An Invitation from the Old Families

The headquarters of the Korhal Revolutionary Army in Sterling, on the morning of December 28.

The Revolutionary Army's headquarters is located beneath a soon-to-be-completed skyscraper with a silver frame and bronze glass, belonging to the Mengsk Group. This two-hundred-plus-story building, with its smooth rounded corners and elegant curves, stands tall among a forest of silver spires and geometrically varied buildings.

Augustus is currently in a network of underground tunnels about five hundred feet deep in this building called the Mengsk Interstellar Trade Building. His headquarters is a cubicle with metallic floors, walls, ceilings, and ducted fans.

Six years ago, Mengsk Group's construction company began building this trading building and secretly constructed its complex underground section as a shelter to cope with a series of apocalyptic crises such as nuclear war. Now, Augustus has temporarily decided to use it as the headquarters of the Korhal Revolutionary Army.

Approximately two hundred Revolutionary Army soldiers, certified and stamped by the Umojan Shadow Guard and with a checkmark in the loyalty section, worked in the underground headquarters as clerical, staff, and guards. Of course, they were able to enter the headquarters because Augustus believed they had an absolute belief in the inevitable victory of the revolution and extremely high ideological and political awareness.

Since the Korhal Revolutionary Army was far from being a competent army, Augustus still had much work to do, including establishing an effective management system and strict military regulations, appointing officers, dividing war zones, and even designing uniforms and insignia for the Revolutionary Army.

This was of course an impossible task for Augustus, but fortunately, after Christmas, the Umojan Protectorate dispatched a force of about 20,000 mid- to low-ranking officers and military advisors to support the Korhal Revolutionary Army, helping Korhal IV to build an army in the shortest possible time.

Through his tireless efforts, Angus also obtained a promise from the popularly elected council of Umojan: once Korhal IV declares war on the Terran Confederacy, Umojan and its colonies will send a volunteer army to help the Korhal Revolutionary Army fight against the Confederacy army.

Umojan and its core world's foundries and starship ports will provide Korhal IV with access to 600-foot-class cruisers, as well as all frigates, destroyers, starships, and all military starports of the Umojan Protectorate.

This is almost an all-out effort to provide aid; they're practically on the verge of declaring war on the Terran Confederacy.

Because the elderly but still senile members of the Umojan elected council understood that if they could not weaken the power of the Terran Confederacy through another war, they would inevitably be swallowed up by the powerful Confederacy and lose all sovereignty.

With the help of Umojan officers and military advisors, Augustus much more relaxed. So, today Augustus focused his attention on designing insignia for the Revolutionary Army. This was originally the work of professionals, but Augustus insisted on doing it himself.

Ultimately, Augustus rejected all the proposals and chose the design he had suggested and the designer had drawn—a powerful arm on a red background, encircling a slender whip, a ring holding the whip.

This is the symbol of the future famous Sons of Korhal, the Confederacy Resistance organization.

After finalizing the design, Augustus sent the logo to the propaganda department and then sat down at his desk to review the training progress reports from various recruit training bases.

Although Augustus lacked confidence in these Umojan officers who had never had any combat experience, he was quite satisfied with the efficiency with which these officers, graduates of military academies, grasped military discipline and training.

Around noon, Lisa Cassidy brought Augustus lunch and red wine. He was wearing a grey trial uniform of the Korhal Revolutionary Army when she arrived.

Just as Augustus was about to eat, the Holographic Projection on his desk lit up. It was a personal habit of his; he liked to watch something entertaining while eating.

UNN Universe News Network's Holographic Television broadcast footage of Mrs. Angus Mengsk, head of the Korhal IV Mengsk Family, and her youngest daughter, Miss Dorothy, traveling to Tyrador IX for a vacation in a galactic shuttle.

This scene lasted for less than three seconds. Then, the TV presenter began to spend a great deal of time and words, speaking with the eloquence and emotion of a choir, recounting Mrs. Mengsk's contributions to the welfare of children in Korhal IV and the issue of war refugees.

However, the real Mrs. Mengsk and Dorothy Mengsk had already flown to Umojan on Christmas Day in Umojan stealth fighter. By that day, Augustus had received news from Ailin Pasteur that the mother and daughter had arrived safely.

Before setting off, Augustus confiscated all of Dorothy's dresses and ordered her not to play with her young nephew, Valerian, but he was powerless to do anything about his mother.

Poor Valerian, he had never met his grandmother and aunt in his life, but Augustus changed history.

