Chapter 548.2: Final Nail In The Coffin

Letting those maggots keep crawling around was the greatest humiliation to the Post-War Reconstruction Committee.

Xavier looked at Sigma, eyes full of admiration. "You truly predicted everything. Boulder Town didn’t even survive the winter."

Most executives of the Flintstone Group had thought Boulder Town would at least last through winter and that the Tide that came in the Spring would be the final straw.

After all, logically speaking, the New Alliance needed Boulder Town to help absorb the brunt of the Tide. Surely they wouldn’t let it collapse, in fact, they might help delay its crisis.

Thinking that way showed they understood neither the New Alliance nor its administrator.

There would always be people who ignored reality and applied theory rigidly.

Sigma smiled faintly and said with detached amusement, "Boulder Town’s fall was inevitable. A mountain of resources had fallen into the hands of incompetent fools. They used a system that produced nothing of value to select winners, and those winners hadn’t earned a single chip through actual production or work. It’s like handing guns to the blind and canes to the strong. The miracle is that they lasted this long."

Flintstone Group was completely different.

Only those who created value for the company could be promoted in the workplace. Bloodline meant nothing there.

Even the children of the company’s executives had to go through the education system’s selection process before they could hold a position as the company’s dogs.

He himself was the best example.

Before he replaced the previous president and sat at his desk, he had been nothing but a slum thief.

"What about the New Alliance?" Xavier asked curiously. "How far do you think those people can go?"

"The New Alliance is another matter," Sigma replied blandly. "They’re a different kind of force, maybe they’ll go far, or maybe they’ll vanish overnight."

Xavier frowned. "Do you consider them a military faction too?"

Sigma curled his lip. "Is your understanding of those factions limited to those who focus on their military? That’s no different from slavery, feudalism, or clone armies. They’re all just methods to achieve a goal. The Wislander used ethnic narratives, the New Alliance uses another. Their goals are both clear. One to unite all Wislanders, the other to unite all survivors. That’s the real difference in doctrine, nothing more."

If the Army won, an empire ruled by the new humans would likely arise on their planet.

If the New Alliance won, a new Federation might be born.

If Boulder Town won... That possibility was so minuscule, few even took it seriously.

As for the Free State of Bugra...

In the future he envisioned for the Free State, they first had to break free from the shadow of the Post-War Reconstruction Committee, then unite all the wastelanders abandoned by Ideal City.

In fact, Flintstone Group had been working on both objectives simultaneously.

Whether it was the Army’s expeditions or the Bonechewer Clan, both had brought a massive influx of fresh blood and wealth into the Bugra Free State beneath his feet. Many officers who couldn’t return to Triumphant City chose to stay, and aristocrats expelled by Boulder Town’s new authorities also flocked over.

In time, they would become a new kind of Ideal City!

A paradise where all wastelanders could indulge freely, without being drowned by dreams!

Just then, a knock came at the door.

At Sigma’s signal, Xavier bowed slightly and exited the office.

A man in formal wear brushed past him, approached Sigma’s desk, and said in a low voice, "There’s news from Boulder Town."

Sigma looked at him with burning intensity. "Was the weapon found?"

The man hesitated, then shook his head. "No..."

Sigma fell silent for a moment. "What about Rhine?"

The man lowered his head and replied, "... He’s dead."

Sigma took a deep breath, rose from his chair, and walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows.

His gaze stretched beyond the neon-lit skyscrapers to the endless southern wilderness. After a long while, he cursed. "Shit!"

It was a complete loss!

...

Garbage City.

The circular meeting chamber was silent.

Just moments ago, the upheaval in Boulder Town and its news of becoming the New Alliance’s fifth settlement had finally reached their ears.

Upon hearing that a large number of Inner City residents had been exiled, nearly every representative present showed a chill of dread on their face.

As one of the oldest survivor factions in the wasteland, a beacon that had illuminated the southern River Valley Province for a century and a half, Boulder Town had long served as a model.

Even if their methods weren’t the best, rolling back history had indeed worked in the wasteland.

From Red River Town to Garbage City beneath their feet, many settlements bore traces of Boulder Town’s influence, imitating the inner city aristocratic governance model.

Now, in those exiled residents of Boulder Town, they saw their own potential future.

Almost every member present grew anxious, erupting into disordered discussions around the table.

"I heard they were overthrown by workers and militia, and even some scavengers joined in..."

"But we can’t just shut down all the factories and drive off the scavengers..."

