I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 522

< Toward Eternity (2) >

“Prime Minister, everything is ready.”

Having silently completed his preparations, Wellesley put on the suit his secretaries had helped him with and glanced at himself in the mirror.

A near-perfect bespoke suit made from the finest fabric.

But no matter how luxurious the suit, it couldn’t hide his aging appearance reflected in the mirror.

“I don’t particularly like seeing them leave one by one. It might be easier to just go early myself.”

“Please don’t say that. You are still hale and hearty, Prime Minister.”

“Hale and hearty, my foot. My knees ache every morning.”

Just a few days ago, he was drinking and chatting happily with Killian, and today he has to attend his colleague’s funeral.

Considering this another sign of aging was bitter, but it was a reality he had to accept.

He adjusted his attire one last time and boarded the carriage waiting outside.

These days, it’s the era of personal automobiles and all, but frankly, he still preferred a horse-drawn carriage.

Perhaps this is also a sign of getting old.

What was it Killian once said? That if you keep doing the same things and can’t accept new things, you’re getting old.

He didn’t argue much at the time, but looking at it this way, it hit such a painful point that he couldn’t say anything.

“We have arrived.”

“Alright, thank you for your trouble.”

Wellesley had wanted to hold Disraeli’s funeral as a state funeral, but he reluctantly abandoned the plan, fearing that too many people would gather.

Instead, with the Prime Minister, Empress Victoria, Killian, and Crown Prince Edward all in attendance, it couldn’t have been a more splendid funeral.

Contrary to Disraeli’s prediction that he would make all sorts of excuses not to read the eulogy, Gladstone surprisingly read the eulogy at the funeral without complaint.

In the first place, no matter how bad their relationship was, Gladstone, as the leader of the Conservative Party, probably didn’t genuinely hate Disraeli.

While Gladstone was reading the eulogy, Wellesley glanced at Killian sitting next to him.

Seeing his sorrowful expression as he gazed at Disraeli’s coffin, Wellesley felt a mix of emotions.

When James died, Killian had seemed a bit out of it, so did that mean these emotions become more familiar with experience?

Wellesley didn’t know who would go first between him and Killian, but considering the age difference, he would most likely go first.

At that time, he had mixed feelings, wanting Killian to be sadder than this, and also wanting him to send him off with a festive atmosphere rather than just being gloomy.

“…I heard the last person he saw before he passed was Your Majesty?”

“That’s right. Even when I closed the door and left, I never thought we would never see each other again. He seemed to have that much energy.”

“It seems it was his last blaze of glory. Still, I’m glad to hear he passed away smiling.”

“I told him all the stories he wanted to hear at the end. I would have regretted it greatly if I hadn’t.”

When you think about it, how many people get to leave this world while receiving condolences from such prominent figures?

Moreover, he didn’t suffer from a prolonged illness before dying, so this is a good send-off.

However, Wellesley was worried about how to reorganize the party’s atmosphere now that Disraeli was gone.

Considering political repercussions as the top priority even in this situation, he must be a person whose brain is completely soaked in politics.

Well, considering that the time he has lived as Prime Minister is about to be longer than the time he hasn’t, it can’t be helped.

However, just like the saying ‘leave the stage when the applause is loudest,’ he couldn’t shake the thought that the time to wind things down was coming.

To cling to the Prime Minister’s seat until the very end and die with a ‘cough’ in the official residence, versus stepping down with everyone’s blessings and quietly closing his eyes while enjoying a peaceful retirement – the latter is overwhelmingly a better picture, isn’t it?

Even Killian is now entrusting many tasks to Edward and stepping back to the second line, but it feels somewhat unfair that he alone is holding onto his position.

Wellesley grabbed Killian, who was about to return to his carriage after all the events were over.

“Your Majesty, do you happen to have any plans for today?”

“No, I’ve cleared everything for today.”

“Then how about spending some time with me today? I’ve cleared my schedule for today as well.”

“Is that alright for a Prime Minister to do?”

“I’m allowed to. If there’s anyone who’s more confident in being Prime Minister than me, tell them to come out. I’ll hand it over anytime.”

“Then shall we mourn our friend Disraeli with a drink today, Prime Minister? Let’s go.”

