MBD | Chapter 27

Ignoring the interrogator, Everhart looked around the gloomy basement with his hands in his pockets.

In the unventilated environment, the smell of wet blood mixed with the metallic tang of oxidized moisture assaulted his nose from all directions.

A man cautiously approached Everhart and asked, “So, how should we proceed with the interrogation?”

“How much has he confessed?”

“He hasn’t said much yet.”

“Really? Good job.”

“Sorry?”

“Get lost. All of you, out.”

Everhart nodded towards the door, dismissing the people. Rudolf, tied up and covered in blood, looked at Everhart suspiciously as he suddenly entered.

On a rickety metal desk with one leg askew, there was a recorder.

Crash.

Everhart threw the recorder to the floor and stomped on it mercilessly. Only after his boot had shattered it into pieces did he stop.

“Oh dear—it’s not right to torment someone who’s already hurt.”

Rudolf, regaining his senses, bit his bloodied lip as he looked at the young man, Everhart, standing before him.

It wasn’t something you’d expect from someone who had shot him. Everhart approached Rudolf and untied the ropes binding him. Then he placed a large water container beside him.

“Let’s have a drink and talk.”

“……”

“Are you worried it might be poisoned?”

Everhart demonstratively drank from the water container and set it down. There was no poison.

“Feel free to drink whenever you want.”

Rudolf, sitting across from him, glanced at the name tag on Everhart’s chest.

“Friedrich? Why is someone from one of the Five Great Nobles in such a rough place… cough, here?”

“That’s none of your business.”

Everhart took a pen from his chest pocket and twirled it. As his tone changed, Rudolf tensed up.

“Honestly, it’s a bit much for people of the same nation to be like this.”

“Are you trying to sway me with sweet words? I’ll never give up any information! And, ha, the ones who betrayed our people are the trashy nobles of Eisenwald!”

“What are you saying? You guys failed a rebellion and then started spouting nonsense about liberation armies and whatnot. You refused the federation.”

“The Graupfeld people are discriminated against in Eisenwald. You, born a Nord noble, wouldn’t understand even if you died!”

In any country, if you were to pick the three biggest challenges, they would be race, politics, and religion.

Especially racial and religious conflicts were key factors that could drive a nation to ruin.

If a country had just one of these issues, it was normal; two, it was hard; and if all three were present, the country was in hell mode.

At least in Eisenwald, over 90% of the population believed in the monotheistic faith of Saint Luden, so there was no religious conflict.

‘If there had been religious conflict on top of everything else, oh dear.’

It would have been overwhelming. The moment I reincarnated, putting a bullet in my head might have been the happiest ending.

“Yeah, I don’t know.”

Everhart admitted readily. Even with Kang Woojin’s memories, he couldn’t personally understand how the Graupfeld people had been discriminated against.

“But tell me, what do you gain from the Graupfeld Civil War? You must know you’re arming children and inciting terrorism. The civil war is just a pretext for the vested interests, isn’t it?”

Everhart casually tossed a document onto the table. Then he sat to the side and lit a cigarette.

“This is a report on the casualties in Helmstradt. Most are civilians, with a significant number of minors. Where’s the justice or cause in their deaths?”

“……”

“There’s nothing, nothing at all. While you escalate the war with excessive violence, the rights of the Graupfeld people are further trampled.”

Everhart frowned and put down his pen.

“Because we’re in Graupfeld, the Graupfeld people on the mainland…”

“How are they being treated?”

Rudolf was at a loss for words at Everhart’s rebuttal.

“Most Graupfeld people on the mainland live ordinary lives.”

Of course, it’s not to say there’s no discrimination. But the more things escalated in Graupfeld, the more harm it brought to the majority of Graupfeld people who just wanted to live quietly.

“You guys added ridiculous clauses to the 5th agreement!”

“This?”

Everhart, as if he expected it, placed another stack of documents on the table.

“The Nord people filled it with clauses favorable to them! Isn’t that right?”

