I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 517

< Side Story – Those Who Leave (4) >

Edward had been secretly hoping that Kilian would relieve him of this weighty task upon his return.

But for some reason, his father didn’t reclaim his acting authority even after returning to London.

He wanted to beg him to take it back, but… he had his pride as a man.

How would he look if he showed weakness now, after confidently asking to be entrusted with it?

Of course, this was just Edward’s thought, and Adelaide, who had been lumped together with him, had a different idea.

“Now that Dad’s back, I don’t have to help anymore, right?”

“What do you mean, right? Nothing will change, so drop your wishful thinking and get to work.”

“Are you kidding me? I’m really busy, you know? Do you think running a company is a joke?”

“I’m busier than you. I’m willing to bet my position as Crown Prince. Want to take that bet?”

“Ugh! This is driving me crazy. How did Dad do this all by himself?”

The two sighed and tapped the table with their fingers.

Perhaps the only consolation was that Wellesley was helping them, so they didn’t have to worry about cooperation with Parliament.

But what if Wellesley retires and the key figures of the Conservative Party are all replaced?

The real hell will begin then.

“You have to get used to it now so you don’t panic later. You should try to bear with it.”

“…Why do I have to suffer with you when you’re the only one who has to go through this? I’m not going to be the Emperor, but you are.”

“I can hear you even if you speak quietly.”

“I’m going on a business trip to Canada next month.”

“Oh, really? Then you can take care of some work in Canada. You’re popular there, after all.”

Edward nodded with the kindest smile he could muster.

He needed to check on the situation in Canada anyway, so he was grateful that she volunteered to go.

Once again, he realized that the only people you can truly trust in this world are your own family.

“I’m going to get it all back with interest someday.”

“Yes, yes. I’ll calculate it properly, so don’t worry and get to work.”

The Americas had been in turmoil since Engels’ death, and they needed someone to stabilize the situation.

Originally, he was going to entrust it to Kilian, but since Kilian had returned urgently, they needed a replacement. Other than Kilian or Edward, no one was as well-suited for this as Adelaide.

The other siblings were from England, so they weren’t as popular as the twins, who were born in Canada.

“I’m just asking, but you’re not deliberately dragging your feet on work until I go to Canada, are you?”

“Am I your father? How could I plan that far ahead?”

“Come to think of it, didn’t Prussia contact you about something the other day?”

“Oh, that? Fortunately, Father said he’d take care of it, so you don’t have to worry. He said it was a personal matter with Chancellor Bismarck.”

“…That’s a personal matter?”

Even in his hot-blooded youth, fighting until his nose bled was a juicy story for gossips.

Especially for a politician with a stern image like the Iron Chancellor, he would have wanted to hide the truth at all costs, so how could he be comfortable with this being exposed?

Edward and Adelaide were both relieved that they didn’t have to deal with this.

‘By the way, what’s this about a painting?’

Surely Father didn’t immortalize that episode as a painting.

No, no matter how mischievous Father is, he wouldn’t have left it as a painting.

Edward still didn’t fully grasp the kind of person his father was.

* * *

When Bismarck first heard of Engels’ death, he emptied a bottle of wine and smoked a cigarette, indulging in sentimentality for the first time in a long time.

In fact, the relationship between Bismarck, Engels, and Marx was quite well-known within Prussia.

Bismarck had been seen talking to Engels and Marx several times when he was in London, so he couldn’t deny it in the first place.

Of course, no one in Prussia knew the full truth.

“I had an argument with Engels when I was young. I remember Engels admitting he was wrong and apologizing after I firmly rebuked him.”

“There are rumors that the Chancellor and the Secretary-General actually fought. Is that not true?”

“Well, it wasn’t much of a fight. If I had hit Engels, the Secretary-General, with all my might when I was young, he might not be alive today. Heh heh heh.”

He spoke in a roundabout way, but Bismarck was implying that he had given Engels a good lesson, and the Prussians had believed it.

When Engels died and the exposé about Kilian broke out, he leisurely watched the situation from a bystander’s point of view.

“Heh heh heh, Kilian must be sweating bullets this time. He probably didn’t expect this to happen.”

Various rumors continued to spread, but Bismarck was certain that Kilian had a great influence on Engels.

Kilian was there at that first meeting, which he wanted to erase from his memory.

How will that man overcome this unexpected situation?

Who knew that Engels would be helpful one day.

He hoped to see him fail to fix it and make a sad face.

Just as he was watching the situation with half curiosity and half anticipation…

[A relationship that has lasted for decades, and the Iron Chancellor of Prussia was also involved?]

[The Iron Chancellor and the Secretary-General’s youthful vigor, did it actually lead to bloodshed?]

[According to His Majesty Kilian’s memoirs, the Iron Chancellor fought a bloody battle with Secretary-General Engels and lost to Professor Marx in the ensuing confrontation, collapsing to the ground with a nosebleed…]

“Kilian, you crazy bastard! Why did you record this kind of story!”

As soon as he read this exposé, he summoned the newspaper publishers and told them to delete all articles about him.

“Engels is a leading figure in communism, so don’t include any unconfirmed stories about him in the articles.”

“…Excuse me? What does him being a leading figure in communism have to do with not publishing the article… Are the rumors circulating in London all true?”

“Nonsense! How could that be true! I’m doing this because I’m afraid that people like you will believe such nonsense! Get rid of all the articles!”

“…Understood.”

Even if he silences the newspapers, there will be plenty of people who can’t get their hands on it when it comes out as a book later. What should he do?

It’s Kilian’s autobiography.

