Chapter 522

‘I still do not know how I am supposed to accept the fact that this opportunity to return to the surface was given to us by the Royal Family.’

That had been Chairman Susanne Nussbaum’s question, and also her demand: a demand for Marian Baum to explain why he believed this opportunity was justified. Marian wanted to carefully put into words what had been taking shape in his mind. He had to. If he could properly persuade even one member of the leadership, he might be able to persuade the others as well.

“First, as I said before, I would like to explain my moderate position.”

Chairman Nussbaum nodded, giving him permission to continue. Marian Baum cleared his throat and spoke.

“I understand the basis for your fundamentalist view that we should not merely have our outstanding rights restored to us, but should take up the sword ourselves and seize those rights with our own hands. As a commoner mage who has been persecuted from birth, and as someone who has personally brought countless fellow citizens into the Catacombs, I would ideally want the same. However, as Chairman Nussbaum said, it is true that a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ has arrived. An opportunity that gives us a chance to find a way back to the surface as quickly as possible, with as little bloodshed as possible, and with a high chance of success. Realistically, it would be difficult for the Catacombs, with so few people, to fight and defeat Prussia, a military power with a population of sixty million. We are developing our technology for that very purpose, but when I consider the possibility that failure could instead lead to the extermination of the Catacombs as a whole, I cannot argue that we should turn armed conflict into reality. The reason I so earnestly urged you not to let this opportunity slip away is that I cannot disregard the lives of our fellow citizens. You may say that you do not disregard those lives, but see them as the means by which we must struggle. That is simply a difference in perspective. I am by no means old, but I have lived long enough to have some years behind me, and perhaps because of that, I find myself thinking less about dreams and more about all of you today and tomorrow. I want our mages to survive safely and live the rightful lives we have all fought to build, enjoying the rights that belonged to us in the first place. I want you to be able to see for yourselves, in a society that moves forward and backward with every passing moment, that your struggle was never in vain. That progress was made possible by your struggle. Dying after giving your whole life to a cause is certainly noble. But I do not want you to die after spending your entire lives under oppression. I want you to be happy not only in Christ’s kingdom in Heaven, but here on the surface, in this very moment.”

At those words, Chairman Nussbaum closed her eyes. She remained that way for a long while before slowly nodding. Out of courtesy, Marian Baum spoke for the silent Chairman Nussbaum, giving voice to the thoughts she might have been considering.

“Of course, Chairman Nussbaum could answer me by saying, ‘I would rather fight Prussia to the bitter end and go to Heaven with my comrades, even if it meant being slaughtered, than take advantage of an opportunity offered by the circumstances.’ To someone like you, I may look like a shameful opportunist, a weak-hearted, soft middle-aged man who has lost the fire of his youth and wants to think only of practical solutions. And yes, that is how I see myself. I am a republican who passionately wishes for a republic, yet I am wary of the radical argument that ‘the system is fundamentally wrong, so we must establish a republic right now.’ That is because I do not believe the consciousness of the hundred million citizens of the Empire has developed enough to establish and maintain a democratic republic. Our fellow citizens say nothing no matter who is being massacred on the surface. I have no reason to think highly of their civic consciousness when they are active bystanders. So at the very least, I cannot call it radical. Of course, the movement to bring the Catacombs back to the surface and the movement to establish a republic are by no means the same thing, and I know there are monarchists even within the Catacombs. Their stance is that rather than weaken the nation by pursuing unnecessary change, we should maintain a constitutional monarchy in which the parliament functions and the people elect their representatives. There will be hardliners among them as well. Compared to them, I am rather bland. Bland enough that I might even look like a monarchist. Whether in the movement to return the Catacombs to the surface or in the republican movement, I am someone who maintains a moderate position on all these different fronts.”

“I understand your practical outlook, Mr. Baum.”

Chairman Nussbaum replied curtly. Marian Baum had expected as much, so he merely smiled and continued.

“Then I suppose we have something in common when it comes to bringing up reality and occasionally letting it put a stop to our ideals. May I now explain why I had no choice but to hold to a moderate position?”

“As long as we have time before we are due at the conference hall, by all means. I have wanted to ask every moderate the same question. And especially you, Mr. Baum. You have personally faced so many dangers on the surface while bringing mages here. Why, then, do you not agree with Chairman Schweitzer?”

“I think the answer lies in what you just said, Chairman Nussbaum. It is my habit of frequently going back and forth between the surface and the Catacombs—or, more precisely, my habit of deliberately seeking out and involving myself in crises on the surface—that led me toward moderation.”

