Ch.382Dice (5)

“······So, since both sides have those weapons, they don’t launch preemptive strikes. If they fire, we fire back, and if we fire, they fire back. Unless you have a ‘let’s all die together’ mindset, they’re rarely used.”

“Ah, that’s ironic. But I understand. The more you have, the more you have to lose. No sane person would use them. They’re literally half-sealed.”

I explained the concept of mutual assured destruction while wiping my face with the handkerchief Rina had given me.

The concept itself is easy to understand even for Rina, who comes from a medieval world. Simply put, it’s close to “you die, I die.”

The deeper you dig into it, the more problems and limitations emerge.

“But can that really prevent war? I feel like someday they’ll be used······”

Rina carefully shared her opinion while giving me an apologetic look. I returned her handkerchief and answered matter-of-factly.

“The moment you use it, you become the enemy of the entire world. But as you said, there are limitations. Once things go wrong, flexible responses go out the window and it becomes a ‘you die, I die’ situation.”

“Why create such weapons in the first place? I understand they’re meant to subjugate enemies completely, but it seems so reckless. And thousands of them when just one can destroy a city······”

Rina shook her head, showing how difficult it was for her to comprehend. From her perspective, it might be something she could acknowledge but not truly understand.

Even Einstein said something similar. He claimed he would have torn up his theory of relativity if he had foreseen Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Even Earth is moving toward reducing nuclear weapons, rarely talking about eliminating them completely.

They’re just too powerful. Even countries with weak national power can prevent military intervention from superpowers if they have nuclear weapons.

Even the United States is powerless against nuclear missiles.

But explaining how these weapons came to be would require starting with World War II. That would be too lengthy.

Instead, I can somewhat explain why nuclear weapons were mass-produced.

“It’s not so much reckless as it was inevitable. After the war, the world split in two.”

“Huh? What do you mean? Split in two? You said your world has over 100 countries.”

“It was because of ideology.”

“Ideology? Like what philosophers talk about?”

“That’s right.”

Understanding ideology itself shouldn’t be difficult. The philosophy in this world, like Earth’s, has been established since ancient times.

Moreover, humans here developed philosophy by observing and learning from elven civilization.

They were even discriminated against by elves as an inferior race right before the Race War.

One can guess from the surprisingly clear concept of human rights that seems out of place for the era.

“An ideology that values the collective and an ideology that values individuals. These two ideologies split the world in half. Moreover, the countries that held these ideologies were the superpowers of the time.”

“Those are extremely polarized ideologies. Didn’t that cause another world war?”

“Strangely, there was no direct conflict. They lacked the strength to fight after the war, and the two countries had been allies during the war. Instead, other countries fought wars over ideology. In our world, we call this the Cold War.”

“It sounds like the human alliance after the Race War.”

“Similar.”

There was a Cold War-like situation here too. The human alliance went through that process right after the Race War.

The human alliance became the Empire of Minerva, but many conflicts occurred during that process. The current imperial family, the Reckyless ducal family, emerged as the final victor.

The rest were all cut down as they could have posed a threat to the imperial family in the future.

The Kingdom of Teres also participated in this war but gained little. It was a half-baked Cold War.

“By the way, it’s interesting that the world can be divided in half because of ideology. Although the condition is that they must be superpowers, it seems like······”

“Like the future of Alfheim and Helium?”

“Huh? Oh, yes. That’s right.”

Rina nodded, slightly surprised at having her thoughts read. Her eyes asked how I knew.

I smiled faintly at her reaction. In fact, it’s easy to figure out if you dig a little deeper.

As long as I’m alive, there won’t be direct conflict, but Alfheim and Helium are fundamentally different.

Those chosen by the gods versus those harmed by demons.

It’s a structure that inevitably leads to competition, religiously, ideologically, and at the racial level.

“Such a future won’t come soon. Helium still lacks in diplomacy and has much to prove. Moreover, as long as Arwen and Cecilly are ruling, there will hardly be any direct armed conflicts. But that’s just my opinion.”

“What about our empire? What will happen to the empire?”

“I’m not a prophet, Rina. These are just guesses. And the world I lived in is fundamentally different from this one.”

Rina showed disappointment at my firm answer. I casually picked up a cookie.

Honestly, this world has too many variables to give a definitive answer. Gods might intervene, or demon worshippers might cause trouble.

In fact, there’s evidence that demon worshippers have twisted some historical events. That’s why Elena has been so passionate recently.

“Do you have any more questions?”

“Yes. Does your world have books like the Biography of Xenon? I mean, books that turned the world upside down.”

“I mentioned the ideology that values the collective. A book embodying that ideology was published, and the world split in half.”

“I see. But why did such an ideology become the pillar of a country? And one of the superpowers at that?”

“It’s a bit long to explain, so I’ll skip it. Anything else?”

Rina then bombarded me with various questions. Most were related to policies, politics, history.

While science is difficult to understand even with illustrations, these topics are not.

