Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 405 The Last Chance for Peace (Part 2)
[Capital of the Van Republic, Hirano Castle]
[Imperial Consulate]
A melodious sonata flowed from the string and harpsichord instruments in the southeast corner of the hall, while waiters carrying heavy silver platters and crystal goblets moved silently, as foreign affairs and intelligence activities were carried out simultaneously.

Since there are all sorts of receptions during the Alliance Conference, there are naturally all sorts of intelligence activities as well—both the representatives of the republics and the foreign envoys who have come from afar are well aware of this.

Each of them was part of an intelligence operation, but they avoided talking about it.

Each of them desires to manipulate intelligence activities, yet they are all trying to contain them in one way or another.

For the dignitaries currently seated in the St. Andrew's Hall of the Imperial Consulate, a seemingly contradictory duality coexists within them in a way that is both opposing and unified.

However, there are also areas where the undercurrents between alliance representatives and foreign envoys go unnoticed.

At the edge of the banquet hall, where glasses were clinking and toasts were being exchanged, two young people who seemed completely oblivious to the reception were taking the opportunity to enjoy the unlimited supply of fine wine provided by the Imperial Consulate.

“The Varn people aren’t very good at fighting, politics, or business.” One of the young men finished his drink, wiped his mouth, and said happily, “The only thing I would never say badly about them is when it comes to brewing.”

The young man, who spoke rudely without restraint, was short, with almond-shaped eyes, a large forehead, and a carefully groomed mustache. A cynical smile played on his lips, yet his eyes held a childlike innocence. His ornate formal attire always looked strangely out of place on him, though it was hard to pinpoint exactly what was wrong.

By the way, he also wore an extravagantly decorated top hat without taking it off, even indoors.

“Mr. Mawei, you still haven’t answered me!” Another young man finished one glass of wine, immediately picked up another, burped, and asked curiously, “Why did you humiliate the emperor?”

……

[Three months ago]
[Eternal City]
[Burbage Brothers Theater]
The performance of "Romulus and Lemus" is currently in Act II, Scene 5.

"Romulus and Lemus" is currently the hottest new play in the capital, with the Burbitch Brothers Theatre almost always sold out. Whether high-ranking officials or ladies of high society, attending this play live is considered fashionable.
The success of this play also brought fame to playwright Ma Wei, who was originally only known in a small circle.

In Act II, Scene 4, Romulus has just killed his twin brother Lemus. After a brief stage shift, the second curtain opens again, and the following Scene 5 is entirely Romulus's monologue.

The actor playing Romulo, Ping Duan, slowly walked to the center of the stage, pulling the dagger from his brother's corpse. He stared at his blood-stained hands, raised his head, and looked on with a sorrowful expression.

“Listen! The owl is crying, tolling its death knell, a mournful goodnight to the people. My twin brother lies there quietly, life and blood flowing from his body. I killed him, I plunged this dagger into his chest with my own hands.”

"Can all the water in the ocean wash away the blood on my hands? No, I'm afraid the blood on my hands will turn the boundless blue sea crimson."

After saying that, Romulo lowered his head again.

Usually, when this part of the performance is played, the audience always gives some kind of response. For a small theater like the Burbitch Brothers Theatre, where the stage and the audience are only an arm's length apart, the interaction between the audience and the actors is an important part of the performance.

However, the audience was completely silent today.

Romulus stood on the stage for a moment, then suddenly took a deep breath, threw away the dagger in his hand, tore open his clothes, and shouted passionately:

"But will I feel ashamed? Will I feel guilty? Will I regret it?"

"No! Absolutely not! I will never feel ashamed, guilty, or regretful about this."

"People seek revenge when they suffer minor harm; but when they suffer serious harm, they are powerless to retaliate, even if they want to. When I seize Lemus's crown, I must kill him. For if you're going to do something, do it thoroughly!"

"Even if it happened again, I would never forgive Lemus's life!"

The actor who played Romulus gave a fully committed performance, delivering what may be the best performance of his career.

However, after the powerful monologue ended, instead of cheers, the audience became even more silent.

Viewers who have seen this play have noticed that the actors were not reciting the original lines.

The original dialogue should have been about Romulus regretting, suffering, and despairing over killing his twin brother, creating a tragic image of someone forced to kill his brother.

It's definitely not this cold-blooded confession of "either don't do it at all, or do it thoroughly" that I'm talking about today!

Richard Burbage, the theater owner sitting in the first row of the audience, was drenched in cold sweat. His knees were trembling involuntarily, and his neck and back were stiff and numb. He wanted to turn his head to look behind him, but dared not make any movement.

Generally speaking, in the Eternal City, where civic culture is highly developed, discussing royal secrets is not considered a serious crime. In fact, since the dawn of recorded history, the inhabitants of the Eternal City have enjoyed gossiping about the private lives of emperors, empresses, and their lovers. Successive emperors have turned a blind eye, knowing that imperial power cannot silence the people. A direct confrontation would only result in more vulgar humiliation.

