In Ark Simulator, why do I always get a tough start?

Chapter 13: Unsettled Public Sentiment, and the Twin Empresses' Schemes?
On the second day in Letania, people awoke from their sleep as usual, and the mobile cities and villages resumed their daily operations as people awoke.

But this day was somewhat different from usual.

The increasing number of job seekers on the streets, as well as the busy office workers, laborers, and even small vendors, were all drawn to a news report that was circulating throughout Letania.

The news that shook Letania was being broadcast on televisions in countless homes and streets.

"This is the Letania Daily News."

"Yesterday, an unprecedented riot broke out in the mobile city located in the Electoral District of Werner von Hochberg."

"Thousands of civilians, incited by the violent organization 'Son of the Witch King,' took to the streets, holding placards and banners, in an attempt to overthrow the rule of the Twin Queens through strikes and marches."

"Fortunately, our twin queens had already heard the news and secretly dispatched the 'Golden Law Guards' to assist in the investigation. In the end, under the suppression of Count Dilov, they arrested the leader of the 'Son of the Witch King,' Qi, and more than twenty other members of his team."

According to sources, under interrogation, Qi and his gang members remained arrogant and refused to reveal any information about the "Son of the Witch King".

"As for the crimes of inciting the masses to hold strikes and demonstrations, Qi confessed to them all and claimed that he had no accomplices in this operation and that the other members arrested were all ordinary citizens."

"Finally, the city council decided that tomorrow at noon, a live broadcast will be held throughout Letania to conduct the fairest and most serious trial and sentencing of Qi and his arrested gang members."

"This station has also been entrusted by Count Dilov, who is in charge of handling this trial, to convey his determination."

"All attempts to overthrow the rule of the twin queens will be severely punished and destroyed."

"Ugh……"

In the city, an old man watched the news on television, then turned it off with a long sigh.

But the very next second after the old man turned off the TV, a boy of about fifteen or sixteen years old burst in.

"Grandpa! Come and see!"

The boy excitedly pointed outside the door, shouting as if some important person was about to appear:
"Everyone's signing their names on the petition! Grandpa, why don't you sign yours too!"

"A petition? What kind of petition?" The old man was a little confused by his grandson's news and subconsciously guessed:
"Is that old, immortal count going to raise taxes again?"

"No, it's for that Mr. Qi!" The grandson quickly shook his head in denial and said the name that had left a deep impression on the old man.

“Many of us went to participate in the strike and demonstration, but in the end only Mr. Qi was arrested, and Mr. Qi had to take the blame for all of us.”

"Uncle Mike, the butcher, said that Mr. Qi was arrested because of us. If we don't help him, then our conscience has been eaten by the Pello Beast."

"So everyone there wanted to sign a petition together, hoping the court would give Mr. Qi a lenient sentence. Grandpa, why don't you sign it too?"

The boy was very excited; clearly, he had also participated in the parade and witnessed Chen Qi's heroic figure.

In his heart, Qi, who charged at the forefront of the team, holding the flag high and unafraid of power, was full of the personal heroism that children of this age admired so much.

Furthermore, many people on the streets, even those who did not participate in the march, felt a great deal of goodwill towards Qi, who was willing to speak out for their interests and take all the blame for them.

The people are very simple; they can tell at a glance who treats them well and who speaks up for them.

The boy's acceptance of everyone's opinions further convinced him that the hero he admired was on the side of "justice".

He was naturally willing to contribute his own strength for the sake of "justice".

However, his grandson's innocent words startled the old man for a moment, then he stood up in a rage.

"—Nonsense!"

When it comes to social experience, the elderly can be described as having a wealth of knowledge.

Especially the indiscriminate massacre targeting the "remnants of the Witch King" some time ago made the old man all too clear about the true nature of the current Leitania judicial system.

After Qi was arrested, almost everyone in the march ran away immediately, and only a few people were arrested.

They are currently making a concerted effort to capture members of the "Son of the Witch King," intending to use these people to gain credit!

Should we petition the government to reduce Qi's sentence at this time?

Let's not even talk about whether it's useful or not.

Are they really not afraid that the executive officer will arrest them as accomplices for signing this joint petition?
"You're not allowed to go. You're staying home today and you're not allowed to go out!"

The old man's attitude was extremely firm.

Not only that, he also had to stop his neighbors from engaging in such reckless behavior, and even more so, prevent them from dragging more people down with them.