Perhaps intrigued by those words, Chairman Nussbaum blinked and glanced once at the members of the leadership who were taking their turns heading down to the surface, then sat back down. Marian Baum spoke.

“As you know, I bring commoner mages from Bavaria into the Catacombs, and I do the same in neighboring states outside Bavaria as well. Occasionally, even in Prussia. I lure commoners suspected of being mages to Bavaria, then bring them into the Catacombs.”

“When we talk about increasing the population of the Catacombs, we cannot leave out Mr. Baum. All of us in the leadership are always grateful for what you have done.”

“Thank you. I deliberately seek out mages and look for those moments of crisis. Perhaps it is foolish of me, but as a result, I frequently experience and witness crises that most people might encounter only once or twice in their lifetime. Bitterly enough, even when you have experienced something yourself, as time passes, most of the finer sensations remain only in the realm of memory and images rather than reality. Intense anger and the sense that something must be done remain with you for a long time, but most other things do not. For example, the fear I felt when I had to decide whether I would survive by turning into the alley on the left or the alley on the right to escape the police; the despair and anxiety that took over my chest when that fear drained the strength from my thigh muscles; the memory of those moments when my reason kept fading and returning as I struggled not to collapse under that mixture of emotions; the despair and faint hope that gradually became harder and harder to bear; the countless emotions that welled up to the point where fear and pain were about to exceed their limits, making me wonder whether it would be better to simply give up and find relief—none of those fleeting moments are easy to preserve exactly as they were.”

Chairman Nussbaum nodded.

“Ever since I began actively bringing people into the Catacombs, there has been no chance for those countless emotions to grow numb inside me. I saw the faces of people fleeing only recently. I also know very well how badly the hands of people sitting in the same taverns as the police tremble as they pretend not to be mages. It is something I went through long ago, but it is also a sight I have encountered only recently. It is certainly not because I have repeatedly experienced the volatile conditions on the surface that I have been able to pursue my ideals. When there are ten thousand people, there are ten thousand different paths. Not every moderate became a moderate because they thought and experienced things the way I did, nor did every radical become a radical because they thought and experienced things in the opposite way. But I, who have so often witnessed people fleeing, being summarily executed, and ordinary people having to pretend they are not mages—I want nothing more than for these people to be safe. From the position of someone struggling to save even one more life, there is no other way I can put it. If I believed that all those lives had to be sacrificed, whether to Prussia, to the cause of the Catacombs, or simply to the times we live in—if I truly believed that was how it had to be—”

Marian Baum, who had been staring into empty space without even blinking, moved his lips before bringing his gaze back into focus. He looked at Chairman Nussbaum and spoke.

“If I were the kind of person who believed that in the first place, then by my very nature, I would never have brought Prussian people to Bavaria in an attempt to save even one more life. That is why I am a moderate. At least, this is the process that led me to remain one. That is why I say we should use the opportunity we have now to save as many people as possible. All the moderates will reach the same conclusion on this point, and fundamentally, so will the radicals.”

Chairman Nussbaum looked only into Marian Baum’s eyes. Clearly, she wanted to argue, and there must have been much she wanted to say. But she said nothing, for Marian Baum’s sake. Perhaps it was also because she was simply a woman of few words.

Marian Baum spoke as his heart and his lips led him.

“Now that I’ve explained what my moderate position means in practice, I’d like to clarify the rest. I want the reality we live in ‘now,’ rather than at some other point in time, to improve, and I am doing everything I can to make that happen. But even so, it should go without saying that we must not damage the Catacombs’ self-respect, dignity, or independence in the process. Any approach that could damage our self-respect, dignity, or independence can only be a temporary fix, an incomplete peace. No matter how much I want to reduce the immediate harm, that is not the kind of temporary fix I want.”

For the first time, a different expression appeared on Chairman Nussbaum’s face, which had remained solemn throughout. She could not help but take an interest in those words, because she believed that the Catacombs should confront Prussia by force rather than compromise their independence.

At this point, it was worth recalling what she had said.

‘However, I still do not know how I am supposed to accept the fact that this opportunity to return to the surface was given to us by the Royal Family. This is not the kind of moderation I wanted.’

Marian Baum spoke without wavering.

“In short, I don’t think the opportunity we have now is a method that can damage our self-respect or independence.”

“Then what kind of method do you think it is?”