That's why plays like "Romulus and Lemus," which are clearly allusions to the reigning emperor, were so popular with both nobles and commoners.

However, what happened today has gone far beyond the scope of "joking".

Because the supreme emperor of the empire was sitting in a box on the second floor of the theater, directly facing the stage.

……

The young man who asked the question was thinner and much younger than Ma Wei, and his voice was still that of a child. He looked like a young master from a noble family, just starting out in social circles. However, his hair was messy, and although his clothes were made of fine fabric, they were wrinkled and very unkempt.

Upon hearing the question, Mave, who had already picked up another glass of sweet wine, put it down, his smile fading, and he solemnly corrected the other man: "Mr. Aaron, I have never insulted the Emperor. In fact, I am His Majesty's most loyal and fervent admirer. I believe His Majesty will ultimately become the greatest emperor in the history of the Empire."

The questioner, known as Aaron, frowned and scrutinized Maiev for a while, trying to discern whether the latter was lying.

Unfortunately, no evidence of lying was found, and Aaron seemed somewhat discouraged, but he quickly raised a new question: "How do you explain changing the script on the spot? Isn't that just deliberate humiliation?"

"So what if you change the script on the spot?" Ma Wei asked, puzzled. "I often change the script on the spot."

"Then...then why did you change it to that shape?"

Mawei raised his glass and proudly replied, "I was just telling the truth."

"The truth?" Aaron asked, somewhat indignantly.

“Otherwise?” Mavy retorted. “Do you think His Majesty would feel pain or regret for executing Grand Duke Karl?”

"You don't understand the emperor, how do you know the emperor didn't exist?"

Ma Wei chuckled: "Do you really understand His Majesty? Do you know that His Majesty has ever regretted it?"

Aaron was speechless. After a while, Aaron said defiantly, "If the emperor were given another chance, he would definitely forgive his brother."

“How could you have such a naive idea?” Mawei gave a pitying smile: “His Majesty executed Grand Duke Karl because Grand Duke Karl had to die.”

"why?"

When asked about his sensitive spot, Mave simply put down his wine glass, pulled Aaron to sit down at the table, and launched into a barrage of questions that were impossible to answer: "Do you know how many court officials supported Grand Duke Karl during the War of the Succession? How many local lords supported Grand Duke Karl? And what kind of difficult situation did His Majesty face?" Aaron was completely unable to answer.

“Let me tell you!” Mawei was in high spirits, answering his own question: “At the beginning of the war, almost all the important court officials sided with Grand Duke Karl. Of the seven electors, three supported Grand Duke Karl’s accession to the throne, three remained neutral, and only Duke Lothair openly supported His Majesty.”

As for the long-robed nobles who fled from the south, they all wholeheartedly supported Archduke Karl. They believed that only Archduke Karl could lead them back, and that His Majesty, who had been forced to borrow money from the southern rebels to pay for the army, was not trustworthy.

What a perilous and desperate situation it was! Yet His Majesty, employing masterful tactics and proceeding step by step, ultimately reversed the tide and won—what a glorious and legendary victory it was! Sooner or later, I will definitely use His Majesty's experience as a blueprint to write an epic poem..."

Mawei spoke with great enthusiasm, while Aaron remained completely bewildered.

After a long while, Aaron finally came to his senses and asked, "Of course I know the Emperor's victory was great, but what does that have to do with Archduke Karl's death? Didn't Archduke Karl already surrender?"

"Hmph." Mawei sneered: "It is true that Grand Duke Karl has surrendered, but that does not mean that others are willing to surrender. As long as Grand Duke Karl is alive, sooner or later there will be traitors who are unwilling to accept defeat and want to rescue him; as long as Grand Duke Karl is alive, sooner or later there will be traitors who launch a rebellion in his name."

"Grand Duke Karl's life means that anyone dissatisfied with His Majesty's rule has another option. Therefore, rather than leaving a threat, it's better to eliminate him completely. Thus, Grand Duke Karl must die; this has nothing to do with His Majesty's subjective will, but is a necessary choice to uphold imperial authority."

Aaron was speechless. After a moment of silence, Aaron whispered, "The emperor isn't actually what you imagine. He laughs and gets happy too; it's just that people don't understand him..."

"Gentleness and kindness—these weak emotions are reserved for people, not for the emperor," Ma Wei interrupted impatiently, his cheeks flushed, and he said with high spirits, "As the supreme authority of the empire, the emperor must transcend ordinary people. Morality, religion, and law are things that bind the subjects, not the emperor. The emperor must discard those shackles and use power skillfully and decisively, like a master swordsman wielding a sword, in order to fulfill the duties of a monarch and achieve immortal greatness."

In my view, Your Majesty is the most ideal monarch. He is unafraid to use any necessary means. While mediocre men insult Your Majesty as a 'sworn enemy,' I regard 'sworn enemy' as a compliment. And the play I hastily revised is precisely a most fervent ode to Your Majesty!

