Silence, a long silence.
Wolfgang sat motionless in his chair, overwhelmed by despair, feeling as if he were sinking into a deep abyss with almost no glimmer of hope.
Having known von Paren for many years, he believed he understood the man well enough, and that he had long accepted and fully supported his consistently radical approach. But now, Wolfgang realized that his understanding was far too superficial.
In the eyes of the people, he was a hero who led the nation to prosperity; in the army, he was a strong and courageous commander who forged the Delta Federation Empire; but in the eyes of the anti-Party members, he was a war-loving and violent belligerent.
Now, his remarks made Wolfgang feel as if he were standing next to a shell with a lit fuse, about to explode, which made him feel both fearful and deeply confused.
Is the man before us a national hero with unwavering will and fearless courage, or a madman who has lost his mind?
When faced with an enemy that cannot be defeated, is such an extreme approach heroic or a pursuit of self-destruction?
Wolfgang still couldn't judge or understand it.
When von Palen saw Wolfgang huddled in his chair, pale-faced and silent with his lips tightly pressed together, he crossed his arms, remained seated on the edge of the table, and looked at Wolfgang, asking:
Why aren't you speaking?
"Have you been dealt a blow and lost your fighting spirit?"
Wolfgang moved his lips slightly, raised his eyes slightly to look at von Palen, and said in a voice barely audible, "I don't know... Your Majesty."
Von Palen grinned:
"That means your will is not strong enough, and you are not prepared for a sustained struggle."
"War will undoubtedly be a constant, which is why we need to fight against it until..."
At this point, he suddenly opened his arms, which startled Wolfgang. Then, von Palen, with arms outstretched, declared passionately:
"Until we create a beautiful and happy utopia!"
"Yes, this is my mission, a mission bestowed upon me by God. Of course, this has always been my ideal. I clearly understand that war will forever exist in this world, but I must create an ideal world that belongs to us Goths!"
At this point, Von Palen's face flushed and his eyes gleamed, but Wolfgang's expression remained stiff, because he could no longer understand what Von Palen was saying.
But Von Palen, still looking excited, said:
“I know it’s not just you, but many others who think I’m passionate about war, but I have to say, no, that’s not true. I’m not passionate about war, I even hate it.”
"But I have to do it. As I just said, it is the mission I bear. I must lead our people to survive in this cruel world. Only the strong can survive, so we have to keep fighting. It is a long and challenging thing, but that is precisely why it is so valuable."
Wolfgang shook his head slightly, not because he was denying what von Palen said, but because he really couldn't understand it at all; he was completely bewildered.
Von Palen's face grew increasingly flushed, and he even managed a faint smile, though Wolfgang considered it inappropriate.
He continued:
“A long time ago, I decided to dedicate the rest of my life to this cause, so even though the situation is somewhat bad now, and the military strength of Yan Kingdom has exceeded my expectations, I never thought we would be defeated by them in this war.”
"To be precise, no one can defeat us. You know, even if we remove the active-duty army, we still have millions of young people ready to go to the battlefield. Look at those young people, how energetic they are! They have strong bodies, quick minds, and most importantly, they all have an indomitable spirit and a tenacious fighting will."
"Can we be defeated like this? Impossible, Wolfgang, you have to admit it, that's a fact." Von Palen squinted, a smile on his face.
But after hearing this, Wolfgang felt a chill run down his spine when he saw that seemingly sincere smile.
In fact, he was now extremely uncomfortable, feeling like he was sitting on pins and needles.
He even felt that everything Von Palen said was strange. The country was in a very critical state. The army had suffered defeat after defeat, morale had plummeted, the people were suffering, and the whole country was on the verge of collapse. But why did it seem like none of this existed in Von Palen's eyes?
Is he weaving a bad lie? Yes, absolutely.
Ultimately, Wolfgang could only conclude that this was the case, so he sank his heart, mustered his courage, and spoke:
"Your Majesty, this...this is not true."
“Even our army can’t defeat the Yan people on the battlefield, so what use are ordinary civilians? Are we just going to give them weapons without training? But Suenham Province has already fallen and lost its military factories. Even now, the army is in short supply of weapons.”
Wolfgang thought that after he said this, von Palen would be furious that his "fabricated lie" had been exposed.
But it didn't happen.
Feng Palen remained calm and said, "Why would you think that?"
"Twelve years ago, when faced with the oppression of the Kosovo Empire, did we have a well-trained army with ample weapons and ammunition?"
Upon hearing this, Wolfgang looked incredulous and replied:
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