The first edition will be worth a fortune, and even if it’s designated as a banned book, people will secretly circulate it.

No, is it okay to designate Kilian’s autobiography as a banned book in the first place?

It could escalate into a diplomatic issue if he’s not careful.

Right now, he has the justification of blocking unconfirmed rumors, but if it’s officially released….

Bismarck, who had become desperate, quickly came up with an excuse to go to London.

“If Engels dies and the South falls into chaos, we need to re-examine our policy toward the Americas. We need to cooperate with the British Empire for the security of our colony, Panama, so I will go and discuss it myself.”

“Chancellor, perhaps…”

“If you’re talking about that nonsense, it’s absolutely not true, so don’t be fooled!”

“Ah, no, I was just going to say that we should also prepare for the collapse of the Southern regime…”

“Ah… yes. Ahem, ahem, we should. I’ll discuss it well with the British Empire and try to move the UN [United Nations, an international organization for cooperation].”

Damn it, doesn’t this make it seem like I’m overreacting because I feel guilty?

If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have bragged about lightly dealing with Engels.

The image of the strict, dignified, and prudent Iron Chancellor that I have built up until now is facing a crisis.

“Keep a close eye on it, as strange rumors may affect approval ratings.”

“Yes!”

He turned around with the most dignified expression possible, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was a strange smile on the faces looking at him.

This won’t do.

‘I have to make them delete that part from the autobiography somehow….’

Why did Engels write such a letter and die, making things so difficult for people?

Bismarck wanted to smash the head of his past self, who thought Engels would be helpful, with a hammer. Seriously.

* * *

“Your Majesty! How could you do this?”

“You said we were going to discuss how to prevent the crisis in the Americas, but what are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Ah, no… First of all, Your Majesty, you have made a huge revelation. I heard that London is in an uproar because of it.”

“That’s right. I heard that not only London but everyone is in an uproar. Is Berlin still peaceful?”

“…That is…”

As if to prove how much the technology of this era has developed, Bismarck, who rushed to London in an instant, looked at me with dissatisfied eyes before quickly lowering his gaze.

“Everyone fights when they’re young, right? Of course, it’s a bit shocking that the Iron Chancellor of Prussia and the communist revolution’s leading figure, Secretary-General Engels, had a fierce battle until their noses bled.”

“There was no need to make that part public, was there?”

“If I upload edited content, the truthfulness may be questioned. Unfortunately, this was unavoidable. It’s not like I wanted to do this.”

“…It sounds like a lie no matter how I look at it…”

“Excuse me? What did you say?”

“Ah, nothing!”

Bismarck asked with an expression of diligently racking his brains.

“Still, you could add that there may be minor errors in your memory, couldn’t you?”

“Is that fight such an embarrassing memory?”

“Rumors tend to be exaggerated and embellished, don’t they? I’m worried, that’s all.”

He’s pretending not to know, but I know very well why Bismarck is acting like this.

Back then, Engels and Bismarck engaged in all sorts of disgraceful behavior as if they were competing to see who was more macho, and they even distorted the events.

Bismarck had been saying that he had easily subdued Engels and made him feel the dignity of an aristocrat to the bone.

But if you open the lid and find out that he was bleeding from his nose and collapsed during the Macho Man Championship, what will happen to his image?

He would have nothing to say even if people mocked him, saying that the blood in Iron-Blood [a nickname for Bismarck, referring to his policy of “blood and iron”] was a nosebleed.

“It’s okay to just admit that men can fight when they’re young. Let’s just admit it and move on.”

“We were adults, what do you mean when we were young!”

“Oh? Are you angry now?”

“What does it matter, the water’s already spilled!”

“Oh, is that how you’re going to play it? There’s one more thing that hasn’t been revealed yet. Do you want to see it together?”

My hand moved toward the huge cloth hanging on the wall.

Bismarck’s eyes shook uneasily as he looked at something covered in cloth.

“…What is that?”

“It’s something I prepared to admire with you when you came. We cultured people originally enjoy admiring paintings, don’t we? Shall we take a look together?”

When I removed part of the cloth, I could see someone lying on the lawn under a large painting.

Bismarck, who had confirmed part of the painting, raised his hand.

“Wait a minute!”

“Yes? What is it now?”

“There are things in this world that are better left unpublished. A masterpiece should only be seen by those who know its value. How about we keep that painting a secret between you and me?”

“I remember you saying just a few seconds ago that the water had already spilled, so there’s nothing to hold back.”

“….”

So, even if you’re complaining, you should listen to what people have to say until the end.

If you go astray in the middle, I’ll have no choice but to tease you like this because I’m annoyed.

“Oops, my hand slipped.”

As I pretended to stagger on purpose and swept away the cloth covering the painting, the masterpiece that had been waiting for its day to see the light in my warehouse for decades finally revealed its appearance.

It’s a painting that is realistic, dynamic, and emotionally moving no matter how many times I look at it.

To think that the three immature young men at that time would grow up to be the Chancellor of Prussia, a dictator who treated the South like his own toy, and a scholar who would go down in world history.

It’s like watching a stock that I’ve held for more than a decade skyrocket.

Ah, so this is the joy of long-term investment.

“How is it? Isn’t it really realistic?”

As an aside, a truly well-drawn masterpiece is said to evoke a variety of complex emotions in the viewer.

“No! Why did you draw this kind of thing!”

Isn’t it a clear proof that Bismarck, who is showing a completely different reaction from me, who was moved, is a masterpiece?

Even though we’re looking at the same painting, it elicits such different reactions.

As expected, this painting is a masterpiece.