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Chapter 1800 Declaration of War (Long Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets)

Kaya City

“Honey,” Jack pushed open the door, looked at his wife sitting on the sofa watching TV, and asked with some curiosity, “What’s wrong?”

"You're back?" His wife turned around and glanced at him. "How's work at the mecha manufacturing plant?"

“I just started working here, so the job is pretty easy. The factory is mostly automated, so we don’t have much to do,” Jack said, taking off his work clothes and hanging them on the coat rack by the entrance. “What TV show are you watching?”

“It’s a live broadcast of Mayor Christos’s speech in Dawn City,” his wife said, pointing to the man in a silver suit in the rain on the TV screen. “It seems to be to welcome the protesters who died in Ains. It’s being broadcast by Kaya City TV. Apparently, the conglomerate’s army has now surrounded Dawn City, and the situation there is very bad.”

“Christos?” Jack paused for a moment, then sat down on the sofa and looked at the TV. “Dawn City, those are such distant memories.”

-

Irons Greystone Palace
The handsome man sat in his spacious office, staring intently at the television screen in front of him, at the man giving a speech in the rain, and at the excited crowd around him.

A faint, labored breathing sound seemed to fill the air as he lowered his voice and said hoarsely, "What is Christos trying to do? Host a welcome party for the dead who organized the march in Irons? Is he trying to claim that he organized those marches? Is he going against the Federation, against Graystone Palace, against me? He's just a city mayor, what right does he have?"

"Mr. President, please calm down," the bespectacled figure beside him said quickly, bowing his head.

"Many people in Dawn City don't approve of going against us. Christos had been wavering before; he didn't make a decision easily. Ultimately, he came from a wealthy family, unlike those peasants who had no way out."
"Under such pressure, he is very likely to surrender."

He glanced at the handsome man and continued, "This might just be a simple political stunt, an attempt to increase one's bargaining power before the final negotiations. This kind of maneuver is very common in federal politics."

Upon hearing the bespectacled figure's words, the handsome man nodded slightly, took a breath, and said nothing more, but his gaze remained fixed on the scene on the television.

-

Dawn City

"At this very moment, these young people lying in this square are the first to speak out in this chaos."

The man in the silver suit standing on the high platform lowered his head and looked down at the coffin below. "They broke the silence and gave their lives for it."

“Even just now, people were still asking me why I held such a grand funeral for these young people, asking if I wanted to provoke Irons and the entire Federation.”

"But what I see is these young people fighting for the rights of all those who are struggling to live, fighting for the chance to live for all those who are oppressed and strangled by conglomerates."

"We are in a profound silence, but we cannot ignore those who dare to speak out."

The man in the silver suit raised his head, looking at the silent crowd in the square. His voice gradually softened, each syllable becoming more resonant, each word clearer and more distinct.

"At this moment, after eight hundred years of trials and tribulations, the historical choice has once again been placed in our hands."
"The conglomerate's army, the army supported by the conglomerate, is right outside the city. They have cut off trade routes, blockaded the city, and are trying to strangle us."

"It's like a stranglehold on the throats of these young people here."

Swish swish swish—

The raindrops fell rapidly from the sky, landing on the huge tarpaulin with a pattering sound.

The man in the silver suit remained standing on the platform, his gaze fixed on everyone in the rain below. "We have endured far too long a silence, a silence as if we had never spoken before."
"Over the past four years, we have gone through countless battles and changes to get to where we are today."
"We have the Food Act, the Healthcare Act, the Employees Act, the Antitrust Act..."

"It was only through the bloodshed of generations of heroes that we were given the opportunity to speak."

"Only then can we guarantee our current vitality, ensure that everyone can enjoy basic security, and give our children and our descendants the opportunity to stand on the land under the sun."

"Now, the conglomerate wants to silence us again, to destroy everything we have built, and to shroud this glorious land in gloom once more."

"Now is the time for us to make a decision."