Exchanging light-hearted jokes, Killian sent Victoria and Edward ahead first, glanced at Wellesley’s carriage, and clicked his tongue quietly.

“Didn’t I send you a car? Why are you still driving around in a carriage?”

“It’s because the engine noise is too loud.”

“For such new technology to be widely commercialized, people like the Prime Minister should take the lead in riding them. I mean, I deliberately take the car when I go to crowded places.”

“I’ll do that when I attend official events. But wouldn’t it be alright since today is a private occasion?”

Killian chuckled and nodded, then turned his gaze out the window.

A moment of silence hung in the air, but neither Wellesley nor Killian found it awkward.

When you’ve been meeting for over 50 years, even silence becomes a part of everyday life.

This isn’t limited to just couples.

After a while of being silent, Killian suddenly looked at the scenery outside the window and asked.

“But where are we going? This isn’t the direction to the official residence. It doesn’t seem like we’re going to your home either, Prime Minister.”

“I thought we should go to a meaningful place since we’re spending time together anyway.”

After about 15 more minutes, the rattling sound subsided and the carriage came to a stop.

Killian, who got out of the carriage, couldn’t take his eyes off the building in front of him, as if rooted to the spot.

“This is…”

“Isn’t it a nostalgic place? It’s also the place where we first met, and when you think about it, this is where it all began.”

That very day, decades ago, when he was being scammed out of his money like a sucker without even realizing it, a cheeky young boy came and said he would help.

This is where the two men’s great journey began.

It has now been transformed into a social club for VIPs, not a casino, but there was still a place where they could enjoy simple card games.

“I’ve reserved the place just for the two of us today, Your Majesty. How about playing a game of poker to reminisce about the old days?”

“Shall we? This brings back old memories.”

“The dealer will be an employee of this club, but it’s no fun with just the two of us… Come on, you guys come and join us.”

“I, it’s an honor!”

The attendants, stiff with the fact that they were playing a card game with the two most powerful figures in the British Empire, hesitantly approached and took their seats.

Wellesley received the cards from the dealer with a trembling heart after a long time.

“Oh, this is a good start? It’s no fun to just play, so how about making a simple bet?”

“Is the Prime Minister of this country proposing a gambling bet to the Emperor’s consort [the spouse of the Emperor]?”

“Why? Are you perhaps afraid of losing? Of course, I understand if that’s the case.”

“Goodness, don’t you remember who it was that barely made the person who couldn’t even notice a scam right in front of his eyes fit to be a human being? The attendants are all watching, so I’ll play with just the right amount of strength.”

Killian confidently picked up his cards, but poker is originally quite dependent on luck in the early stages before the number of hands accumulates.

“Full house! Hahahaha! I win.”

“Oh? This time it’s a flush? Luck is on my side today.”

Wellesley, whose cards were better than expected, smoothly took the chips, and conversely, the chips placed on Killian’s table continued to dwindle.

“This is strange… Prime Minister, didn’t you collude with the dealer in advance?”

“Am I crazy to play a rigged game against Your Majesty? My, my, it seems our Majesty’s skills have deteriorated a lot because you’ve been working too hard on state affairs.”

“…We’ll see.”

When Killian, who was genuinely provoked, began to concentrate seriously, Wellesley was no match for him after all.

Wellesley lost all the pre-distributed chips and was defeated, but it was Wellesley who was excited, and Killian was the one with a sullen expression.

“It’s only natural that I can’t beat Your Majesty. Still, I’m satisfied since I put up a good fight. Hahaha!”

“If this were a real gambling bet, you would have lost all your money, Prime Minister. What’s so good about putting up a good fight?”

“But wasn’t it Your Majesty who didn’t accept the gambling bet?”

“I mean, does it make sense for the Prime Minister and the Emperor’s consort of a country to play poker for bets?”

“Then shall we play the next game leisurely between ourselves?”

After ordering the attendants to wait outside again, Wellesley sat back in his chair and shuffled the cards.

“What was that thing Your Majesty showed me in the old days… bottom dealing [a cheating technique in card games]? That was really amazing… Ah, but did you perhaps use that technique just now too?”

“That’s not something you can do casually without preparation. I can do it if I’m determined, but this isn’t a place where I have to win at all costs.”

