Chapter 1921 - 1920: New Federation (Copy World Concludes)

Dawn City

The reporter’s flashes almost overshadowed the sunlight in the square.

The densely packed silhouettes seemed to fill the entire square.

Christos lifted his head, following the bright sunlight downward, observing the throng of people.

It had been a long time since he saw so many people standing in front of the Glorious Palace.

"Everything has been arranged," Sett approached him, lifted his head, gazing at him, "The rest is up to you."

Christos took a deep breath and nodded lightly at Sett.

Then he turned his gaze towards the vast crowd in front, looking at the magnificent and splendid city.

This city was just like before, yet not the same.

In a trance, he seemed to see his past self among the crowd, the marginalized city councilor.

The self who struggled with difficulty.

’In this world, there is no "if". If you want to know the answer, you have to try it yourself.’

He lifted his foot, stepped forward, and walked toward the crowd.

——Ten days earlier——

Ains Grey Stone Palace

"...Dawn City, Yilan City, Kaye City, and other 11 cities controlled by the rebels have issued a declaration to secede from the Federation and form a so-called New Federation Government."

"The temporary capital of the New Federation is set in Dawn City, with a temporary Senate, temporary House of Representatives, and a temporary Supreme Court established."

"The New Federation Government has undergone partial reforms, retaining the position of the president as the New Federation Leader and Commander-in-Chief of the New Federation Army. The powers of the vice president have been increased, concurrently serving as the head of government and Deputy Commander-in-Chief, capable of organizing Cabinet meetings in necessary moments."

"The New Federation Government states that due to its establishment during wartime, following the wartime plan, Christos was elected as the temporary president and Commander-in-Chief of the New Federation Army, with Vian elected as the temporary vice president."

"Reportedly, Christos will take the oath of office as the temporary president of the New Federation in Dawn City..."

Click—

A handsome man turned off the television. He lifted his head and looked at the man wearing glasses in front of him, with a slightly hoarse and low voice, saying, "What does this mean? Are they trying to tell me that I am no longer the Federation’s only president? These traitors and turncoats are now establishing another Federation?"

"It’s just the dying struggles of these rebels," the man with glasses lifted his eyes, looking at the handsome man, quickly saying, "Our army is about to break through Kaye City, then march straight in to directly occupy Dawn City. At that time, we can send Christos to Ains, letting him realize how ridiculous his mistakes are."

"This is not the first time I heard similar news; the last time was during the attack on Yilan City," the handsome man stood up, looking at the man with glasses, "I promised outside that within three months, the rebellion would be quelled. Now, almost three months have passed, and not only has the rebellion not been quelled, but a New Federation has emerged."

He patted the table, making a thundering sound, and gazed at the man with glasses in front of him, "They have established a New Federation! Is it possible that one day their army will come to Ains, capturing me and sending me to Dawn City?!"

"No, it won’t," the man with glasses lowered his head, saying quickly, "Mr. President, please calm down."

"Calm down? How can I calm down?" The handsome man took a deep breath, his voice pressing extremely low, like an enraged fierce beast, "Go call the Minister of Defense; I need an explanation! An explanation! If he isn’t here in half an hour, neither you nor he will be doing this job!"

"Yes, yes." The man with glasses nodded quickly and ran out of the office.

Behind him, there vaguely came the sound of something being smashed.

——Seven days earlier——

Dawn City

"So, are we really going to establish a New Federation?" A bright screen lit up, revealing a woman’s figure.

Christos did not reply but placed his hand on the edge of the meeting table, turned his gaze, looking at the screens placed at every position in front of him, with a few silhouettes on each screen.

They were representatives from the first batch of cities in the New Federation.

"We must have a unified government, a unified brain, to make unified allocations," the screen marked with Kaye City in the main position was an elderly man; he glanced at Christos, then looked at the woman speaking, rasply saying, "If we want to win, to change the entire Federation, this is a necessary step."

"I agree," on Yilan City’s screen, Lante also nodded slightly, "The enemy’s army is already outside our city; if we don’t attempt to save ourselves, then there’s only one path to death. We’ve already reached this step, and can’t trust the compassion of the Consortium and Skewis anymore."

"Our main agenda today is whether a ceremony is needed." Sett, beside Christos, looked at the people on the screens, and spoke slowly.

"I think a presidential inauguration ceremony is necessary," continued a young man with a somewhat quiet appearance on Rock City’s screen, "This way, we can declare to the entire Federation that we already have a new government and tell everyone that they also have a new choice. With such a ceremony, we can shape our new collective cognition."

"Then when shall we hold the ceremony?" the representative from Wint City, a blonde young girl, said. The background was a low, dark room, with faint gunshots coming from behind.

"January 13th is a good day," Sett beside Christos spoke slowly, "The date is neither too close nor too far; we have enough time to prepare."