However, he forgot that his grandson's age was precisely when his rebellious tendencies were at their strongest.

"Never!"

The simple-minded boy never imagined that his most respected grandfather would stand on the side of "evil" at this moment. Almost instantly, his eyes reddened, and he shouted indignantly:

"Didn't Grandpa always say that your greatest love was Letania? You even said more than once that you would die for Letania!"

"Why is it that now, when the hero of Letania is right in front of us, Grandpa, you no longer support him?"

"—Wait, Joseph!"

However, the old man's intervention came too late; the boy had already run away from home crying.

Faced with his grandson's deafening question, the old man remained silent for a moment before letting out another long sigh.

He walked silently to the closet and took out a rusty Iron Cross medal from the deepest part of the drawer.

Although some parts are rusty, the rest of the medal still retains its luster, clearly the result of its owner's careful polishing.

The old man gazed at the medal he had earned after risking his life and losing countless brothers, and a touch of emotion welled up in his cloudy eyes…

He would never forget the photo of the man named "Qi" after his arrest, which was shown on television just now when the man was introduced.

On the young man's chest was also a First Class Iron Cross.

The old man had received the same honor before, so he understood the significance of this medal.

I understand even more clearly that only those who truly love Letania and defend it as something more important than life itself deserve this medal.

But now, this young man, who sought to benefit everyone in Letania, has become a criminal and is about to be sentenced to death.

What a sad and tragic fact this is.

"Your Majesty the Witch King..." the old man murmured to himself, calling out the name of the king he had once served.
"Please open your eyes and look... Letania... look what it has become."

……

Meanwhile, Chen Qi's tavern was still packed with people.

However, compared to the usual hustle and bustle, the atmosphere inside the tavern was unusually somber today.

Although there were many people drinking in the tavern, many of them had bruises or cuts on their bodies, and the atmosphere was particularly somber.

The only television in the tavern was broadcasting news of Qi's arrest, which explained the tavern's deathly atmosphere.

"Squeak—"

However, what broke this gloom was the sound of the back door of the tavern being pushed open.

When the people in the tavern noticed that Jian, whose body was bandaged in many places, had come out, they seemed to have finally found their pillar of support.

"Sister-in-law..."

"...You don't need to look at me like that."

"It's my fault for not protecting him."

Covered in wounds, Jian looked at the people in front of her. Her mood was even more depressed than theirs, and she didn't know what to say for a moment.

Before Chen Qi was taken away by the Golden Law Guards, Jian did try to rescue him. However, even though Jian didn't know Originium Arts, she still managed to surprise the Golden Law Guards who were besieging her with her physical strength and martial arts alone. But when faced with the true elite of Letania, Jian was still helpless.

She, Gertrude, and the other members of the "Sons of the Witch King" could only watch helplessly as their leader was arrested.

And, his final orders to them before he gave up resistance.

"Leave now, and I will take responsibility for all the consequences."

"Remember, don't come to save me. It will only cause more bleeding and won't make any difference."

It was precisely because Chen Qi, the leader, gave up resistance, and because the Jin law guards felt that arresting Chen Qi would cause the rest of the Liboli beasts to scatter, making it not worth the trouble, that they were able to escape.

But, just like a piece of trash, he could only flee for his life in a panic... This was unacceptable to Jian.

Not to mention her, even those who had lived like ants until following Chen Qi and finding some dignity and meaning could not accept this fact.

Are they incapable of anything without a leader?

Jian stared at his own palms and the double maces at his waist that had been broken by the Originium Arts of the Golden Law Guard, and clenched his fists with extreme resentment.

Once again, she began to hate her own weakness.

If I could really be as powerful as Qi said... strong enough to fight against the Gemini Queens.

This time, they will definitely succeed.

Everything that's happening now is because I'm so incompetent...

Just when the atmosphere fell into dead silence again, and everything seemed hopeless, someone who had been silent for a long time finally spoke.

"It's too early to think about giving up now."

Gertrude, who had been sitting at the bar lost in thought, finally opened her eyes.

This woman, who should have been imprisoned along with Chen Qi as an accomplice but was released without charge because of her count status and the large sum of money she paid, surprisingly showed more determination than anyone else present after the failure.

But to be honest, after fleeing the scene, Gertrude did have a moment where she considered giving up on investing in Chen Qi.

