I Am Extraordinary Alone
Chapter 246 - 244 Steijie’s Wish

Chapter 246: Chapter 244 Steijie’s Wish

Night fell on the Sethiyan Federation, the White House, Governor’s Office.

Steijie still sat at his desk when his press officer knocked and entered the room, laying the document bag on the desk.

Steijie sighed, pressed a button on the phone, and said, "Have the agents leave."

After a while, his secretary replied.

The press officer casually took a seat on the sofa, looking content.

Steijie glanced at the file bag on the desk and then at him.

This press officer’s name was Shaven, 28 years old. He was able to work so close to the Governor at such a young age, thanks to the substantial political capital of his family’s heritage.

Moreover, Shaven’s family was a member of the Human Dawn, with their ears and eyes in the House of Representatives, the Governor’s Office, and within the military, wielding enormous political power.

Human Dawn would not place their members in high-profile positions across the departments but instead preferred to take on seemingly inconspicuous civilian or fringe roles, subtly shifting the political direction.

"What’s in there?" Steijie asked.

"Press release drafts," Shaven said with a smile.

"Regarding what?" Steijie asked again.

The speech draft was within arm’s reach, but he had no desire to open it himself.

They were using his mouth to say what they wanted to say.

He found the feeling nauseating.

"Something big is about to happen in Libitelli, and similar documents should have been delivered to Fogen by now. You’d better take a look; in three to five days, you might need to hold a press conference," Shaven said.

"I have already sent four Trinities to Libitelli as per... the organization’s request. What more do you need me to do?" Steijie said.

"Don’t ask questions. Do as we say, and you’ll remain Governor next term. We have the power to manipulate the votes and the capability to eliminate all potential rivals, unless... he’s more obedient than you," Shaven said.

Steijie still opened the file bag. There was a thick stack of speech drafts, seven pages in all.

"Instructions for disaster relief in Libitelli due to a major natural disaster... as well as... the transportation and security plan for the related materials..."

Steijie roughly understood what was going on.

"We don’t need to clash with Wei Tianyang. The mission is to observe and negotiate, not to engage in combat." Steijie said.

"I am only responsible for delivering the message of the masters, and you just need to follow it," Shaven said.

"Tell them to talk to me directly," Steijie said.

Shaven stood up and said, "Governor Steijie..."

"You’re just a messenger, Shaven. You’re not in a position to give me orders!" Steijie said sternly.

Shaven displayed displeasure but managed a smile and said, "Alright then, Governor, I’ll take my leave."

At the door, Shaven paused, turned, and added, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, Jonathan and the others have already received new orders. The event is inevitable, so I would advise you to review the speech draft carefully tonight. Don’t show any strange expressions at the press conference; our media is very good at capturing nuances."

With those words, Shaven left.

Steijie fell silent for a few seconds before picking up the documents to read.

Although his eyes were on the drafts, his mind was elsewhere.

He recalled his first election campaign eight years ago.

The Sethiyan Federation had been controlled by the military-industrial complex and the Yixu Tycoon for nearly a hundred years.

They had established the Rifle Association and controlled the discourse through media networks, manipulating the government with their powerful public opinion.

A 9mm bullet cost only 12 Langke, yet an average battle would consume 20,000 rounds of ammunition.

Missiles, tanks, fighter jets—all far more costly.

War.

The purpose of war wasn’t about right or wrong, justice or evil.

It was only for selling arms.

Farmers’ and workers’ sons were lured to the battlefield on the pretense of justice, dying on foreign soil thousands of kilometers away. Mothers lost sons, children lost fathers, and women lost husbands.

Only the Rifle Association made a considerable profit.

And what did those families who lost their loved ones get?

A grave and a heroic movie.

They wanted war, used the Sethiyan Federation to ignite fires, exacerbated conflicts, sold weapons of murder.

And many politicians, for a seat in the House of Representatives, to sit in the White House, chose to collude with them.

Those who stoked the flames of war would eventually be consumed by them.

Steijie wanted to change the status quo; he wanted to rescue the country from the hands of the military-industrial complex and the Yixu Tycoon; he wanted to make the Sethiyan Federation great again.

That year, as he scrambled to raise campaign funds, Steijie capitalized on a serious school shooting incident, declaring that his first act in office would be to push through all obstacles to enact a nationwide gun ban, thus garnering many votes.

But his opponent was powerful and a member of the Rifle Association, surpassing him in both political and financial strength. Steijie had little political background at the time, and his policy stance cut off the opposition party’s revenue, resulting in constant smears and rumors. He was even arrested a few times by the marshals on the campaign trail.

At that time, an organization called Human Dawn approached him.

They seemed to have endless money and strongly agreed with his political views, willing to provide campaign funds and promising to clear all obstacles for him.

Steijie knew there was no free lunch; he inquired about the price.

"The price is much smaller than what you’ll receive. We won’t interfere with your political intentions; you just need to facilitate our actions. There is only one chance, after all... we can cooperate with your opponent as well."

That’s what they said at the time.

Steijie had to seize this opportunity. So, he agreed to their terms, even though they were so broad.

What followed felt like a dream.

His rival suddenly died of a stroke in his sleep, while the third candidate suffered a heart attack while driving.

The House of Representatives investigated Steijie at that time, but the investigation was mysteriously dropped after a few days.

He became Governor, more smoothly than seemed possible.

Over the following years, with the help of Human Dawn, Steijie indeed dismantled the Rifle Association, and his nationwide gun ban eventually passed, though not without struggle. Now, all gun stores in the Sethiyan Federation were shut down.

But to check Steijie’s power, they still managed to prevent him from stopping the military from increasing its overseas garrison size, and they acted several times on foreign soil without the Governor’s consent.

His thoughts returned to the present, and he leaned back in his chair.

The country still hadn’t changed...

The essence of Human Dawn was no different from that of the Rifle Association.

Wei Tianyang was the new hope he had found, yet he was closely watched by this organization.

He needed to find an opportunity to tell him everything.

Steijie resolved himself to this quietly.