"Then prepare well," Lante laughed, "I think this date is fine."

"I also think it’s fine." "I also think it’s fine." ...

The screens echoed with a chorus of agreement.

"We need to be aware," Corvey on Yilan City’s screen smiled and said, "Then Grey Stone Palace will undoubtedly try to disrupt it. Now, the master of Grey Stone Palace is a well-known miser; we need to prepare accordingly."

"All right." Everyone smiled and nodded slightly.

——Three days earlier——

Kaye City

Fiss stood on the city wall, looking at the stretching army outside, smiling, "Choosing this time to come over, seems like they want to help us celebrate."

······

Lank City

The projection of a little girl in a white skirt floated on the screen, gazing afar at the distant city.

Then she turned her head, looked at the figure in front of the screen, "Calculation completed,"

A map filled with light dots appeared, "This is the distribution map of the outer garrison."

······

Yilan City

Corvey stood on the high wall, looking at the quiet camp in the distance, turned his head, and looked at Lante beside him, "Do you think the army outside is large or small?"

"Seems quite large," Lante thought, "But it looks like there’s no movement."

"There’s no one inside those," Corvey shook his head, "Just empty camps."

——January 13th (Present)——

Christos walked up to the towering platform.

The audience below erupted into a thunderous applause akin to the sound of thunder.

He gazed at the crowd below, gently raised his hand, and the crowd quieted down.

"Over seven hundred years ago, our ancestors made an agreement on this land. They established a ’Federation,’ a ’Federation’ without nobles and blood sacrifices, without oppression and slaughter."

"City-states with generational feuds reconciled on this land, and after over seven hundred years of fusion, finally became a complete Federation."

"From the East Coast to the West Coast, from the North Ice Field to the Lava Canyon, the fate of countless people is intertwined with this term."

"’Federation’"

"All humans are united under this term into a cohesive whole, carrying the descendants’ original expectations of this land—a united and equal world."

"But, after seven hundred years, with the initial founders aging one after another, the meaning represented by this ancient term is being ’forgotten.’"

Christos lifted his head, looking at the silent crowd below.

Boom—

Violent thunder suddenly came from the end of the city, seemingly the sound of some large-scale weapon striking the city gates.

Intense flames and surging brilliance were rising along the edges of the high walls.

The crowd below suddenly became tense, looking around, seemingly trying to find out what had happened.

On the platform, Christos remained calm, as if nothing had happened, continuing to speak,

"Now, we are experiencing a civil war; this is not a war between Ains and Dawn City, nor between the West and East."

"This is a war between the Old World and the New World! This is a war between the past and the future!"

"For seven hundred years, those greedy people have gradually stolen the Federation’s power. They may have been progressive once, but now they’ve become giants sitting atop the mountains."

"They wield long whips, forcing us to lift the mountains to satisfy their endless greed."

"We stand here today not because we seek greater power or more interests, but because the people who have stolen the Federation have oppressed us to the limit of our endurance."

Thunderous applause erupted from the crowd below.

"The united, equal Federation has been torn apart by the Consortium and its servants, trampling on the founding principles of the Federation, trampling on its people."

"We stand here today not because we are discontented with the Federation; on the contrary, we firmly believe in the Federation’s initial ideals, believing in the words of equality for all."

"And because of this, we must restore the purity of the Federation, restore the world united and filled with glory under this term."

"I firmly believe we will ultimately succeed, that the land shining with brightness, the fields full of flowers, the world where everyone is equal, will ultimately be realized."

"I declare, the New Federation is hereby established!"

A massive roar resounded at the outskirts of the city, accompanied by intense applause from the crowd.

The bright sunlight shone upon the firmament, illuminating the ancient statues.

Below the statue, a figure placed a constitution on the platform in front of Christos.

Christos walked over slowly.

Everything about the New Federation is grassroots; although the Supreme Court has been established, the Chief Justice has not yet been elected.

The provisional Senate and House of Representatives haven’t fully determined their members, nor have they chosen a Speaker.

Therefore, at the current oath-taking ceremony, there is no host.

Or perhaps, everyone in the audience is the host.

Christos calmly gazed at the crowd below, placing his hand on the constitution.

"I solemnly swear"

Boom—

A fierce roar pierced the sky. A warplane broke through the anti-aircraft fire net on the city wall, reaching the sky above the city, above the Radiant Palace.

A gigantic shadow seemed to shroud the Radiant Palace beneath.

"I will faithfully execute my duties for the Federation, striving tirelessly to uphold, maintain, and defend the Federation’s constitution."

Several Mechas transformed into streams of light, soaring into the sky, charging toward the warplane, directly piercing through it.

Fiery explosions illuminated the firmament.

"I will faithfully defend the Federation’s order, protect human civilization, safeguard the Federation’s equality and unity."