The 5th agreement contained clauses denying the autonomy of the Nord people, limiting seats in parliament, and distributing voting rights differently by region.

“Read it.”

“I’ve seen it all.”

“No, read it again.”

Everhart pressed his finger on the document. The breakdown of the 5th agreement was an event that further fueled the rebellion within Graupfeld.

But Everhart knew one thing.

‘Manipulation of public opinion.’

Erich, the leader of the Graupfeld Rebellion, never intended to pass the resolution from the start.

Faced with Everhart’s firm stance, Rudolf read the broken 5th agreement.

“This, this is absurd…”

Rudolf was shocked. The content was vastly different from what he had seen, and instead, it included statements that the rebellion side would resort to extreme suppression if no additional agreement was provided.

“This is a forged document! If this were the agreement, there’s no way we would have rejected it!”

“The seal on it is proof it’s the original.”

The document bore the seals proving it was an official Eisenwald government document.

Everhart tossed more document piles onto the table.

❮Witness Protection Program – EberTech Sponsored❯

❮Graupfeld Occupation Plan❯

Everhart threw two pieces of information at him.

Seeing the military confidential seal, Rudolf instinctively reached out. But Everhart was a bit faster.

Everhart’s gaze landed on the witness protection program. He had no choice but to read the witness protection program first.

“What is this?”

“Exactly what it says. It’s a document listing what we can offer if you cooperate with us. Oh, if there are any conditions you don’t like, feel free to speak up. Mr. Max Schobalt.”

Everhart even showed a relaxed smile as he exhaled smoke.

“Are you telling me to believe this kind of joke? This is…”

“In exchange for providing information, identity protection, new identity and relocation support, a pension as a special contributor to Eisenwald for ten years, housing provision, and immediate employment guarantee at an EberTech affiliate if desired. Employment comes with welfare benefits provided by EberTech.”

“Is EberTech… could it be the Friedrich family’s company?”

It was only a rumor, as the Friedrich family had never officially confirmed it, so it was just speculation.

Everhart was only nominally the CEO and had never attended any official events or schedules.

He entrusted all company matters entirely to Graf.

“Technically, it’s my company.”

Rudolf turned the page and gaped.

“Is all this really EberTech’s welfare? How can a company provide loans and pay for children’s tuition? Five-day workweek? Overtime pay? Extended pay? Are these benefits all given to EberTech employees?”

Rudolf turned the page, and his previously defensive attitude vanished as he gaped.

“Is this, is this real? Is such welfare possible?”

“All employees, including interns and part-timers.”

“How can interns have welfare? Interns aren’t employees!”

Rudolf’s bold declaration of passion pay made Everhart flinch.

In fact, Rudolf’s reaction wasn’t unusual; it was the typical reaction of an Eisenwald citizen.

Eisenwald companies typically operated on a seven-day workweek. To be precise, Sunday was considered a day of rest, so most companies only worked in the morning.

Maybe it’s because the author is Korean, but the employee welfare in Eisenwald was so terrible that even Satan would cry.

Everhart and Graf worked hard to create EberTech’s welfare system.

However, Graf couldn’t fully understand Everhart’s actions. But what could he do? The boss wanted it.

“If you look closely at the contract, it doesn’t say you don’t work on holidays at all. There’s a clause that says you get paid 1.3 times more.”

“Why pay more for working on a holiday?”

“Well, because you’re being called in to work more on a promised day off?”

Rudolf was incredulous, his mouth agape. It was a fresh perspective, different from Graf’s vehement opposition to spending money.

Oh dear, author. Author. Even if it’s a K-novel, a seven-day workweek in a fantasy world is too much.

Anyway, in this world, there was no concept of worker welfare or rights. Incredible, truly incredible.

Once Rudolf finished reading the witness protection program, Everhart naturally removed his hand from the other file.

He hurriedly rushed to read the document. He was shocked, with a different expression than when he read the witness protection program.

“Is this… are you trying to deceive me with lies?”