It doesn't matter; the Mengsk Family tradition must still be upheld.

As Augustus enjoyed his steak and red wine, he thought about how the journalists who were keen to criticize the extravagance and corruption of the nobility described the Mengsk Family's wastefulness. However, such articles would only appear on the largest social and news website in the Terran Confederacy, "Confederate Banner," for less than ten seconds before being permanently banned.

Many of these people who dare to "speak the truth" may stand on Augustus's side, because they always like to pursue the hidden truth.

Unbeknownst to him, Augustus had already made overthrowing the Terran Confederacy and protecting his family his greatest goal in life.

Next, the news channel broadcast some news about the various territories within the Confederacy.

Large-scale harassment broke out again in Andasar, the Antiga Prime, resulting in several deaths.

This city, with a decades-long tradition of "resistance," was once suppressed by the Marines, with conservative estimates suggesting that several thousand people died. However, no retrospective reports mention this incident, and only Revolutionary Army leaders like Augustus obtained the true records from that time.

Then came some trivial news, such as the earthquake in Tyrador III and the massive crop failure in Mar- Sara due to insufficient irrigation Watering Hole, followed by an advertisement featuring child star Kayla Velas.

Augustus knew that there were so many riots and disturbances in the Koprulu Sector that the UNN couldn't keep up with the news, but they seemed to have overlooked this big news that was hard to come by in ordinary times.

As Augustus pondered how to infiltrate the UNN headquarters and broadcast to the entire universe the truth of the massacres that would damage the prestige of the Confederacy and the scandals that would bring shame upon the Tarsonis Old Families, his personal terminal vibrated.

This was an email requesting his return to Meinhoff on the first Saturday of next month. While serving as the leader of the Korhal Revolutionary Army, Augustus was still a second lieutenant in the Confederate Marine Corps, a war hero who defended the Terran Confederacy.

Augustus remained silent, contemplating the dangers of returning to the military camp. Currently, only a small number of high-ranking members of the Revolutionary Army knew his identity; these individuals had undergone rigorous screening and testing to gain entry into the core of the Revolutionary Army.

Ultimately Umojan's Shadow Guard proved that although some were suspected of using the revolution for speculation and profiteering, at least no one betrayed him. Therefore, the possibility that the Confederacy knew his true identity was extremely low.

A few minutes later, another email was sent to Augustus's personal mailbox, containing two invitations: one inviting him to give a speech at the Tarsonis Noble Military Academy as a war hero, and the other inviting him to attend the 140th birthday celebration of Andrea Tagore, the matriarch of the Tagore Family Tarsonis, Old Families the commander of the Heaven's Devils and Heir of the Mengsk Family.

The letter, written in an elegant but condescending tone, suggests that Augustus's attendance at the celebration was an obligation he was obligated to fulfill.

This invitation must be based on absolutely rational political considerations. Korhal's call for independence is sweeping across the entire planet and has already affected other worlds in the Confederacy.

If Augustus were to appear in Tarsonis as Mengsk's Heir and a war hero at this time, the Confederacy could use this opportunity to promote the Mengsk Family and create the illusion that the Mengsk family has not strayed from the Old Families hierarchy, thereby weakening Angus's prestige and minimizing the impact of the Korhal riots.

There may be more complex political considerations at play. For example, the Old Families might be testing Augustus's attitude toward his father—after all, they already knew about their discord, Augustus's decision to join the Federal Marine Corps despite his father's position was the best evidence of that.

If they could force him to break with his father, then Augustus would become a pawn in their control of the Mengsk Family and Korhal.

Then Augustus would receive a sword called Frostmourne, inheriting it from his father.

Traveling to Tarsonis was, of course, extremely dangerous, but Augustus had to deal with these mysterious Old Families beforehand. He desperately wanted to know which Old Families were likely to side with Korhal, which might remain neutral, and which were beyond redemption and had to be wiped out.

The New Year's bells have rung, and January 2489 in Korhal IV remains as warm as ever. Every latitude on this planet enjoys a long spring, and Sterling is especially blessed with perpetual spring, making it a garden world perfectly suited for human habitation.

This month, the political situation within the Terran Confederacy is different from before. Most of the people on the main planet are immersed in the joy of victory, while the Terrans in the war zones and Outer Colonies are still suffering from hunger and cold.

Angus's revolutionaries have strongholds of varying sizes on various planets, with greater control in the more remote regions far from the Confederacy. Therefore, they know the war is far from over unless the Confederacy allocates funds to aid refugees and help them rebuild their homes.

