Mystery: A Spark

"What else did he do?" Leonard asked curiously.

"Don't tell you."

Leonard: ...

Unable to satisfy his curiosity, he scratched his head, about to ask something else, when he saw that the situation on the platform had changed again.

Surprisingly, George III's expression did not change after Arthur asked the question.

However, the next second, something even more surprising happened: George III's figure began to fade in full view of everyone, and then disappeared from everyone's sight.

"This..." Leonard couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

In his heart, Palez chuckled playfully, "Heh heh, Leonard, you know what?"

"what?"

"Your king has passed away."

Leonard swallowed hard. "He...he just...died like that? With so many people watching..."

"Of course not, what are you thinking?" Pales thought to Leonard, somewhat speechless. "Haven't you realized that the one on the platform is fake? The real battlefield isn't here at all."

Leonard chuckled twice.

He had just been thrown into disarray by these sudden changes, and only after Palles' reminder did he realize that no matter how audacious Arthur was, it was impossible for him to kill the king in public.

Because it is obvious that since Arthur wants to usurp the throne, he must maintain a good public image.

Therefore, under no circumstances could Arthur openly be involved in the king's death.

“He’s not too stupid. Let’s see what other tricks Arthur will pull next,” Pales said with great interest.

Throughout his life, he had never seen a young man who could cause trouble like Arthur, so he was quite curious about what this young man would do next.

The king's disappearance caused a stir among the people, who were puzzled as to what had happened.

Why did the king disappear immediately after Mr. Heller only said one sentence?

And soon, they got the answer.

"As you can see, what our King George III is giving today is an outright hoax!"

After George III's disappearance, Arthur seamlessly took his place on the platform and began his speech.

"People of Rune, the king has shamelessly deceived us. He kept saying that we would surely defeat evil and brutality and win this war, but the truth is that this war broke out suddenly because of our king's deliberate indulgence!"

"What? This is impossible..." The crowd below couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

They were very familiar with Mr. Heller, because he had not only mobilized his forces to save many people during last year's Backlund smog incident, but in the past few months, the Umbrella Corporation he established had also become a household name in Backlund and even the entire Loen region.

Whether it's clothing, food, housing, transportation, or various welfare institutions, such as primary schools that take in homeless children, or even the electricity used in daily life, people can always see that small, red and white umbrella-shaped sign in all sorts of places.

Their lives were already inextricably linked to the umbrella, so naturally they had a natural affinity, closeness, and trust in Mr. Heller.

Even so, when Mr. Heller publicly accused King George III, they still fell into great chaos.

At this moment, Arthur looked at the noisy crowd and pointed to the left. "All the evidence is here. These images clearly show that the outbreak of this war was because King George III deliberately transferred the coastal defense forces, which allowed the Fussacs to advance unimpeded and launch air raids on Backlund with no difficulty!"

Following his directions, people looked to the right and saw a huge screen slowly descending from a tall building.

Then, the screen began showing footage of the Rune Navy receiving orders and being reassigned to leave the defensive line open.

These images came from the military's friendly support and the technical processing by Umbrella Corporation, and were finally handed over to Arthur by Sharon.

As we all know, videos cannot be edited, so these images are undoubtedly genuine.

One reason why the Rune military so readily extended a goodwill gesture to Arthur is the mediation of former Duke Pallas of Negan.

On the other hand, it is because the instinct of a country's army is to pursue victory and interests.

In many cases, victory means honor and benefits.

However, when the benefits are great enough, an army can also give up victory and honor.

The problem is that this time, George III did not offer the military enough benefits.

On the contrary, the only person who actually benefited from this event was George III himself.

Even those generals who were loyal to him only received the empty promises he made, the pie in the sky, about what he would be able to do once he became a god.

In the eyes of the vast majority of military commanders, George III brought them nothing short of a defeat.

They had just received a batch of powerful new equipment and were preparing to show off their prowess in the upcoming clashes with the Fussac barbarians when George III suddenly pulled this stunt.

It's obvious to anyone with a brain that most people in the military are extremely dissatisfied.

