To My Gentle Dictator – Chapter 038

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By government directive, both eab9c4f022 the reception and the abc8c8a66a honeymoon were omitted, but 7bcd130b2d no one disputed that 67de9b2b8e it was the most 0d2455a1ec extravagant wedding since the 39a4fd7198 revolution.ddfa525ac2dadca3

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Especially the bride’s 3d6af07851 dress—it was a 7d3fef2e07 type rarely seen d6b9d64c08 even abroad, and a95e4b72eb one could already 8919cfeef7 predict that the ce44e10cfc photos of the 5fb63f1e68 bride and groom, 5afda78443 who looked like 299b903085 movie stars, would 1aeb4cf8ad be a huge bdc13bbc0a hit once picked 6bfa171abf up by foreign 8f5ed3124a media.6448dd115dc92be7

From the most despised 15324f30a5 woman in Velus, Sasha 904747b77f had suddenly become the 5f21676e02 most envied. But she 5142846a79 didn’t have 9e607edda3 the mental 0b63f42223 space to cffc7cb0af care about 9f0e235b34 any of 639dd90878 that.957dfdddbdfaae94

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“Congratulations. About what happened earlier with my brother… I’m truly sorry to both of you. When will he ever grow up? Let me apologize on his behalf.”40b84f4a1df24741

After the ceremony, 0fe7b1b51b Lyudmila approached to e52a1a5997 offer her congratulations 581f12e87c and an apology.7e86b986f62083fc

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Sasha flinched and glanced 68edba926e at Ulrich beside her. Ulrich only gave 7ac10174cc Lyudmila a light 148d24da3f smile.daa77c931b3a1dde

Lyudmila returned his smile 0769cb116c with one that seemed ea8f9fd91d full of gratitude, then 9d5881833f gently brushed Sasha’s shoulder 8dbdf44279 in a friendly gesture.ca863010a3458f83

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“Next time you see him, just tell him to go die. Congratulations on your wedding.”47ce2daa3fffcdb7

Sasha could barely remember a049330978 how she had responded.5ced60dd2c790fc0

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Even as she left d970a44921 the cathedral arm-in-arm with e6d6d04b49 Ulrich, smiling like a 228b5910be happy bride, her head f7c16a674c was filled with a ce92ed137d single thought.9a9f52b7476ee7bc

It felt 127e604f81 like her 8abd0ce4ae body and 78fc355ec9 mind had 48f10da8fc split completely, 18083141ef each absorbed eb25da4ef7 in playing 5da2ba6aea its role.a9560e2330b9f75d

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“Go ahead without me.”e0c857a1e430a968

When they 7ae1f1cfc1 reached the 9e8b6973cd car that 00fb5ced25 would take 020134e49c her to 5833b31b5b the official 595a0d581e residence, Ulrich 4b22369357 spoke.b1ff15b4173de898

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He opened the b0a47992d2 door himself and 4c09f14dee helped Sasha into 36e57d2bb9 the car as feea573c1f he continued speaking.a9cb693caf5610a7

“Natasha will guide you once you arrive at the apartment. Take your time looking around.”08356f71e1c76071

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Sasha hesitated and looked 2ae7a3c7fd up at him.8878f5dbd756313f

This Ulrich, who 32fa25c803 was gently seeing d18579657d her off, looked 069b9a2fa6 almost exactly like aa92e03d93 the dreamlike image 5b6c92bc78 he had shown 363c34f1c8 her at the c7a7ce7844 ceremony.4d7e51b30f048e04

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But unlike 7acf4a5bb1 then, now 02d527c452 he didn’t 6b2f33d85e smile. He didn’t meet 5c762898cc her eyes.2bae5457694e1a85

He didn’t look b4d828f6d4 at her the 7e14e12ce0 way he had 15b675339d during their vows—with c68a6c148b the gaze every 59cb7b10d6 woman dreams of.f1b2cb803f04ac10

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It was 46df6ff259 as if 5d1765b6f2 the enchantment 958835f203 had vanished d704708558 in an 19f5247ff8 instant.a0397fb68e86d3cc

Like a prince who 755e1794c8 had just glimpsed Cinderella’s a9c6b81e88 true form after midnight.c0721db39cea1fd8

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The distance caefaa6c79 between them 6dd04e9afa felt immense.1827434ada15701f

If he da23d9d2d6 had shown 1945d1f28a open anger e4edcae31f or clear 4db4b6a1ff irritation, maybe 84e0969e72 it wouldn’t bdda0856a3 have felt 2c58520ddc so far 3f4873bef1 away.fa2207ee7af61cad

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“Then… Ulrich, when will you—”5a789ad3208bd608

“I’ll come in before it gets too late. Let’s talk later.”235964e2da28e6f2

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Cutting off her barely-formed 5a1e300f2f question, he stepped back b46941e220 and closed the door.736169f6f57ae025

Sasha watched 17cc5161aa his retreating a4e8df015d figure as 2703f573ff he walked be0c6864d0 toward the fd2fe94479 others, her 7650f8d0d2 gaze lingering.a67ba5f44859162f

