Bugra Free State.

Inside a television studio, House, neatly dressed in a suit and tie, sat before a long desk. He stacked the thick pile of news scripts in front of him and began broadcasting the day’s program.

“Dear viewers, welcome to House’s Daily Watch! I’m your beloved host, Mr. House.”

“Just last night, the barbarians of Clearspring City shamelessly detained six law-abiding merchants of our Free State! Without a doubt, this is nothing short of naked banditry! Look at them, they claim to oppose marauders, but what difference is there between their actions and those of the marauders themselves?”

“Just as they once plundered the wealth of Boulder Town’s residents, now they’ve extended their greedy claws toward us, the honest and upright!”

“Unfortunately, we have no diplomatic relations with them. Poor Mr. Sindison can only pay the price for his carelessness... One must be cautious in choosing trading partners, doing business with thugs never ends well.”

“And now, a brief news flash: our honorable Mayor Odo has announced, at the request of the chairman of the Great Rift Valley, that we will attempt to cooperate with the New Alliance on issues related to the Mutant Slime Mold. Wait, what?!”

House’s eyes bulged as he read the script, nearly falling out of his chair.

Cooperate with the New Alliance?

What kind of joke is this?!

...

Mr. House’s show was not popular in the Free State. Among countless similar programs, its ratings were near the bottom.

Most citizens disliked both their mayor and House’s obsequious, sycophantic tone. His only loyal audience consisted of the former Boulder Town nobles who had fled to the Bugra Free State.

Occasionally, New Alliance players would watch his show for laughs, even clipping parts of it to post on the official forums.

Ironically, today, House’s on-air reaction perfectly mirrored that of most of the citizens of the Bugra Free State who accidentally tuned in.

Whether deliberate or not, the New Alliance had ruined the Free State’s plans more than once. Official propaganda had long painted the New Alliance as a nemesis blocking their escape from Great Rift Valley’s control, a rogue state that hindered their companies from expanding into the Sunset Province.

And now, they were going to cooperate with those rogues?! What a joke!

At the press conference.

Facing a forest of microphones thrust toward him, Odo knew there was no explaining himself to his supporters. He could only brace himself and speak. “... That is the position of the Great Rift Valley. I understand your frustration, but I have no other choice.”

His words sparked uproar. The crowd erupted, and emotions quickly spiraled out of control. A man wearing a press badge forced his way through the mob, trying to charge the podium, only to be stopped by a security guard in an exoskeleton.

Glaring at the spineless mayor, the man shouted angrily, “Mr. Odo! Are you aware that just hours ago, New Alliance soldiers detained our merchants?!”

Odo looked at the enraged young man helplessly. “I do...”

“No, you don’t!” the man cut him off, shoving against the guards restraining him. “You’re nothing but a lapdog trailing after the Great Rift Valley! You make me sick!”

Before he could say more, the guards twisted his arms behind his back and cuffed him. The crowd cheered as he was dragged away like a hero.

Wary of being pelted with bottles, the guards didn’t dare rough him up.

Watching the press conference descend into chaos, Odo sighed inwardly but still tried to reason patiently with the furious mob. “... Whether it succeeds or not, we have to at least try to talk to the New Alliance, or next year’s electricity bills will go up again.”

“Or, let me put it another way. You don’t want your fridge commercials to increase from 30 seconds to 45 seconds, do you?”

He had said that casually. No one knew if it would come true.

After all, the chairman hadn’t told him exactly how much energy prices would rise, or how much of the burden their corporations would pass down to the ordinary workers.

While Odo was struggling to handle the outrage of his citizens, far away in the top office of the Flintstone Tower, Sigma sat before the floor-to-ceiling window, his face dark as he gazed over the city’s prosperity and the wasteland beyond the skyline.

Just the day before, he had met with an envoy from the Torch Church. Now, the Great Rift Valley’s latest directive had completely derailed his plans.

Though the Bugra Free State was effectively under Flintstone Group’s control, even he could not openly defy an order from the Great Rift Valley. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

He understood all too well. Though the Great Rift Valley was far less prosperous than the Bugra Free State, the power gap between them was an unbridgeable chasm. But what troubled him more at this moment was something else entirely,

“... There are rumors that the New Alliance’s administrator has met with both the Academy and the Enterprise, and that a representative of the Army is already on the way to Dawn City.” His aide Xavier, standing before the desk, reported respectfully.

Sigma turned his gaze from the window toward him. “The Academy?”

Xavier nodded gravely. “Yes... And it’s said that the Academy’s contact with the New Alliance began before the Enterprise.”