“Let’s say there’s a brown bear. We are villagers who lost our families and homes to that bear, and who became hunters afterward simply to survive. Now, suppose that the brown bear that had torn through our village, killed people, and ruined our crops wandered around carelessly and ended up falling into a pit on its own. The village head, who had also been struggling with the bear, discovers this and suggests that we go together and either catch it before it can get out or quickly set a trap for it. So we can take our nets and guns and go catch the bear before it calmly climbs out of the pit and goes on its way. We can go with the village head or without him. Either way, we can go. And yet, right now, we have the skill to bring down that bear with a net and a gun, but we are stepping back because we think it would somehow be wrong to hunt the bear when we only know that it has fallen into the pit because the village head told us. Or we say that our desire for revenge will not allow us to hunt the bear together with the village head, so we will go and hunt it alone.”

Marian Baum was not accustomed to the kind of meticulous discussion that Chairman Nussbaum was, so he wondered if this might sound like a crude analogy to her. But backing down out of anxiety would not make it any easier to get his point across. Marian Baum continued speaking calmly and steadily.

“It is true that, as Chairman Nussbaum said, a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ has come. However, if the ‘opportunity’ you referred to when you said that ‘the opportunity to return to the surface was given to us by the Royal Family’ is the same ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ you mentioned earlier, then I would like to correct that expression.”

“How?”

“The fact that the brown bear has fallen into the pit. That is the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity we have been given.”

At those words, Chairman Nussbaum, who had remained expressionless throughout, raised an eyebrow and slightly parted her lips before smiling. She did not think Marian Baum was saying something absurd. If she had, then by nature, Chairman Nussbaum would have said nothing and simply waited for the right moment to correct him. Instead, she was encountering a perspective different from her own and finding it intellectually fresh, as a scholar. That was how Marian Baum interpreted her smile.

Marian Baum spoke calmly.

“The village head telling us, ‘If we do this or that, I think we can keep the brown bear that fell into the pit from getting out. Why don’t we go catch it together?’ could, in a sense, be called an opportunity as well. But the most opportunity-like opportunity, the meaning closest to the essence of the word, is the fact that the brown bear is in the pit. In other words, when I say a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I am not referring to the ‘Royal Family’s proposal,’ as Chairman Schweitzer said we would be indebted for. I am referring to the political reality that Prussia created for itself. At its core, this opportunity exists because Prussia is where it is now. Prussia’s flawed politics from the very beginning have led it into the political landscape and diplomatic currents it faces today. Our true opportunity is neither Bavaria’s offer of cooperation nor anything of the sort. It is the fact that Prussia’s own reckless actions have created an ideal political and diplomatic situation in which we can drive them into a corner. That is the true ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.’ Then, what is Bavaria’s offer of cooperation to us?”

Marian Baum did not wait for an answer. Chairman Nussbaum had no intention of answering, either. Amid a strange, heightened calm, the two of them already knew the answer without saying a word.

Marian Baum spoke.

“This is not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will never come again. First, it is a ‘monumental and historic event,’ and second, it is ‘an opportunity to gain an ally.’ I believe you understand the difference between the two, Chairman Nussbaum.”

“I do.”

“Then please tell me. I would like to hear your judgment, since you can examine the matter more closely than I can.”

Marian Baum was inwardly eager to hear what answer she would give. Chairman Nussbaum narrowed her already keen eyes even further and fell into thought. Before long, she spoke again in that same mechanical tone.

“First, you should keep in mind that what I’m about to say places importance on the relativity between words, so none of it is meant to be absolute. First, ‘a monumental and historic event’ is a self-contained expression. Bavaria’s proposal is an indication that the state intends to ‘redefine its relationship with the Catacombs from this point onward,’ and that in itself is an event. It was decided by Bavaria, offered by Bavaria, and concluded by Bavaria along with the proposal. Therefore, in this context, the word ‘event’ is less dynamic than ‘opportunity.’ The word ‘event’ implies that whether we accept the proposal or not, we remain at a certain distance from it. An ‘opportunity,’ on the other hand, implies that we are to some extent subject to the circumstances created by the person or flow that brought about that opportunity. If we say there is ‘an opportunity to do well on an exam,’ for instance, it naturally implies that we are first and foremost subject to the circumstance of having to take the exam. Calling Bavaria’s offer of cooperation ‘a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ makes ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ imply that we are in a state of dependence in which we cannot do without Bavaria’s cooperation. And calling the situation Prussia has been caught in—a trap of circumstances it dug for itself over such a long period of time—‘a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,’ as Mr. Baum just described it, implies that we are subject to the influence of those circumstances and entirely dependent on them. And every state and organization is subject to the influence of circumstances in the same way. Next, the second expression, ‘an opportunity to gain an ally,’ is too one-sided in its perspective, and it leaves part of the meaning unstated. If we correct it to make it neutral, it would be ‘an opportunity to accept or reject Bavaria’s offer of cooperation.’ The emphasis in this opportunity lies on ‘accept or reject,’ and that means we are subject to a ‘situation of choice,’ not that we are subject to Bavaria’s will.”

