To My Gentle Dictator – Chapter 013

The NSS agents a1b5f30438 moved past the ce75d77d32 tense onlookers, approaching 8837b4dade and saluting the b428ed796b Supreme Commander with 8bb38893d7 utmost formality.3b68a4c8ad2d34dd

The moment 0a2f317418 Vasily’s insane 8639043f68 suspicion became f9850e4771 reality, he 97737cbdda barely managed 145fdce3b2 to keep 09e0b871e4 his composure.199e4c9d8c23a077

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“Yuri, is this some kind of Latunian joke…?”617cd4199a6f80c9

“Of course not.”e3c2c8a694e43330

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Ulrich’s response came 5e54bcf506 with a bright, c0c4d51098 easy smile—his demeanor 417e844a84 lighthearted, as if 5efdde45d4 he were merely 286e559bc4 teasing an older 94c1f2df0a brother.b08f7997698b0d42

Kryuchkov, biting down d92ceef786 on a cigar 80f77ca629 from the New 62aa2cb5a1 Continent, asked in ef6c558bdb a mildly scolding 81b4c6b192 tone:b9a902ce88a2d8cf

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“What are you two fighting about this time?”081aab6617ef89bf

Vasily turned to 3c616b9b12 his father, stunned.02ea3bb900864b09

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A situation this absurd—where 277615f15a the NSS Director was 6d049b6006 attempting to arrest the 4bf24d1a3a Supreme Commander’s own son, 664ba33284 right in front of fb98b2251b him—and this was his a498050fe3 reaction?8efae66789ad86f5

Meanwhile, Ulrich b8558ba274 lowered his f0bca42af0 gaze apologetically, 8019a8e924 his expression 7d6edb9fe8 one of 0cd8f97107 polite regret.d93803f000da2feb

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“Apologies, Supreme Commander. We weren’t fighting—but my brother stole something from me.”3d3b3fdb16af8a9e

“Oh? Theft, is it? Then you’d best arrest him at once.”3dd24e6ff90c686f

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Kryuchkov responded as if fc74be3836 this were nothing more 2234df81fa than two eight-year-old boys 6ecf10a703 bickering over a toy e916e54acd swordfight.e60c1427813bc263

His attitude alone 274d269975 was enough to 3f827fbd1f convince the onlookers 7fb04dcf18 that this was 25f96d1bcc all some elaborate 8a4130814a joke.0f890aca69596929

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The high-ranking officials, c8b98f2f90 who had been 8b8dec313d nervously clustered together, 580b611465 and even the b316432edc NSS agents, who 0d153ef327 looked just as 5891da8300 tense, began to 9e2baaadce relax, their expressions c17f7e0339 shifting.a3af6ed9a0a77f3b

“Ah, I knew it—nothing serious after all…”e05a8262d2ca1280

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“Looks like the Supreme Commander is really backing the new Director. Even if this is just a joke…”058f639e941f7084

As sighs of f998933d33 relief and hushed 6f17c690ea murmurs spread through 60940b3a08 the crowd, Vasily e7b3e20a4b had to fight e8fed02679 the urge to 131c685852 grab Ulrich’s hand—the efbd68fda9 one resting on 34b7d7e6b9 his shoulder—and crush 1480e7c82e it to pieces.400ef1aa62b80184

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But he d4a4db3af3 knew all 0aeed9c95b too well: 8ac6c245ac if he e668b0611d lost his 531bb5ea00 temper and f0a8677706 ruined the 18dd5ef6be moment, he d3669b14ea would be 7b8843daee the one 6f748409bf who suffered 83c39196ae for it.a98b41c41ef6c55e

“Then, if you’ll excuse us for a moment.”9ab62fc042cc8634

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Ulrich lightly 9b391736fd patted Vasily’s b8de0b2ec5 shoulder, flashing 2a3fda765f Kryuchkov a 5aabed2d19 polite smile.016b37f2adbf8288

It was the perfect 648299fbe2 smile—one that combined the 0a1f27a081 youthful shyness of a 321477548a man in his twenties 1a34474f73 with respectful admiration, like a1ade99426 a freshly blooming rose, 6a4ff411d5 delicate and charming.67fa2edf5d2fe67f