Gertrude felt she had made the wrong bet!

But after calming down, Gertrude did not choose to cut ties immediately—because she knew that even if she did, her image with the Gemini Queens would be irreparable.

In their eyes, they were already suspected of being "remnants of the Witch King's faction," and cutting ties would only make them disliked by both sides.

Moreover, after calming down, Gertrude also noticed that something was wrong with Qi.

This guy is so calm!

It was as if all of this was unfolding exactly as he had anticipated.

Could it be that this guy already guessed that this coup would end in failure?
Why did he even launch this doomed rebellion? What benefit would it bring him?
As an opportunist who believed Chen Qi was a legitimate descendant of the Witch King and thus decided to do everything in his power to help him, Gertrude naturally did not have such high awareness.

She never believed in any faith that could save Letania.

In an instant, Gertrude had a flash of inspiration.

Could it be reputation?
Yes, he had no other reason than to let more hopeless Letanians know that he was the one who was willing to stand up for them, and to get more people to rely on him.

But so what?

He will be on trial tomorrow.

Moreover, judging from Dilov's words, he was very confident about this trial and was definitely aiming to ruin Qi's reputation.

They might even frame him with some fabricated charge, such as being a foreign spy, to undermine the unity of the "Son of the Witch King".

Unless he's confident he can escape?
Or……

Thinking about this, Gertrude suddenly came up with an almost impossible option.

—Could it be that he believes he can win this trial? And make this trial, which is being broadcast live throughout Letania, his own stage?

However, it was this seemingly impossible option that reminded Gertrude of Qi's highly persuasive oratory skills in the beer hall, which could stir the emotions of millions.

Is this really...impossible?
……

"Standard bearer, Iron Cross First Class, caught in the crossfire of the mopping-up operation, gifted orator..."

In the twin towers of Triinttelme, the capital of Letania, a file sits on the table in front of Liselotte Ivignad, the "White Queen" of the twin empresses.

That's a file about Chen Qi.

"This is truly a rare talent, Hildergard, what do you think?"

Beside the White Queen, in front of the Black Queen "Hildegard Helimmat," lay identical files containing Chen Qi's information.

But compared to the White Queen, who was adept at projecting benevolence, the Black Queen was clearly more forceful. Known as the "second Witch King," she also coldly commented:

"But regardless, his actions constitute treason; he is undermining our rule over Letania."

"If our intelligence network hadn't been so large that it had detected the anomaly in time, we wouldn't have had time to develop a strategy to deal with this riot."

"And those horns of his..."

The Black Queen stared at Chen Qi's photograph, noticing the long horns that resembled those of the Witch King. A rare hint of apprehension flashed in her cold eyes as she said:

“If we didn’t all know that the Witch King had no direct descendants, even I would have doubted his lineage.”

"How could there be such a coincidence in this world?"

As the two people who hold the highest power in Letania, the twin queens naturally know more about many secrets and will not be misled by rumors circulating among the people.

Even so, perhaps because the shadow cast by the Witch King was too great, the cautious Black Queen still offered her opinion.

"But... even if the possibility is very low, it's still best to nip it in the bud."

“Hildegard, you were too impulsive.” However, the White Queen clearly had other ideas. Looking at Chen Qi's file in her hand, she smiled and explained:

"You need to see the value that this person represents."

“Now he has become a role model for leading the infected and civilians to fight for their interests. Killing him at this time will only incite a larger popular uprising and allow his influence to continue.”

"But what if we could subdue him?"

The White Queen smiled slightly.

"What if we take advantage of his influence and make him a hero under our control, representing public opinion, and a figure who has come back from the wrong path?"

"You want to use him to control the emotions of the common people?" The Black Queen raised an eyebrow, her eyes revealing a hint of distrust.

"He's a dangerous individual. Do you really think you can control him?"

"At least compared to killing him, this method can help us get through this difficult time."

The White Queen shook her head. Although her words were gentle, once they fell, the seemingly powerful Black Queen could no longer find a reason to refute her.

"Moreover, if used properly, he might be able to help us counterbalance the aristocratic faction."

"These nobles are becoming increasingly unscrupulous. Perhaps they need someone to make them feel threatened and put some pressure on them."

Indeed, their rule could not withstand any further turmoil.

If that person is truly useful... then they must use them.

(End of this chapter)