Chapter 443: Intense (3200+)

In this world, power is imbalanced.

In a world where supernatural powers exist, ordinary people have no power at all to resist the strong.

Even Aaron could easily think of a hundred ways to stop protests and riots—for instance, by setting up large-scale rituals in the slums to continuously reinforce the residents' sense of order and obedience, making them afraid to violate Imperial law even if they were starving to death in their homes!

From the perspective of Occultism, this is entirely achievable.

But the protests happened anyway; although the suppression was effective, every time one occurred, it would stimulate the others and leave a wound in their hearts.

Even if the wounds healed, they would leave behind scars, gradually corroding the foundation of the Empire's rule.

"I... I don't know, isn't this normal? If you can't go on living, you have to find another way to live..."

Louis rubbed his head, completely unable to understand what Aaron was talking about.

As for the Second-level Council, its members are mainly hereditary nobles.

Among them, the representatives of the First Estate are His Majesty the Emperor and the Clerics and monks of the Sun Church!

There is no help for it; who let the one worshipped by the Sun Church in this iteration of history achieve a great victory...

'Can they receive social donations, and does the Imperial Suppression Bureau think they are blind? And today's protest...'

"Hmm... my boss's shop is on this street, and it is absolutely impossible to open for business today."

Because it was daytime, Aaron and Louis occupied a round table against the wall, ordered smoked sausages and other specialty dishes, and slowly drank beer.

Of course, since those poor people must work every day to ensure they do not starve to death, they have no time to participate in any council activities, so the Third-level Council is mainly the domain of capitalists.

Aaron saw a man burdened beyond his limits by life, who could only seek a moment of comfort in alcohol.

Rye Beer Tavern.

Not long after, Louis was drunk and slumped on the table.

When Louis heard about drinking, his eyes began to shine: "I know a beer tavern where the smoked sausages are guaranteed to be unforgettable once you've had them..."

"Also... as a friend, I'll treat you to a drink; it's like this anyway."

Besides this, some nobles who are burdened with debt due to poor land income or extravagant lifestyles are also frequently bought off by capital... therefore, those capitalists also have considerable Influence in the Second-level Council.

'With a tolerance that gets you drunk on beer, who gave you the courage to come to a tavern? Or rather... do you just want to drink yourself into a stupor and escape reality?'

Aaron glanced at him with contempt and watched the man giving the speech on his own.

"We cannot go on like this... the failure of the Equal Rights Act proposal last month means that those great capitalists who transformed from great nobles have completely abandoned us... They are even more detestable than the original land-owning nobles; the land-owning nobles regarded serfs as their own property and still had a shred of final warmth, while their factories only know how to greedily devour the flesh and blood of workers, chasing employees away as soon as they get sick without compensating a single penny!"

Aaron keenly sensed the subtle state of the Empire's upper echelons.

"A group of self-proclaimed social activists from the middle class, or even the lower class... they have been to school and understand knowledge, yet they live in the slums and are quite aware of what the lower-class people want. Many people have been persuaded by them, but the results are often not very good."

'Clearly, there is a powerful force implicitly supporting this group of people.'

There is nothing new under the sun; there is only one force on the entire continent that can leave the Empire helpless!

"The conflict between royal power and divine power... indeed, power is a beast, and one mountain can never tolerate two tigers. Since there are no more opponents in the world, they can only fight among themselves..."

'There is no power that comes from nothing; is it the Sun Church?'

Unlike the history he is from, in Invis, the Third-level Council holds all power.

"Yes, most of them are poor people, as well as lawyers and doctors who sympathize with the poor... and they have also received some social donations and funding." Louis continued to drink and sigh...

"So it's an Alliance of the poor?" Aaron's expression was grave; such an Alliance is terrifying, precisely because they cannot even afford a hat, they have nothing left to lose.

Louis took a big gulp of beer and sighed as he explained: "Oh... there is another organization among them called the 'Hatless Alliance'..."

Aaron offered his own suggestion.

However, Aaron thought about certain countries that called themselves empires in his past life and suddenly understood: "They really wouldn't... whether it's the great capitalists or the great nobles, they would rather dump milk into the sea or exchange money for gold to lock in a vault than share even a tiny bit with the common rabble. They will only sit by and watch the poor lose their jobs and starve or die of illness, at most doing some charity and shedding a few crocodile tears... How could it be possible to get meat from their bowls without shedding some blood and fighting a fierce battle?"

Aaron listened to the guy's impassioned speech while finishing his meal, roughly figuring out the current upper-level structure of Invis.

And... the social contradictions that were as intense as a powder keg.

'If this continues... sooner or later this Empire will be controlled by capital, but in Invis, where true gods exist, it is just like this... in the three-level councils, the First Estate holds the greatest power!'

'Sure enough, it is still the struggle between divine power and royal power!'

At the tavern bar, a young man jumped onto the bar counter and was shouting loudly: "Unite, force the factory owners to bow their heads, and make the council pass the bill... if they don't pass it, we will strike and protest... the failures in the past were just because the intensity wasn't great enough. We want our own power, to expand the Third-level Council, and we also want to have our own voting rights!"

This place only serves the cheapest rye beer, and the customers who come here are clearly from the lower social strata, but business is good.

"What kind of people are those?"

However, it should be noted that some land-owning nobles, attracted by capital, have gradually transformed into great capitalists; they are called the 'Liberal' faction among the nobles.

"Besides that, there is the Church fanning the flames and adding to the momentum on the side... the contradictions in this world are even more intense and bizarre."

Aaron held his huge beer mug, blew the foam off the top, and pointed to the young man who was giving the speech.

It is only at the Third-level Council that factory owners, great merchants, bankers, and theoretically all Imperial citizens are included.

"To hell with it... such a large empire, wouldn't it distribute the benefits of colonization and plunder to the poor?"

'Besides that, capital clings to the Empire, exploiting workers even more cruelly. Even because of the Empire's high-pressure policies, some newspapers that promote freedom and equality have been banned one after another... The contradictions have long since intensified to a terrifying degree, but it is useless; with absolute power, if the commoners dare to resist, they will be immediately suppressed!'

'Without the final scruples, the madness and Greed of capital are displayed to the fullest!'

(End of chapter)