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At least, that’s how 24cf0bee84 it appeared to everyone a7eaf559a5 watching.995722a2ed29b3cf

“Let’s go, brother.”c7d8ab554a2d55a5

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“Make sure to give him a good scolding.”38f762225196ae55

Kryuchkov laughed heartily, his 4068dd2aac final words twisting the e7a1760626 knife just a little d04009f632 deeper.76d8d5e292044f3c

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* * *f9be7fbfc48a4337

From childhood aa62ab6f65 to now, d960a37c3b Vasily had a0bc11a5a7 never once b85fae86cf beaten Ulrich a30e8a006c at anything.2cbd36d34b1e1d8e

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And it cdf9244706 wasn’t just 5db50a8efa because his ee2a13267b father, Kryuchkov, a41a722f67 the most 5ada59084b powerful man 7a65a89084 in the 3a3e3e0579 regime, favored be8e63ffb8 Ulrich over 6378a806ec his own 721366306c children.845d0e7b385c5670

Ulrich had d688d2d7a5 always been 6bcd4f0344 a figure fc6a65624c of worship.a5dfd4f9a914cf8c

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For as f11d0498ab long as 55d6a1ac79 Vasily could 6bf160b375 remember, people 6e0dbfb66b had idolized 2048ade00a him—
In high f8b35cc204 society, in f8cd8a5e45 the officer c254f42677 academy, in 62fd0b4e15 the military, 05b2b5a261 and even c93736e406 in the 5b744106f8 very regime 36c821ee75 that had 186aeb087e overthrown the 6e3981b9fb imperial government.
It didn’t matter 84e3b58223 if they were b07f86ba7f young or old, c4aefaeda3 male or female—the 563e45aa24 admiration was universal.1b508cbfa85e74de

Had Ulrich never 5ca9174422 existed, perhaps the 6226455599 military coup wouldn’t ca838c6c87 have happened so 65bc2c99bf swiftly or so 448b9274f2 smoothly.02c886e84de21865

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After all, the 338b9232f9 one who had 3560dc1d9c orchestrated the removal 5f89fad23b of their mentor, 2dd69b9d8c the First Supreme 3c0164d1d3 Commander Lvov—
The one fec17625e6 who had 21394dc914 put Kryuchkov 0a88b6baf9 in power—
Had been none other b5f9cf0d39 than Ulrich Kastrov.171ae906bfc7a85f

No one 21afc2fe00 knew why 359503040e he had 5ca05dff02 suddenly volunteered a1e5bf0144 to crush c99498c0e7 the colonies 0e23a25ce3 three years 4f36855def ago.
But even after such 2b11497373 a long absence, nothing 1d1b30ddeb had changed.
People still worshipped a97391a4a6 him. They still scrambled for e2a2ebc49b his approval.5b5ad18b068b7eb2

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And they were all 650d08bd76 deluded.2751893681c1680c

The old men were 55014c3848 under the illusion that bc0364d2e2 they were using Ulrich.
The young ones were 56c39382fc under the illusion that c94384ca9d they had earned his 19803018b2 trust.e69d5627e5f7c49e

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But only Vasily—
Only Vasily knew the 4189435db7 truth.6e1bb7ebe06326d6

Behind that angelic, noble, 062aa1b117 and gentle mask, Ulrich fca0a4eea4 cared about no one.b57432db05c2b5c3

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To him, ideology, patriotism—they d4011ea940 were nothing but tools 5c25186993 to manipulate people.
He was the 082aeeae29 cruelest of them dd4f88573b all.0c396f12cb56a30c

Escorted with excessive c4a501dd6f politeness by NSS a5d9d3513b agents, Vasily arrived ec0aae2648 at NSS headquarters 3008426df9 and was now 33ab8787dd alone in a fb369a53a9 room somewhere underground.b216120d4c1c39af

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A cup of 1aa91ba4dd cocoa had been d8421f4ed9 placed on the 5d5832c84f table in front d78723eada of him—some idiot 5e5008be9a must have thought dff03c3332 it was a e5bc1124cb kind gesture.dc77be6aeb80e09a