Chairman Nussbaum paused for a beat before drawing her conclusion.

“Mr. Marian Baum has just said that we are not ‘in fact’ in a state of dependence. He also pointed out that the radicals, myself included, have been using the word ‘opportunity’ as an all-encompassing term. Just as I analyzed the meaning of ‘bystander’ earlier. I pointed it out at first, but it seems I’ve had it turned back on me.”

Marian Baum shook his head and leaned closer to her.

“Chairman. I don’t think we’re defeating Prussia by borrowing Bavaria’s strength. Do you understand? At this very moment, we are writing history.”

Marian Baum spoke as he once again felt the emotion that had genuinely surged up from within him earlier.

“Chairman Nussbaum, you want us to accomplish everything entirely with our own hands. Because you believe that is what it means to overthrow the existing order independently. But we are not being passively swept along by outside forces. We are actively making use of them. We are debating all of these issues at length, making our own choices, and building the future of the Catacombs ourselves. Even if Bavaria has proposed cooperation, it remains only a proposal. The authority to decide whether we act lies with us, and we have other options as well. There is the war plan held by the radicals, and there is the status quo that we moderates have as our second plan. And even if we reject Bavaria’s proposal, our advanced technology, which is capable of guaranteeing our defense, proves that these alternatives are actually viable. That is why I do not define our relationship with Bavaria as a vertical one. We are not standing at a dead end with only one choice, reaching out for the helping hand the Royal Family has lowered to us. We are looking for a way to improve the lives of all commoner mages within a horizontal relationship. Choosing one of several options and deciding to act on it is the result of the Catacombs’ own efforts. Having the technology to make that choice succeed is also the result of our efforts. And being able to propose measures to deal with the confusion that will follow this opportunity, while making sure that nothing is overlooked in the process, is another expression of our ability. Chairman Nussbaum, I believe that the fact that you pointed out my mistakes so that I could prepare for what comes next and carefully anticipate every hardship that may befall the Catacombs is itself one of the greatest expressions of the will and practice of independence. We already possess that independence simply because, through these daily discussions and debates, we are able to search for a healthier path forward.”

“…….”

“I think reducing this entire process to simply going down to the surface by Bavaria’s virtue undervalues the importance of democratic decision-making. Even for someone like me, who is not a radical, if this had truly been ‘an opportunity Bavaria had prepared for us,’ ‘something made possible through Bavaria’s virtue,’ or ‘Bavaria’s benevolence,’ I would not have accepted it. It would not be right to call it that. This is not a matter of courtesy toward Bavaria. It is a matter of courtesy toward the Catacombs. I believe that when you said ‘the opportunity to return to the surface was given to us by the Royal Family,’ you made a mistake by mixing together Bavaria’s proposal and the political circumstances without properly distinguishing between them. It came from focusing only on the power held by Bavaria as a great power, rather than respecting the capabilities of the Catacombs. That way of putting it was, in the end, a way of belittling ourselves.”

When Marian Baum finished speaking, Nussbaum readily nodded.

“I agree. That was a slip on my part.”

Marian Baum had been quietly worried that Nussbaum might take offense, but he realized that concern had been unnecessary. He knew that if he didn’t leave now, he would be late for the meeting, but he continued.

“And I’d like to look at this matter from a somewhat different angle.”

Chairman Nussbaum knew she would be late as well, but she did not stop him. Marian Baum had no idea what exactly Chairman Nussbaum was thinking, but he was already deeply immersed in the discussion. Even as he tried to speak as quickly as possible, he continued steadily.

“I used an analogy, but now it’s time to return to reality. Our opponent isn’t a brown bear. Our opponent is a state—sophisticated, intelligent, complex, and strategic. In particular, it is one of Europe’s undisputed great powers, a hegemonic power that only began to seize influence relatively recently but has risen at an astonishing pace. That is Prussia. Prussia takes great pride in war, but the reason it values victory in war has little to do with war itself. At its core, it has staked an enormous amount of pride and interest on maintaining, beyond dispute, its position as the hegemonic power of Germany and the title of Europe’s new dominant power.”

