When war breaks out, there is something that becomes both stronger and weaker at the same time.
What is it?
The answer is the leader’s authority—the dignity they command among their subjects, loyalty, control—all the essential elements of governance.
And why is that?
The reason is simple:War is an act that wastes blood and resources without restraint.
If a leader wins, they gain immediate fame and prestige,but the more sacrifices are made, the more criticism and blame they receive.
“Unless you achieve an overwhelming victory in a short decisive battle, if it turns into a drawn-out slugfest like this, even more so.”
When people die, bereaved families are left behind.
The more bereaved families there are, the more resentment builds against the leader.
And as resentment grows, so does the political burden on the ruler—whether due to battlefield losses or strategic mistakes.
And if that burden exceeds the limit?
The war ends.
Because the losses become unbearable, leading to surrender or peace negotiations.
“This war is particularly large in scale. None of the participating nations have ever mobilized and sustained such massive armies for so long.”
“That’s true. For the past century, small-scale territorial skirmishes or localized conflicts were the most we had.”
“The ruling class of every nation must be under immense pressure. Losing now doesn’t just mean losing territory—it means losing the very existence of the state itself.”
Currently, there are four nations at war, with one more preparing to join.
Including minor states with no real influence and those still watching from the sidelines,this war involves nearly a dozen nations.
If they want to survive, they must squeeze their own people dry to win.
Regardless of the suffering of the populace, they must extract every possible resource and manpower and throw it all onto the battlefield.
Nobles and royals become knights or officers,commoners become foot soldiers,
mages form support units.
Every able-bodied man must be armed and conscripted—and even that won’t be enough.
But realistically, that’s not possible.
Discontent from the common folk can be ignored,but the opinions of the nobility cannot be so easily dismissed.
If the rulers try to take everything by force, there will be backlash—potentially so severe that it threatens the ruler’s own position.
So, to some extent, they must be mindful of the nobility’s interests.
After all, without noble cooperation, even recruitment and resource collection become difficult.
Local governance and administration fall under the lords’ jurisdiction—how could the central government seize resources on its own ,when all the relevant documents and logistical information are in the hands of the nobility?
This is exactly why the Helvetian Republic is still holding out.
Unlike monarchies, they directly administer their territories through appointed officials,making their mobilization and exploitation far more efficient.
“So, I think I’ll give them a little help—something to ease the burden on the ruling class,so they can more comfortably gather resources and fully mobilize their nations for war.”
I didn’t like the current state of things.
So, I decided to assist the leaders of these nations.
I would ensure they could extract every bit of their already-limited resources and waste them endlessly on each other.
Technology was underdeveloped, and industry was primitive,but I would still help them amass whatever power they could and throw it into this war.
“Sounds good in theory, but how exactly?If you tell those pompous aristocrats to sacrifice for the state,they’ll just scoff at you.”
“I don’t intend to persuade them directly. All I need to do is give a little support to the rulers at the top.”
“Ah, so you plan to write something again—to provide them with political ideas,
just like when you published The Prince?”
“Exactly. You’re getting sharp after working with me for so long.”
Fortunately, I already had the perfect ideology in mind to guide national leaders in this situation—Thomas Hobbes’ social contract theory.
Not to be confused with Rousseau’s version,which emphasized republicanism, liberty, equality, and fraternity.
Hobbes’ theory, in contrast, supported absolute monarchy over democracy or republicanism.
Like Rousseau, he argued that the state was formed through a social contract
and that citizens must submit to its authority—but their visions of an ideal society were completely opposite.
If the goal was to suppress lower-class dissent and empower rulers,nothing could be more fitting than Hobbes’ ideas.
“So, will you begin writing immediately?You won’t have much time if you still have to teach students.”
“I’ll just work Monday through Sunday, every day.If I push myself, I can probably finish in three weeks.”
*****
From that day on, I began my work.
Or rather—since I was teaching by day and writing by night,maybe I should call it ‘day-teaching, night-writing’?
“Alright, this formula will be on your midterm,so take notes and memorize how to apply it.Now, if we sum this sequence from 1 to infinity,we get this limit—which can be expressed using Stieltjes integration like this—”
“Sir, you’re going too fast!!”
“We only learned integration two days ago!!”
“If you don’t learn this, you won’t be able to do accounting.If it’s too hard, just solve the problem set I gave you on the first day.”
By day, I wrecked the students’ minds.
By night, I sat at my desk, writing my manuscript.
It wasn’t particularly difficult—I already had the core ideas and structure in my head.
With Kalia assisting me and a comfortable environment to work in,the words flowed easily onto the page.
“Let’s see…I’ll base it on Leviathan…Should I modify the religious aspects?”
The foundation would be Leviathan,Hobbes’ most famous work,which contained the entirety of his philosophical foundation.
“The natural and fundamental state of man is a war of all against all.”
“Every human possesses an endless, unceasing desire for power,which only stops at death.Thus, in the absence of a common power to keep them in check,
human life is inevitably solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”
[Humans are inherently selfish and act according to their desire for self-preservation. However, because they also fear the disorder and violence that arise from this nature, they seek laws and power to escape fear and anxiety.]
There was no need for exaggerated or overly radical wording.
The original author himself had a deep aversion to disorder and instability in governance.
A simple linguistic adaptation, modifications to religious references, and a few of my own comments to guide the desired response—those were enough.
[Thus, the embodiment of the power needed to realize order from human selfishness is what we call the state.The strong desire for universal peace forms communities and, in turn, establishes the authority of rulers.Therefore, a monarch’s power can essentially be defined as the authority granted by the social contract formed by the people.]
[The people entrust all their rights—except for their right to life, their natural right—to the ruler and obey them.This is as if all individuals declare to one another: ‘I consent to completely transfer my right to govern myself to this person, on the condition that others do the same as I have.’]
I criticized the division of power—praising the benefits of entrusting everything to a single sovereign who would be the sole order and center of the state.
I emphasized the problems that arise when political power is divided,
detailing the chaos and inefficiency that come from such a system.
I framed it as a deviation from the fundamental purpose of the social contract—peace and security.
I carefully crafted my wording to make absolute power feel like the only correct answer.
[The power created through this contract is an untamed and violent beast—a Leviathan.Yet, paradoxically, this monster becomes the only source of order in an otherwise endless abyss of chaos and disorder.By uniting many people into a single entity,this great earthly god is born under the eternal protection of the Goddess,providing humanity with peace and defense.]
[The people free themselves from fear by fully surrendering their right to govern themselves to the monster.And the power of this beast, once formed, is an absolute right—one that cannot be divided or shared.]
Of course, I omitted Hobbes’ references to the Kingdom of Christ—after all, this was a world without Jesus.
I also removed the part where he argued that rulers who fail to protect their people must be replaced.
What kind of propaganda would it be if I included such a dangerous notion in a text glorifying absolute power and the divine right of kings?
Hobbes wrote to spread his ideas and beliefs.
But ?
My goal was purely political agitation.
Any content that rulers wouldn’t like was cut without hesitation.
Whatever judgment people passed on my work later—as long as it was persuasive in the moment, that was all that mattered.
“This should be good enough. Miss Kalia, I’ll leave the printing and distribution to you.”
“Consider it done.”
With the rest of the work left to Kalia, I spent the following days relaxing,enjoying my leisure time while waiting to see how my readers would react.
But the world has a way of surprising you.
My new work triggered an unforeseen change.
“…Duce?”
“Yes. That’s the new title they’re using for Helvetia’s leader.”
Why is the bald guy hanging from a gas station suddenly showing up here…?
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