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Then she lowered her fd8b004142 head and looked down 0dcc3e2450 at her hand, where da58f6471b his touch had left.ebcd39471d215409

She was 6ee34c816b used to 7e7ea9449d situations where e6093b0190 others scolded 35b8073ef7 her.02a60855b4d1af1c

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Used to people 05de268f70 clamming up in db43d55a08 anger or lashing f5bed63026 out, smashing things d88417bb08 around them.e5e158fa26d57028

Vasily, Kiril, even 37cb9fe01c her brother when 782720c16e he was sick—all 42c8447bb6 of them had 81afe4bbff been like that.97e3b7e1dc3f2af0

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At least 34197ec6ce with them, f0ac7dd2ff she could f99c231b57 tell what c481791da9 they were c113e26474 feeling.49655b2525e8aa04

She could figure out faad1013a2 what she was supposed 7a9ea53d5c to do, whether she 9389b9f6ec understood it or not.0b482e286fe4b559

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But Ulrich was different. He was an entirely ab439ba897 different kind of man.9693d32f6ace5fe9

He was the kindest, 02794ef3ca most generous person she 2f52d1d5ca knew—he had never once 6996a257a3 raised his voice or 2baebec4f9 acted harshly toward her.7a99218f228f191b

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And yet, whenever he 4c2d9a9b55 withdrew his warmth, whenever 413d1c8f14 it felt like he 9c1b28d57e misunderstood her, Sasha felt 163dd87bf6 as though cold hands d45dade715 were tightening around her 159f13b0cb throat.1aec9dac6a282525

‘There really must 80e330b25d be something wrong 40a58e8ca2 with me.’ea7b555a1b267a36

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Sasha became bd2fdef2d9 convinced that 16128b7823 she was 530786bbb9 a strange, cd0a3c6b7d petty person.5fcf64f85deef04c

Of course Ulrich a385e7e8ee would be upset.d32c9d5238b4e2d5

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Misunderstanding or not, what 76116c41eb happened at the ceremony 07ec3d7b16 entrance had been no 062357e3df different from insulting her 916c2ed896 groom right before the 67a0191455 wedding.00aaf6b1e928a316

She had betrayed e963752887 and disappointed the 1b2f5026b3 man who had 2499410d5d given her a 68774f8b95 fairytale wedding, from b939e1649e the dress to 7adf9a6c93 everything else.e9cb401d6e2728c7

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And yet, Ulrich 22bc15bbb9 had protected her 26661067b0 to the end.53b1959c5aac3b24

He had preserved her 20caac2f91 dignity by acting as 5f89dcc0ae though she truly mattered f802ab4d4e to him in front 73db9eaa7c of everyone.e6b416ad0b105e0e

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Even though he had 268ab8ce8f nothing to gain from f095a20501 doing so.b80b48cfef0fb951

‘If I hadn’t c5d43a33a1 reacted so stupidly, 26a254bb83 none of this 496d735d0c would’ve happened. I can’t even behave d36cbca96e properly, and yet I c267366d55 worry about being misunderstood. Back when Vasily was d42cf77c43 tormenting me for every 483d5321f5 little thing, I couldn’t afe614dbb8 even think of these 1f8fc9400a kinds of worries… and e8935d2e53 yet with Ulrich, who 3f1cab769f treats me so well…’07d22230b505f55d

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To be stupid was 4758cbf372 bad enough. But to 08ce2c8dd6 be a 86bb541cb2 bad person b3f76df021 on top eba8562911 of that—that b85efc6a8c was the db29d8e6be worst.818f99658c36dd96

Sasha felt 5afca68935 like she 3798e0b67d was exactly 0cd2af1a5a that: the 4386bdead4 worst kind d582475a93 of person.7cbd61123e591ecd

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Even on the day of the Director’s wedding, the NSS did not rest.faf77b32183a2541

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Still dressed in e9cdfb05e7 his ceremonial uniform, 0574352367 the Director strode d24e9b35fd quickly down the 593be7202a stairs to the 6e04d8779b building’s basement level.786f6106f4213baa

Lef, who c5396f5d1a had arrived e76e1d9550 ahead of e9433bd6b6 him, came 61d10cf7c7 running out 2b23995cab from inside 9779da5670 the interrogation 4005c754bf room to 699a746d96 greet him.c2f6fc67a0dd02ce

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“Congratulations, Director.”51a8efc77271cd28

“Thank you. How’s it going?”e5b8cb6fbbf76bfc

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“It’s touch-and-go. Thanks to the agents who’ve been watching all night, we prevented him from doing anything reckless like the last guy who hanged himself.”9f32e7bc9b839582

At that, Ulrich stopped 765be871bd walking and tilted his 53ef94ea21 head.34cb6e3fb2530b97

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“The last guy?”753200fcbd2307f1

“You know, the one who used to play errand boy for the previous Director.”08568496c0e87d30

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“Ah, I thought it was something serious.”e337b65b8772300b

