"—I agree."
When John admitted that he had once falsified some of the quotations' core ideas, Hawk was deeply shocked. But as soon as he recovered, he voiced his support.
On reflection, though, the admission made sense to him.
Of all those currently reading the Maslow Quotations, he had studied them most thoroughly, delved into them most deeply, and drawn countless insights from them.
He had long noticed that some ideas in the quotations felt forced. Their true purpose was to resist oppression, yet many passages upheld the emperor's authority.
The two were plainly at odds. It made no sense.
But if those passages were meant to draw less attention from the imperial family and the nobility, allowing the quotations to spread in secret while study groups discussed them and quietly passed on their true convictions, then everything that had seemed forced and unreasonable fell into place.
So when Officer John had secretly instructed Officer Wendy to compile the quotations, he had already considered all this?
How wise he was!
Having belatedly pieced it all together, Hawk felt his admiration for John soar. The look he gave him grew fervent.
Hawk's words brought the others back from their shock. Though they still found the revelation astonishing, they exchanged glances, considered it, and raised no objections. The decision to revise the quotations passed unanimously.
"I'm glad to have your understanding and support."
John was unsurprised by their approval. He had Wendy hand him the latest edition, skimmed through it, then found the most important passage and projected it above the round table with his magic.
A moment later, everyone saw the line he had adapted from Pavel's words back when he was with the Seventh Air Force—a line he had used to change the subject and stop Wendy from preaching ideas