“That’s right.”

“I wonder whether we really should give up such a powerful means of putting the greatest possible political brake on Prussia and weakening its influence in one stroke. Right now, the moderate faction of Bavaria and the Catacombs are working together to destroy Prussia’s greatest source of power. So although our current approach may look moderate on the surface, in the end, it is not nearly as moderate as the radicals expect. This is the strongest declaration of war we can send to Prussia, and an explicit declaration of rebellion that power will no longer belong to them. They followed militarism because they were a small state, became a great power because they were a militaristic state, and now they maintain militarism and nationalism to preserve their position as a great power. We are taking away the greatest value Prussia seeks to protect—the value that is practically synonymous with its identity.”

“…….”

“Do you still think we’re using a weak approach?”

Chairman Nussbaum was now wearing a satisfied smile. She slowly stroked her chin, smiling as she fell into thought, then returned to a blank expression, repeating the motion several times before finally speaking.

“Nothing can be accomplished alone. In fairy tales, characters can often accomplish everything from start to finish through their own strength and return home, but that’s precisely why they’re fairy tales. At most, I expected to hear something along those lines from you, Mr. Baum.”

“Is that so?”

“But it seems you’re someone who can think about things in a different way as well.”

Nussbaum’s words were praise in their own right. Despite their differing stances, she was acknowledging Marian Baum’s dedication to the Catacombs. As Marian Baum wondered how he should respond, Chairman Nussbaum leaned closer to him.

“Let’s not use the bear analogy carelessly in front of the public.”

“Pardon?”

“I understand that analogies can be an effective strategy for persuading large numbers of people, and that an analogy can never correspond to reality one hundred percent. But there is a difference between using an analogy with an audience that can interpret it critically and understand where to draw the line for themselves, and presenting an analogy to an audience that cannot. A crowd contains all kinds of people mixed together. There are also some who, once they notice a flaw in an analogy, will loudly point it out without carefully examining their own views. Negative remarks have a tendency to gain traction easily, so the objection may spread to the kind of crowd I just described without anyone first considering how sound it actually is, and eventually make its way back to you, Mr. Baum. In other words, that kind of crowd can point out flaws in your reasoning while making arguments that are not even logical themselves. That is what I mean by the cycle of unthinking.”

“…Ah, I see.”

Marian Baum grew serious, furrowing his brow as he touched the corner of his mouth. If he had heard this beforehand, he would never have used the analogy. Marian Baum was accustomed to softening people’s attitudes through familiarity, since he often had to persuade one or two individuals at a time. So he had used an analogy as he usually did, but Chairman Nussbaum, who habitually analyzed everything with a cool eye, was different. Chairman Nussbaum acted with the nature of the crowd in mind.

Marian Baum realized anew that Chairman Nussbaum was a strict person, and once again felt that she was precisely the kind of person the Catacombs needed in a time of turmoil.

“Mr. Baum.”

“Yes.”

“This is not the time to meet with the Crown Prince. We should ask him to postpone the meeting and call back the members of our leadership who have already gone to the surface. Earlier, I wanted to speak to them again after meeting with the Crown Prince, if things began moving toward cooperation. But no. Tell them all of this again, right now, in front of everyone.”

“Why?”

Marian Baum found the proposal rather unexpected, but calmly asked his question. Chairman Nussbaum shook her head.

“I don’t think the two of us should be the only ones to keep your opinion to ourselves. Unlike the matter of the ‘bystander,’ this is rooted too deeply in the essence of the issue. Saying that ‘the opportunity to return to the surface was given to us by the Royal Family’ came from our failure to distinguish Bavaria’s proposal from the political situation and our tendency to focus only on the strength of Bavaria as a great power, rather than respecting the capabilities of our own Catacombs. That expression was indeed a mistake. It also diminished us by making us see ourselves as lesser than we are. And it is true that our leadership proceeded with the discussion from that very stance.”

Chairman Nussbaum stopped speaking and fell silent. She looked straight at Marian Baum before continuing.

“We do not know whether the Crown Prince will share our stance or not. But regardless of his stance, we need to restore the dignity of the Catacombs that we ourselves have insulted. We also deserve the chance to correct a meeting that was built from the beginning on a misused concept of ‘opportunity.’ That is not something owed to Bavaria. It is a right belonging to the members of our leadership, who must reach democratic and virtuous decisions through this meeting.”