Despite being a medieval world with class distinctions, this world strangely has a vague concept of human rights.

Look no further than the Kingdom of Teres. The country was overturned by the Jeiros Revolution, and recently almost faced another revolution due to the Biography of Xenon.

Although both ended in failure, they made it painfully clear that the people cannot be controlled at will and that they are formidable when united.

“Were there no nobles in your world?”

“Some places had them, some didn’t. Even where they existed, systems varied. Absolute monarchy where the emperor or king controls and governs everything. And constitutional monarchy where they reign but don’t rule, and so on.”

“Reign but don’t rule······ Just hearing it sounds like the monarch’s power is greatly reduced. Is that possible?”

“It’s a system that settled after going through certain stages. Many things happened in between.”

Before modern constitutional monarchy was fully established, it went through various processes. Initially, the goal was to stabilize the judicial system.

Afterward, human rights and democracy were gradually introduced, completing the current constitutional monarchy.

In that sense, this world has barely entered the second stage. A time when the concept of human rights is beginning to take root.

Alfheim and Helium have fundamentally different systems due to their racial characteristics, making them difficult to compare with others.

“Stages······ Will our world also adopt the systems you mentioned?”

“I think it would be difficult. Even if it does, the fundamentals would be different.”

“Why?”

“Here, not only are there groups, but individuals are too powerful.”

Humans on Earth are very weak as individuals. Many can’t even defeat a large dog.

But they could reach the top of the food chain due to their overwhelmingly superior intelligence compared to other animals.

In contrast, here, with effort and talent, one can become a formidable military force like my father. A force that can sweep away enemies with a single sword strike.

This won’t change much even as civilization develops. The more powerful one’s force, the more power they’ll have.

Balancing this is the duty and responsibility of politicians like Rina.

“As you’ve learned in political science, politics is fundamentally a force that maintains social order and the core of power. But if there’s a force that surpasses it, it will easily crumble. Just look at me.”

“It’s complicated. I need to consider not just our side but also adventurers and mercenaries.”

“Well, if I were to give advice, pay more attention to the people than to kings or nobles. As you can see from the Kingdom of Teres, throughout history, public sentiment is the greatest power.”

Even the infamous Nazi Germany could launch its insane war because it united public sentiment. That’s how much public sentiment is the true power of a nation.

The same applies to me now. Even if my status is just below the gods, I’m helpless before public sentiment.

This is possible because humans are fundamentally animals that live in society.

Without it, civilization would have scattered like bean powder.

“I see. Public sentiment······”

Rina nodded with a serious expression after hearing my advice, lowering her gaze.

Her blue eyes, shining like a lake, deepened.

I don’t know what insight she gained, but I hope it works out for the better.

“Then, Issac. How many hundreds of years apart is this world from the one you lived in?”

After a while, Rina asked me in a softer voice.

Her eyes sparkled more than before and contained an inexplicable deep trust.

I was momentarily taken aback by Rina’s noticeable change but thought carefully.

“Probably······ at least 300 years?”

“300 years? That long?”

Rina expressed amazement. I think it’s short, but it seems like an immensely long time to her.

Well, it can’t be helped. I’m someone who lived in modern times and learned history, while Rina is living in the current era.

I took a sip of tea to moisten my throat before speaking.

“It could be longer. There are many constraints on scientific development here, and the magic engine was invented by dwarves, not humans. Above all, there’s no guarantee that a war comparable to the Race War will definitely happen.”

“Do you think science can only develop through war?”

“That’s a topic with many opinions even in our world, so I can’t give a definitive answer. But it’s certain that war influenced scientific development.”

Humans develop science out of necessity, but war acts as a booster that significantly accelerates it.

This becomes clearer when comparing science before and after World War II, and before and after the Cold War.

‘There will hardly be any colonies either.’

Crucially, I wonder if imperialism will take deep root. After the Industrial Revolution, imperialism became popular in Europe, leading to World War I.

But this world, unlike Earth, doesn’t have many countries. They can be counted on one hand.

As a result, the concept of colonies is almost non-existent. Even if an industrial revolution occurs, empires can just obtain resources from their own territories.

“I keep emphasizing, don’t blindly believe my words. Remember that the place I lived and this place are fundamentally different.”

“I understand. Can I ask one more thing?”

“Anything.”

“With such knowledge, why did you stay quiet?”

I paused while reaching for a cookie. It was an unexpected but very sharp question.

I was momentarily flustered but quickly regained composure and put the cookie in my mouth. The sweet and savory taste spread throughout my mouth.

After swallowing the crumbled cookie, I looked straight at Rina. She was looking at me with a questioning expression.

I should probably evade first.

“I wasn’t quiet? There’s the Biography of Xenon.”

“What I mean is, why didn’t you publish a book based on your world from the beginning? This world has dwarves who are much more skilled than humans, and beyond that, mana and magic that don’t exist in your world. It could achieve development much faster than you think.”

“You didn’t believe me at first either, did you?”