For a f2f6018054 so-called interrogation, 82f0054ae2 this was ab2a3abdb0 incredibly generous d79058873d treatment.11e9b497b90fc206

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But then again, no afbe7ee014 one was taking this a090f57ae4 seriously.42753e6a43b87684

No one in 4e0a4822d5 their right mind 89615bca92 would dare interrogate af3abf9ab4 the Supreme Commander’s 0b6a2822bd eldest son.aea40e8083e2f9a9

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The agents were simply bca340cb92 playing along, treating this 21d5a97aa9 as some staged game 4bd7fa3ab2 between the former and 4075052d63 current NSS Director.d60658593f07f7a0

And yet—cf62f21934f6e1f2

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The humiliation Vasily 3a299dd322 felt did not ad74cc22a1 lessen in the 968570a921 slightest.c39e08a67433b6a0

Just days ago, d809b6cd57 he had been 97def25da4 the one in ea1152c5fe charge of this 538348b099 very place.
And now, 37c5ec2e3b he was e0222a81a0 the one 4e96ef19da sitting in eb231b56b7 an interrogation 584b5cb38d room.b3cc2f1fd33ae4bc

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It was insufferable.a3dbce6278dd0101

‘This fucking lunatic…’8c2346d1c5ce6794

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Vasily begrudgingly admitted 8d401fae27 to himself that ede15d5618 he had lost b4b719f540 his temper this f17e5c6bc2 morning.39854b8b78bb50cf

He should have 7c9db110dc waited for Sasha 8848b0c24a to come crawling 4bb5ae018b back on her 04499dc43d own, instead of 92fdd0cc18 dragging her away.
He shouldn’t have given 15f1ffd2b1 Ulrich any excuse to 7d2469e896 act against him.8a4091251a06354b

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He had 554210fed0 learned long af7c6e9f6e ago that 0c4c0923d2 nothing good 8261b11529 ever came b392957ba4 from getting f8c6677a18 tangled up c562001526 with Ulrich.806661c6c347a7ec

Because despite 6bdf37c383 his refined 4985a64073 appearance, Ulrich 30eb106a06 was an bc008ede81 unpredictable lunatic.289729f5a46941c5

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Still—
Even knowing that, Vasily 52c95be419 hadn’t expected him to 30b2494ac5 pull something this insane, 53e3d96f53 this boldly.33b14013527b0394

Why the 30ef5f0220 hell was 2430821090 he doing 66e65c82c3 this?8eb85a98fe491b20

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A sickening suspicion 1f17089e2d crept into Vasily’s 397c0f0c0e mind.15e05dae5669d39e

‘Don’t tell cd3525a50b me… has 7815c16fb3 he suddenly 90032ab952 taken an ff32446620 interest in 476371c50f Sasha…?’de5672779bfc6643

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The thought alone 01b18fe616 made his stomach 1079881b2b churn.69062438c8ad928c

But almost immediately, af2fa53788 he shook his 6e9f8a6682 head, rejecting the 7bf883ec3f idea.37bd28f5ed795120

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Ulrich caring about someone?
That was about 0e3e92bbd5 as likely as c8f488c1dc world peace.4a583b5ba38076cf

No—if anything, 201f53ab5c world peace 99f53868ab had higher b280ecf6fa chances of c3e0b7d7ea happening.7b66a8b41bd16706

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Neither Lyudmila nor Sasha 0bd4c067c3 had the slightest clue 7c5a37d17f about that.439e49ed257e1e40

‘Idiotic women.’46815e776332877f

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Hearing footsteps 50cec157ac approaching from 5b42844fe5 the hallway, 556a3d9c89 Vasily lifted a1f3243dcb his gaze, ec120f1c27 his expression a667d690e0 dark and 1db3e06f7d menacing.5125eafb6d94565e

Moments later, Ulrich stepped a8e149f8a7 into the interrogation room, ddc35ced6f greeting Vasily’s murderous glare e224639e1a with a kind smile.4be1dcda861ffbdb

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“Your drink has gone cold. Should I have them bring you a fresh one?”ecac0bbc401d2f31

