I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 446

< The Great Swindler (8) >

Leopold II felt wronged.

It wasn’t a joke or an exaggeration; he was genuinely, utterly wronged to the point of madness.

What on earth was this? This malicious article filled with slander and defamation.

“Immediately shut down the newspaper and prevent any articles from circulating in Brussels!”

“Your Majesty, what should we say to the British Embassy then…?”

“What else! Naturally, we’ll say this report is baseless and we have nothing to be ashamed of!”

“Understood.”

“And order the immediate arrest of the newspaper’s owner and the reporter who wrote this article!”

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, who didn’t know the details of what was happening in the Congo, thought Leopold II seemed genuinely wronged.

His pupils were shaking and his face was distorted, but that was understandable if he was being falsely accused of something outrageous.

Leopold II, watching the minister rush out to meet the British ambassador, bit his lip and picked up the newspaper again.

“Look at this article! These crazy people, are they trying to fight me?”

“It is certainly blatant.”

Usually, even with serious scandals, it’s difficult to write an article that directly targets the king like this, considering the aftermath.

Most of the time, they leave loopholes so anyone can tell, but this article was definitely different.

“They’re mentioning my name very precisely. Moreover, they’ve written in detail about how rubber is produced in the Congo, so they must have very detailed information.”

“Yes. That’s what worries me more than anything else.”

“The information control must have been solid, right?”

“Of course. We’ve taken thorough precautions to ensure that no outsiders can get close.”

The Congo is located in the center of Africa, making it difficult to access by sea.

The only gateway is approaching from the west sea and entering inland through the Congo River, but the Congo Association has firmly blocked this route.

So, the only conclusion is this.

“Should we assume there’s a traitor within the association?”

“Or there might be a traitor among the newly arrived mercenaries or officers. Wouldn’t that be more likely?”

“…That’s true too.”

Almost all the people in the Congo Association have been there since the beginning.

They’ve already received plenty of money, and they’ll earn even more in the future, so why would they suddenly betray now?

Unless they infiltrated with the intention of backstabbing from the start, it didn’t make sense.

However, the assumption that they had planned to betray from the beginning was also illogical.

Everyone in the world believed that Leopold II would be a benevolent king of the Congo, so who would have known and planted a mole in advance?

That’s not a realistic assumption, so there’s no need to consider it in the first place.

“…The local soldiers don’t make sense either. Even if the soldiers have strange thoughts, they can’t possibly contact the outside. Isn’t that right?”

“That’s right. The fact that they wrote such detailed circumstances means they had close contact, which is absolutely impossible for the soldiers.”

“Then that means someone among the military officers is the culprit. Tell Commander Roger to thoroughly investigate and find the culprit.”

“Yes. Your Majesty, but the British Empire might use this as an excuse to send an investigation team or something. Perhaps we should lower the level of punishment for a while, just in case?”

Stanley thought he had suggested a reasonable plan, but Leopold II openly clicked his tongue as if he was talking nonsense.

“Don’t be ridiculous. How can we stop now with the production system we’ve set up? If we stop here, the flow will inevitably be disrupted. If they send an investigation team, we just need to take them to a plausible area and show them around, so don’t worry about anything and keep doing what you’re doing. Tell them to produce rubber even more diligently, that’s what I mean.”

“…Understood.”

“And frankly, what can they do even if they investigate? Let’s be honest, they all treat black people inhumanely anyway, don’t they? Just because I’m exploiting those uncivilized people more efficiently doesn’t necessarily mean it’s wrong, does it? If it weren’t for me, most of the carriages on the streets would still be using those old, crude wheels.”

Rubber was an indispensable material for the development of new industries.

To this end, Leopold II himself took the initiative to drastically increase the supply of rubber, so it was absurd to criticize him for this.

Leopold II looked up to the Bible and felt no shame in his heart.

“Stanley, don’t you think so too? The world has become richer thanks to the sacrifices of the Congolese people, so do you think I have any reason to be criticized?”

“…Everything will be fine. Don’t worry.”

Stanley couldn’t bring himself to say that Leopold II was being falsely accused, so he subtly comforted him.

After all, even though the article is quite detailed, no concrete evidence has been presented yet.

If we just keep denying it, we can somehow get through this.

Since Belgian public opinion won’t be shaken by this, we can just put on a straight face and pretend we don’t know anything overseas.

Leopold II knew this well, so he hadn’t completely lost his composure yet.

And he quickly sent the police, so if they catch the newspaper’s owner or reporter and interrogate them, they can find out who is behind this exposure.

If they find out, they can counterattack by saying this was just another conspiracy theory.

Leopold II was secretly preparing for that time as a period of counterattack and catching his breath.

However.

“Your Majesty! The newspaper has disappeared without a trace!”