“So you might have used it if it were a situation where you had to win no matter what?”

“I wouldn’t just be able to use it, I would have to use it. If it’s a place where I have to win no matter what.”

Killian took the cards Wellesley was shuffling and flicked five cards from the top with his fingers.

Reflexively checking them, the five cards were A, K, Q, J, 10 of spades.

It was questionable how he could give them like this when he had clearly received the cards he had shuffled, but since this was Killian, what was there to be surprised about?

“When I think about it, traveling with Your Majesty has been exactly like this. Politics is like a chaos where you can’t see an inch ahead, but Your Majesty always draws the best results, as if taking the cards you want to draw.”

“That’s also thanks to the Prime Minister. In fact, it would be more of a problem if the ruling party and the imperial family were on the same team and couldn’t lead the political situation, wouldn’t it?”

“That’s not as easy as it sounds. It’s thanks to the combined efforts of not only me and Your Majesty, but also many other people… Ah, come to think of it, wasn’t our friend Disraeli also someone Your Majesty brought in?”

“That’s right. I thought he was someone who would become great.”

It’s a truly new thought, but Killian’s insight was definitely unique.

Not only politicians, but also most of the people he picked in the fields of economy, culture, science, and even medicine are now showing tremendous results.

Wellesley was confident that he had also become somewhat skilled at seeing people, but compared to that person, he was just a drop in the bucket.

It’s as if he knew from the beginning that they were people who would become great and picked them up in his shopping basket.

Disraeli was also one of those people decorated in Killian’s jewelry box.

“Then did you approach me at that time because you thought I was also someone who would become great?”

“…To be honest, that’s not the case.”

“Huh?”

This was another unexpected answer, so the pitch of Wellesley’s voice went up.

Of course, he thought he would hear a story about how Killian approached him because he thought the Prime Minister had the potential to become the longest-serving Prime Minister in this country.

“To be exact, I was trying to make the Prime Minister someone who would become great. But you became much greater than I expected. So in that sense, you could say that my prediction was wrong.”

“I don’t know whether to feel good or bad about this ambiguous evaluation?”

“I’m not a god, so how can I predict everything? What’s certain is that you have become a bigger figure than anyone else I predicted would become great.”

“The only existence that Killian’s prediction missed. Looking at it that way, it certainly feels good.”

“Strictly speaking, you’re not the only one.”

“Please just go along with it. What’s wrong with saying I’m the only one?”

A story from over 50 years ago.

Wellesley joined forces with a much younger boy he happened to meet at a casino and made a promise to rise to the top of the British Empire.

They worked together in harmony and sometimes exchanged childish banter like this, and now they have arrived here.

They achieved everything they wanted, no, countless things they couldn’t even imagine.

“Your Majesty, do you have any idea why I brought you here?”

“…You’re going to tell me that you’re going to step down now, right?”

Ah, I was going to make a surprise announcement, but please pretend you don’t know. You’re really quick on the uptake.

Wellesley’s excitement waned a bit, but since that’s who Killian was, what could he do?

Wellesley smiled and neatly put the scattered cards back into the leather case.

“I’m going to retire at the end of this year. Now I need to spend more time with my family and go abroad to enjoy a leisurely vacation.”

“Do so.”

Since this was the place where everything first began, he hoped that this would also be the place where he would lay everything down.

Wellesley, who had achieved one of his long-held goals, smiled and signed his name on the card case and handed it to Killian.

“These cards right here. They’re actually the cards I used at the casino in the past. I’ve been keeping them all this time as a memento.”

“Is that so? I had no idea.”

“It was a kind of amulet. I felt like everything would go well if I had this. But now I don’t need this luck, so I’m returning it to Your Majesty.”

Wellesley bowed slightly to Killian, who received the cards with a complicated expression.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. In many ways.”

“I should be the one thanking you. Thank you for your hard work, Prime Minister.”

* * *

On December 31st of that year, not long after Disraeli’s funeral.

Wellesley, the longest-serving Prime Minister of the British Empire, stepped down from his position, bringing his long political journey to an end amidst thunderous applause.

Leaving behind an immortal record that will not be broken for hundreds of years.