Laser air defense cannons around the square activated, striking and melting the falling debris, lighting up the sky with bursts of fireworks.

Christos raised his head, the flames and brightness reflecting on his cheeks, shining in the eyes of everyone below,

"Until death."

Thunderous applause erupted upon the ground like lightning, blowing through like waves, fluttering the clothing of those on stage.

——

Ains

"Trash! Trash! Trash!"

In the Gray Stone Palace, Skewis arose from the sofa, gazing at the scenes on the TV, sweeping everything off the table onto the floor, slamming them down hard.

His face flushed red, staring furiously at the figure standing within the brightness on the TV, "A bunch of rubbish!!!"

Bang bang bang—

Intense knocking came from the door, "Mr. President, Mr. President, are you there?!"

Skewis cast a dark glance at the mess before him.

He rolled over, walked behind the sofa, kicked it forward to cover up the shattered items.

Then he turned his gaze, switched off the TV, and looked at the office door, "Come in."

The man with glasses pushed open the office door, rushed inside swiftly, holding a tablet. He glanced around the office first, then retracted his gaze, stepping forward quickly to hand the tablet to Skewis,

"The pseudo-president Christos just issued the first order, listing several Consortiums as hostile forces to the pseudo-Federation, detailing crimes of employee oppression and illegal activities, announcing the direct confiscation of their assets. I took a glance; of the Federation’s top fifty Consortiums, only Nolanka Group is not included."

"Really?" Skewis was taken aback, then took the tablet, sneering, "This guy starts off with such actions? Is he afraid he hasn’t offended enough Consortiums? Pushing himself to the limit?"

He browsed through the tablet’s contents while laughing heartily, "Good, good, good, good! The Lord wishes him to perish, first making him mad. I think Christos and his people are truly insane. Summon the Consortium Alliance, prepare for a meeting."

Just then, the man with glasses paused, lifted his wrist to glance, then his expression changed slightly.

"What’s wrong?" Skewis looked up at him.

"The second presidential order has just been issued by Christos," the man with glasses raised his head, looked at Skewis, trembling as he spoke, "He announced,"

He paused, "He declared that within the pseudo-Federation’s dominion, all debts originated from the confiscated companies are annulled and need not be repaid."

"What do you mean?" Skewis was puzzled,

"It means that in the pseudo-Federation’s dominion, those who used these companies’ credit cards, owe these companies loans, need not repay the debts," the man with glasses further explained.

"What does this mean?" Skewis looked at him, "What use does it have?"

"Even in Ains, over a third of the people are ’debt slaves’ of these companies, burdened with suffocating debt," the man with glasses looked at Skewis, "But if Christos comes, these debts will be annulled."

Skewis’s expression changed slightly.

——A few days later——

Kaye City

"Lank City has been recovered." Lina entered the office, looking at Old Danny.

"Nothing escaped Vian’s master’s eyes," Danny rose from his seat, "Christos held ceremonies to attract firepower, Yilan City and the Third Mercenary Corps headed south, broke through the defense weaknesses of Lank City, reconnecting the three cities."

"But Saint Joen City..." Lina looked at Danny.

"Now their southern main forces are all in Kaye City," Danny shook his head, looked at Lina, smiling, "Do you know what this means?"

"What?" Lina was surprised.

"Saint Joen City retains many Dark Seeds we left behind, the First Mercenary Corps should have already retaken Saint Joen City; the road ahead is blocked, the rear path is sealed," Danny shifted his gaze, looking out the window, toward the high walls of the south, "Now, the troops venturing here are like mice in a hole, with nowhere to go."

——

Vitran Ailancer Palace

A tall secretary clicked her heels, entering the office to hand documents to a dignified man in a crisp suit.

The dignified man took the document, quickly scanning its contents, then his expression changed slightly, handing the document to the Elderly sitting opposite him.

"The coalition lost?" The Elderly didn’t take the document but looked at the dignified man, smiling.

"Lost," the dignified man nodded, "They were encircled by Nolanka Group, attacked from front and rear, defeated utterly, only a few elite mercenary corps escaped, and Lank City was recaptured by Christos and his people."

He shook his head, "Now, our President is probably smashing things in the Gray Stone Palace."

"Among presidents over the years, this one is the least capable." The Elderly sighed.

"But there’s no choice," the dignified man shook his head, looking at the Elderly’s complexion, "He’s the best option."

"How far do you think Christos and his team can go?" The Elderly didn’t pursue the topic, picked up a cup beside him, sipping the red wine inside, asking softly.

"They won’t go far," the dignified man shook his head, "They don’t even know what they’re up against; it’s seven hundred years of Federation history."

This time, the Elderly didn’t respond, sipping wine, quietly watching the night sky outside the window.