a head start."
* * *
Meanwhile, in Victor Territory—at the emerging district of Verinea...
"Ohhh, so this is the place His Excellency mentioned."
"Pretty nice setup, huh?"
A gang of rough-looking men sauntered through the street, laughing loudly. Every now and then, they'd shoot sharp looks at passing townsfolk or spit on the cobblestones without a care.
Their attitude was brazen. One of the town guards approached them cautiously.
"Pardon me, travelers. May I ask—"
"We're from the Alexandria Autonomous Region, yeah?"
"Seems like you don't know how things work here."
The men responded with mocking grins. They showed no remorse. The guard, noting they hadn't committed any crime yet, held back.
"Please be mindful," he said, stepping away reluctantly.
Then, crashing sounds erupted from a nearby tavern—shouts, broken plates, shattered glass flying from the windows.
The guard quickly moved, calling, "Excuse me," before rushing into the tavern.
The rough group smirked, watching with amused eyes. One nudged another and whispered.
"Looks like the others started early."
"Heh. Guess we should liven things up too."
Right on cue, the guard emerged again—this time dragging out a man from the tavern.
"You're coming with me to the station."
"Sure, sure."
The man shrugged, letting himself be taken. As he was led away, he exchanged a knowing glance with the group still on the street. It was enough. The smirks they shared said it all.
But no one moved to help. The rest simply watched in silence.
Once the guard disappeared from sight, one of the men stifled a laugh behind his hand.
Then came a new round of commotion—this time from a different street.
"This job's too easy."
"Just stir up a little trouble, get a fat reward."
"Compared to our old gigs, this is child's play."
These men—these "travelers"—were hired troublemakers sent by Gustav. Their task? Stir chaos in Victor Territory. Even if they got caught, they faced no real consequences.
Because behind them was a legal shield—a treaty.
──"Kingdom citizens causing disturbances in Dukedom lands shall be repatriated, not punished."
The treaty, signed back in the Kingdom era, still stood, even within the Alexandria Autonomous Region. As long as their crimes didn't cross into serious offenses like murder or arson, they couldn't be detained. For minor disturbances, the worst punishment was deportation.
Normally, the treaty wasn't invoked. Most offenders would resist arrest, and the added violence would result in jail time or forced labor. But what if they quietly surrendered?
Then, the law was clear. Repatriation without further penalty. Victor couldn't touch them.
This was Gustav's peacetime warfare.
He'd pulled this tactic before—sabotaging rival resorts, hurting reputations with controlled chaos. It was a strategy he had mastered.
And Victor was an easy target. Still underdeveloped, lacking infrastructure, lacking personnel. No facilities to hold criminals. Not enough guards to maintain order. Not even enough diplomats to argue with Alexandria's government.
Victor lacked everything.
Meanwhile, the thugs had full freedom.
With the backing of Alexandria's top officials—including Gustav—they had forged documents and fake IDs. Once deported, they simply waited, then came back with a new name.
Hartfield was also treated as a separate Autonomous Region, meaning deportation went specifically to Alexandria, not Hartfield. Victor had no leverage to intercept them there.
This old treaty—ancient and immovable—couldn't be undone even by the likes of Julius, Cedric, or Lucian.
That's why Gustav believed this tactic would work. Why he thought this strategy might bring Victor to its knees.
After all, not every battle is won by strength alone.
But what Gustav didn't know—what he couldn't have known—was that Victor harbored a certain man.
A man Lucian once called "the most terrifying," and whom the reincarnated Randy described as "too exceptional."
Gustav's fatal error was mistaking Victor's rapid progress as the handiwork of Braubelg. He saw only the signboard, not the man behind it.
If he'd understood that this growth was independent of Braubelg—that it came from the Victor family itself—he might have hesitated.
He might have feared the name Alan Victor.
But he didn't.
And so, Gustav made his move—one that might one day be remembered as the moment he doomed himself.
Notes:
• Verinea - A new town located in the Dukedom. It is under development, and Randy is concerned with its progress.
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