Aaron was dumbfounded and had no way to respond.

After delivering his long speech in one breath, Ma Wei picked up his wine glass and gulped it down. Then, clearing his throat, he added, "His Majesty surely understands me! You see, he didn't punish me, did he? If His Majesty wanted my life, would I still be sitting here enjoying this fine wine?"

"But the emperor didn't reward you either," Aaron said, his eyes crinkling with laughter. "And if you weren't afraid, why did you leave the capital and come all the way south?"

Mawei's face, already flushed from drinking, seemed to turn even redder. He argued, "Of course His Majesty can't reward me, after all, His Majesty still has to rule over those mediocre people. But in his heart, His Majesty must still appreciate me!"

Aaron's smile deepened: "Then why did you still flee the capital? Weren't you already quite famous there?"

Mawei's breath hitched. He slumped to his side, supporting his forehead, and sighed, "My reason for fleeing is similar to His Majesty's reason for executing Grand Duke Karl. Although His Majesty doesn't want me to die, but... but there are too many fools in the capital who want to curry favor with His Majesty with my blood... Alas..."

Aaron was so overjoyed that he almost fell off his chair.

Mawei picked up another glass of wine and silently drank it down with tears in his eyes; even the fine wine didn't seem so appealing anymore.

Aaron hesitated for a moment, then smiled and patted Mave on the shoulder: "Don't worry, you'll be able to return to the Eternal City sooner or later. If all else fails... if all else fails, I can put in a good word for you."

Mawei looked Aaron up and down, and said with a sense of insult, "Look at you, so uncultured, you want to eat every dish, just like me!"

Aaron retorted angrily, "I ate every dish because... because I was so hungry!"

"Alright, alright, stop explaining." Mawei laughed without a care, having already shaken off his annoyance. He reached out and took the food plate from the inside of the table to Aaron, then picked up two bottles of wine and discreetly put one of them into his inner pocket: "Free top-quality wine, might as well drink it."

The two then retaliated by wasting some of the imperial treasury.

Aaron suddenly remembered something was wrong and shoved Mave hard, nearly choking him.

"You're lying to me!" Aaron's voice rose.

Ma Wei pounded his chest and coughed repeatedly: "What?"

"You not only changed the scene in Act II, Scene 5, but you also changed the final scene! The original ending of *Romulus and Lemus* was that Romulus established the Eternal City, defeated the Epicureans, and was carried away by the wind to heaven in the presence of his subjects. But you changed the final scene so that Romulus was murdered by the nobles!" Aaron was furious. "You deliberately changed a happy ending into a tragic one, and you say you're not humiliating the Emperor?"

……

Romulus and Lemus, Act V, Scene IX.

The dying Romulo lay on his side on the ground, his robes stained red with "blood," and the dagger stuck in his chest was the very one he had used to kill his twin brother.

"Eternal City! Eternal City!" Romulus cried out in anguish as he lay dying. "You incompetent people! You can kill me! But who among you can inherit my cause? You are not killing a king, you are killing the glory and greatness that belong to the Eternal City! This city will surely suffer calamity, and then you will remember me again."

The gods have no right to judge me, to dismember my body, and bury it on the seven hills. Do not blind me; I will watch all this until the next true king arrives. Then he will give me the most just judgment.

The trumpet sounded, and the curtain slowly closed.

The audience remained deathly silent; no one dared to turn and look at the central box on the second floor. The theater owner, Richard Burbage, was deathly pale, frantically making prayers.

After an unknown amount of time, a clear clapping sound rang out from the second floor of the theater. The sound wasn't loud, but it was undoubtedly a signal.

The entire theater erupted in applause and cheers in an instant.

When the curtain rose again and Ma Wei and the actors went on stage to greet the audience, the boxes on the second floor of the theater were already empty.

……

"You turned a happy ending into a tragedy!" Aaron demanded aggressively. "And you still say you weren't deliberately humiliating the Emperor?"

Ma Wei was taken aback upon hearing this, but instead of rushing to explain, he silently poured himself a drink: "Changing the ending to that was truly a last resort."

"Forced to do it?" Aaron was both shocked and furious.

Ma Wei picked up his glass, took a light sniff, and a proud yet dashing smile appeared on his face. He replied in the tone of a martyr who sacrificed himself for righteousness, "Because tragedy has a high artistic achievement!"

At the same time, everyone in St. Andrew's Hall clearly heard the master of ceremonies' loud and clear announcement: "Prince Richard has arrived!"

Everyone couldn't help but turn their gaze to the main entrance.

The heavy doors slowly opened, and the elegant Prince Richard, accompanied by his retinue, calmly entered the banquet hall.

Perhaps because he was no longer in the emperor's shadow, the young prince exuded a confidence and charisma rarely seen in the palace.

Among the prince's entourage, a handsome, tall, blond military officer stood out.

[A man's promise!]
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(End of this chapter)