However, the Confederacy remained slow to respond, continuing to focus on signing a peace treaty with the Kel-Morian Combine and intensifying its plunder of its land and abundant resources.

The Revolutionary Army often appears as saviors, which makes them far more influential in many Edge World than in others. Both Angus and Augustus believe that their focus should be on planets far from the core world, and winning their support.

Augustus temporarily set aside the construction of the Revolutionary Army, entrusting it to Acton Field, the former head of the Mengsk Family's security, whom he had newly appointed as a colonel in the Revolutionary Army, and several military advisors sent by Umojan. He then boarded a spaceship at Sterling Skyport with Lisa and others to return to the Heaven's Devils's base in Meinhoff.

Other tasks, such as accepting aid from Umojan and accelerating the conversion of civilian vessels into warships, will be handled by the Mengsk Group, and his father, Angus Mengsk, will personally take over these tasks.

Angus Mengsk's increasingly busy schedule has led to signs of hair loss, causing his son, Augustus, great concern about his future appearance.

It wasn't until three days later that Augustus arrived at Meinhoff, by which time most of the Fleets had already left the planet.

Only the Behemoth-class Battlecruiser Steel Justice and two Leviathan -class warships remained, but Meinhoff had already imposed military control. Due to the Confederacy army's cold-blooded management, riots and uprisings broke out in many places, but there was no disturbance in New Apollowin, where the Heaven's Devils was stationed.

Raynor is a talented individual with a natural flair for leadership; even the Heaven's Devils are willing to follow his orders. However, he is not adept at managing businesses.

Rick Kydd and Tychus Finley managed the crystal mine and factory. The former had received an elite aristocratic education and had learned how to manage a factory, while the latter was shrewd and hardworking simply because he was managing a money-making machine.

Augustus returned to his military base on January 7th. As soon as he left the starport, he immediately contacted his old superior Warfield, and learned that his discharge application had not yet been approved, but Warfield was helping Augustus with the matter.

After all, as long as it didn't cross any lines, Warfield was still willing to make exceptions for Augustus.

Afterwards, Augustus summoned all the Heaven's Devils, gathering together all those who were wandering outside or on duty. He explained to them his impending retirement and his decision to return to Korhal.

Everyone was surprised, but they could more or less guess what Augustus going to do.

Even out of trust, Augustus couldn't say directly that he was going back to overthrow the Terran Confederacy. Instead, he asked who was willing to retire with him and go to Korhal, to that place that was becoming increasingly chaotic in the news reports.

The 1st Squad of the Heaven's Devils immediately responded to Augustus, unlike the other divisions that joined Augustus later. Except for Tychus Finley, they all already knew that Augustus going back to rebel.

Zander, Ward, Harnack had nowhere else to go and didn't want to stay in the army. As for Amy Brandon and Elijah Kulovsky, they originally wanted to return to their hometowns after retiring, but since Augustus still needed them, they would stay by his side.

Rick Kydd initially wanted to continue his career in the military, but he soon realized that the Revolutionary Army was where he could truly realize his life's purpose.

Josephine hesitated, not because he was a nobleman in the Korhal region and was born to be on the opposite side of the revolutionaries, but because he happened to have several children in the Korhal whose mothers happened to be daughters of noble noble families in the Korhal, and, very coincidentally, the mothers of the children were not all the same person.

Josephine wouldn't have run away if someone hadn't bought her hands and feet from the entire Sterling gang.

After much deliberation, Josephine decided to return masked.

Londerstein astutely realized that by following Augustus now, he could not only avoid overthrowing his own family, but also make Londerstein the new regime would rely on, and a future rising star. But this was also a huge gamble, and in the end, he chose to follow Augustus first.

Only Lee Pachin Yang and Tychus Finley did not respond. The former planned to go home and find a stable job as an engineer, while the latter had saved enough money to live a carefree life for a year or two before returning to work when he ran out of money.

Raynor was initially unsure, unsure how to tell his parents. But soon, the words "revolution," "uprising," and "justice" came into play, and he realized that this was what he truly wanted to do.

The other platoons were more hesitant. Of the thirty-two men, including the second and third platoon leaders, fewer than ten were willing to leave the army and the place that had given them honor.

Nevertheless, Augustus was still quite satisfied.

Those who are willing to follow Augustus now will undoubtedly become his first batch of direct officers.

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