Even those loyal to George III had to abandon their illusions and submit to the tide after his defeat and death.

"It's actually true!?" The crowd erupted in uproar.

They stared at the video footage in disbelief, watching it scene by scene, as if trying to etch it into their minds.

At this moment, Arthur spoke up.

"We will win."

This statement immediately drew people's attention back, and they were eager for guidance.

At this time when the king is leading the rebellion, the bewildered people need a guiding light to lead them in the right direction.

"These are the words our king just said."

Arthur changed the subject, pointing emphatically at the spot where George III had just stood.

"But what he really meant was that he would win!"

Arthur clenched one fist and placed it in front of his chest, while raising the other hand with fingers together and waving it forcefully.

"At the end of May, when the power of the Kingdom of Rune was growing, our king shamefully cooperated with the barbarians of Fusak and let their army into our country."

"This is outright betrayal! This coward has betrayed us!"

The crowd applauded loudly, feeling that the words had perfectly captured their hearts.

The casualties caused by the Backlund air raids were not severe, but the panic they caused was enormous.

Because it made people realize that even inland, even in the capital, their lives could still be threatened by war at any time.

Therefore, when Arthur exposed the mastermind behind all of this, the people's hatred instantly found an outlet.

Arthur's speech continued:

"Our current situation is unfavorable, obviously, because we have lost the initiative in this war."

“We may be defeated, we may lose our sovereignty, and we may be forced by the Fusak barbarians to sign a series of unequal agreements.”

"So what should we do? Should we surrender?"

"Tell me! Should we surrender?!"

Faced with Arthur's loud questioning, the people were instantly enraged; they erupted in a clamor, shouting:

"No! Absolutely not!! Absolutely not!!!"

Arthur raised a clenched fist and roared even louder than the others:

"That's right! The Rune people will never surrender!!!"

Seeing the emotions stirred in the people, Arthur made even more powerful physical movements.

He placed his hands on his chest and then slowly but firmly clenched his fists.

"So how should we deal with this situation? How can we fight the Fusak barbarians after losing the initiative?"

Arthur, his expression excited, pumped his fist and gave his answer:

"We need to unite! We need to unite into a powerful Rune!"

"We will sacrifice! We will make efforts, yes! But in the end, victory will surely belong to us!"

"Victory will ultimately belong to us!"

People cheered spontaneously, their hearts burning with the fire to burn all their enemies to ashes.

"We must accept the leadership of the Workers' Mutual Aid Association, arm ourselves with the excellent equipment provided by the Umbrella Corporation, and strike our enemies hard."

"We must protect our country and drive out those Fusaks who dare to invade our nation!"

The people's cries grew louder; they had received guidance and were no longer confused.

Benson and Melissa stood side by side in the crowd.

Looking at the blond youth standing on the high platform, as dazzling as a torch in the darkness, Benson couldn't help but sigh:

"They're not even in the same league..."

"What?" Melissa didn't quite hear what he was saying because of the cheers around her.

“I mean…” Benson moved closer to Melissa, “The King’s speech just now was on a completely different level from Mr. Heller’s speech; the difference was obvious.”

"Yes, I almost wanted to shout it out loud." Melissa's face was flushed with excitement.

“If Mr. Heller can mobilize everyone, such war potential…” Benson couldn’t help but swallow.

He couldn't help but feel a strange sense of dread about the scenario he had imagined.

......

"I haven't seen a young person like this in years..."

An aged sigh echoed softly in Leonard's heart.

"Teacher, have you seen this before?" Leonard asked curiously.

“Of course, wasn’t Roselle just like that more than a hundred years ago?” Pales said.

"Arthur...can he be compared to Emperor Rosell?" Leonard was somewhat surprised.

He hadn't expected Arthur to be so highly regarded by his teacher.

"Heh, just you wait and see, it's hard to say who will achieve more or less," Pales chuckled.

......

On the high platform, Arthur watched the crowd gradually quiet down and began the next phase of his work.

During this period, he addressed people in a more affectionate way.