His gaze was downward, his hand resting on the balcony, looking at everyone present, and also at the camera that had been suspended in mid-air from the very beginning, "dying silently in silence."

His hands gripped the tabletop tightly, slightly warping the edge of the wood.

"Let's fight it out, for our future, for the future of our children, for the future of this city, for the future of all those in the Federation who are suffocating in this silence, and fight for a place where we can sing freely in the sunlight!"

Da da da—

The fine raindrops, like a dense drumbeat, pattered against the huge tarpaulin, striking everyone's ears and hearts.

Under the silent and still night sky.

Everyone looked up and stared at the man standing in the rain, in front of the huge statue.

Beside the man, some of the figures who had been standing next to him had various expressions in their eyes, some surprised and some astonished. They seemed not to have expected the content of the speech.

But soon, someone realized what was happening.

A young man standing in the crowd suddenly raised his hand and shouted, "Let's fight! Let's fight them!"

"Start the war!!!" "Start the war!!!"

A series of sudden, loud noises rang out in the rain.

"For Dawn City!" "For the Federation!" "Long live Dawn City! Long live the Federation! Long live Christos!"

Then new voices rose from the crowd.

"For Dawn City! For the Federation!"

"Long live Dawn City! Long live the Federation! Long live Christos!"

In the end, all other sounds were drowned out by the sudden, fierce roar.

Fine raindrops gather on the tarpaulin, coalescing into thin streams that flow down the tarpaulin and eventually become a flowing stream.

And the sounds from the earth eventually coalesced into a roaring, overwhelming chorus of words.

"Long live Dawn City! Long live the Federation! Long live Christos!"

In the area behind the square, the young people were clearly infected by the atmosphere of the crowd. They raised their hands, looked at the figure standing on the platform, and excitedly pumped their fists.

Dester, who was standing to the side, raised his head and looked at the man in the silver suit on the platform, his eyes slightly narrowed.

-

Irons Greystone Palace
The handsome man raised his head, looked at the bespectacled figure beside him, and said in a hoarse voice, "So this is what you mean, he's increasing his bargaining power?"

"Using war to achieve peace is itself a negotiation tactic," the bespectacled figure said in a hoarse voice, glancing at the television screen. "He needs to be tough enough and threatening enough to get us to offer better terms."

"Using war to force peace?" The handsome man sneered. "Is sending someone to kill me also a way of using war to force peace?"

"President, please calm down," the bespectacled figure said quickly.

“I know,” the handsome man took a deep breath, staring at the television screen. “I know. You don’t need to worry. Contact Rockwell Energy and the intelligence agency and tell them to speed things up. Since he’s going to be tough, let him see who’s tougher.”

"Okay." The bespectacled figure bowed slightly, pushed back out of the office, and gently closed the door.

click -

As the door closed, a series of clattering sounds came from inside the office, interspersed with suppressed, angry growls: "A mayor! Just a mayor! What does he want to do! What does he want to do! Everyone's gone mad! Everyone's against me! Everyone's against me!"

Then, there was another crackling sound.

Upon hearing these sounds, the bespectacled figure simply sighed softly and then turned and left the office.

-

Kaya City

“It looks like a fight is about to break out in Dawn City,” his wife said, sitting on the sofa with a long sigh. “Luckily we left. If we had stayed in Dawn City, it would have been dangerous. Kaya City is much better, and Mr. Vian is much more reliable there.”

But her words did not receive affirmation from her husband, who turned his gaze to her.

But then they found that Jack had already raised his head, looking at the image on the television, staring blankly at the dark coffin on the screen.

"What's wrong?" the wife asked her husband, puzzled.

"Tell me, if Dawn City is taken over by the conglomerate's army, who will be next?" Jack suddenly asked, snapping out of his reverie.

“I don’t know,” the wife shook her head, then she thought for a moment, “Which of Dawn City’s ‘allies’? Like those cities that are carrying out reforms along with Dawn City?”