“Disappeared without a trace? What does that mean? Are you saying the newspaper’s owner has gone into hiding?”

“It’s not just that, but the entire office and staff have vanished from Brussels as if they’ve evaporated!”

“What! No, I issued an arrest warrant on the same day the article was published, so how could that be possible!”

“It seems they had thoroughly prepared in advance and fled even before the newspaper was actually distributed.”

But why?

Leopold II gradually began to sense that this might not be just a matter of one or two officers betraying.

The fact that they had prepared to take down an entire newspaper meant that considerable manpower and capital had been mobilized.

That was far beyond what a mere officer could do.

‘Who on earth is it? This can only be seen as a move by a country at the very least.’

The first suspect that came to mind was Denmark, where the Crown Prince was constantly preaching anti-imperialism and anti-slavery, feigning virtue.

Next would be the British Empire?

Of course, there was nothing he could know for sure right now, so he had no choice but to deny it and watch the situation unfold.

But no matter who it was.

Leopold II had no intention of giving up even an inch of the Congo.

* * *

Leopold II could control the atmosphere within Belgium, but he couldn’t interfere with public opinion in neighboring countries.

“Prime Minister, here are the articles you requested.”

Prussian Chancellor Bismarck quietly nodded and accepted the report summarizing the articles.

“Is all of this true?”

“We cannot verify the situation inside the Congo, so it is currently impossible to confirm. However, articles with the same content are pouring out in almost every country, including not only our country but also France, the British Empire, Spain, and Portugal.”

“Assuming this is all true, it’s extremely unpleasant. It’s no different from saying that Leopold II defrauded all of Europe. That means I was completely fooled as well.”

“However, His Majesty Leopold II vehemently denies this fact.”

“Who in the world would readily admit such an exposure? Of course, the exposing side won’t be recognized without any evidence, so the Belgian royal family has nothing to fear right now.”

In such matters, what matters in the end is evidence.

Not just witnesses or testimonies, but concrete evidence above all else.

“Has any country officially issued a statement?”

“Not yet.”

“I see. I guess they can’t tell whether it’s true or not yet, so they’re thinking of not getting involved rashly.”

Bismarck’s thoughts were the same.

The world isn’t a place where things become true just because you shout loudly, so he couldn’t denounce the King of Belgium just because a few articles came out.

However, it was also true that there was no reason not to prepare for what would happen when this was revealed to be true.

“First, I need to meet with the ambassadors of the British Empire and France. I know the British Empire has been sponsoring the Congo quite a bit this time…”

“To be precise, I heard that the British royal family, not the British Empire, sponsored it with their private funds.”

“Then there could be quite a problem.”

Anyway, it’s the British royal family again.

How is it that that family always gets involved in such major incidents?

“…Wait. If all the contents of the articles pouring out now turn out to be true, how much benefit could the British royal family gain?”

“I’m sorry. I heard there was some kind of agreement between the British Empire and Belgium, but I can’t know the details…”

“In any case, the British royal family, of all people, wouldn’t have made a sloppy contract, would they?”

What kind of person is Killian? If Leopold II ripped him off, he would have prepared a way to make up for it.

“…Good. From now on, I want you to prepare the best possible measures we can take, assuming all these articles are true.”

“…Excuse me? You were clearly saying earlier…”

“My mind has changed since I heard that the British royal family is involved. They’ve always been lucky.”

He said that, but Bismarck, of all people, had a feeling that this exposure might be a work of Killian’s fingertips.

If so, a simple newspaper skirmish wouldn’t be the end of it.

This is just the beginning, and there will definitely be additional offensives.

So, it is necessary to be fully prepared to ride the trend at the appropriate time while watching the situation roughly.

And, as expected, things happened as expected.

-I accuse Leopold II! The duplicity of the Congo Association, confessions of conscience from local employees

-‘Lord, I am a sinner! Forgive my sins blinded by desire!’ What’s happening in the Congo? This place is already hell on earth!

-Even at this moment, people who have not met their quotas are dying.

-Leopold II. ‘The Congo is being managed very ethically and exemplarily. This is just a conspiracy theory to defame the Belgian royal family.’

-The Belgian royal family should stop lying! A tipster appears who can reveal concrete evidence!

Leopold II desperately denied and tried to resolve the situation, but the other party was not so easy to deal with.

First, they scattered large-scale articles to attract attention, and then a witness appeared.

When he still didn’t admit it, they now presented evidence as if they had been waiting for it.

By deliberately inducing the other party to make excuses and refuting as if they had been waiting, Leopold II was increasingly cornered.

And finally, at the very moment when the attention of many countries was focused to the highest degree.

-This Imperial Family hereby requests an official explanation from the Belgian Royal Family.

An official statement was issued in the name of Killian, the national secretary of the British Imperial Family, and the situation finally reached its climax.