“I’m not talking about science. I’m talking about the ‘flow of history’ itself that you know.”

The flow of history······ Put that way, I’m at a loss for words. I picked up my teacup to organize my thoughts.

In reality, despite fundamental differences, the flows are very similar in many aspects.

The fact that civilizations were established, regardless of race, proves that flows run similarly.

Additionally, the Jeiros Revolution, the atrocities committed by Sabre in the past, and the Race War.

Despite differences in science and culture, the flow is running very similarly.

Above all, when the Industrial Revolution happens, oppression of workers will naturally occur, and consequently, the birth of communism is practically “destiny.”

Clatter-

After organizing my thoughts, I put down the teacup. Rina is waiting for my answer with a smiling face, as if in anticipation.

I scratched my cheek and then chuckled. It feels strange to be treated like a prophet.

“First, there’s something you should know. The Biography of Xenon was just a hobby. And after completing it, I plan to write a novel related to my world.”

“Will you really write it?”

“I’ve already decided to. But hearing your words makes me a bit worried.”

“About what?”

“Rina.”

Rina is certainly intelligent and bright. At the same time, she’s rational and calculating.

She’s not the type to do anything for national benefit regardless of consequences, but she is the princess of the Empire of Minerva.

She has already gained enormous benefits just by hearing about Earth from me.

Speaking like that is clearly to obtain something essential for the future. For example, “resources” like coal or oil.

It might be difficult to handle without technology now, but the situation will change over time.

The Empire of Minerva already has vast territories, so who knows what resources might pop up, and if they collect everything indiscriminately after hearing my words?

“Radical development inevitably leads to major events. Whether in science or culture. It happened in the world I lived in, and it happened in this world too.”

“··· ···”

“In my world, there was an event similar to the Jeiros Revolution. The French Revolution, which vividly shows what happens when the Jeiros Revolution succeeds. Want to know what happened?”

“W-what happened?”

“Most of the nobles, including the king and queen, disappeared under the guillotine. The people who sent them to the guillotine were citizens, or commoners.”

“··· ···”

Gulp-

Rina swallowed hard with a tense expression after hearing my words. She’s focusing on the story with wide eyes.

“Afterward, various scientific products appeared, including steam locomotives, and world-class wars like the Race War broke out twice. How many casualties do you think occurred during those wars?”

“W-well? Since the Race War had about 3 million casualties, wouldn’t it be similar?”

The number of people sacrificed during the Race War was about 3 million. Most of them were beastmen who were massacred.

It might seem surprisingly few, but it’s understandable given that close combat was predominant.

Humans could hardly use mass destruction magic at the time, and elves simply didn’t use it. They judged there was no need.

But the beastmen were living in tribes at the time, so their population was quite small. That’s why the race almost became extinct.

Normally, population increases when civilization is established. The reason the beastmen population increased dramatically in a short time is that they finally established a civilization.

“A total of 100 million.”

“W-what?”

“100 million casualties occurred. In just two wars.”

“··· ···”

Rina’s mouth clamped shut at the unimaginable number. Radical development in science and culture leads to such terrible side effects.

The same applies when writing my next work. People like Rina will emerge, trying to follow what they believe is knowledge from the future.

That’s why I’m writing about World War II. To show what horrors unfold when war breaks out in a situation where science and culture have greatly developed.

“The choice is ultimately yours. When civilization develops, not just you but everyone will live more comfortably. Moreover, if I give warnings, the possibility of war breaking out will be lower.”

“······If you’re going to publish it as a book anyway, why tell me?”

“Because you’re the princess of this country. And when the book is published, there will inevitably be conflicts. Between those who want to follow what’s in the book and those who want to maintain the status quo. That’s how the world works, isn’t it?”

Dwarves will follow everything regardless of my warnings, finding it innovative. In fact, Luminus even prophesied that dwarves would bring tanks.

Rina thought for a long time after hearing my words, then sighed deeply. It seems like quite a difficult decision.

“······Can’t you just tell me what resources are used in the future?”

It seems she can’t let go of her greed. I chuckled at her question.

“What would you do if I told you? It’s not like you can use them right away. Ah, coal might be different.”

“Coal? You mean those black stones?”

“Yes. The demand for coal will surge soon. In my era, coal was consistently used as fuel.”

“I see. I’ll have to tell my brother later. Anything else?”

“What else do you want to know?”

“Culture, or something I might be interested in?”

“Hmm······”

It seems she wants to move on to lighter topics after the serious ones. I looked at Rina, who was exuding her unique elegant dignity, and smiled inwardly.

Something Rina would really be interested in. There’s just one thing.

“There is one thing.”

“What is it?”

Rina immediately shows interest. I tried my best to hold back my laughter as I spoke.

“Pornography. It’s like······”

After hearing my full explanation, Rina.

“Hey! You really!!”

She almost threw her teacup at me.

Her face turned bright red from huffing, and her teeth were clenched so hard that her white teeth were visible.

‘Ah. This is fun.’