"Ah!"
The young woman cried out and fell into his lap.
"Sir..."
Ito Yūgorō's age-spotted hand slipped inside her kimono, drawing a muffled groan of pain from her.
"Hahaha!"
He took pleasure in it. With his other hand, he accepted the tablet his assistant handed him.
On the screen was a live feed tracking public opinion online.
The entire internet seemed to be on his side.
On Dragon Kingdom's social media, self-styled voices of reason and influential pundits were whipping up the narrative.
Countless young people who had been taken in began questioning themselves and attacking Yue Xiaofei. Some even launched a petition to "apologize to Mr. Ito."
"Excellent!"
Ito Yūgorō watched his approval rating climb and let out a grating laugh.
"Heh, heh, heh. That little bastard in the mask must be panicking by now."
"He thinks he can take me on? He's far too green!"
"Once we reach the Memorial Hall, I'll show him what true despair means!"
He shoved the young woman off his lap, straightened his collar, and practiced his "victim" expression in the rearview mirror again.
"Pass the word. When we get there, have the media set up their cameras."
"In this world, you don't need a knife to kill someone. Words are enough!"
"In front of the whole world, I'll use my 'death' to break Dragon Kingdom's backbone once and for all!"
"Even if I die, I'll drag the entire Dragon Kingdom down with me! Hahaha!"
The old man's deranged laughter echoed through the vehicle.
Modu, outside the Memorial Hall.
This place had once been a slaughterhouse, a place countless martyrs had defended with their lives.
Thousands of people had gathered in the square outside.
But they had not come to honor the fallen.
They were "human rights defenders" stirred into a frenzy,