"Is the Nolanca Group an ally of Dawn City?" Jack pressed on.

"Nolanca Group? It seems like we haven't implemented any reforms here, right? Shouldn't the group also be part of a conglomerate?" At this point, the wife herself seemed to realize there was a problem, shaking her head. "However, Nolanca Group's style is completely different from those conglomerates; it's like two different worlds."

“Yes, it’s like two different worlds,” Jack took a small breath, lightly scratched the K necklace around his neck, and said in a low voice, “And have you noticed that the Christos municipal government actually does a lot of cooperation with the Nolanca Group? The group’s mercenary group even helped quell the internal rebellion in Dawn City before.”

"What does this mean?" the wife asked, puzzled.

“This means,” Jack gripped the necklace at his chest, “that the Group is most likely an ally of Dawn City, and its strongest ally at that. Although the Group is also a conglomerate, it is much more radical than Dawn City in many policies.”

"So, the next step for those conglomerates is to take down the Nolanca Group?" the wife pondered, trying to follow Jack's train of thought.

“If Dawn City falls, the group’s current strength is simply insufficient to resist the conglomerate’s encirclement,” Jack turned to look at his still somewhat bewildered wife beside him, “If the group is destroyed or assimilated, it means we will lose our current jobs.”

He looked into his wife's eyes and said, "Not only that, but our cheap housing, cheap health insurance, children's schools, and our comfortable life will all be completely destroyed. We will return to the old days of living hand to mouth, where a single fracture or a cold could leave us homeless."

"Huh?" The wife was slightly taken aback, and subconsciously grabbed Jack's shoulder. "We can't do this."

“Yes,” Jack took a slight breath, “we can’t do this, and the corporation won’t let Christos lose. We may have to go into battle at any time.”

hum-

Just then, his bracelet vibrated. He glanced at it and immediately stood up. "It's an urgent notice from the factory. We need to go back immediately. You might need to take the kids to school tomorrow morning."

As he spoke, he turned around and walked towards the door again.

“Okay, okay,” his wife quickly stood up, opened the refrigerator door, took out two prepared sandwiches, and handed them to Jack, who was already in his uniform. “Be careful.”

“I’m just going to the factory, don’t worry.” Jack opened the door.

"What if we have to go to the battlefield?" His wife suddenly grabbed his hand.

Hearing this, Jack looked up at the small house behind him, which was lit with warm lights, and then at the little door in the corner with cartoon drawings on it. He paused for a moment, then said, "Let's go then."

The wife opened her mouth as if to say something, but all she received in return was an open embrace.

Then, the warm embrace ended, accompanied by the crisp sound of the door closing.

Outside the door, Jack looked up at the corridor ahead.

At that moment, the door directly opposite him opened, and his neighbor across the hall came out of his room.

The two were slightly taken aback when they saw each other, and then they turned their heads almost simultaneously to look at the other rooms in the corridor.

One by one, figures slowly emerged from behind the doors of this quiet corridor.

-

Vitland

In the spacious and bright office, the young man wearing a top hat raised his hand, took out the remote control on the table, and pressed pause on the television at the far end of the office.

The entire scene was frozen in that sudden downpour.

His movements were slow and gentle, his whole body swaying slightly, like a light paper doll.

He turned around and looked at the end of the long, narrow desk behind him, where an elderly man with white hair was sitting quietly, his eyes slightly squinted. He didn't know if he was asleep or just squinting, watching the television screen that had stopped.

“He’s declaring war on us.” After a brief pause, the young man looked at the old man and said slowly.

Then, the entire office fell into a brief silence.

After an unknown amount of time, the old man slightly opened his eyes, glanced at the television screen in front of him, and said in a hoarse voice, "He has made his decision."

"What should we do now?" the young man asked the old man.

The old man simply narrowed his eyes again and slowly said, "Wait."

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