Seeing Sigma’s brows knit tightly, Xavier hesitated before he continued, “There are also rumors that the New Alliance is planning to establish a cross-regional cooperative organization dedicated to addressing the Mutant Slime Mold infestations across the wasteland.”

“Given their technology to control Mutant Slime Mold, I suspect they intend to use this as an opportunity to expand their influence.”

It was, indeed, a reasonable suspicion.

If the New Alliance truly possessed the ability to control the behavior of Mutant Slime Mold, then every territory they managed would effectively fall under their jurisdiction.

Building military bases across the lands of the Enterprise and the Academy... How bold of them.

Sigma sneered to himself, though he did not underestimate the threat.

The ancient survivor factions held an almost pathological obsession with Slime Mold. It was understandable since those creatures had destroyed their world.

That made them very different from most modern wastelanders.

If the New Alliance formed tighter cooperation with the Enterprise and the Academy, the Bugra Free State’s breathing room would shrink even further.

And worse, if the Great Rift Valley ever sided with the New Alliance, and that old fossil suddenly mentioned they should join the New Alliance like Boulder Town, things would be catastrophic!

He had no intention of handing over years of painstaking work just because of one old man’s whim.

At that moment, the phone on the desk rang.

Guessing who it was, Sigma tapped his wristwatch. A pale blue holographic beam rose from the desk.

In it appeared Odo, who had only minutes ago been speaking at the press conference.

“My apologies for disturbing you, Mr. Sigma. As you’ve likely heard, the chairman of the Great Rift Valley wants us to cooperate with the New Alliance on the Mutant Slime Mold issue... As always, they’re using energy quotas as leverage. I had no choice but to agree.”

Looking at the deferential mayor, Sigma replied calmly, “You made the right choice. There’s no need for us to stand against the Great Rift Valley.”

Hearing Sigma’s approval, Odo sighed in relief and asked, “Then... what is your opinion?”

Sigma closed his eyes for a long moment in thought before speaking slowly. “I have no objections. Proceed according to the chairman’s instructions. Contact the New Alliance under the official name of the Bugra Free State.”

Although Flintstone Group’s previous dealings with the New Alliance had all ended badly, the Bugra Free State had never before made official diplomatic contact.

Odo hesitated. “Is... that really okay?”

Sigma answered succinctly, “Showing enthusiasm for what the chairman cares about is never a bad thing. Besides, through contact, we can monitor their movements. If they refuse to cooperate, it doesn’t matter, at least we’ll have done our part.”

“What about our citizens? There’s a lot of public opposition,” Odo asked cautiously.

The mayor might be nominated by the Great Rift Valley, but he was still elected by the people. After the disastrous press conference, his approval rating had plummeted, and his opponents were already calling for impeachment.

But Sigma was unconcerned.

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of the opposition.”

Though spoken lightly, the promise made Odo’s face instantly brighten with relief. “With your support, I’m reassured!”

Everyone in the settlement knew that the true ruler of the Bugra Free State was Sigma.

Flintstone Group controlled not only the most profitable industries but also over 90% of the media, directly or indirectly.

As long as Sigma acted, Odo had nothing to fear, his opponents would obediently keep their mouths shut.

...

While the Free State roiled with debates over the Sindison Incident and the lapdog mayor Odo, another trial underway in Dawn City drew equal attention across the New Alliance, the Industrial District Arson Case.

The hearing began at noon.

The public gallery of the Dawn City court was packed. Even the aisles were full of people from all walks of life.

Normally, the proceedings wouldn’t have advanced so quickly, but because the defendant confessed readily and the evidence was clear, pressure from all sides pushed the trial forward.

At that moment, a young man in his early twenties stood in the defendant’s dock. His face was firm, his posture upright, not at all like a criminal, clearly a man of the military.

That was the truth.

His name was Sun Yong, a soldier of the First Army. He had enlisted the previous year during the Sunset Province campaign, for one simple reason, to follow in the footsteps of that great man.

Most soldiers of the First Army were like him. They were not highly educated, many were freed slaves once rescued from raiders, or refugees sheltered by the House of Refugees.

To him, the administrator was something more sacred than life or honor. So when he heard someone insult his revered leader, he was blinded by rage.

Now, in hindsight, he knew he had lost control.

Whatever the reason, he should never have taken his anger out on the people he was supposed to protect. He had targeted the wrong person.

It also nearly caused a much worse disaster...

The judge, looking at the young man in the dock, couldn’t help feeling pity, though he still fulfilled his duty. “Do you understand the crime you’ve committed?”

Sun Yong nodded. “I do.”

The defendant had already pleaded guilty.

Next came the sentencing.

The judge sighed softly. “Do you have anything to add?”