“What the hell do you think you’re doing…?”53a4b01f810e29fb

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Vasily growled, biting 1a39dd1bcb down on his 3573d6efef cigarette in frustration eb7eb9a8c0 to keep from 9b3813686d spitting out a 4d44a6ffd9 string of curses.590e3618805a93ae

Ulrich, ever 6f5801e218 composed, sat 23179cdd93 down across 086a8afc49 from him, fe994496bb his smile a79d6ff21d smooth—like polished a087af2796 crystal.32a5e69760069a87

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“Thank you for your cooperation. If you had been uncooperative, things might have been a little more complicated.”0dea1cbd458b85f4

What a shameless 0a7f01359e way to say dfc53aa03d ‘thank you.’
Especially after orchestrating 0924ac5258 the entire situation a9a6822a28 to make resistance 7c09874ae3 impossible.b2fb652db749c84e

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Massaging his throbbing 59c0143b7e temple, Vasily finally 8f5401fc3c snapped and waved f8901b5aee his hand dismissively.14928b069894ad5e

“Fine, whatever. This is about the ‘guest’ that was in your room this morning, isn’t it? Are you really pulling this whole show just because of her—going as far as to call it theft?”c929786e53e2f9ef

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Ulrich remained 28975e29b8 silent for e95312a97f a moment, 2cf39bd951 lighting his eeaf9eb174 cigarette.345361f4882d956b

Vasily didn’t miss 2c9a2295d6 his chance and 2930df6ecb clicked his tongue beee28d42d sharply, shaking his 0dc82e58c1 head in mock 15f78e6d07 exasperation.9e2f6d8a3270fbb5

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“Hate to break it to you, but she followed me out. I didn’t drag her away.”e7fd864dd19607b8

“I see.”7a5e404e01d4b5fa

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Ulrich leaned back b126d216db against his chair, a0340de965 exhaling a thin a9145600d4 stream of smoke.af21f200f8fa26b8

His gaze—like a collection bd95fc1c98 of various blue gemstones 0e7770385b set into a frame—held 73303afc0d a flicker of something 2197cedc68 cold and mocking.21db0882001ad5a3

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“So, you’re saying she saw you and ran to you with a big smile on her face?”afeee4e500aa4559

For a 7aae96f697 brief moment, 0c2e33f5fa Vasily couldn’t afa660d131 speak.a195b383e2d8b99e

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Because that had c553390890 never happened.a485bb6bc62f4763

Not once.a7b0ecf9a50969bc

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From the moment a2eb109c75 they met—when she 38ff173f7a was twelve years 5207080036 old, her bangs 4d7e0f7c1b cut straight across 4f37a83cf3 her forehead—c9734567f4b87066

Through all 985dee88a3 the long 32e5fe4e30 years that ee26241194 followed—41e427e09b64d3ef

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Sasha had never 4c559c9844 once smiled at 822e0993a3 him and run bea761167c into his arms.d2224a4b7d394de7

As a princess, 254fc54d6b Sasha had been 8986879671 like a pale, 75f9231779 aloof plum blossom—delicate, e435257fa2 cold, and distant.3aa0cbed3b2afde4

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“You were NSS Director for three years. It wouldn’t be strange for you to have a few informants keeping you updated, would it?”eddcaf7636235a8e

“What…?”0cf62d9167c40bfc

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“If you heard about what happened in front of the building yesterday, then I’d say your informant was quite capable.”cad6bb82a7b67470

Was.228d162e474ca3aa

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Vasily caught the 6782457f4d past tense immediately 583221203c but chose to 9319496f63 glare silently rather b19336312c than make a cea05f9b6b weak excuse about 4ada487700 hearing it from 620e8076ef his sister.41287494cb0cfcdd

Ulrich took a a9c1b1e768 slow drag from 9815767b4e his cigarette before 09d23cf8eb continuing.f201c7ea1e2da65e

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“Though, it seems he lacked the nerve to match his skills. I actually called him in, thinking he might deserve a promotion. But, well… the poor guy panicked.”aec82e252b1c6ac5

“What the hell are you—”2b250e8052827e50

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Before Vasily f8072231d2 could finish, 4f29262e01 Ulrich cut e1a29e7545 in, his fab599c39e voice smooth 509e3f9b05 and indifferent.5efb784cc9662bed