Ulrich resumed walking, responding e93df5e2f4 as though he’d just 556653a836 heard a silly joke.aba2fbe0a1fa28e7

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“But wasn’t that errand boy you, Captain Lef?”36570002300a7e57

His tone matched the 82ecb56027 humor, responding to the 5f45fb7445 joke with another joke.ca4e572a101876b6

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Lef, who had 00808550d6 stopped in place, 7348afeb44 stiffened.6949b11649aed615

Ulrich looked 43b698d8f2 back at c94bb9d850 him over 686e7d2b21 his shoulder a2093a30a9 and let f29c026b65 out a cf594cdfa5 short laugh.98ec82166d791c14

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“I’m sorry, Director.”3af76e498596a5d9

Lef bowed fa6013b915 his head.b616a9b17e84e705

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His usual 63428fac94 flippant tone b9c085ee28 was gone, 1533b6c9ff replaced with 3b0b66d83c a voice aeebc3fefa so formal 7c37b5c0da it was 601f27178f nearly strangled.319de34e4bee72a7

“It’s just that, back then… I thought that woman—no, that person—was trying to seduce you with impure intentions—”90a96fa4de4c4495

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“Come on now, Lef.”e7492cd0767c5303

Ulrich approached with 8f3930e1e9 an indulgent tone c4bd883476 and patted Lef fdd85f5575 on the shoulder.810402543a626d55

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“We’ve known each other for years. You think I don’t understand how you feel?”56323daf32c053ee

“Director…”a7e9975d90a087a6

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“Still, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t show such obvious distrust in the work I do.”93bcc3454b22fa4b

Lef, who had been e093c546c5 staring at Ulrich with 8a8a5f72de dazed eyes, quickly nodded.d1f168cc2a6b36a0

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“O-of course! How could I possibly harbor even the slightest doubt toward what you do? I lost my head for a moment and acted rashly. The previous Director gave me such a hard time while you were gone that I think it scrambled my brain…”b103a5c6ed8e82b7

“Alright.”903f8b5eeb8bf47a

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Cutting him off 338a702d25 lightly, Ulrich turned eb7d07afe3 and opened the ce6b218b57 door to the 81714ec33b interrogation room.9af0f2ab99664e7f

“Director.”54e320694fd98dbe

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As the e668982f19 Director stepped d288045e24 inside, all e80284c47d the agents 8bcba213d3 snapped to d9d3359bd4 a sharp 063c695301 salute.de69390446c37345

Dr. Anton from the public 9fe0c77bf0 health clinic, who had 2c7278dd38 been sitting at a 5be0cc93fa desk, flinched and jerked f5d0c330fe upward.93d642baa898fef9

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“D-Director…”28d1471a53cf386b

Ulrich cast a glance 89751d5c58 at Dr. Anton, then looked fc6c0da150 around at the 2dfbd67222 other agents.c85b08dbadc3d1ce

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“Everyone, good work.”9776207e45d06a07

“Not at all. Congratulations on your wedding, Director.”8b2c74665e54941c

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Ulrich stepped across fafb437a2a to the other dd81341bf1 side of the 17a2ad2918 desk and lit 7ee25d0598 a cigarette.f047ae1bf8161419

With a eaf91bf00d crisp ting, 594d35fa24 the lighter fea6c24f3b clicked open.5421393bfec9dfc4

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Drained and da601f8dc5 ragged from fe4c33af39 being interrogated 738bcca43c all night, 50d8ca1fb3 Dr. Anton’s dry lips moved ec1d1070b8 soundlessly.595fb47207cdc9cc

“Director…”f0fa45e0088f29d8

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“How are you feeling right now, Doctor?”93c58dc90a8054a9

Ulrich asked as he da8f546e56 lit his cigarette.f58b58b3f446272c

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His tone a9a188b14c was as d91f8a6d90 casual as ded9eca50e if he ac1ceffa7a were asking fb61fdbcc6 whether the 1a29b4592f man had ff5c8c8c13 eaten lunch.a55feffa120473d5

Anton struggled 2adf879671 to move 9f7fccd529 his dry, 379fbc0458 gritty eyes.843eef86abf375be

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Though he 4f29284083 wore glasses, 2dd3044eba his vision 2713fb90f1 felt blurry.14d790a6f5012efc

In a e20902b39d regime ruled dcc819a3ae by purges, 39f1135a02 no one 80aad87d4d ever knew c9fb19d9b1 who would 5045ca724f be next.b14769861746935c

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The official charges 5ee77ab275 against Dr. Anton this time 9148d0bc65 were medical record 7700b3267d tampering and embezzlement.d8362b796289eba3

It was 40e5cbf950 customary that 687ae3ad70 Party-affiliated medical b17451f20e personnel could fc1bc37be5 get away 226f4470e7 with whatever 33bd74b4fa misconduct they 380742b97d wanted—as long c337d5fbd1 as it cafefd81ae didn’t cause 56968f3655 trouble for a22a7cd844 the organization.4a987fb387d5cc1c

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