"Maybe we should improve their treatment."

"At least raise the soldiers’ pay!"

"Stockpile some Dinars or CR at least. If our currency crashes, we can still pay them in foreign currencies..."

The suggestion won considerable agreement.

Many representatives nodded subconsciously, and even the usually aloof speaker gave his rare early approval. "That’s a good idea."

Not just Dinars and CR, silver coins should be added to the list of foreign reserves!

Otherwise, Boulder Town’s present would become their future!

Garbage City would use trade to gradually and systematically increase its silver coin reserves, aiming for a stockpile of around 200 million.

At the same time, they would purchase silver coin-denominated bonds issued by the New Alliance Central Bank to hedge against inflation.

Though everyone knew it only treated the symptoms, not the cause, it was still better than doing nothing.

Consider it protection money for a powerful neighbor.

What chilled Garbage City’s representatives to the bone was that less than a year since the New Alliance’s founding, their toxic ideas had already eaten away at the great walls like termites.

They couldn’t help but think of what came next.

It was said that some wastelanders from Dawn City had brought copies of Survivor’s Daily with them, and some had even started publishing knockoff newspapers, telling Bore’s story in beer halls.

They couldn’t exactly confiscate newspapers from the people, could they?

But what if Garbage City’s survivors followed suit...

The more they thought about it, the more afraid the representatives became, until one finally couldn’t take it and raised a hand. "Should we follow our neighbors in the Red River Alliance and rename ourselves... the Garbage Alliance?"

Before he even finished, someone nearby snapped back, "Fuck you, are you dumb? Are you out of your damn mind?! Trying to get yourself killed?"

The man blinked, then repeated it and realized what a ridiculous name he had just blurted out.

With an awkward laugh, he apologized, and under a barrage of daggered stares, sheepishly lowered his hand.

Aside from that, he truly couldn’t think of a better solution...

And it wasn’t just Garbage City. Similar scenes played out across the settlements of the River Valley Province.

Faced with the collapse of Boulder Town, some saw the coming long night, others glimpsed the dawn breaking through the darkness.

They were nobodies of the wasteland. There were slaves in the mines, wandering herders, and even scavengers buried in heaps of garbage.

Most had never heard of Bore’s story, but they knew that in a place called Clearspring City where a group of united survivors had defeated the evil dragon that enslaved them!

On the scarred and battered wasteland, new light had finally begun to rise...

...

At the center of Boulder Town.

Before the ruins of the Boulder Grand Building, Malvern’s weathered face was etched with exhaustion and despair.

Luca glanced at him. "Do you regret it?"

"What... What is there to regret?" Malvern sighed softly as he withdrew his gaze from the rubble. "It was bound to happen sooner or later."

He knew full well. What had defeated them wasn’t the 3 billion in debt, nor the sky-high S coin price, but the greed in their hearts.

That... He had no way to stop.

He had already tried every method he could think of.

Luca turned his eyes away from him and looked toward the crumbled building.

"The administrator said you’re a smart man, the first to realize this train needed to hit the brakes."

Malvern let out a bitter laugh and said in self-mockery, "Exactly the opposite. I’m not smart, just hopelessly foolish. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have waited until the end to finally see clearly..."

In the end, the sins of his family had to be washed away by the fairytale his youngest daughter still clung to...

That was the most shameful part of it all.

But Luca didn’t look at him. He simply stated his purpose. "The administrator asked me to give you a task."

Malvern looked at him and asked, "What is it?"

Luca continued, "Compile your history into a volume. Record objectively and in detail everything that’s happened in this settlement over the past 200 years. His library needs such a book, and the New Alliance’s library will too."

Malvern gave a bitter smile. "Is that some sort of collection fetish?"

"He says it’s part of his job," Luca replied, glancing at the man not much older than himself. "If you truly want to atone for the past, then do this one final task well. Or do you think someone your age is still up for manual labor?"

Malvern paused slightly.

He gulped and didn’t say anything for a long time. After a long silence, he slowly nodded. "I’ll take this seriously."

Atonement...

Ah...

Such a merciful man.

Malvern suddenly felt a sting in his eyes.

He was right.

If he didn’t want to carry regret and remorse into the grave, this was the only thing he could still do, and still had time to do,

He could hammer in the final nail into the rotten coffin.

Seeing the gratitude that flickered behind his clouded eyes, Luca said nothing more. He simply nodded and turned to walk away from the ruins.